Decision paralysis really hit me after my last completion, so I let SteamDB pick a random game from my library. Totally a tool I knew existed, not one I ever used. It landed on Anomaly Korea, a series I've never heard of despite, at time of writing, having a half dozen of these titles in my Steam library. Thanks, years of Humble Bundle and impulsive ****'s a spin on the tower defense genre, with you controlling the mobs that patrol through the tower's strike zones. Have to say- it's a new sleeper hit for me. Sure, there may not be in-depth strategy that can take place. Rather, your control exists in a small myriad of ways- controlling the path, controlling the order for your units, and purchasing or upgrading ****'s a small unit limit of only 6, with some missions easily done with half that many. The 'big brain' gameplay comes from the real time with pause function, allowing you to stop the flow and adjust the units' position in the line. Front line tank almost dead? Shove it to the back of the line. There's an ebb and flow here, constantly moving positions around, that is actually a real **** was a great day spent between taking work calls and grabbing a quick mission or two. This is bite-size gaming without a chunky story (there's an arcing narrative but it's bare bones at best) and easily digestible missions. The last level was a heck of a challenge though!
Requiem is a great game that left me completely full -- maybe too full. I enjoyed every single minute of the 15-hour run, but for the first time in the series I had no desire to jump back in after the credits rolled. It's not particularly challenging, and the unlocked difficulty feels gated behind in-game challenges, so there's little pulling you ****'ll need to suspend some disbelief -- the overarching narrative has serious plot creep, unresolved shadow villains, and some genuinely absurd character decisions. But on fun factor alone? 10/10. And maybe that's what matters most.
Quick, moody take on Baba Yaga lore wrapped in a frustrating bow-only combat system. Strong atmosphere and storytelling kept me interested, but clunky fights and accessibility issues wore me down fast. Worth a look for the narrative, but I did not enjoy actually playing it.
Classic (noun): A work that is judged over time to be of the highest quality and lasting significance.There are at least another half dozen words that sum up Chrono Trigger for me. Timeless, iconic, influential, masterpiece, but ultimately I arrived at Classic. This is a game that I've played front to back six times over the span of two and a half decades. It's the literal definition of soul food gaming to me. Something familiar that warms the spirit and provides joy with each new **** paper, it's more of a simple JRPG than other titles. The run time is shorter, the battles are quicker, the character growth is narrower, the story is bite-sized but epic in scale. It's a perfectly portioned adventure, with just the right amount of non-linear exploration offered at the end to offset the perfect balance of linearity throughout the main **** its time, the characters have massive arcs, and I love each of them for their flaws just as much as their strengths. I would even say that few games today give each main party member an equal amount of time to shine, and that's one of my pet peeves with new titles. I hate background characters when they are in the player party - I want them fully realized, fully understood, and to grow with me as we journey through the world together. These characters do.Music defines JRPG experiences for me in equal parts with the story, characters, and the combat. CT does not disappoint in any fashion, instead featuring some of the most memorable tunes, some of the most sampled and remixed tracks of all time. From the opening intro track, featuring the ticking clock of time building to a crescendo of piano and strings that ends with a flourish, all in 33 seconds. Masterpiece from Mitsuda. I would argue that the final boss theme is one of the greatest of all time, at least standing tall with One-Winged Angel, Dancing Mad, and Weight of the World.I cannot recommend this one enough to all fans of the video game medium in general. This is a title that transcends genre to me, one that should be played by all.
Wayfinder feels like a game that had to pivot mid-development and never fully recovered. What started as one thing ended up as a compromised version of another, and while there is some enjoyment to be found, it never quite feels complete. Character progression happens far too quickly, with limited customization and rigid kits that make most characters feel solved early on. I hit max level well before the end of the campaign, and while swapping characters is an option, it did little to keep the gameplay engaging. The core loop of expeditions, hunts, and fetch quests feels dated, and the lack of depth makes repetition set in fast.There are some bright spots, including a few smart boss mechanics and a generally serviceable combat system, but they are weighed down by performance issues, constant stuttering, and effect-heavy encounters that frustrate more than challenge. Endgame content quickly becomes a grind of the same dungeons with modifier spam, and the experience rarely justifies sticking around. Unless you are desperate for another ARPG after burning through better options, this is hard to recommend. If anything, it only reinforced how much stronger Airship Syndicate's Battle Chasers: Nightwar remains.
Grandia 2 feels both familiar and very different from Grandia 1. The systems are refined, the adventure is more linear, and while the cast is a stark contrast, the variety works in its favor. Grandia 1 was the better journey, but Grandia 2 is arguably the better overall **** story is intentionally darker, though a bit cliche, and Ryudo never grows the way Justin did. Combat is a major highlight, with tighter canceling, improved magic, and enjoyable boss fights built around multi-part enemies. Spell effects drag battles out longer than needed, and the music is largely forgettable, with an especially grating dungeon **** Steam remaster is rough and hard to recommend; the Dreamcast version is the way to go. Despite its flaws, Grandia 2 is a solid follow-up that deserves a better modern release.
As someone who hated High on Life, I was surprised to find Destroy All Humans genuinely amusing at times. The humor is crude and tongue-in-cheek, and while Crypto's Jack Nicholson impression wears thin quickly, the satire around Cold War paranoia and human ignorance still lands more often than not.Despite the title, there is a surprising amount of stealth, which works well thanks to body-snatching mechanics, but the game struggles when it leans fully into destruction. Combat becomes shallow, especially during boss fights with bloated health pools. Short, nostalgic, and fun in bursts, it is an easy sub-10-hour romp that feels more like a time capsule than a standout remake.
Assassin’s Creed: Bloodlines is the series’ first genuinely good middle ground after some extreme highs and lows. It feels like what Assassin’s Creed 1 could have been, offering a smoother story that adds context to Altaïr’s post-AC1 journey without being deeply tied to the wider mythos. Bite-sized and clearly designed for portable play, it’s safe, skippable, but ultimately a fun and solid buffer between Assassin’s Creed II and Brotherhood.
Dark Cloud is a game I had been curious about for decades, but finally playing it now really highlights how much of a product of its time it is. Antiquated systems like limited inventory and weapon durability add constant friction, and the overall experience feels closer to a late PS1 title than a true PS2 showcase. While the dungeon crawl and town-building loop is interesting at first, it quickly becomes repetitive, with uninspired environments, recycled enemies, and little reason to engage with most of the cast. I can see how this laid groundwork for Level-5s later successes, but playing it today was more of a historical curiosity than an enjoyable JRPG.
Can a developer successfully execute a generational leap in quality for a game series in only two years, nearly to the day? It is reported that it took roughly four years to make Assassin's Creed 1, but only two years for the sequel. That feels rare, especially on the same generation of hardware. After absolutely despising AC1 (and Altair's Chronicles), I have to say that AC2 is a gem that more than makes up for the frustration of those earlier games. I finally understand why the series has such passionate fans and why this entry is so revered.Playing the PC version, not the upgraded Ezio Trilogy variant, the game still looks and runs worlds better than AC1. At times I genuinely thought it might be a PS4 generation title, which probably says more about how muddled AC1 looked than how technically impressive AC2 actually is. The viewpoints give a real sense of scale to the cities, making them feel far larger and more believable. Honestly, all three major cities from AC1 could probably fit inside Florence here and still have room left over. NPC density also feels noticeably higher, something we rarely see even in modern games. That said, facial models and animations are still pretty rough outside of a handful of characters, including some distracting eye flickering that feels more at home in a horror game.Combat starts off feeling fresh and more refined. Enemies work together instead of politely waiting their turn, which is a big improvement over AC1. The first game's combat loop was painfully dull, with overpowered counters doing all the work. AC2 places more emphasis on smart use of dodges, counters, and grabs, but the system does start to wear thin sooner than I would have liked. Ezio gains a few new tools, though most of them did not leave much of an impression beyond smoke bombs for chain assassinations and the dual blade double kills, which I relied on heavily.Movement and traversal are improved dramatically. Ezio feels less like a stiff assassin and more like a full-on acrobat. If Altair was impressive, Ezio feels like someone who could have been performing in a circus if his life had gone another direction. The parkour is not perfect, but it is far less frustrating. The added stickiness to jumps and vaults helps smooth out movement, especially in a fully 3D space where AC1 often felt awkward and imprecise. Despite the lack of modern visual cues, I rarely struggled to understand where I could climb or **** narrative also takes a sharp turn for the better. Ezio feels embedded in a living world, interacting with characters who have their own histories and motivations. Ubisoft does a great job blending historical fact with fiction, weaving Ezio's story into the larger conflict between Assassins and Templars. While some dislike the split between Ezio and Desmond, I have enjoyed how the modern-day storyline complements the historical one so far. AC2 features less Desmond overall, but I am hopeful the present-day narrative continues to grow alongside the past.There is a light layer of player choice through upgrades, both in the village economy and in weapons and armor. The weapon variety is solid, though I ultimately just picked the strongest options available. Armor choices are more limited, with only a few sets to choose from, which feels like an area the series will naturally expand in later **** standout highlight for me is the assassin tombs scattered throughout the world. They test Ezio's acrobatic abilities in creative ways, with each tomb offering its own style of challenge. Some are focused purely on parkour, while others emphasize stealth and combat. The reward is meaningful, unlocking the best gear in the game, and it fits well within the lore. They strike a great balance between challenge and fun, and can be tackled at the player's own **** biggest complaint is the included DLC content that bridges sequences 12 and 14. While the added story fits into the overall narrative, the gameplay focus shifts heavily toward back-to-back assassination missions in the style of AC1. I noticed during my playthrough how few of those missions existed in the main game, and the DLC overcorrects by offering nine in a row. That was a bit of a letdown, as I prefer variety, and if I wanted purely target-focused missions I would rather play something like Hitman. Still, it shows Ubisoft recognized this mission style and was experimenting with it.Overall, AC2 is a massive step forward and a clear course correction for the series. After the disappointment of the first game, this finally feels like the foundation of what Assassin's Creed would become. Up next is Assassin's Creed Bloodlines, apparently another handheld stumble, but Ezio's story clearly continues to shine beyond that.
Of the half dozen Tales games I have played and beaten, I have to place Graces near the bottom so far. Combat in Graces is often highlighted as amazing and a standout in the series, but it never really clicked for me. It starts rough with limited CC, and even as that builds up it quickly becomes a back and forth between all-out blitz attacking and guarding to regain CC. I did appreciate the increased focus on dodging, especially since successful dodges can award CC, but it was not enough for me to say I had more fun here than in something like **** story does it no favors either. It is a slog at best, with an oddly small-feeling world and a lot of backtracking through the opening arcs. Just when the world finally starts to expand and the story feels like it is opening up, it crashes back down into familiar Tales territory. I generally enjoy the tropes and cliches the series is known for, but Graces felt like it was heading somewhere different before snapping back, and the transition felt abrupt and unsatisfying.From a musical standpoint, this is easily one of the weakest entries. The opening lyrical theme and the motifs built around it are nice, but outside of a couple of tracks the soundtrack is forgettable at best and distractingly annoying at worst. Soundtracks are a core part of the JRPG experience, especially in a genre where you hear the same tracks loop constantly. Sadly, Motoi Sakuraba really missed the mark with this one.Overall, I would not call Tales of Graces bad, but it is aggressively average. There are good ideas and some enjoyable characters, and I can understand why certain fans hold it in high regard, but it never came together for me. I was not disappointed when it ended, just ready for it to be over, which probably says it all.
Immortals Fenyx Rising was unfairly dismissed at launch as a Breath of the Wild clone, and that reputation does it no favors. While it clearly takes inspiration from Nintendo’s open-world design, it addresses some of BOTW’s most divisive elements rather than copying them wholesale.I did not enjoy Breath of the Wild, largely due to its survival-style systems and constant weapon degradation. Fenyx avoids that problem by focusing on permanent gear and player skill progression, which immediately made the experience more enjoyable for me. The character progression is one of the game’s strongest elements, starting you off weak and steadily making you feel powerful by the end without removing all **** open world is admittedly sparse and visually washed out at times, lacking a sense of population or environmental depth. That said, performance is excellent and consistent, even on lower-powered hardware like the Steam Deck. There is a large amount of optional content, including puzzles, traversal challenges, combat encounters, and short dungeon-style trials. None of it feels mandatory, which helps avoid burnout.Combat is solid if unspectacular. It works best in smaller encounters and becomes chaotic against large groups, but the available abilities give you enough flexibility to manage most situations. Weapon proficiency progression instead of weapon leveling is a smart design choice and fits the game’s power fantasy **** narrative is lighthearted and carried largely by Zeus and Prometheus as narrators. While not profound, their banter adds charm and helps the story land more effectively by the end. The humor worked for me more often than not.Overall, Immortals Fenyx Rising is a surprisingly enjoyable action RPG that deserved more credit than it received. While the world itself can feel underdeveloped, the progression systems, puzzle design, and overall pacing made for a fun 30-hour experience. The base game stands well on its own, even if the DLC is best skipped.
Ni No Kuni II takes some bold swings away from the original, both narratively and mechanically, and for the most part they work. The Studio Ghibli-inspired presentation remains gorgeous, making exploration consistently enjoyable. The chibi world map characters are charming, and the full-sized models in combat look **** biggest change is combat, shifting from turn-based monster parties to an action RPG system. While functional, this is where the game stumbles a bit. Action RPGs live or die by depth and difficulty balance, and Ni No Kuni II plays it very safe. It grows on you over time, but it is easy enough that I rarely felt the need to experiment beyond my starting skills.There is no shortage of systems here: story progression, base building, skirmishes, monster hunting, and a mountain of side quests. Many of those side quests feel like old-school MMO fetch tasks, but I still found them oddly enjoyable. Base building and crafting are satisfying, though the main story often moves so quickly that you skip entire tiers of weapons and armor. For a single-player RPG, that did not bother me **** Hisaishi’s soundtrack is excellent. The main theme and battle music are memorable, and the variety of styles, especially the machine city’s techno-inspired track, works surprisingly well. It is a soundtrack I will happily revisit.Evan and Roland work well as dual leads, and I enjoyed the conclusion of their arcs. Unfortunately, many party members suffer from the usual JRPG problem of getting a brief spotlight before fading into the background. I have heard the DLC addresses this, but also that it can be a grind, so I chose to skip it.Overall, Ni No Kuni II is a charming, content-rich JRPG that sometimes spreads itself a little too thin. It may not reach the emotional highs of the first game, but it offers a pleasant, colorful adventure that is easy to sink dozens of hours into if you enjoy checklists, side content, and a relaxed take on the action RPG formula.
This year’s Steam sale made Assassin’s Creed catch my eye in a big way — big enough that I grabbed the mega bundle. Honestly, I think it’s a solid deal. Thirteen games, each probably around 15 hours or more, for just over a hundred bucks is hard to beat. And I don’t hate Ubisoft. I don’t hate their formulaic games. Star Wars Outlaws was actually fun. I don’t expect groundbreaking, just **** imagine how sad I am, starting my Assassin journey with the original and being utterly disappointed. This game, simply, ****. I’m usually a glass-half-full person, always trying to find positives, but I really cannot find any for AC1. Maybe it’s a “you had to be there” sort of game, but even then… I ****’s **** combat is a poor excuse for combat. About halfway through you realize how strong the counters are — both yours and the enemies’ — and everything turns into this awkward turn-based-feeling standoff that exposes how unrealistic the AI is. You stand there 1v5, everyone with swords drawn, and nobody does anything. They stare at you, you stare at them, and whoever blinks first dies. And for a game that sells stealth tactics, it forces a lot of straight-up fighting. The last stretch is just wave after wave of large enemy ****’s exhausting.Exploration involves way too much backtracking. It’s not even the towers that bothered me, but the investigations themselves. Eavesdropping, pickpocketing, collecting flags, killing some Crusaders, and the worst: stealth-killing archers. These archers have wallhacks. They instantly spot you, instantly flag you, and fail the mission, forcing you to reset aggro and go find the quest-giver ****’s exhausting.Narratively, I think there is something here beneath the surface, something that probably leads to better stories in future entries. But AC1 delivers it so blandly. Templars bad, Assassins neutral, Desmond miserable. Late-game buildup ends faster than a car going off a cliff. Imagine if the series stopped with this one. Yikes.Ultimately AC1 reminds me of Far Cry 1 — not at all indicative of where the series goes, more like an exploratory prototype where the devs threw everything at the wall to see what sticks. Time will tell as I keep going.Next up is the Nintendo DS title, Altair’s Chronicles. It has even worse reviews than AC1. Oh boy…
Threads of Fate is an interesting late-1990s JRPG that escaped my notice for decades. Featuring dual protagonists with their own stories and areas to explore, it sets itself up as a kitschy and cute escapade, but falls short of anything excellent. I picked Rue’s route, and honestly, I’m glad I did. Mint is a spoiled, petulant child — literally — and seems like a character I would’ve despised as my protag. Rue is soft-spoken, but I really enjoyed his arc; his growth is heartfelt and genuinely well **** much of the rest of the story falls short. There’s a handful of decently written characters, but most fall into that 90s, Working Designs-esque trope zone — unrealistic, unfunny, and often more grating than charming. Thankfully none of it is voice-acted, because I would’ve been cringing if anyone overheard some of the random junk they say.Combat is jank. I hate using that word. It’s still jank. A 3D world with fixed camera angles sounds great, and honestly, in towns and while exploring, it kind of is. It presents the world exactly as the devs intended while still keeping that PSX 3D vibe. But in combat? It becomes a challenge, because you also get that era’s tight field of view (likely for performance reasons), so you often can’t even see what you’re fighting.Then you have enemies that slide in and out of the side-scrolling space. You, thanks to the fixed camera, have almost no tools to match their motion. At one point in Rue’s route, the game throws a duo fight at you — one enemy on your plane, one drifting in and out — and holy hell, it’s frustrating. And because the character has some kind of built-in “lock-in” behavior, you’re constantly swinging at the enemy you aren’t trying to hit.Music is okay, visuals are okay. Because this released near the end of the PSX lifecycle, I expected more. I appreciate the love given to the handful of things that do have quality, but for the most part this is one I probably would’ve put down if it hadn’t only been about eight hours ****, and the forced minigames… Threads of Fate walked so FF7 Rebirth could run.
Wanted to enjoy this more, but the duology aspect I think actually hurts the title. A bit too much slog to pad out the title to justify a true part1/part2 versus others that have done it correct. (Story pacing wise, this is no Trails **** it does offer lots of grinding and lots of unlockables. I appreciate that in my JRPGs. Perfect for second screen gaming, with narrative breaks at start and end of dungeons and plenty of exploring and fighting in between.Looking forward to playing DDS2, just might be after a break.
Dang, I wanted to like Biomutant way more than I ended up. I love a good post-apocalyptic tale featuring furry little creatures running amok, causing chaos in tribal warfare, and just being nefarious in general. Sadly, Biomutant gets in its own way more often than two head chefs in one kitchen. From the long-winded dialogue about nothing (all excellently voice acted by one person), to the quickly one-note combat with thick, tanky health pools toward the end, to an interesting loot and crafting system that gets bogged down by a lack of truly unique **** in all, it’s nowhere near a horrible time — there are fun moments to be found and certainly some pretty sights. Even for UE4, it’s a good-looking game at times. Seeing the sunrise over a vibrant, verdant cliffside, with color schemes reminiscent of Far Cry New Dawn (those overblown, bright hues might be one of my favorite visual tones in all of gaming) is always enjoyable to me. It’s easy to get lost in, to just enjoy the ride.Ultimately, I think that’s what Biomutant offers. If you love checklists, if you love second-screen gaming (hello Steam Deck and baseball playoffs!), this might be a game for you. Just heavily temper your expectations — there’s still fun to be found in a 6 out of 10 game, in my opinion.
Cosmic horror on a local scale, The Chant is a short and slightly disturbing narrative-focused game with actual combat and crafting. This isn't a walking simulator, which I really appreciate. The genre isn't one I'm super familiar with, but this feels like a solid mix of gameplay and story. I just wish it went harder with its use of color and surreal vibrancy - the kind of thing you expect when you hear cosmic horror.I really did enjoy battling my way through the demon horde. The main character isn't Kratos, isn't Chris Redfield - she's someone who just showed up for a yoga retreat! Her ability in combat matches that premise, and it makes sense. The devs did a great job giving you just enough resources and abilities to (albeit clunkily) fight your way through. It's not the strong part of the game, but it's far better than giving the player nothing at all.Good voice acting and a fast-paced narrative had me enjoy my 7 hours in this 7/10 **** the DLC on the other hand...
Grandia is a grand adventure with a perfect coming-of-age tale mixed with world-saving heroism. The narrative moves quickly, blending snappy comedy with genuine character growth, and I loved every minute of it. The only sour note was a lackluster remaster. You'll likely fall in love with the cast, and find plenty of laughs along the way (especially when the voice acting kicks in - it's exactly what you'd expect from 1997).Combat is fantastic: a push-and-pull system where you and your enemies trade blows and interrupt each other's actions. Everything flows on a timeline at the bottom of the screen, with each skill or spell taking different amounts of time to cast. This leaves you - and your enemies - vulnerable to having actions delayed or canceled outright. It's genius, and it works exactly as advertised. Canceling a boss's big attack right before it lands never stops being satisfying.Character growth comes in two flavors: traditional levels gained through battle exp, and skill/magic levels gained through use. Every weapon type and magic element has its own level, unlocking new abilities and stat boosts as you progress. Savvy players can rotate between weapons and spells to power up quickly, but the game is balanced enough that you can stick to a single type and still make it through fine. It's a clever system that makes experimentation rewarding without punishing you if you don't.Visuals can be jarring at first. The 3D battlefields are blocky and choppy, with the camera constantly zooming and panning in classic PS1 style. It feels rough at first, but it grows on you, and eventually I stopped noticing. Exploration can be trickier - the isometric angle is too steep, so you're constantly rotating the camera to peek behind walls and obstacles. It's very “of its time,” but understandable given the hardware sacrifices devs had to make to keep framerate up.Translation was better than I expected. Halfway through I had to look it up, because I honestly thought Working Designs was involved. But nope - Ubisoft handled the English script. It's straightforward, no cheesy Austin Powers quotes or wink-at-the-camera lines like WD was famous for in Lunar. A fully realized and solid piece of **** soundtrack is excellent. Iwadare really went for it - big guitars and crashing cymbals on some tracks, cozy and memorable village tunes on others. Some of the best work I've heard from them yet.Overall, Grandia gives me big Golden Sun vibes - focused, interesting combat and character growth, paired with a fast-paced story that evolves from a simple afternoon adventure into something far more serious. I'm looking forward to diving into the series more, especially since I hear Grandia II is the powerhouse sequel.Note on the remaster: it's barebones. Basically an emulated version with a smoothing filter slapped on. Same framerate, same limitations. For example, item descriptions are still painfully short - “EXP Pendant” sounds like an XP boost, but no, it's an Explosive Pendant that reduces damage from explosions. Stuff like that really should've been addressed. On top of that, the PC version is a bear to get running on Steam Deck. Honestly, you might be better off playing the PS1 version.
Tales of Berseria is a weird one for me. On paper, it should have worked - the combat feels immediately better than Zestiria, the presentation is sharper, and the tone is darker. But the deeper I went, the less I wanted to keep playing. By the end, I knew this wasn't a Tales entry I'd be coming back to. Combat first. I like parts of what Berseria does. It feels smoother than Zestiria, more direct, less clunky. But the system also takes a step back in its own way. Combos are now built in a menu, and once you find a set that flows well - a handful of artes that combo smoothly with a high chance of stun - that's basically your kit for the rest of the game. For 99% of encounters, you can ignore monster types, weaknesses, or even most of your arsenal. You just execute the same string over and over. It feels fine in the moment, but after the first 20 hours, the repetition sets in *hard*. There's no long-term reward for engaging with the depth. Maybe that's on me - I've always played Tales games by sticking with the main character in battle instead of rotating around - but either way, the spark wore off. And then there's Velvet. From everything I've read, she's a love-it-or-hate-it lead, and I fall firmly into the latter camp. She's one note from beginning to end: unwilling to bend, unwilling to question her values, unwilling to even pause in her relentless, singularly focused goal. I found her grating in every scene, and the more the game leaned on her, the more I checked out. Yuri, Alphen, Lloyd - all characters I enjoyed for their balance of flaws and humanity. Velvet, though, is the only Tales protagonist I've actively disliked, and by a wide margin. I know I'm in the minority here - a lot of people call Berseria one of the series' high points. But for me, I'll replay Zestiria again and again before I ever dive back into Berseria. It's not a bad game, but it's not one that left me with much joy, either.
Surprise hit of the year for me. Flintlock has rough edges, but the combat is frantic, fun, and full of options — melee, guns, magic, even a fox companion. Short, smartly designed, and a great bridge between soulslikes and action-adventure. Solid 8/10.
If I had a nickel for every time a game caused me to stop mid-run and go read a book, I would have exactly 1 nickel. But Call of Cthulhu had me closing down the game at about chapter 6, grabbing my Kindle, and enjoying HP Lovecraft's short story with the same name. It just felt... right? I have known what the aesthetic of Lovecraft stands for, but never had a chance to dive into the actual work. It left a mark on me, with feelings of unease as well as wanting more.Booting the game back up, it all made more sense, it was all clicking back into place a bit. This is not a retelling of the story, but a version of it that I feel stays true to the vision. It is about horror on a grand scale, about the unknown, and about feeling uneasy, unsure of yourself, and unsure of what is real and false.Narrative is a solid 10/10. It hits the notes it needs to, the characters are great, the pacing is perfect.Voice acting is... rough. The main character, I can only imagine, was given a note to read all his lines in a William Shatner style:"There is..... something on the wing.... some.......... THING!"Not sure why, as it was not needed. The rest of the cast is okay, but there are some real audio mixing issues. Sometimes, mid-conversation, the voice volume shifts, causing the player to reach for the controller to turn it up, only to be blasted in the next scene. Odd.Graphically, this one launched really odd. I know 2018 was not that long ago (wow, ok 7 years? really? feel old now...?), but on launching this on PC it looked like a 2008 game, and that is being generous. Some Google searching and trial and error later, I had it fixed (for some reason it was not applying resolution correctly, bringing the smallest resolution available up to 4K, and it looked like a blurry nightmare). Once fixed, the graphics went from 2008 up to... 2013! There is nothing beautiful here, save for the final level. You are looking at ugly textures, both in the world and in characters.Gameplay is not the point of a narrative-focused journey, but Call of Cthulhu still delivers just fine. There is little to no action, but thankfully little to no stealth either. I really dislike when narrative games focus on stealth, I really dislike just hiding from enemies with no agency to deal with them, so I appreciated a better flow here. There is some barebones skill tree, mixed with a handful of collectibles. The later half of the game shines from a gameplay perspective, with some terrifyingly disturbing levels that left me with that deep unease feeling.Really solid discount game. Glad I picked it up randomly, and ended up adding more HP Lovecraft to my TBR list.
The combination of Witcher-style storytelling, with little to no moral guidelines for player choice, paired with AAA action-inspired combat like God of War, sounds like a slam dunk. These are games that defined a genre and were often imitated, but this is the first time I have seen a dev try to merge both. And they came really close to greatness, but there are some real issues holding it back for me. I would not say I hated my almost 40 hours with my two new favorite Banishers, but it did not give me the same visceral reaction I had with Witcher or God of War.Slight spoilers ahead, mostly from the opening hours. The narrative sets up the overall plot pretty quickly, so if you want to go in blind, skip the rest and just know this is a game you might or might not click with depending on what matters most to you.CombatHonestly, it is bland, and it should not be. Switching between the two Banishers, each with their own health system (one HP, one Spirit), is a cool idea and leaves room for combos. You can execute a series of attacks, swap, and land a bonus strike. It is clean, efficient, and looks good, but ultimately feels unnecessary. Ninety-nine percent of encounters can be handled without these combos, since the extra damage is not worth tanking a hit just to trigger the third strike.Your spirit partner gets cooldown-based spells, which become so strong they basically define combat. So the loop ends up being: punch stuff until the cooldowns are ready, then unleash the spells, repeat. Visually the combat has flair, but the connection between player input and satisfaction just is not there. Do most people eventually get tired of Kratos doing cinematic finishers? Probably, but it is still satisfying. This does not hit the same **** RPG elements are light. Props to the devs for making respecs easy—you can swap points in and out at will. There are a few different skill trees, each with branching paths where you pick one skill or another. The problem is not all skills are worth getting, and some choices do not feel meaningful. It does not lead to smart builds, just "grab the stuff that works." Gear and itemization follow the same trend. You pick flowers, loot monsters, upgrade equipment. There are about 90 pieces of gear, maybe 20 worth keeping. Unless you love the game enough to replay it, you will probably find one build you like and stick with it, so new gear stops being exciting pretty fast.Enemy variety is rough. You fight ghosts, corpses, miners, wolves, and a couple bosses that eventually get recycled into regular enemies. That is about it. Maybe four or five core enemy types with reskins. You will get tired of them really quick.NarrativeBanishers opens with a really strong hook, but it falls off. I will not spoil too much, but here is where it lost me: every haunting case gives you a choice, but that choice is already locked in by the oath you make with your partner early in the game. The game tells you it is important and will shape how you handle cases, but also says you are free to do as you wish. It is circular logic that does not work. To make things worse, the game straight up tells you which ending your choices are contributing to and even warns you to "pick this option as often as possible" if you want that **** Witcher 3 nailed this because its quests tied morally gray choices to equally gray consequences. You were not playing a good or evil run, you were making decisions that mattered in the moment. Here, half the time I picked an option for the sake of my desired ending, not because it felt right. More than once I caught myself thinking "why did I just do that?" or "why did the game make me do that?"This is supposed to be player-driven entertainment, and I get that they tried to give freedom, but the execution feels disingenuous. Even midway through when the game asks if you want to confirm your oath, I had no idea if that erased past choices or not. My guess is no, which again makes it feel pointless.Other stuffThe game runs on Unreal Engine 5. Performance varies depending on your setup. It was playable on Steam Deck, but not great. Music exists, but I cannot recall a single track. There is a lot to do—hidden treasure chests, wave-based monster portals, 15 or so haunting cases—but the drive is not there. You are not hunting for exciting new gear, you are just farming upgrade mats to keep buffing the sword you started with.Your mileage will vary. I am glad I got it in a Humble Bundle and did not pay full price. By the time the flaws became clear, I would have been well past the 2-hour Steam refund window.
Battlefield 2042 in 2025 is, from what I understand, a nearly completely different game than it was at launch. That said, all I really have to go off is playing it since the start of this year, and honestly, I’ve had a blast. BF2042 hits exactly what I’m looking for in a PvP team-based shooter. I’ve never been a fan of vehicles, and I feel like this Battlefield has some really great maps that don’t rely on them, or at least not to the same extent as other entries. It’s a good blend of up-close CoD-style combat with some larger areas mixed in.
I’m really looking forward to what BF6 is going to offer, but I can say I more often enjoyed my time in 2042 than I loathed it. But god, some of these maps, man…
Do not judge a book by its cover. We are taught that at a young age, right? But we do. We are human. So when the trailers for Dungeons of Hinterberg dropped, I was not impressed. I was interested in the idea of a mix between Zelda-style dungeons and Persona-style social links, but the art style and character design really turned me off. So much so that I was pretty sure there was no way I would play this one, ever.Then Humble Bundle included it in a monthly batch, and I tried it. I quickly realized how silly I was for ignoring it.Sure, the character design never got much better in my eyes. Everyone looks like they have been a pro boxer for years, and their noses took the brunt of the damage. But the art style absolutely did improve for me, and it really grew on me. The “hatching” effect over everything gives it a modern yet retro feel that I have not seen done elsewhere. It is pretty, full of bright colors, and each of the four zones and their respective dungeons has charm.Dungeons, for me, are where the game shined the most. Each has a theme matching the specific magic you obtain in that zone. Nearly every one of the 25 total dungeons had something that tripped me up, but nothing overly challenging that required looking up the puzzle answers. I loved those “ah ha!” moments. There are clever uses of different camera types, such as a few isometric dungeons or a few side-scrolling ones. The bosses were great too; I just wish there were more. Enemy design beyond bosses was only okay—not enough variety, and not much fun to fight.I think the social link side of the game was its weaker aspect, as this is where the devs lost balance in the content. You will easily clear all the dungeons well before you max even a third of your social links. You have to actively grind more relationships if you want to, which I think is odd—especially because the combat and dungeons were not hard enough to warrant replaying. Most players will likely end up in the same situation. Some social links were great, some were okay, and some were boring. Without the big narrative focus of Persona or Metaphor, it is harder to feel connected to the side **** overall narrative was good, and it did inspire some thoughts. I love the idea of the main character trying to truly disconnect from reality, to go on a real vacation and not worry. There is a part where they mention how nice it is just to sit outside for an afternoon, and how in their normal life they feel like they always have to be doing tangible things and making progress to feel fulfilled. I relate to this a lot, and it inspired me to find ways to relax more often and just be in the moment.Overall, a good game—held back from being great by the tried and true saying: less really is more.
Tales games have a certain charm you can expect from each title, and it makes them a really enjoyable playthrough. Zestiria is no different. I think the combat is refreshing compared to other titles, and I really enjoyed battle resources refreshing after each fight. It allows the player to go all out, unleashing expensive combos without worrying about the next encounter. It’s swift and executed **** bromance between Sorey and Mikleo is one of my favorites in JRPG history. I totally see why the pair is so often mentioned in AO3 stories and discussions. I loved their banter and could not get enough of them. Growing up, I had one really good friend, one I’d call a best friend, and we would bicker and joke back and forth just like these two. Love them.Overall, a pretty fun experience with some hiccups along the way. Enemy difficulty is on a pretty extreme curve, but luckily you can adjust game difficulty on the fly as needed to provide the best experience. The use of elements and enemy types tied to individual artes is really smart and well done, mostly because you are given the info right away and can adjust in battle to suit your needs. Partnered with your Water ally, but the enemy is weak to Fire? Quick swap and you are set. Fighting a dragon type? Look through your artes quickly to see which will inflict bonus damage. I love systems that let you adjust in battle and don’t only reward being prepared. Trial and error beats try and then try **** world is a bit bland, likely due to huge open areas and tight corridor dungeons. There isn’t enough to really explore in the large open areas, and the dungeons are so copy-paste that you will be tired of them before the first third of the game. The elemental temple dungeons are a standout, as always in Tales games, though the Water dungeon is one of the worst. The music in these dungeons carries all four.Itemization was not something I was a fan of. It reminds me of FFX, where weapons and armor have skills that increase your battle strength, but unlike FFX, they also have stats. You can combine items with the same name and see the skills merge and modify, which, while allowing for some deep customization, felt overwhelming for the entirety of the game to me. The bonus skills on weapons and armor can combine and power up based on their alignment on a **** is just too much for the average gamer. It makes total sense for endgame customization, but I pretty much cruised through the game using “better stats = better item” rather than in-depth tinkering.Still, I’m glad I dipped into this one. On to Berseria next!
Highly recommend watching the movie before playing this game, as there is something so campy about 80s movies like RoboCop, even if they weren’t intended to be that way. I fully believe the film was a serious take on a sci-fi future, seen through the lens of late-century filmmakers. The result, watching it in 2025, is hilarious. The film is full of one-liners and hilarious **** it’s no surprise that, decades later, RoboCop: Rogue City follows that script and enhances it even further. The game takes a 2-hour film (I know there are sequels to the first movie, but haven’t seen them, so not sure how they would add to the overall lore) and expands on it, taking the player on a 15–20 hour adventure through a—sadly—all-too-familiar, downtrodden Detroit. There’s comedy, there’s over-the-top violence (at least an attempt at it; our palette for violence in the 2020s is certainly way more than it would have been in the 1980s), and also attempts at speaking to social-climate perspectives, still true to this day.Gotta say, it was a lot of fun to play. The gameplay is good, with responsive combat and that slight RPG element we expect in games nowadays, complete with side quests to earn EXP to unlock abilities. Even with a modern-day system, it does still harken back to titles of old, and I appreciate that. This is a narrative-driven first-person shooter and makes no apologies for it.Graphically, it’s a bit muddy—but honestly, even that fits. On modern systems it still doesn’t hit the graphical fidelity of similar titles released around that time, but that never really bothered my eyes. Locations are gritty and run-down, giving the appearance of an actual lived-in world, not a pristine utopia we often see. It’s dirty, and the graphics match.Some nitpicks that maybe the sequel will address: Don’t bother giving us side weapons (machine guns, rifles, rocket launchers, etc.) if the Auto 9 (RoboCop’s iconic pistol with burst fire and eventually an unlimited clip) receives the most upgrades through the journey and ends up being the only gun you need. Hoping to see less variety on additional weaponry but more usefulness out of each. Less reused areas. We go to Old Detroit three times, the police station three times, etc., but there’s little to explore on each subsequent trip. Writing tickets for parking in front of a hydrant or for someone littering was tongue-in-cheek funny the first time, boring the second time, and annoying the third. Hoping to see more variety in activities.
Interesting narrative, but the gameplay sours and turns pretty bland, full of one-note combat and exploration. Historical period pieces like this might hit harder if you're familiar with the era's history, which I am certainly not.
But hey, it does feature Ra-Ra-Rasputin, lover of the Russian scene, so there's that.
Fun weekend walking simulator with some thought-provoking narrative, but I felt held back by unclear choices that led to equally unclear results. The detective work was fun—I loved the different tools they give you—but the narrative is mostly on rails, aside from a handful of key decisions that only affect which flavor of ending you get.
If you play this and find yourself confused, I’d recommend checking out Gaming Harry’s in-depth YouTube breakdown of the story. They do a bang-up job explaining some of the lesser-known or more confusing aspects of the plot.
Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age offers a fascinating combat system and a beautiful world, but its rigid job classes and underdeveloped enemy variety limit its potential. The Gambit system is a standout idea that never quite reaches its full promise. Despite strong visuals and a memorable finale, the experience feels like it needed more time in development. A solid re-release, but not a flawless one.
After spending over 150 hours with just the base game, Elder Scrolls Online impressed me as a surprisingly solid single-player Elder Scrolls experience wrapped in MMO form. The world is vast and alive, with richly detailed cities, tons of NPCs, and a great sense of exploration that captures the heart of the series. The Aldmeri Dominion storyline offered a compelling arc, and I appreciated the freedom to wander and uncover quests naturally. However, ESO struggles with alt-friendliness—core progression like skyshards and skills are locked to individual characters unless you pay real money, which adds up quickly. Combat feels floaty and lacks the satisfying feedback of mainline entries, and dungeon content often feels empty due to minimal challenge and zero player interaction. Still, with a fair subscription model (ESO+) and years of content to explore, ESO is a strong recommendation for Elder Scrolls fans looking for a chill, low-commitment return to Tamriel—just don’t expect tight MMO mechanics or alt-friendly design.
The Ancient Gods Part One is a brutally challenging expansion that takes DOOM Eternal’s “push forward combat” philosophy and cranks it to eleven. Dropping you in with a fully upgraded Slayer, it skips exploration and upgrades in favor of nonstop, skill-testing combat across three intense levels. Encounters are relentless—throwing multiple Marauders and new enemy variants at you in increasingly punishing combinations. While the core gameplay remains a blast, some of the new enemies, like turret demons and spirit-possessed mobs, force awkward playstyles that feel at odds with DOOM’s fluidity. Still, it’s a thrilling, bloody gauntlet for players who’ve mastered Eternal’s systems, and the story adds worthwhile depth to the Slayer’s saga.
The DOOM reboot continues where it left off in 2016—and Eternal goes even harder. It’s like the developers knew exactly how I felt. Where DOOM (2016) was all about run-and-gun, dip-and-weave action, Eternal cranks up the intensity with what the devs call “Push Forward Combat.” That philosophy shines through in every **** Slayer now commands a full arsenal—not just weapons, but blinks, double dashes, multiple grenade types, the greatest hookshot of all time, and nearly unlimited glory kills and brutal chainsaw executions. Every tool feels designed to keep you moving, thinking, and killing without pause.Replaying it on my updated PC after a few years away was like a breath of fresh, demon-scorched air. The visuals absolutely pop—from the gory, apocalyptic hellscapes on Earth to the surreal alien worlds you visit, this is one of the most visually striking and well-designed story-driven FPS games I’ve ever **** diving into the DLCs on such a high note, I’m reminded why DOOM Eternal stands tall as one of the genre’s all-time greats.
Ender Lilies is a visually striking Metroidvania with some promising ideas, but its execution left me frustrated more often than engaged. The vague, unhelpful map makes exploration a chore, upgrades feel underwhelming and unrewarding, and enemy placement discourages meaningful combat. The visual clutter—especially the overuse of red in both enemy and player attacks—makes it hard to read the action, turning many encounters into chaotic messes. While the spirit-based skill system is clever, it’s buried under layers of design choices that sap the joy from progression. I appreciate the multiple endings and wrapped up my playthrough in about eight hours, but overall, Ender Lilies failed to deliver the satisfying exploration and growth I expect from the genre.
Crashes less than my real life.
Made 10 spells, summoned a bear, stole a sweetroll, got arrested, and still had time to roleplay a wizard accountant.
10/10 would accidentally punch an NPC again.
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is a cinematic gem, delivering one of the best story-driven experiences in modern gaming, with superb acting, stunningly crafted environments, and an engaging narrative. However, as a game, it’s a mixed bag—combat is weak, AI is dull, and first-person stealth feels more frustrating than fun. While the exploration shines, encouraging natural discovery without relying on waypoints, the lack of challenge and poor gunplay hold it back. Despite this, the game captures the spirit of Indiana Jones perfectly, with Troy Baker delivering a phenomenal performance. It’s a must-play for fans of cinematic storytelling, though a third-person mode or gameplay refinements could have widened its appeal.
Wolfenstein II is a wild, disjointed ride. Parts of the story exaggerate the horror and depravity of the **** menace. It's rough and grim, made worse by the fact that it's based on a real, horrific history—not just some fictional evil empire crafted for the sake of a story. At times, it nearly goes too far for me, serving as a stark reminder of how close the world came to living through true **** on the other hand, Wolfenstein II goes full camp, full comedy—or at least it attempts to. I had the same issue with Youngblood: there's no rhyme or reason to the tonal shifts. The game lurches from one extreme to another, almost as if two different directors were working separately, trying (and failing) to craft a cohesive narrative. Sorry, but it just doesn’t work.There's an identity crisis in the gameplay as well. Levels feel short—like TikTok-generation short—often ending with a cutscene that lasts nearly as long as the level itself. Some areas are larger, but there’s little incentive to explore unless you're hunting down the scattered, largely pointless collectibles. The perk system returns, this time with multiple tiers that improve as you perform certain actions more often. Not a bad system, and I was actually glad to see it.Gunplay remains mostly the same—because, well, it is mostly the same. The biggest change is dual-wielding different types of guns simultaneously. A neat addition. BJ must have been practicing his reloads too, because they feel nearly twice as fast as in The New Order, making combat even more fast-paced. With these changes, I abandoned stealth entirely, opting instead to charge through levels with dual weapons, sprinting toward commanders as quickly as possible.There's more side content than ever before, but I was too bored to dig deep into it. The game constantly asks Blazkowicz: Want to revisit the same few levels over and over again? Nah, not really. Not even Venus (yeah, Venus) could make me excited about replaying the same pathways repeatedly.This concludes the MachineGames Wolfenstein arc—at least until the next title releases—and I’m disappointed with how it left me feeling. After The New Order and The Old Blood, I expected a powerhouse ****, but instead, I got one of the strangest FPS experiences I’ve played in a long time.
I'm a weird person.Playing older series in chronological order vs. release order is how my brain is trained. I feel passionately on a deep level that you need to experience the games as they occur in the world and timeline of the series, rather than in the order they were released to fans. This is often a very satisfying way to stay grounded in the lore and story. But sometimes, it’s not the best approach. I’d say playing New Order after Old Blood is an example of the **** Blood felt great on that latest replay, but after playing New Order, I see that OB was more akin to a DLC expansion than a true standalone game. NO clocks in at roughly 10 hours for an Über difficulty campaign run—double the time of OB, which took around 5 hours—but that’s only a surface-level difference. The real shift happens in the narrative, both in terms of characters and scope, as well as how BJ moves through different arcs of the **** of the things that hit me the most—and that I had forgotten—was how New Order has amazing NPCs, which isn’t something you typically associate with a single-player FPS campaign. Usually, we focus on the main protagonist and their struggles, watching them grow in power while their weapon arsenal turns into a military surplus joke. While New Order still follows BJ’s transformation over the years, it also brings the resistance against the **** regime into focus. We meet characters like Caroline, now paraplegic due to a gunshot to the head from Hans Grosse back in ’44 (yes, that Hans Grosse from Wolfenstein 2009), Anya, the nurse who saves BJ after he wakes from a coma, and several others in the Kreisau Circle resistance under Berlin.These characters are well-developed, adding a human touch to an otherwise bleak world. New Order doesn’t shy away from portraying the true evil of the **** regime in all its gore and sheer wickedness. There are scenes of torture, mass murder, and **** who revel in their sadistic ways. One particular scene still haunts me: four **** prison guards brutally beating a prisoner, with MachineGames emphasizing the horror by programming the scene to loop indefinitely—a never-ending cycle of torture. Brutal, but sadly, history shows us it’s all too accurate.Ultimately, this game is still about running and gunning, featuring many of the same mechanics seen in OB (and likely New Colossus). Missions offer a mix of straight-up shootouts and the choice to take out commanders stealthily to prevent reinforcements—or go full John Rambo. New Order felt harder than Old Blood, so I leaned even more into stealth this time. However, I did feel like the hitboxes were off at times, with some well-placed shots failing to register. Not game-breaking, but definitely frustrating when it led to an unfair **** slaying never gets old. On to Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus—I’ve got some unfinished business with a certain disgusting Frau Irene Engel.
Replaying Old Blood after struggling through Youngblood is truly a breath of fresh air in almost every way—except visually. The systems at play here, from a game released four years prior, are simply superior, making me wonder how so few of them made it into the latest entry. BJ is clearly the better **** slayer, despite his age, and his badassery is on full display.I have hazy memories of some of these shorter FPS story games. In my mind, I recalled Old Blood as frenetic and fast-paced when I first played it on PS4. Now, playing in 2025 with a mouse and keyboard, I wonder how much of that memory was tied to the controls versus the game itself, because Old Blood is far from the relentless, action-packed pace you’d expect in Doom. Instead, it frequently offers players a choice—stealth through and take down commanders to cut off reinforcements, or go in dual-wielding massive shotguns and slay, slay, slay. I really appreciate the agency given.I also recall struggling with the difficulty on console. Playing this again on PC at Uber difficulty posed a few challenges, but it was mostly extremely satisfying. I never felt cheated when I died, and I loved that moment when the final enemy in a room fell and the music cut out, signaling it was safe to loot and gear up for the next ****'s a short runtime—I clocked in just under five hours on the campaign. There are collectibles and bonus stages (à la Mercenaries from Resident Evil) for those who want more.This is not a revolutionary title, but man, it's just fun. Glad I got the urge to replay the Wolfenstein series. On to New Order next.
I'm a confirmed **** slayer, from way back. I remember playing Wolfenstein 3D on floppy disk, booting into DOS from, what, Windows 95? This is a series I would say I cracked a bit of a tooth on as a kid. Maybe not the most memorable games, but certainly ones I recall playing early on. Enemy Territory was a really fun multiplayer experience back in high school. New Order and Old Blood were such fun returns to form, full of **** hordes to slay while dual-wielding the largest machine guns ever known to be fired in one hand. (Seriously, laughable—Doom-level of silly. But isn’t that why we’re here? To laugh and enjoy?)But this one? Youngblood? Ugh. It’s such a disappointment—of a magnitude only BJ Blazkowicz would be able to fathom. A muddled mess of a narrative, where the two main characters (BJ’s daughters) are seemingly different people from one cutscene to the next. The opening scene, with BJ training one daughter to hunt and instilling the basics of combat while the other learns close-quarters combat from their mother, is serious. It sets the player up, giving us the understanding that BJ’s daughters are like him—serious, both in their hatred of **** and their overall demeanor.Literally the next scene has them doing a Freaky Friday role reversal, snort-laughing and uttering some of the most forced slang lines I cannot imagine anyone speaking today, let alone in whatever version of the 1980s the writer grew up **** pretty much goes downhill from there. You keep getting that mix of characterization that just never hits home.That said, I do see why people suggest skipping cutscenes. Because after those story sequences play out, the game is exactly what you would expect—high(ish) octane **** hunting. And for that, I think it does a damn fine job. There’s no logical reason these girls should be as strong as they are, Da’at Yichud power suits included, but as the player, I couldn’t care less. The weapons felt good from the start—punchy and reactive to my whims.What falls apart is a really odd, pseudo-RPG element they added. Some enemies have weaknesses to certain damage types, so you’ll want to switch guns to fight them... but that doesn’t really make for fun gameplay, as it doesn’t flow well in real time. You may turn a corner and find five enemies in front of you, but the biggest one is weak to one of the slower weapons—when all I really want to do is bring out my shotgun and start blasting. And honestly? I pretty much did that as often as I could.There’s also a really odd level-up system. Every level you gain increases your damage, but the enemies level with you? So I never truly felt stronger. The power gain comes from upgrading your weapons—each having five customizable parts, with three different upgrade paths: one favoring accuracy, another speed, and finally damage. Yeah, you can imagine what I did—all damage, all the time. And even then, I still felt the exact same power level against enemies after a few hours.I think this is an idea that could have worked, but it doesn’t go nearly far enough. If you’re going to introduce radical changes to a formula that’s been working for at least three games (since the modern reboot with New Order), then go all the way. Bring in elemental damage types, bring in loot, bring in big skill trees. But instead, Youngblood just gives us watered-down RPG mechanics that could be removed and honestly not even noticed. Shame.Performance is another big issue. I had way too many crashes to count, and no matter how much debugging I did, they never went away. I probably would have done more side content, but after beating the laughably short “campaign,” I pretty much called it quits.Hope to see this franchise rise from this colossal failure with a new title in the future.
Very good game with great DLCs that are sprinkled in the middle of the adventure. Combat could have cook'd longer, but the questing and storylines more than made up for it.
Parvati such a standout companion. Praying she makes a return in the sequel.
DLCs in particular are so well done, with writing and lore, that they are up there with the best, such as Blood and Wine & Old Hunters.
Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin is, at its core, a very strange game. On paper, the idea of a Soulslike mixed with a job system seems like a perfect fit—like a key fitting a lock. And when it comes to gameplay, it excels far beyond my expectations. There are so many damn things this game does right, so many systems that I hope and pray other developers take notice of, that the subpar narrative scenes combined with a pretty bland story were almost completely forgotten—and certainly forgiven. Because for the 20 or so hours the main campaign took, I had so. much. **** systems aren’t new, but they’re probably one of my favorite JRPG character growth mechanics. They almost always allow for total player freedom and ingenuity, offering ways to break the system. In this title, you get to pick two jobs at a time and can seamlessly combo back and forth between them. See that group of Bombs? Let’s go Black Mage, cast a few Waters, then swap to Dragoon, landing a Jump attack just as they enter melee range. It’s brilliant, it flows, it’s **** of the other things Stranger of Paradise does so well is its take on the (now very familiar—I think Final Fantasy XIII started it?) stagger system. In mainline Final Fantasy games, we’ve seen the stagger bar become a standard mechanic: fill the bar, and the enemy takes increased damage, typically stacking. This leads to a gameplay loop of slowly filling the bar, then unleashing armageddon on the enemy for 30 seconds. Rinse, repeat.Here, the devs said, Nah, that’s not Hardcore enough. They really wanted to drive this system home. In Stranger of Paradise, once an enemy is staggered (or broken, since it’s a break gauge, not a stagger bar), you can simply press a button to cinematically kill them (or, for bosses, deplete one of their typical two health bars). Love it. Like, truly, I can only imagine how much more enjoyable Remake and Rebirth would be with this approach. It feels instantly rewarding, as enemies can regain their break gauge, so you have to stay on them. Extended breaks to heal or wait out certain attacks hinder your progress on the break gauge, keeping the pressure **** favorite system, though, is the affinity system. Stranger of Paradise is a looter game—you’ll see loot drop like a Borderlands boss. You have your normal stat and skill upgrades, but what I found most interesting is how, once you reach a certain point in the game, most gear has one or two job affinities on them. These affinities help in two key ways:Stat and skill bonuses – You gain upgrades on a tiered system, per job. Want to be a crit-focused agility-based ninja? Stack job affinities that benefit that playstyle, like Monk, Thief, or Duelist. It’s logical, and I’d love to see this system expanded elsewhere.Passive job leveling – Gear with job affinities allows you to gain experience for those jobs. Love your main job but don’t want to waste EXP? Throw on some off-job affinity gear and watch those levels climb. I really appreciate when a game understands that players may only click with certain jobs but still want to gain benefits from others. More player agency = more player **** man, chaos is a fickle fk, because once I hit the DLCs and saw what was there, I was pretty disappointed. Turns character progression from quick and fresh to slow and grindy. Good for people who love this, but I couldn't see myself enjoying grinding nearly MMO level of gear tiers to see new content that I knew I wouldn't likely enjoy.Thankfully they basically have an easy mode that allows you to cheese your way through to see the credits on all 3 DLCs. I do appreciate this. All that said, I’m kinda mad I waited this long to enjoy this diamond in the rough. It was a blast laughing with my boyfriend every time CHAOS was dramatically said (do not make this a drinking game—you will not make it out of the second mission on your feet). And if you don’t take the story seriously, there’s a lot of fun to be had throughout the campaign.
"If it ain't broke, don't fix it" seems to be the motto for this sequel to the 2018 God of War reboot. And you know what? In a way, I'm really glad it was. Sure, in terms of gameplay, it sometimes feels more like an expansion pack of old rather than a full-fledged sequel, but the story is bigger in every way, building beautifully on the breadcrumbs left in the first game.
Maybe it speaks to just how fun the reboot’s systems are that I can honestly say Ragnarok will hold a place in my top 10 games of all time for quite a while to come.
I hate Torchlight Infinite because it’s the perfect example of everything wrong with live-service games: greedy, predatory monetization, and a clunky, mobile-first UI that’s awful on anything but a phone. Sure, the crafting and combat are fun, but the gacha mechanics, paywalls for basic features like inventory slots, and constant seasonal charges ruin it. It’s a soulless cash grab designed to milk players dry, and supporting it just encourages more of this trash in gaming.
Halls of Torment is a complete waste of time, in every positive way. It’s the kind of game that fully embraces its role as a captivating time-waster, delivering endless hours of engaging gameplay without demanding too much from the player. Whether you're seeking a break from work or a casual companion while watching TV, this game provides a satisfying, low-pressure experience that keeps you coming back for more. It’s a masterclass in turning simple, repetitive gameplay into something unexpectedly addictive and enjoyable.
Fort Solis offers exceptional voice acting from renowned performers like Roger Clark and Troy Baker, but it falls short in delivering a compelling narrative. The story is slow and unengaging, making the brief four-hour experience feel like a slog. Visual performance issues, including frequent frame rate drops and noticeable DLSS artifacts, further detract from the game, even on high-end hardware. Despite its promising premise, Fort Solis struggles to provide a satisfying and cohesive experience.
Metroidvanias that heavily incorporate RPG elements are easily my favorites within the sub-genre, and I wish there were more of them. Bloodstained is a labor of love, and there's a reason it was such a successful Kickstarter.
