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[Jack Videogames]

2. Muv-Luv

64h-ish, Normal difficulty. Saw all endings, except for the two Normal Ends in Muv-Luv Extra.

If you don't know what Muv-Luv is, after seeing that cover art you'll probably think it's just a cutesy school romcom VN, one of those Japan shits by the ton each year. And you'd be half right. Exactly half, because the first Muv-Luv is composed of Muv-Luv Extra and Muv-Luv Unlimited. Muv-Luv Extra is exactly what you described. Muv-Luv Unlimited is... something else I'm not gonna spoil just in case you're the singular person that likes Visual Novels and hasn't hear of Muv-Luv. Which makes you a fucking weirdo, btw.

Moving on, Muv-Luv Extra is much maligned by most fans, but since I like school romcoms, I dig it. The endings are pretty lackluster, particularly Sumika's, which is weird since she's one of the two main girls, and some of the arcs? drag in for a bit too long (the lacrosse tournament, for example). But Muv-Luv extra is carried by the strength of its characters. Most VNs nowadays have pretty generic characters that have a lot of personality overlap - but Muv-Luv has very distinct characters, with very pronounced "voices". This makes everything bad about Muv-Luv Extra much more tolerable.

But in order to truly appreciate Muv-Luv Extra, you have to understand that it's meant as worldbuilding for Muv-Luv Unlimited. You can play Muv-Luv Unlimited after completing only Sumika and Meiya's routes in Extra, but I feel you'll appreciate Unlimited much more if you take the time to trudge though the other three routes as well. Really, Muv-Luv Extra can be construed as a 30h "intro" to the Muv-Luv universe, which is something that generally only VN fans will accept. And as such, I believe it's time well invested.

SteamDeck: It's a 15 year old Visual Novel.

My Score: ★★★★★

Original post

 

[jshackles]

Game 5 - Hexcells - PC / Steam - Completed Jan 13th, 2023
Another short game (only took about 4 hours to complete 100%) but an amazing cross between picross and minesweeper. It took me a couple of levels to get the swing of the game's rules, but once I caught on I was pretty hooked. Although I play picross every day, not everything carries over as this game has the twist of every "cell" being hexagonal in shape. I know there are a few more of these games, so I might pick them up eventually (after I give my brain a bit of a rest).

 

[marcincz]

Game 2 - Old Man's Journey (PS4) - 01h 58m
Beat 02/01/2023 - my score: 6/10

Game 3 - Moon Patrol (EC) - 02h 05m
Beat 08/01/2023 - my score: 7/10

Game 4 - R-Type (EC) - 01h 40m
Beat 12/01/2023 - my score: 8/10

Game 5 - Lightning Swords (EC) - 01h 05m
Beat 14/01/2023 - my score: 5/10

Bought Irem Arcade 1 on Evercade last year and playing titles from 80s and 90s.
R-Type is tough as hell, but LS is probably even tougher.

 

[Jack Videogames]

3. Bayonetta 3

18:57h, Normal difficulty. explored quite a lot.

Bayonetta is there with the old God of War games in its own category of games so over the top that they're awesome, what with the giant monster fights, the impossible sexy acrobatics, the wanton destruction and the stylish, er style. Bayonetta 3 takes itself a bit more seriously than the previous 2, but it isn't any less crazy - if anything, I'd say it's even crazier than the preceding games. The amount of shit happening in screen is staggering, full of blink-and-you'll-miss-it references and details. Graphically it's, well, a Switch game, but the FPS are stable and it's never unenjoyable.

I do think Bayo 3 tries to bite a bit more than it can chew. There is a tremendous variety of weapons and abilities, but you're likely to find a couple favourites and use them until the end of the game. Every new level introduces some new mechanic that is generally only going to be used once or twice, some of them a bit overlap-py (Like flying on the bat and on the giant bird). This keeps the game from being samey, but at the same time you feel you're not really "mastering" it since there are tutorials up until almost the final boss. Also, finding all the secrets requires a TON of exploration, some of it even a bit counterintuitive, with lots of backtracking. I don't feel Bayonetta is a good fit for this kind of stuff, but it doesn't really detract from the enjoyment provided by the, again, almost-perfect combat.

Finally, I know some fans hated the story and particularly the ending, but I personally enjoyed it. and I found the reveal that Bayonetta is not the same Bayonetta from the first two games a very clever way of explaining her (very slightly) more subdued, "gloomier" personality and her romantic interest for Luka. The ending was a bit of a kick in the teeth, as I don't believe in downer endings for such an upbeat game, and I strongly believe Genderbent Nero Viola is not a good fit for a new protagonist. But I didn't feel it was out of place since Bayonetta 3 is quite a bit more somber than the preceding games and while I would have preferred the game to end in a more upbeat note, it didn't leave a bitter taste in my mouth like other games do (cough TLOU2 cough).

My Score: ★★★★★

Original post

 

[jshackles]

Game 6 - Pokemon Scarlet - Nintendo Switch - Completed Jan 20th, 2023
I was gonna skip this game originally, considering I saw it had a ton of bugs and the last few Pokemon games (Diamond / Pearl remakes, Arceus) didn't grab me much. My wife asked if I'd get the double pack so we could do raid things together, so I said "sure". I started playing this game and... damn, it's really good. I had a really good time in the open world collecting pokemons and battling gyms. My biggest complaint would be the lack of voice acting, which was very glaring. Otherwise though, this may be my favorite Pokemon game ever. I hope the next Switch hardware can let this type of game live up to it's full potential.

 

[Jack Videogames]

4. Live A Live

26:26h, Saw both Bad and "Golden" endings

I'm going to say it: Live a Live is the game Octopath Traveller wishes it could be. Yes, I probably scored Octopath Traveller higher, but that was because I didn't play Live a Live first. Unlike Octopath, where the eight characters were part of the same world (and in some cases, were almost neighbours) here the fact that their stories don't intertwine until the end works, because they're from diferent fucking timelines and it just makes sense. Moreover, unlike the bland main characters from Octopath, here the 8 MCs are well differentiated and capable of carrying a story on their own.

This is not to say all 8 stories are equally strong. Pogo's is some forgettable, though refreshing, slapstick. Oboromaru's is really enjoyable, though light on the storytelling. Shifu's is maybe the blandest, which is surprising for a wuxia-themed plot. Sundown Kid's has the most potential IMO, but it barely lasts half an hour. Masaru's is barely an intermission. Akira's, though much maligned by some, was one of the highlights for me as it felt a bit like Earthbound or other similar "near future" JRPGs, and Cube's was easily the strongest, being a surprisingly tense sci-fi horror. And then comes Oersted's with its "oh shit son" moments; this is when the game stops being just alright and becomes legitimately good.

Considering the new 2.5D graphic style fits the game perfectly and the remastered OST is just so good, I wouldn't pass on Live a Live if you like the genre. Just remember, this is a SNES-era game; if you want to find all the secrets, keep a guide close.

My Score: ★★★★☆

Original post

 

[Psychotic_Mantis]

January Update - Main Post

Solid start to 2023!

1.Metroid: Zero Mission (Wii U) - 9/10
Was on a huge Metroid kick at the end of the year and started off '23 with this banger. What a great remake of the original Metroid along with the additional content at the end. I'll probably hit up Dread soon and then might go back to the Prime trilogy...although I was holding out hope they might hit Switch so I am torn.

2. Injustice 2 (PS4) - 8/10
Took me a bit to get used to the mechanics and was getting my ass kicked quite a few times. Eventually I got the hang of it and ended up finishing both storylines. Didn't love the Superman direction they took but can appreciate they tried something different. Overall, super solid fight with an intriguing story.

3. The Shoot (PS3) - 7/10
Have picked this up a few times and finally decided to finish it outright. The scoring mechanic is a bit tough to get the hang of at first and it locks you out of advancing until you develop a better strategy. It was fun and mostly mindless. The 4th level was definitely tricky to hit the high score necessary to advance to the final level. If you actually still have a PS3 and a Move...it's worth a play!

4. Eversion (Steam Deck) - 7/10
Hoping to knock out a bunch of my random Steam purchases with my Deck. This was a short, odd little platformer. I don't remember where I got it but I am glad I played through it. Had to use a guide to figure out the path to the final level which was fun and unique. I enjoyed my brief time with it and it had a different vibe to it than most platformers that I play.

5. Remember Me (PS3) - 7/10
Another PS3 digital game to clear out. I ended up really enjoying the story and most of the memory puzzle elements in the game. What I did not like was the sluggish combat and how long it took to beat up on simple enemies. They are punch-sponges and take forever to knock out, even with every combo under the sun. This could've been a pretty special game but needed more time to cook. Still glad I gave it a go!

6. Picross DS (DS) - 9/10
Fantastic picross game that I found on eBay. This took a very long time to play through all the levels and bonus rounds but loved every second of it. Some of the later puzzles are hit and miss with their difficulties, but hey that's picross. Highly recommended if you enjoy Picross.

7. Cotton Reboot (Switch) - 6/10
Don't recall why I purchased this game and even more confused after I finished it. It's a super easy shoot-em-up and not much else. I felt nothing after I finished it and don't know if I'll bother playing through with different characters or difficulties. I guess it does what it sets out to do but it didn't do much for me.

8. Virginia (Steam Deck) - 6/10

Essentially a point and click walking simulator game. It was fine and it's possible I missed most of what they were trying to do. It definitely was trying to go for the Twin Peaks vibe and it worked at times but the storyline was hard to follow and I still don't think I "got it". Don't see myself playing this one again.

 

[marcincz]

Game 6 - Root Letter Last Answer (PS4) - 14h 35m
Beat 27/01/2023 - my score: 7/10

Last title on January. Quite good score and start of the year for me.

 

[jshackles]

Game 9 - Pictlogica Final Fantasy - Nintendo 3DS - Completed Feb 3rd, 2023
I started playing this last summer - the fact that you get to each section and have to wait a progressively long amount of time really pads this game out. However, this is still my favorite Picross game of all time, thanks in part to the battle system it has. You have to unlock new characters (by solving their picross puzzles) then leveling them up with stars (which you get for completing bonus challenges) to increase their stats and get better equipment. The gameplay loop is pretty cheesy, but it's actually really effective. Unlocked 100% of everything, did all the puzzles, got all the stars.

 

[BusierDonkey]

11-20

11 - Metal Slug 2 - PC - Finished playthrough - 2 hours - 80/100
Metal Slug X before some changes were made. It's still awesome and the biggest issue, framerate, was fixed long ago so this game runs as good as X. Even playing them back-to-back the difference isn't immediate which is why I don't count this as a game on its own after putting Metal Slug X on the list.

12 - Metal Slug 3 - PC - Finished playthrough - 2 hours - 80/100
This is the longest of the Metal Slug games which you would think would warrant it being rated higher than the others, but the game isn't as well balanced as earlier games in the series. The pixel art, though still fantastic, tend to rely heavily on assets from previous games being re-used. All the Metal Slug games are great and should be played.

13 - Black Mesa - PC - Finished playthrough - 22 hours - 70/100
I've had the first Half-Life on my to-play list for a very long time. I played Half-Life 2 and its expansions back when the Orange Box was released and I enjoyed it, though I never put it on the same pedestal as most. The game was often clunky and rigid in its movement and the vehicle controls were abysmal. The game is pretty dated, area design ranges from well laid-out to spaghetti mess. Some areas are simply straight lines. Combat is simple as can be and despite the update the visuals are pretty mediocre though not offensively bad. The game did pick up once Gordon was sent to Zen. Compared to the Zen in the original game the version in Black Mesa may as well be a new game entirely and it looks lovely. Unfortunately, the gameplay runs into a few snags once you proceed into the factory and events don't execute as intended often requiring a restart to circumvent the glitches. I'm glad I played it finally, but for me it's not the classic I was hoping to play. I can hop back into the original DOOM and have a blast; this wasn't on that level.

14 - Hi-Fi Rush - PC - Finished playthrough - 14 hours - 85/100
This game came straight out of nowhere and I was half expecting western trash. That went away about a minute in. The visuals are amazing, a great example of cel shading done right. Comparisons to Jet Grind are spot on, but the gameplay is something else entirely. It's DMC meets a rhythm game and playing to the various beats adds both a layer of challenge and a reason to keep popping back in. The music selections are great, the gameplay and area design are top-notch and even the platforming is pretty good. Boss fights were all unique and fun. For a game that was just dumped on Gamepass out of the blue the level of polish here is insane. If I have to complain about something, I'd say the sprinkle of western character design was it. The characters weren't off-putting, but they felt like something from an early 2000's cartoon and not like something from Japan. By the end of the game though I enjoyed them all. Definitely the best new game I've played this year. I hope this style of delivery happens again.

15 - Downwell - PC - Got as far as I'm probably going to get but I'll keep trying - WIP - 70/100
You jump down a well and use your gun boots to both halt your fall and kill enemies on the way down. The control is pinpoint precise, and you'll never die in this game from anything but a player skill issue. The graphics merely exist, which is good enough for what this is. The score may make you think the game must not be that great, but it just reflects that this game is a time killer and reflex tuner more than a full-out game. I can see me playing it for a long time here and there. I got it for under a dollar which only makes that 70 look better.

16 - Broforce - PC - Finished playthrough - 11 hours - 80/100
This game is hilarious, you play as parody versions of every action movie character. B.A, Rambo, Terminator, The Bride, Predator, Blade, MIB, Ripley, etc. There are a ton of characters to play as, and they all have their own weapon and ability set. Which ones you use are random, so the gameplay stays fresh for the entire run. The gameplay is razor sharp and everything moves quick. Enemies are smart but not too smart, bosses are all fun and you figure out new ways to use character skills throughout the game. For the price this game is a no-brainer.

17 - Far: Lone Sails - PC - Finished playthrough - 4 hours - 70/100
I played the sequel to this game a couple years ago and completely forgot to go back to the original. You're a kid trying to operate a rolling contraption your father built to cross the dried-up ocean in a post-apocalyptic world. The game uses various platform mechanics to have you fuel up and manage the various systems in the vehicle. For instance, you have to collect objects by leaving the vehicle and carry it back to the device that converts them into fuel. Hitting various switches will pour the fuel into the engine, release steam from the boiler, raise the main mast on the vehicle and operate other modifications you make to the vehicle over time. The second game is much more involved and requires much more in the way of running around outside the vehicle, but it was fun to go back and give this one a try.

18 - Ikaruga - PC - Finished playthrough - 2 hours - 70/100
This is a great top-down shooter, but then again this is Treasure so that's a given. You play as a ship that changes from dark to light on command fighting forces made up of both. When dark, dark enemy attacks power you up and your dark attacks damage light enemies more, the reverse goes for your dark state. It makes for some hectic gameplay as you have to not just keep track of the enemies and their bullets, but also what color everything is. The game's major flaws are that it's really hard, and it's really short.

19 - Hotline Miami - PC - Finished playthrough - 6 hours - 55/100
The doors are absolutely retarded and never work properly. Other than that, this game is simply hiding around corners hitting enemies with a bat or shooting a gun to draw the entire map to you and blasting them as they derp around the corner. The visuals are hard to look at with a lot of grain and a constant waviness that is a bit off-putting. The story going on as you struggle not to get a migraine looking at it is however pretty interesting and is what kept me from abandoning the game. The game itself is about as much fun as the top-down sections in Contra III on the SNES.

20 - Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number- PC - Finished playthrough - 13 hours - 60/100
The doors are still broken and enemies randomly notice you through walls and across the map. Gone is the option to choose your mask perk at every stage, replaced with scenario missions where you're locked to a handicap or ability. Overall, the game plays better, is longer and has a bit more polish to it, but the story isn't nearly as good as in the first game which was unfortunate. These games have a huge fanbase that swear by them but despite my classic game roots, I'm not seeing a lot of appeal in the Hotline Miami games.

 

[jshackles]

Game 11 - 12 Labours of Hercules XI: Painted Adventure - PC - Completed Feb 13th, 2023
I really do love these games (obviously, this is the 11th I've played), but this one is probably one of the worst. Maybe not as bad as the one where thieves steal your resources, but close. The first half of the game was fine and actually pretty good, but worlds 4 and 5 really tanked this one. The difficulty level on these was cranked up so high (even to me, playing on "casual") that about half the levels in these worlds I couldn't finish before the timer ran out. Some levels I replayed a dozen times then gave up and went to the next one, which sucked a LOT of the fun out of it. I'll probably wait a while before trying to take on XII.

 

[Jack Videogames]

5. Dragon Quest Treasures

17:05h. Mostly rushed through the game.

I bought this one because I love all things Dragon Quest and DQXI is one of my favourite games ever. I also love most Dragon Quest spinoffs, like DQ Builders and DQ Heroes. But DQ Treasures is mid as fuck. Not going to extend myself, but it has a boring gameplay loop, it's easy as fuck yet grindy sometimes, the open world has a very annoying traversal based on your monster's abilities (So sometimes you'll choose your team based on their movement abilities, sacrificing both combat prowess and treasure finding) and the plot is as cliched as it could be. At least the graphics are nice and there is no stuttering or slowdowns.

You can safely sustract a star if you're not a die-hard Dragon Quest fan. If you are, the familiar music, enemies, spells, etc. will carry you through most of the game. If you're not a DQ fan you'll likely be bored out of your skull well before the finish line.

My Score: ★★★☆☆

Original post

 

[marcincz]

Game 7 - Battle Chopper (EC) - 04h 51m
Beat 09/02/2023 - my score: 4/10
Game 8 - In the Hunt (EC) - 01h 09m
Beat 11/02/2023 - my score: 8/10
Game 9 - Beyond a Steel Sky (PS5) - 13h 37m
Beat 14/02/2023 - my score: 8/10
Game 10 - Beyond a Steel Sky (PS5) - 04h 32m
Beat 15/02/2023 - my score: 8/10

Finished Irem Arcade 1 on Evercade. Battle Chopper is the worst game in this collection. In the Hunt and R-type are great.
Beat BaSS twice. 2nd for platinum trophy. Good game.

 

[jshackles]

Game 12 - Fire Emblem: Engage - Nintendo Switch - Completed Feb 17th, 2023
This game was pretty good, but it slogged on towards the end. There were also FAR too many characters, and FAR too many cut scenes (especially at the end of the game). The strategy gameplay was really good, although dampened somewhat by the time rewind mechanic and how plentiful it was to use. The game also has a huge amount of side quests and things to do to strengthen the bonds between the characters and give them more flavor. Took around 40 hours to complete.

 

[yamaci17]

Game 8 - Hogwarts Legacy %100 completion

88/100

Poppy and Sebastian side quests are of similar vain to Triss/Yen/Panam/Judy type of CDPR side quests. They're so greatly designed they might as well overshadow the main game's story. I really enjoyed the subplots going on with these two characters more than the main story.

The game is magical. It promised magic and it delivers magic. Everything about HP universe except Quidditch has been integrated into the story and quests in a meaningful way. I really did not expect such a scale of events / things that we come across in our journey in Hogwarts Legacy. And then there is the meticulously crafted Hogwarts castle filled with details, lore and ambiance... Not to mention "cozy" Hogsmeade and its lively streets, shops and bars. And then there are other small towns and vistas they've crafted across the highlands. The world they crafted is a joy to explore. Especially with the added freedom and fun the broom or mounts give you.

There are caveats to the game however, it lacks substantial amount of interactivity within Hogwarts and other students. Mini games and side activities are kept to a minimum. Lore and accurate representation of locations are plentiful but they're mostly hollow.

Main story is not that interesting, and I could see why they kept it short. Its really a game where you just casually visit Hogwarts, instead of actually being a student in it. Story mostly revolves around outside locations or outside dungeons that has nothing to do with Hogwarts. Being an open world RPG, I can see why they went that route but this ended up making Hogwarts a touristic place instead of actual gameplay place.

However, a HP fan couldn've exact for a better replica of Hogwarts. They nailed lighting, textures, ambiance quite extraordinarly and that alone deserves appreciation. I'd say similar amounts of effort went into Hogsmeade and surroundings of Hogwarts as well.

 

[Psychotic_Mantis]

February Update - Main Post

9. Angry Video Game Nerd Adventures (Steam Deck) - 7/10
Found this one extremely difficult. I had to knock it down to the easier difficulty to complete it. The final boss still took me a long time to get through. Overall, I get it and I did have fun throughout but some of the gotcha moments are overkill and create frustration.

10. The Last of Us: Part 1 (PS5) - 9/10
Still a great game and the touch up does look nice. Not much else to add. Probably the definitive copy at this point.

11. The Last of Us: Left Behind (PS5) - 8/10
Short but solid side story for Part I. I still have never played Part II and this is my third time through both LoU and LB. Maybe this is the year I finally see what all the fuss is about.

12. Quell (Switch) - 7/10
Short little puzzle game. The later levels require a bit of trial and error but I never was stuck for too long. Usually on sale for pretty cheap and worth a pickup if you're into puzzles.

13. Super Mario 3D World (Switch) - 9/10
Just oozing with charm. I started and stopped on the Wii U and I think it was due to me thinking this was a normal open level Mario game. Coming back around to it, I love the level design and the later difficulty jumps. Wish we could get another evolution of this idea.

14. Yoshi's New Island (3DS) - 7/10
Annoying music aside, this was a pretty fun game. Barely any difficulty outside of getting all the starts, coins and flowers in a stage. I think I ended the game with 100 lives.

15. Evoland (Steam Deck) - 7/10
I love the idea of this game and I did have fun...but it just kind of starts and stops. I have heard Ecoland II is much better take on their idea and I'll probably jump on that later this year. I would love to jump between the different ages more frequently.

16. A Short Hike (Steam Deck) - 8/10
This one I enjoyed a lot more than I thought I would. Just roaming around the island and climbing to the top was enjoyable Collecting the feathers and flying everywhere was even better. Maybe that could make A Longer Hike?

17. Dead Space (PS5) - 9/10
Still a fantastic game. Loved 90% of my time in this one. I still hate some of the arena segments with ambush of never ending necromorphs. I also found the time you have to kill the tentacle as it grabs you at various times was a bit tight. I had to actually purchase ammo to make sure I could take it down quick enough in the time they gave me. Really looking forward to Dead Space 2 remake which was my favorite of the series!

18. Digger T. Rock - Rare Replay (Xbox Series X) - 4/10
Awful. I love old school NES games. I remember seeing this in a box as a kid and never played it. Was going to knock out some Rare Replay games and started with this and I regret it completely. Not fun, ridiculous difficulty and confusing path to the end. Definitely use the Rare Replay provided cheats on this one!

 

[Jack Videogames]

6. Metroid Prime Remastered

13:15h. 59% of the game completed.

The feeling of a game being very "premeditated" is not necessarily good in gaming, as it tends to be synonymous with "boring" or "cold" or "artificial" or heaven forbid, "another one of those cookie-cutter AAA games".

Metroid Prime Remastered is an extremely premeditated game, and it's all the better for it. It doesn't feel boring, cold or artificial (well it does feel artificial at times, but intentionally so; you're a 2m space marine bounty hunter lady in a robot suit surrounded by sometimes-robot things in a "dead" planet). Everything in the game is made with the utmost care; from Samus strained breathing moving your camera ever so slightly and making you wonder if you finally fell to joycon drift, from the jumpscare when you first see her face's reflection after firing a missile a bit too close, there's not a polygon out of place, nothing is off, nothing seems amiss. There's no unnecessary cutscenes, no filler, no Marvel-style quips, no pretentiousness. It's you and Samus, silently cutting a path through this alien, hostile world.

Even though Metroid Prime might be a tad dated by now, even if some things like the clunky grappling hook mechanics and visor swapping can make you frown at times, even if the bosses are on the easy side, even though the backtracking can get a bit cumbersome sometimes... it's the closest a FPS metroidvania can get to perfection.

My Score:

Original post

 

[ChoosableOne]

1. Returnal (PS5) - 30 Hours - 1/1/23 - 3/5

My buddy picked this up over the holidays and we've been going over it co-op. You can definitely tell that the co-op mode was shoehorned in given some of the quirks (particularly around tethering loads). I got disconnected before the last boss last night and he beat the game. He wanted to go for the true ending so I helped him collect all the Sunface Fragments. We collected all of those and beat the game today but for some reason he couldn't enter the car.

2. Returnal (PS5) - 30 Hours - 1/1/23 - 3/5

Since I haven't seen the true ending, I went ahead and beat the game again today and will collect all the Sunface Fragments and try for myself.


5. Returnal (PS5) - 3 Hours - 1/3/23 - 3/5

True ending reached.

 

[yamaci17]

Game #9 Atomic Heart - 87/100

This game caught me by surprise. I had no expectations yet this game delivered.

Goods
Combat/gameplay is top notch. Guns are fun to use, and game ends before things start to feel repetetive. You get different guns that calls for different play styles, and on top of that, each gun has dedicated upgrades that changes or adds functionality which makes it even more fun. Enemy interactions are fun, they usually take damage/get damaged realistically..

Story and setting were more than good enough to captivate me through the end. Setting is actually rather spectacular, and story has multiple plot twists that hit you back to back. I was interested all the time. World is crafted with a lot of detail and lore and you can read all about it in in-game terminals.

Open world is there, but it is not tedious as most open world games are. It is a condensed world that just acts as a tool to progress the story. You enter "hubs" called training grounds for weapon upgrades and additional loot, and these locations boast different challenges, platforming puzzles and so on. You do not need to do all of them; game specifically tells you what upgrades you will find in specific training grounds, which is a welcome feature. This way you can focus on the upgrades for the weapons you desire and ignore others. However game was so captivating that I ended up completing most of the training grounds, it simply was fun.

Bads
Well story is a bit cliche, and dialogue can get cringey at times (not all times! sometimes it gets very philosophical and makes you stop and think about stuff).
Sometimes there are too much dialogue to a point it overlaps with stuff.
Quest design is a bit archaic, mostly they're fetch/go grab type of quests. However overall gameplay loop and story makes it bareable.

Game #11 Wo Long Fallen Dynasty - 82/100

+ Stamina mechanic is masterfully done and makes the combat very dynamic and fun.
+ Art style is peculiar, making up for the lack of graphical quality
+ Animations and flow of parry/counter/dodge are perfect
+ RPG aspects of the game is actually cool, the game does not make you commit to a certain build, you can respec as much as you want, you can also invest in Wizardry spells without sacrificing on other things
+ Weapon/armor upgrade system is well done, you can salvage looted armors and weapons to get upgrade materials as well
+ Embedding is pretty cheap, being able to get supplies from battle flags is also helpful
+ Wizardry spells are meaningful but not super OP. You still need stamina to cast them, which means you have to actively attack the enemy at the same time. It encourages a mixed combat where you parry, use martial arts, attack and use your spells at the same time.

- Enemy variety is shallow
- Morale system is masterfully done, encourages you to explore the map, however caveat here is the lack of enemy variety which makes the morale grinding a bore, which ends up making the morale system also a bore
- Most bosses are not memorable and unique and a certain pattern of "oh, your friend is now your enemy because of this evil demonic arrow" is used TOO much
- Story is too convoluted/uninteresting. Also, a certain pattern of "oh, you were looking for the Elixir but someone stole it and run away" is used TOO much

Overall a fun but forgettable game.

 

[Jack Videogames]

7. Hi-Fi RUSH

9:42h. No postgame. Final ranking "A".

Hi-Fi RUSH (don't expect me to respect the random capitalization for much longer) is a surprise hit, and what a hit it is. Bangin' music, super likeable characters, a very arcade-y anime-y feel that most games nowadays lack, and a MC that experiences some actual growth without needing three sequels and two DLCs. While HFR uses rhythm as both a gameplay mechanic and a worldbuilding tool, Hi-Fi Rush is an action beat-em-up/platformer-ish at its core, and even if you're not musically gifted progressing though the game is easy enough, only with lower scores. I used to get Ss in both score and speed, but Cs and Bs in rhythm, which apparently averages to As. So yeah, you can get good results even if you have the musical sense of a log.

There's apparently some substantial postgame, but as much as I enjoyed the game, I decided to skip it because it makes you backtrack and hunt for some hidden doors, and this is something I very much not enjoy unless your game is called Metroid. So given the ending is nice and satisfactory I've decided to call it a day. AAA would play again.

My Score: ★★★★★

Original post

 

[Jack Videogames]

8. Atomic Heart

15h-ish?. Peaceful Atom difficulty in the open world, Local Failure in the "dungeons".

This game has been done dirty by reviews. Atomic Heart is a fucking great game, and most people that try to dispute this due to politics or the campy writing have simply not played enough.

To begin with, the setting is *chef's kiss*. Really, it's been a while (Since Bioshock Infinite?) that a setting grabbed me so tight from so early. This shiny sovietpunk is one of the most memorable aesthetics I've ever seen in a videogame, and even without the (admittedly promised) raytracing, everything looks and sounds fascinating. I'm not generally an explorer in games, but I've found myself constantly stopping to investigate stuff, read signs, watch cartoons on TV or even take a closer look at dead enemies. Yes, I'm biased, as I love dystopian stories and "what if" historical scenarios, but I firmly think the setting is a triumph of the designers.

HOWEVER... gameplay-wise, there's two very different sides to Atomic Heart. One, the "dungeons", which are fantastic. Particularly at the beginning of the game, where your offensive capabilities are scarce, Atomic Heart plays more like a survival horror than an action FPS. You have to economize ammo, use your powers wisely, switch to melée constantly and don't hesitate to run away. You'll still likely die, but that's OK, safe rooms are plenty and so are autosaves. Every dungeon looks and feels awesome (My favourite is probably the VDNH). The gunplay is great and while there are not a lot of powers, they synergize well and it's very fun to cover a bot in conductive goo, zap it, freeze another, smash it to bits, etc. And the way you loot stuff is the best I've ever seen and should be the standard in gaming, period.

Then you get the open world. The open world is, to put it gently, annoying. Simply because of this: there are cameras that spawn infinite enemies. You can break the cameras, but doing so spawns infinite flying robots that repair them. So you are never "safe" - you must either sneak around (and the stealth mechanics aren't particularly good) or run like hell from dungeon to dungeon. There are optional areas with weapon upgrades, but honestly, the open world is so annoying that I simply ignored them. Lowering the difficulty to easy mode in the open world makes the experience 1000x better, but it's still something I'd rather not go through again.

And it's a pity, because I liked Atomic Heart quite a bit. The plot is pulpy, yes, and it's somewhat horny at times (though not as much as the memes would make you believe). Most of the plot "faults" and the campy dialogue are actually explained in-game if you pay attention (P-3's weird penchant for cursing, for example). And as per the political stuff, I'd say the game is as pro-communist as Bioshock Infinite is pro-Tea Party.

It would easily be a 5 star game if it wasn't for the weak, annoying (there's that word again) open world. If you have GamePass, give it a try - you'll find a much better game than you think.

My Score: ★★★★☆

Original post

 

[TuFaN]

Games: 1-5

1. Super Mario Land - Game Boy⠀|⠀04. Jan - 1 hour⠀|⠀98 - Masterpiece
⠀⠀-finished the game once
⠀⠀⠀⠀My 10th favorite game of all time. I play it every now and then if I feel like it. It is a masterpiece for me personally, because I got tons of
⠀⠀⠀⠀positive memories attached to this game. I purchased it first back in 1991/1992 with a GameBoy. I love this game so much.

2. Batman - The Video Game - Game Boy⠀|⠀06. Jan - 2 hours⠀|⠀68 - Good
⠀⠀-finished the game once
⠀⠀⠀⠀I had not touched this game in 3 decades, wanted to give it a go. I enjoyed playing all the levels the game offers once again, but I have to say
⠀⠀⠀⠀that it would have been better off if I had not touched it and kept it as an amazing title in my mind. I unfortunately had to realise that even for
⠀⠀⠀⠀the early 1990`s standards this game was not as good as I thought it was. I still enjoyed my playthrough, it was most likely the last time I
⠀⠀⠀⠀played it.

3. Vampire Survivors - PC⠀|⠀14. Jan - 40 hours⠀|⠀85 - Amazing
⠀⠀-got 100% achievement on Steam
⠀⠀⠀⠀I heard about this game many many times, but watching streams and screenshots of it actually discouraged me from playing for some reason. So I
⠀⠀⠀⠀finally gave in and wanted to see what all the hype was about. I was pleasantly surprised, to say the least. I don't remember the last time I
⠀⠀⠀⠀wanted to witness every single detail a game has to offer this badly. Don't judge a book by its cover. I enthusiastically suggest to anyone who's
⠀⠀⠀⠀into rogue-lites to give this game a fair shot.

4. Final Fantasy 7 Remake - PS5⠀|⠀19. Jan - 90 hours⠀|⠀88 - Amazing
⠀⠀-got plat trophy on PS
⠀⠀⠀⠀I should've finished playing this title ages ago. I have kept procrastinating for a while now... As a huge, huge Final Fantasy fan, I was
⠀⠀⠀⠀unfortunately disappointed beyond compare when I played Final Fantasy 15. The weird feeling during combat, the empty world, the
⠀⠀⠀⠀rushed ending, the weird implementation of DLC content into the game and the fact that cities feel way more empty than the already
⠀⠀⠀⠀empty open world worried me. I thought that was the direction FF was going. I gotta admit that FF7 Remake left me longing for more.
⠀⠀⠀⠀I am very hyped for FF7 rebirth now and cant wait to play it. FF7 Remake is not the best FF title for me personally. It is not even close to
⠀⠀⠀⠀it, but it is a solid game and a must play for every FF fan in my humble opinion.

5. Final Fantasy 7 Remake Intergrade: EPISODE INTERmission - PS5⠀|⠀21. Jan - 16 hours⠀|⠀83 - Great
⠀⠀-got plat trophy on PS
⠀⠀⠀⠀I am glad to have played this DLC. It uses the same assets of the original game but has enough of a unique touch and twist to it to call it a
⠀⠀⠀⠀justified addition to an already amazing title. The ending of the DLC is my favorite part. The touching story brought tears to my eyes. I
⠀⠀⠀⠀love this DLC for what it is and what it is trying to achieve, but the main game is still a notch better.

 

[Bridges]

Fumbled it last year and only ended up with 33.

May as well try it again:

1. Outriders: Worldslayer | Xbox | 1/1/23
2. Marvel Midnight Suns | Xbox | 2/18/23
3. Atomic Heart | Xbox | 3/2/23
4. Virtue's Last Reward | Xbox | 3/8/23
5. Hi-Fi Rush | Xbox | 4/1/23
6. Minecraft Dungeons | Xbox | 4/2/23
7. Redfall | Xbox | 5/9/23
8. The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom | Switch | 5/29/23
9. Slayers X: Terminal Aftermath: Vengence of the Slayers | Xbox | 6/2/23
10. Arcade Paradise | Xbox | 6/21/23
11. Exoprimal | Xbox | 6/22/23
12. Pikmin 4 | Switch | 8/7/23
13. DPS Idle | Xbox | 9/3/23
14. Judgment | Xbox | 9/3/23
15. Vampire Survivors | Xbox | 9/16/23
16. Cocoon | Xbox | 10/13/23
17. Mario Strikers Battle League | Switch | 10/15/23
18. Starfield | Xbox | 10/25/23

 

[Bridges]

Might not need this but reserving just in case

 

[NotMyProblemAnymoreCunt]

Game 1 - Dangaronpa 2 (Switch) - 33 hours
Beat 01/03/2023 - my score: 7.0/10

Game 2 - Dangaronpa 3 (Switch) - 48 hours
Beat 01/09/2023 - my score: 5.0/10

Game 3 - Legend of Dragoon (Vita) - 58 hours
Beat 1/31/2023 - my score: 9.5/10

Game 4 - Tales of Arise (Steam) -
34 hours
Beat 02/11/2023 - my score: 6.0/10

Game 5 – Resident Evil 2 Remake (Steam) - 09:54 hours
Beat 02/19/2023 - my score: 9.0/10

Game 6 – Resident Evil 3 Remake (Steam) - 05:58 hours
Beat 02/19/2023 - my score: 9.5/10

Game 7 - Crisis Core Final Fantasy VII Reunion (Switch) - 17:18 hours
Beat 02/23/2023 - my score: 9.0/10

Game 8 - Legend of Mana(Switch) - 32:28 hours
Beat 03/12/2023 - my score: 9.5/10

Game 9 - Trails To Azure(Switch) - 43:09 hours
Beat 03/19/2023 - my score: 9.5/10

 

[marcincz]

Nice/impressive list.

 

[NotMyProblemAnymoreCunt]

Nice list.

Thanks man

 

[jshackles]

Game 17 - Hi-Fi Rush - PC / Game Pass - Completed Mar 23rd, 2023
This game is really something special. First of all, amazing music from start to finish. The Black Keys, Prodigy, Nine Inch Nails, and a really solid original score. Secondly, the characters were simply some of the best in any game I've played in a VERY long time. While on the surface they seem to have the depth of a Saturday morning cartoon (and look like one too!), they all end up being incredibly complex and have clear motivation and amazing writing. The rhythm gameplay threw me off a few times, but that's a pretty minor misstep to what will surely become a modern instant classic.

 

[Jack Videogames]

9. Hogwarts Legacy

41h-ish. Normal difficulty, 74% of the game completed.

As a person who sort-of-likes Harry Potter (I wouldn't say I'm a fan, but I don't dislike it either) I think Hogwarts Legacy has all the ingredients to be something truly special. Every aspect of the game has been developed with care - yes, it may be an ubisoft-style icon catcher, but rarely those games have such rich a setting, particularly Hogwarts itself, which is simply a delight to traverse. Every nook and every cranny has some sort of secret waiting for the player, and unlike most mapfucking games, it very rarely feels like "filler" gameplay. It's true that some activities repeat, and of course, some of them aren't perfect - but simply having an excuse to explore such a delicately crafted version of Hogwarts is enough. The facts that the graphics are pretty good (And now that most of the technical issues have been ironed, even better) and the music fits the Harry Potter theme perfectly also helps quite a bit.

Outside Hogwarts, things are much more "familiar territory" Outdoor activities are... fun, but samey. What's worse, after you've completed a certain number of them you stop receiving rewards. While you're still receiving rewards, the completionist's drive keeps you going, but after the Guide says "Challenge Complete", all motivation to hunt for those elusive landing pads or Merlin's Trials (who don't appear in the map unless you're close) goes out of the window. This is not bad per se - some people are exploration-oriented, some are challenge-oriented, some are completion-oriented and others are reward-oriented. It's good that you have lots of stuff to do if you feel like doing it.

As per the mandatory stuff and the sidequests, I wasn't expecting much, but really, that's one of the places where Hogwarts Legacy really shines. Most of the characters questlines are well-written and actually quite dark - some of them wouldn't be out of place in The Witcher. The NPCs actually are quite memorable and you end up caring for them. Poppy my beloved. The combat system is easy to learn and hard to master and while the fights aren't hard (I don't remember being killed by a boss in the whole game) they're challenging enough for you to need to pay attention... at least, until you manage to figure the broken combos that make everything trivial.

What would make this game a GOAT would be... some more actual choice. Yes, I'm aware that lots of games give you the illusion of choice instead of actual choices, but in Hogwarts Legacy it's pretty blagrant. Nothing you do changes the course of the plot at all - even the "Bad Ending", which marks the birth of a fucking Dark Wizard like the world has never seen, much more powerful than Voldemort or Grindenwald or both put together my god is pretty much brushed aside right afterwards. Casting Unforgivables pretty much only warrants an evil look and a snide comment from whoever is around instead of, you know, a life sentence in the worst prison in the world with soul-sucking undead jailers like in canon. You build bonds-for-life with greatly developed companions from the four three houses, and you can't even take them with you in your adventures.

This game needed some more time in the oven. A karma system with real, lasting consequences and weighty decisions, a companion system, actual restricted areas at night (not only for the Moon sidequest) a romance system (I'm aware the characters are 15, but have you never been in a high school before?) and this could have been a game for the ages. As it is, it's a great game, one of the best of the year, but it's lacking that "zing" GOATs have.

SteamDeck: With some tweaking and FSR, steady 40fps is achievable. However, the game will look rough. It's still more than perfectly playable though - this little machine still manages to surprise me after a year.

My Score: ★★★★★

Original post

 

[BusierDonkey]

21-30

21 - Pentiment - PC - Finished playthrough - 37 hours - 80/100
This game was a surprise. I don't care much for heavy narrative driven experiences. This game is very light on actual gameplay, it's just shy of being a point and click. You mostly walk around interacting with background items and going through dialogue trees. The dialogue in the game is very well-written though which made me forget I really wasn't playing a game more than just reading a bunch. The branching options of what you say lead to repercussions later in the game. Your actions have weight and lead to harsh outcomes. Quite often you hold character's very lives in your hands and the game does not pull punches with outcomes. For example, your input in a trial leads to the public execution of a character which the game has you watch. Brutal stuff, but appropriate to the setting. The art direction is fantastic, looking like artistry from the period the game is set in, all the NPCs are individuals, and all have their own unique design. The story presented takes place in a small village down the hill from an Abbey which prints books at a time where the ability to print is becoming accessible. You're an apprentice illuminator working in the abbey and the center of several plots that develop and branch out. The story develops over many years with time skips advancing time into the future and covers issues within the Abbey, the political system in place, and the church itself. It was a fascinating adventure to play though. I thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

22 - WarioWare: Get it Together! - Switch - Finished Story Mode - 12 hours - 80/100
The formula for this series never gets weird and the way they implement gameplay changes always feels fresh. In this one Wario has developed a new game which becomes infested with bugs. To solve the problem, you literally jump into the game and hunt down the bugs. Like all WarioWare titles the gameplay is made up of a pile of goofy minigames featuring often bizarre objectives and even more bizarre artwork. This time the minigames require you to control a character to complete the objective before the timer runs down. The game is laid out in stages with an overworld map giving the game a quest to complete. Throughout the story you find more of Wario's friends like Mona, Ashley, the Volt family, etc, and each have their own moves and gives you a reason to go back and retry earlier stages. The game is stupid fun and while there isn't much depth it excels at what it was made to be.

23 - Huntdown - PC - Finished playthrough - 7 hours - 80/100
This was a pretty interesting game. It reminded me a lot of Blackthorne, only it was stage-based. It featured the same cover mechanic, though it was more limited in where it could be used, only in alcoves and doorways. The gameplay is a bit faster than Blackthorne as well, jumping and shooting was more immediate and felt faster. The game has you go into a near-future dystopian city resembling the setting from Bladerunner and hunting down bounties. The boss fights against the bounties were great and the game struck just the right balance of hard, but fair. Most enemies you'll die on a few times, but patterns emerge, and you get past it. I though the last boss was just cheap until I beat it, now I can beat it every time, as it should be. Definitely worth playing.

24 - River City Girls Zero - Switch - Finished playthrough - 4 hours - 45/100
I really love the new cinematics they added to tie this to the new games. Unfortunately, they are the best part of the game. While the silly story is fine, the adventure itself is kind of forgettable. Rough is about the nicest way to describe this game as a whole, feeling less like River City Ransom and more like Double Dragon. Gameplay waw stiff and placement is unforgiving. Simple moves like jump kicks often miss the mark even when they appear to connect. add to that a shaky camera movement and placement becomes even harder. The worst offender in this game was the freeway levels between several stages requiring you to ride a motorcycle for a set duration. Attacking enemies is clumsy and merely touching one can send your bike into the wall for an instant death. Not great.

25 - Avenging Spirit - Game Boy - Finished playthrough - 3 hours - 60/100
Even after finishing the entire game, I'm not sure how the possession mechanic works. In the game you're the ghost of a murdered man out to save his girlfriend by inhabiting the bodies of the game's NPCs, each with unique abilities. The game is charming and fun to play but suffers from things like enemy respawns that hit you no matter what and a possession mechanic that seems almost random in this version of the game. Despite trying every button (there aren't many on the Game Boy) I just couldn't activate the ability. Often, I'd get hit by and enemy and leave the body I was in, but not every time. It made parts of the game frustrating. Despite that, considering it's an old Game Boy title, it was an endearing little adventure.

26 - Atomic Heart - PC - Finished Playthrough - 43 hours - 80/100
I wasn't expecting much from this game, maybe Russian Bioshock. What I got was a fascinating alternative version of the world that felt more to me like the first Half-Life than BioShock. There are many parallels in the games. You basically start the game by taking a ride around the entire world you're about to enter, you start off with a simple tool as a melee weapon and you enter another dimension of sorts later in the game. I've read a lot of bad reviews focused on the protagonist but honestly, I thought he was awesome. He's a take no shit, hit it with an axe 'til it breaks action man. The story was engaging enough, you're a military man with no real memories in a world where robots have gone haywire. The plot is full of some decent twists and some interesting characters. The gameplay is fast and tight, gunplay is good, and the world keeps you moving as if you fart around too much, all the enemies get respawned. You'll get yourself in an endless loop of fighting enemies for no reward if you don't get shit done and move on. I liked the urgency it instilled. Kill the enemies in the area and loot everything before they get put back together. My one gripe with the game was that it was a bit limited in scope. There are a bunch of locations on the map that serve no purpose as far as I could tell, and I wanted to go into them. I would have loved more of the Zelda BotW shrine-like test labs full of puzzles as well. In the end this game needed to be about 20 hours longer and could have used some more weapons.

27 - World Reborn - Game Boy Advance - Finished Playthrough - 3 hours - 60/100
This is a side-scrolling shooter clearly made for kids. The game plays fine but the enemies move slow, rarely shoot and honestly, I'm not sure you can get killed because I never did, and I suck at these shooters. You're a bunch of kids saving the world from an invading robotic alien race. As you progress you can take branching paths and recruit new pilots with new ships which can be leveled up. The game unfortunately doesn't let you return to old areas and open up the optional paths which was unfortunate. It's not a bad game but it's just not in the mix with R-Type, Darius or Gradius.

28 - Poly Bridge 2 - PC - Finished all stages - 22 hours - 80/100
Poly Bridge was a waste of time in a good way. This is too, but unfortunately many of the puzzles in the first game seem to have been copy-pasted into this game. Some stages I figured out immediately as I just played the first game a couple years ago. There are a couple additions to this release that add some complexity to the stages but it was mostly more of the same which isn't a bad thing. I would have liked to see more stages relying on the new parts though.

29 - PomPom: The Great Space Rescue - PC - WIP - 60/100
This is a game I will probably never be able to finish. The game has this little critter auto-running through the stage. Your job is to place platforms and jumping pads to keep him going. The game lets you pause the action to make placements, but you can only freeze the action for a short duration before it begins moving slowly and speeding up from there. The issue is the camera is on meth and often doesn't stop scrolling when you place things, so you misplace the item and need to restart. It's likely not as big of an issue as I'm making it out to be, but I suck at this style of game so for me it ends up frustrating and I end up exiting the game. Skill issue, but it leaves me annoyed every time I try to play it.

30 - Retrowave - PC - Open Ended - Ongoing - 60/100
This is a do-nothing machine. I expected an arcade racer but it's just an evolution of the Tomy driving simulators toddlers used to play with in the 80s. Your car is on an endless straight highway driving in traffic and your goal in to dart through it without hitting any of it. Even with the fastest cars on the busiest traffic settings the game is brainless and nearly impossible to fail at. It's not bad by any stretch, but it's basically a game made to play when you get off work and just want to zone out on while you smoke weed or something and it's great at being that. It serves no real purpose for me though.

 

[Jack Videogames]

10. Chained Echoes

30:59. All sidequests complete, bonus boss killed.

Chained Echoes is a fantastic achievement, particularly considering that the game is mostly a single-person work (He got some other people to help with the art late in development). It's always impressive when one guy makes a good JRPG without going the "RPGMaker" (or WolfRPG, etc.) route. Granted, the graphics are nothing super flashy, but they're serviceable and every named character has a very distinct personality. Also the music is super good, though I personally do not like the usage of one of the game's "main themes" as the Game Over theme; it's distracting when it pops during gameplay.

The combat is the star of Chained Echoes. The overdrive bar is a great idea, and the fact that there are some bosses that directly screw with it (not enough, in my opinion) is a genius move. The fact that Sky Armor combat controls differently is also a very smart way to keep players engaged. The difficulty curve is a bit all over the place though; the game is punishingly hard at the beginning but the more characters you have, and the bigger toolset you develop, everything becomes noticeably easier. Not all characters are equally useful, though... (I think I never used Robb at all during the latter half of the game)

Moving away from the technical aspects, I did enjoy the story quite a bit. Keep in mind, it includes some adult themes seldom seen in JRPGs (like rape [statutory or otherwise] or torture). At first it's a mostly Game of Thrones-esque story about war and geopolitics, but in the second half of the game (After the first of a series of big plot twists) it becomes a much more "standard" JRPG plot. In the final act of the game things get really good. The reveals at the start of Act 4 made me experience that familiar "This is fucking good" tingle in the stomach. After that, however, things become much more rushed - the political plot gets resolved with a very unsatisfactory ass-pull but fortunately the game picks up in time to give us a grand finale and a satisfactory if bittersweet ending.

Also, don't sleep on the sidequests and the extra content. Most of the sidequests are A+, and the way to unlock the bonus boss is very clever and it makes you put in the work, but it never becomes grindy or boring. While I checked out at 31h, you can easily put a dozen hours more if you want to do everything.

My Score: ★★★★★

Original post

 

[marcincz]

March was quite intense.
Besides I've bought my first VR - great experience and beat Horizon and SR. Both are brilliant titles.

Game 11 - Horizon Call of the Mountain (PSVR2) - 10h 39m
Beat 09/03/2023 - my score: 9/10
Game 12 - The Quarry (PS5) - 08h 38m
Beat 13/03/2023 - my score: 6/10
Game 13 - No Straight Roads (PS4) - 05h 21m
Beat 17/03/2023 - my score: 5/10
Game 14 - inFamous: Festival of Blood (PS3) - 03h 52m
Beat 19/03/2023 - my score: 5/10
Game 15 - Deliver ustheMoon (PS5) - 06h 09m
Beat 19/03/2023 - my score: 9/10
Game 16 - Synth Riders Remastered Edition (PSVR2) - 06h 25m
Beat 25/03/2023 - my score: 9/10
Game 17 - Tchia (PS5) - 09h 02m
Beat 30/03/2023 - my score: 4/10

 

[WakeTheWolf]

Game 1 - Red Dead Redemption (PS3)
10/10
Incredible game with a sad ending. I had tried to complete this before but never got around to it and I'm glad I did. The western feel of this game is captured perfectly. I never tried the DLC but I'll get around to it and I can't wait to try the sequel. The game to me is a 10 out of 10. Every moment was enjoyable.
Game 2 - Zelda: A Link To The Past (Wii U)
10/10
I originally played this game when I was a kid and I could never beat the game. And everytime I played Zelda I just dropped off. I had those feelings when playing this but I pushed through. I thought I had beat it after the four dungeons and then you realise you have to get the crystals! Its just a really difficult game and I'd never been able to have completed this as a kid. But its so damn epic that I'm considering a full playthrough of all Zeldas! My only criticism is backtracking for the ice rod that was annoying.

 

[TuFaN]

Games: 6-10

5. Final Fantasy 7 Remake Intergrade: EPISODE INTERmission - PS5⠀|⠀21. Jan - 16 hours⠀|⠀83 - Great
⠀⠀-all available trophies on PS
⠀⠀⠀⠀I am glad to have played this DLC. It uses the same assets of the original game but has enough of a unique touch and twist to it to call it a
⠀⠀⠀⠀justified addition to an already amazing title. The ending of the DLC is my favorite part. The touching story brought tears to my eyes.
⠀⠀⠀⠀I love this DLC for what it is and what it is trying to achieve, but the main game is still a notch better.

6. Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart - PS5⠀|⠀24. Jan - 18 hours⠀|⠀83 - Great
⠀⠀-got plat trophy on PS
⠀⠀⠀⠀Love this game, playing through the story was fun.

7. Ghost of Tsushima - PS5⠀|⠀30. Jan - 62 hours⠀|⠀85 - Amazing
⠀⠀-got plat trophy on PS
⠀⠀⠀⠀Very well written story and characters and the gameplay was amazing as well. The only thing that I did not enjoy at all
⠀⠀⠀⠀was the fact that we can't skip any cutscenes, not even during side missions. I'm quite certain that this doesn't sound like a major issue to someone
⠀⠀⠀⠀who has not played the game yet but it unfortunately made me contemplate quitting the game many many times. I didn't feel like skipping important
⠀⠀⠀⠀story parts during the main campaign but the option to skip atleast sidequest cutscenes would have been amazing.

8. Ghost of Tsushima: Iki Island Expansion - PS5⠀|⠀01. Feb - 10 hours⠀|⠀85 - Amazing
⠀⠀-got 100% achievements on PS

9. Sackboy: A Big Adventure - PS5⠀|⠀10. Feb - 15 hours⠀|⠀75 - Great
⠀⠀-got plat trophy on PS
⠀⠀⠀⠀Very enjoyable platformer. Looking forward to play it every now and then, especially if my nephews ask me to play it with them

10. Astro's Playroom - PS5⠀|⠀13. Feb - 8 hours⠀|⠀85 - Amazing
⠀⠀-got plat trophy on PS
⠀⠀⠀⠀This game took me back to the 90's and 2000's multiple times. Slowly unlocking all those playstation controllers, consoles and other gadgets was fun.
⠀⠀⠀⠀I'm glad to have platinumed it, very enjoyable experience.

 

[TuFaN]

Games: 11-15

11. Returnal - PS5⠀|⠀21. Feb - 48 hours⠀|⠀80 - Great
⠀⠀-got plat trophy on PS
⠀⠀⠀⠀Learned the hard way once again to never have an unreasonably excessive amount of hype for a game and simply expect a level of
⠀⠀⠀⠀enjoyment/entertainment which can't be satisfied. Close friends were praising the game and calling it a masterpiece, so I could not
⠀⠀⠀⠀help it and automatically expected a masterpiece. It was a let down in some weird way once I realised that the game was ''only great''.
⠀⠀⠀⠀I enjoyed the game a lot but I'm sure I would've enjoyed it even more if I kept my expectations low.

12. The Last Guardian - PS5⠀|⠀27. Feb - 13 hours⠀|⠀55 - Mediocre
⠀⠀-One playthrough
⠀⠀⠀⠀I'm not a fan of this game. I thought I would get used to the horribly weird controls and terrible
⠀⠀⠀⠀camera solution. But that was unfortunately not the case, never got used to them. I'm going to be honest, I finished the game only because I had
⠀⠀⠀⠀several hours already invested and wanted to increase my 52 games counter. I'm never touching the game ever again.

13. Shadow of the Colossus - PS5⠀|⠀08. Mar - 15 hours⠀|⠀85 - Amazing
⠀⠀-got plat trophy on PS
⠀⠀⠀⠀A journey every gamer who enjoys killing bosses with unique mechanics has to witness at least once.

14. inFamous Second - PS5⠀|⠀12. Mar - 23 hours⠀|⠀82 - Great
⠀⠀-got plat trophy on PS
⠀⠀⠀⠀Such a great superhero game. I love the powers Delsin gets during his adventure. Getting stronger and faster, unlocking brand new
⠀⠀⠀⠀powers to gain the capability to either defeat enemies you previously couldn't or get to places you previously were unable to get to
⠀⠀⠀⠀feels freaking great. I also love the synergy between Delsin and his older brother Reggie.

15. God of War 2018 - PS5⠀|⠀17. Mar - 47 hours⠀|⠀92 - Amazing
⠀⠀-got plat trophy on PS
⠀⠀⠀⠀I don't exactly remember what it was but I couldn't get into this game, played it once for like +-5 hours but did not enjoy it at all and a few times
⠀⠀⠀⠀for like 10-30 mins. Now, several years after its launch I tried it once again and oh my god... I love this game so much. This time I did not play any
⠀⠀⠀⠀other game until I proudly obtained the platinum trophy. I love the world, characters, gameplay, skill-effects/skill-trees, endgame contant aka
⠀⠀⠀⠀valkyries.

 

[TuFaN]

Games: 16-19

16. Resident Evil 1 Remake - PC⠀|⠀21. Mar - 5 hours⠀|⠀99 - Masterpiece
⠀⠀-One playthrough with Jill Valentine
⠀⠀⠀⠀My 6th favorite game of all time. The only remake of a game that has a higher score than the original game for me personally.
⠀⠀⠀⠀Started playing as many Resident Evil games as I can until Resident Evil 4 launches in a few days.

17. Resident Evil Director's Cut - PS1⠀|⠀22. Mar - 5 hours⠀|⠀98 - Masterpiece
⠀⠀-One playthrough with Jill Valentine
⠀⠀⠀⠀The first time I fell in love with the Resident Evil franchise back in 1996. I love this game.

18. Resident Evil 2 - PS1⠀|⠀22. Mar - 4 hours⠀|⠀97 - Masterpiece
⠀⠀-One playthrough with Leon Scott Kennedy in A-Scenario
⠀⠀⠀⠀Don't remember the last time I had played the original PS1 version. Enjoyed it a lot.

19. Resident Evil 3: Nemesis - PS1⠀|⠀24. Mar - 4 hours⠀|⠀94 - Amazing
⠀⠀-One playthrough
⠀⠀⠀⠀Same goes for this game, don't exactly remember the last time I had played the original RE3, always a bliss to play OG Resident Evil games.

 

[TuFaN]

Game: 20

20. Resident Evil 4 Remake - PC⠀|⠀06. Apr - 108 hours⠀|⠀96 - Masterpiece
⠀⠀-100% Achievements on Steam

┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐
⠀⠀⠀Rating: 96% - Masterpiece
├─────────────────────────────────────────┤
⠀Short review:

⠀Pro:
⠀⠀⠀- Breathtakingly beautiful graphics.
⠀⠀⠀- Great implementation of new sidequests.
⠀⠀⠀- Quicktime events are gone.
⠀⠀⠀- Strong emphasis on new knife gameplay.
⠀⠀⠀- Shooting Range.
⠀⠀⠀- Exceptional music delivery.
⠀⠀⠀- Ambient sound.
⠀⠀⠀- Detailed and rich animations.
⠀⠀⠀- Convincing voice acting, believable conversations.
⠀⠀⠀- The user interface is well thought out and has a modern, crisp
⠀⠀⠀⠀look to it.
⠀⠀⠀- More screentime for important characters.
⠀⠀⠀- Vastly improved storytelling/narrative.
⠀⠀⠀- One-liners and goofy humor.

⠀Cons:
⠀⠀⠀- Dog's got bad AI.
⠀⠀⠀- Missing a boss.
⠀⠀⠀- Awesome Remake but nevertheless, still just a Remake.

├─────────────────────────────────────────┤

⠀Full review:

⠀Pro:
⠀⠀- Breathtakingly beautiful graphics. I stopped many many times
⠀⠀⠀to enjoy the view and take tons of screenshots during my first
⠀⠀⠀playthrough.

⠀⠀- Great implementation of new sidequests. They are refreshing,
⠀⠀⠀quickly done and usually do not require any backtracking at all.

⠀⠀- Quicktime events are gone. I'm happy about this hange,
⠀⠀⠀because I usually am against OTE's and they don't really
⠀⠀⠀contribute to better gameplay. The only QTE I was missing is
⠀⠀⠀when Leon falls into the water during a certain fight in the
⠀⠀⠀original and tries to swim back tothe boat to stay alive.

⠀⠀- Strong emphasis on knife gameplay. This is the biggest
⠀⠀⠀changeto the original RE4 (2005), Capcom went high risk
⠀⠀⠀and high reward and guess what, they nailed it. Parry,
⠀⠀⠀perfect-parry, break out of grab, stealth kills, durability on main
⠀⠀⠀knives, consumable little knives, two different knife attacks.
⠀⠀⠀I love how the entire game is designed around this mechanic
⠀⠀⠀and it carries an even bigger impact on higher difficulties if
⠀⠀⠀you're not using special weapons, that is.

⠀⠀- Shooting Range. The shooting range is still in the game and
⠀⠀⠀as fun as it was in the original game. This is so freaking cool,
⠀⠀⠀it is insane, an absolute loveletter for RE4 fans (thx Capcom
⠀⠀⠀<3). We are facing pirates and sailors instead of Ashley and
⠀⠀⠀villagers this time around. I have to admit that during my
⠀⠀⠀playthrough of the game I had to change to mouse and
⠀⠀⠀keyboard to get S ranks, all skulls and 3 additional stars in all
⠀⠀⠀of them. It would have been impossible to get those stats with
⠀⠀⠀my PS5 dualsense controller. It was very well balanced for
⠀⠀⠀mouse and keyboard and very enjoyable. I don't know how I'd
⠀⠀⠀think about this when I was stuck on a console with a controller
⠀⠀⠀as my only input device and no options to use mouse and
⠀⠀⠀keyboard. It might have been a rather miserable experience
⠀⠀⠀since keep in mind, you are not just getting bottle cups and
⠀⠀⠀pesetas as rewards, you're getting game altering attachments
⠀⠀⠀for the main game. Attachments such as better healing, higher
⠀⠀⠀selling values, cheaper tuning and even +8% movement speed
⠀⠀⠀with the Striker attachments. So yeah, in my book the shooting
⠀⠀⠀range is a huge plus but I can understand people disliking it for
⠀⠀⠀being brutally difficult with controllers.

⠀⠀- Exceptional music delivery, always fits and strengthens the
⠀⠀⠀atmosphere the game is trying to deliver to the player.

⠀⠀- Ambient sound. Sound effects are easily distinguishable. I got
⠀⠀⠀15 out of 16 Clockwork Castellians during my first playthrough
⠀⠀⠀by just listening to the ambient noises. Amazing gun sounds,
⠀⠀⠀as someone who has heard many actual guns get fired in real
⠀⠀⠀life, oh boy, they've out-done themselves with this one.
⠀⠀⠀Directional audio is also amazing, you can hear snakes rattle
⠀⠀⠀or fish swim exactly where they are located during that time.

⠀⠀- Detailed and rich animations. Every encounter has great
⠀⠀⠀fluidity and is very responsive, which adds up to every second
⠀⠀⠀of fights being fun and not feeling repetitive or boring at all.
⠀⠀⠀The way enemies lose their arms, legs head and even get cut
⠀⠀⠀in half looks great.

⠀⠀- Convincing voice acting, believable conversations.

⠀⠀- The user interface is well thought out and has a modern, crisp
⠀⠀⠀look to it. The UI gives you all the information you need on a
⠀⠀⠀surface level but if you need more, you can deep dive to
⠀⠀⠀check for exact weapon stats and descriptions, for example.
⠀⠀⠀It is not overloaded at all. The attention and love they've shown
⠀⠀⠀to detail is fascinating. Or another minor thing, when you buy a
⠀⠀⠀weapon but have to re-arrange your inventory to make space
⠀⠀⠀for it, you just simply press the auto-sort button and the
⠀⠀⠀weapon moves from the side window directly into your
⠀⠀⠀inventory. Love it.

⠀⠀- More screentime for important characters.

⠀⠀- Vastly improved storytelling/narrative.
⠀⠀⠀(won't spoil anything here ofc)

⠀⠀⠀- One-liners and goofy humor. I'm glad they've kept this in the
⠀⠀⠀game. It is not over the top and doesn't appear neither too
⠀⠀⠀frequently nor too infrequently. Perfectly balanced if you ask me.

⠀Con:
⠀⠀- Dog's got bad AI, makes it not as impactful and
⠀⠀⠀fulfilling/challenging as it could have been. For example,
⠀⠀⠀villagers are faster, smarter, charge quickly towards you in
⠀⠀⠀Hardcore/Professional mode. Dogs are the same on all
⠀⠀⠀difficulties, just with a tiny bit more HP it seems.

⠀⠀- Missing a boss. I actually enjoyed this boss fight in the original
⠀⠀⠀game a lot and was wondering in what shape or form they
⠀⠀⠀could have changed this one to make it more enjoyable. It is a
⠀⠀⠀bummer, BUT it doesn't take too much from the overall
⠀⠀⠀presentation of the game.

⠀⠀- Awesome Remake but nevertheless, still just a Remake.

├─────────────────────────────────────────┤

⠀Final thoughts:

⠀⠀⠀RE4 (2005) came out 18 freaking years ago and was state
⠀⠀⠀of the art back then. The current version is state of the art in
⠀⠀⠀2023 and definitely not a cashgrab by Capcom. It totally
⠀⠀⠀deserves to ask for full price or for more if you purchase a
⠀⠀⠀deluxe edition to further support these Remakes. If you'd give
⠀⠀⠀me RE4 (2005) and the Remake today, somehow erase all my
⠀⠀⠀memory related to RE4 and tell me to play both for the first
⠀⠀⠀time and then judge which one is better, it would obviously be
⠀⠀⠀the Remake. It is not a perfect Remake, but it is definitely the
⠀⠀⠀better experience nowadays, by a lot. Nevertheless, I judge
⠀⠀⠀the games I have played for the time they are being released
⠀⠀⠀and never changing that score. RE4 (2005) remains to be,
⠀⠀⠀my 4th best gaming experience I have had in my entire life,
⠀⠀⠀with a score of 99%. The Remake is a masterpiece through
⠀⠀⠀and through with 96% but it has not impacted me as much
⠀⠀⠀as the original game.

⠀⠀⠀Thank you Capcom soooo much for delivering another
⠀⠀⠀remake worthy of being called a masterpiece after RE1
⠀⠀⠀Remake for the Gamecube and RE2 Remake in 2019.

└─────────────────────────────────────────┘

 

[Jack Videogames]

11. Terra Nil

8h-ish. No "alternate" levels completed.

It's ok I guess. Scratches the same itch than "cleaning" games like Powerwash Simulator, but as a strategy game. While the early levels are pretty simple, later levels force you to strategize in the way you clean up the world. Seeing the level go from a wasteland to a paradise is kinda nice.

The game is short, though, which may as well because it gets repetitive sort of fast. A game to play once and forget about.

My Score: ★★★☆☆

Original post

 

[Jack Videogames]

12. PARANORMASIGHT: The Seven Mysteries of Honjo

11h-ish. Saw all endings.

Have I mentioned this year that I generally don't like horror games? Well, I sure play a lot of them. The thing is, horror Visual Novels make me particularly queasy, because they can be super graphic sometimes.

But this is a game by Square, that also released in Switch and mobile, so yeah, Euphoria or Maggot Baits this ain't. Paranormasight is actually a thriller, specifically a whodunnit, with very little in the way of violence or actual horror. I found, however, the art and the music were good and the story was very interesting, if a bit on the predictable side (it's fairly obvious who the bad guys are, and one of them is all but revealed within the first few chapters). I liked when the game broke the fourth wall, though sometimes it wasn't obvious what it wanted you to do (like when Michiyo wanted you to save the game)

Bit expensive for what it is, but I would recommend it. Maybe wait for a sale if you're either not a big VN fan or a very big VN fan.

SteamDeck: Perfect OOTB.

My Score: ★★★★☆

Original post

 

[Jack Videogames]

13. Tesla vs. Lovecraft

12h-ish. Played all three loops.

I... OK? Not gonna lie, this felt like a meme that dragged on for too long. The game isn't BAD, but it's not the best twin-stick shooter in the market. Not even in the top 3 or 5. The enemies are samey, the weapons are (for the most part) boring, and the initial special abilities are eh. The bosses are few, repetitive and easy to beat. Then you get to the ending and... realize you have to do everything again.

This is actually a 3h game that you have to beat three times to get to the "true" ending. Contrary to my instincts I persevered, and I found out that while the first two loops can be beaten blinfolded, in the third loop the game gets decently challenging and fun. After you have finally unlocked the flashier weapons and powers, TvL feels more like a full-fledged twin-stick shooter. Sadly, this is only the final third of the game, but it's enough for me to get its score out of the doghouse. Considering this game can be found dirt cheap, it's a fun timewaster.

SteamDeck: Perfect OOTB.

My Score: ★★★☆☆

Original post

 

[Phase]

Hope it's going well for everyone in this this year. Wish I could do it, but still struggling with a health issue. Hope to be back playing games some day. Love you all.

 

[jshackles]

Game 20 - Renfield: Bring Your Own Blood - PC / Steam - Completed Apr 20th, 2023
I'm usually a huge fan of any type of Vampire-Survivors-like game, but this is the first one I've played that's felt incredibly flat. The biggest problem I have with this game is that the runs are too short, and you don't get enough time to fully develop your character's abilities. On a typical "run" through a level, I'd be about level 9 or 10 by the end of it. Since there are a fixed number of enemies per level, there is also a fixed amount of EXP you can earn. The concept is alright, but the execution is way off. It's an Early Access game though - so maybe it'll get better by the time it's abandoned.

 

[Phase]

I'm usually a huge fan of any type of Vampire-Survivors-like game, but this is the first one I've played that's felt incredibly flat. The biggest problem I have with this game is that the runs are too short, and you don't get enough time to fully develop your character's abilities. On a typical "run" through a level, I'd be about level 9 or 10 by the end of it. Since there are a fixed number of enemies per level, there is also a fixed amount of EXP you can earn. The concept is alright, but the execution is way off. It's an Early Access game though - so maybe it'll get better by the time it's abandoned.

 

[Chastten]

I'll never be able to complete 52 games in a year, considering I mainly play lengthy JRPG's and even during the Covid years, my record was 36 games but whatever. It'll be a nice way of tracking my games and thoughts.


Game #1 - Fire Emblem Engage (Switch) - 7,5/10

While I preferred Three Houses because of the setting and the atmosphere, this one has quite possibly the best combat in the series. The story did start to drag towards the end though. Still a solid entry in the series.

Game #2 - Ori and the Will of the Wisps (Switch) - 9/10

The first game was a journey I'll never forget and the second game is just a good. Looks gorgeous, sounds great, has just the right amount of difficulty and that ending was just beautiful.

Game #3 - Kirby's Return to Dreamland Deluxe (Switch) - 7/10

Never played this on the Wii so I decided to give it a go on Switch. It's not as solid as last years Forgotten Land but it's an enjoyable adventure and much better than the first game on Switch.

Game #4 - Atelier Ryza 3: Alchemist of the End & the Secret Key (Switch) - 8/10

A fantastic ending to the trilogy that concludes Ryza's story in the best way possible. Lovable characters, great combat system and an addicting gameplay loop with a focus on gathering and crafting your own stuff.

Game #5 - Final Fantasy III (PC) - 7,5/10

Honestly, I love this game. I finished it a long time ago on Nintendo DS but got nostalgic and got it during a recent Steam sale for cheap. It's definitely showing it's age but I love it to bits. The story is limited to only the needed dialogue, the combat system is still great, and I like how you can finish the entire game in less than 20 hours if you want. This game basically fills me with the same kind of nostalgia as a game like Pokémon Red/Blue. The adventure on the screen and the adventure that takes place inside your head are just completely different in the best way possible.

Game #6 - Flower (PC) - 8/10

This one feels like cheating as you can finish it in a single hour, but it's on Steam and it's still a game so whatever. I played a bit of this on PS3 years ago but I never experienced the entire thing before. This time I did and it's gorgeous, I kinda missed the motion controls as I played it with a regular Xbox controller but yeah, it's still a great experience.

Game #7 - Sword Art Online Alicization Lycoris (PC) - 4/10

There is some fun to be had in endgame/postgame as the main gameplay loop of questing and killing monsters can be somewhat fun with the higly customizable combat system. To get there, however, you have to slog through 40+ hours of the most boring, most tedious and most insulting game I've played in at least 10 years. The incredibly long and tedious cutscenes WILL JUST NOT END.

The worst part is, the game has a lot of potential. It's just ruined by terrible writing, terrible pacing,, terrible characters, terrible performance and terrible loading times. I wanted to be generous and give it a 5/10 or something but then I remembered the game also crashed 3 times so fuck it.

Still have a pretty big backlog, but as for recent and new games, I'll probably try and finish Bayonetta Origins and Trinity Trigger in the next few weeks, just in time for The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom in mid may. And that game will probably last me until Diablo IV launches in early June. Zelda and Diablo will probably keep me busy for at least 100 hours each, so yeah, maybe I should aim for 25 instead of 52

 

[Jack Videogames]

14. Like a Dragon: Ishin

53:01h. 72/72 Substories complete. Amon defeated. 52.02% completed. Normal difficulty.

For a big Yakuza LaD fan, this game was a bit of a "white whale". Having played all of them obsessively, not being able to play the most unique of them was a sore spot. So there was much rejoicing when the translation was officially announced. Best thing about this game is, finally we can put the "No translation for you" meme to rest.

Now we have the game and while the remaster does a fucking great job of updating the graphics, it does show its age a bit. But apart from that it's (mostly) everything we wished for. There is an abundance of substories compared to basically every other Yakuza game but 0, and some of them are a riot, while others are more subdued. Some of them very obviously reference obscure bits of Japanese history and even other Yakuza/LaD games. Combat is a bit on the dull side, and the enemies feel more spongey than in other games, even when using the best weapons - and having to grind those samey "battle dungeons" time after time to unlock the Amon fight is a bit of a grind and feels like "filler". But it's one and done - I'd suggest lowering the difficulty level when doing that.

Storywise, Ishin has (imo) one of the best LaD plots, and I loved the usage of historical incidents (like the Ikedaya incident, the Teradaya incident, the Omiya incident [those Japanese sure love their "incidents"] etc.). I imagine that for serious Japanese history buffs this game is likely commiting several unforgivable sins. But for me, who has a perfunctory interest on Japanese history, it's fun to see all those historical names thrown around and played with.

All in all Ishin is a great addition to the LaD family. Now if we could only get Like a Dragon: Kenzan, my life would be complete.

SteamDeck: Lowering the resolution to 720p (With FSR active) and Medium details, you get stable-ish 60fps with dips. Capping the FPS at 40 works like a dream and allows you to crank it up to High. Careful though - like all Unreal games, it drinks battery.

My Score: ★★★★★

Original post

 

[marcincz]

Little update:
Game 18 - Leisure Suit Larry - Wet Dreams Dry Twice (PS4) - 17h 46m
Beat 06/04/2023 - my score: 6/10
Game 19 - Kayak VR: Mirage (PSVR2) - 02h 02m
Beat 10/04/2023 - my score: 6/10
Game 20 - Metroid Prime Remastered (NS) - 29h 25m
Beat 23/04/2023 - my score: 7/10

 

[marcincz]

Game 21 - Dragon Quest XI: S Echoes of an Elusive Age (PS4) - 63h 56m
Beat 21/05/2023 - my score: 8/10

 

[Jack Videogames]

15. Resident Evil 4

14:20h. Normal difficulty.

There's something special about RE4. Granted, RE2Make was good too, but RE4 feels like the culmination of Capcom's efforts. I don't have a ton to comment about it. It looks fantastic, it plays fantastic, it sounds fantastic. It's hard to review something when you feel it's basically perfect in every way. The way the plot evolves from a somewhat local conflict to a showdown in a castle town and then down to the ruins makes me realize how much Resident Evil Village owes this game.

So yeah, two thumbs up. Though, I have missed the corniness of the original game, though. For example, I remember the weirdly latin-american accents of the supposedly Spanish NPCs (Was really disappointed when the first enemy doesn't immediately scream "QUE HASES AQUI CABRÓN?!" in your face) and the "ballistics" conversation. RE4 is basically the perfect action horror game, but it feels weirdly subdued in comparison, almost... depressed. But that's sort of a minor quibble or, as a FFXVI fan would say, a niggle.

SteamDeck: Some fiddling got me to unstable 40fps with mostly low settings and lowered resolution with FSR. The SteamDeck is starting to show its age in some AAA games. Very playable though.

My Score:

Original post

 

[ThaMonkeyClaw]

A thread for people that are trying to play 52 games in a year. Tell us how you're doing and what you are going to play next - claim a post and update us on your progress!

How do I take part?
Claim a ‘main post’ where you will list all your completions for the year. You can use fancy images or special formatting to make it extra cool. In addition to this post your updates, completions and thoughts as singular posts throughout the year.

Does my main post need to adhere to a format?
Nope! We previously did, but now you can have it formatted however you like. Take some inspiration from previous year posts. Here’s a beautiful example!

Do I need to post reviews, scores, dates and stuff?
Also nope! It is highly recommended to spruce up your completions with mini reviews, a score (for example 2/5), your playtime duration, date completed, platform or any such fun statistical information but it's not required. You do you.

What's that Hall of Fame thing?
Those who beat the challenge get placed in the shrine that is the ‘Hall of Fame’™. Furthermore you’ll get a pretty little medal that denotes how many years you’ve overcome the challenge. Cool kids have been doing this for over five years.

How do I know when I've completed a game?
That can be tricky to determine, but it's ultimately up to you. If its a straightforward single player game then it's typically when the credits roll, but if it's say a multiplayer session based game maybe its when you’ve unlocked a certain feature or completed a battle pass.

Do the completions need to be games released this year?
Nope; any video game will suffice. It can be first plays or replays, classics or recent releases. It can be a game you started last year but are finishing this year.

Do board games count?
They do not. Vidya games only here.

I want to record durations, do I have to manually count?
No, most platforms (Steam, Xbox, Nintendo, etc) will do the duration tracking for you! If in doubt you can also use sites like HLTB to fill in the blanks.

Do episodic games count as a single game or X amount of games?
That's up to you. It's alright to count something like Life is Strange as one or five games. Your choice, for whatever makes sense with how you’ve been playing. Ask other users if in doubt.

What should I do once I've completed the challenge?
Send me a DM on this platform, with a link to your post that shows all the games you've completed, and I’ll make you thread famous by adding you to the Hall of FameTM. If I take a while to respond don’t panic, I tend to go into periods of hibernation throughout the year.

Is there a deadline?
Until Dec 31st 2023 @ 11.59pm!

Archive: 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 (shout out to jshackles as the prior host)



Starting in 2020 our Discord (http://discord.backlogbeat.com/) has since grown to over 150 members. Among discussing the 52 Challenge (posting updates, picking games, etc) we also coordinate a slew of other totally cool game activities (additional context @ backlogbeat.com)…


A play on a traditional book club that sees us choosing and collectively playing a nominated game per month, sharing our thoughts and opinions through to beating it. Those who beat the current nomination get entered into the raffle to pick the next months; share your favourite games or recent releases you’re excited for with us!

Jan: ???	Jul: ???
Feb: ???	Aug: ???
Mar: ???	Sep: ???
Apr: ???	Oct: ???
May: ???	Nov: ???
Jun: ???	Dec: ???

It’s the same thing as above, but only for movies! Similar approach in that all you need to do is watch the nominated film to acquire a raffle ticket with an even lower bar to enter as most choices can be completed with a leisurely sub 3 hour investment.

Jan: ???	Jul: ???
Feb: ???	Aug: ???
Mar: ???	Sep: ???
Apr: ???	Oct: ???
May: ???	Nov: ???
Jun: ???	Dec: ???

Sometimes it's tricky to get a thing nominated but there’s enough folk playing it that it makes sense to carve a dedicated place and play together. Elden Ring is a great example of a game that reaches new heights when played alongside others.

Come say hey, everyone is welcome and folks from these threads are our favourite kind of people! You’ll likely see a lot of familiar faces

The brave individuals that overcome the challenge this year;

<no-one just yet…>

The additional survivors who overcame the challenge of the previous years thread;



And below are the legacy participants from years prior who we hope to see return to us this year;

And so there lists all those that have risen to the challenge during this or prior years! If you see yourself beating the challenge, please remember to send me a DM with your post once you’re done!

You know what else has 52 games???

Spoiler

 

[Jack Videogames]

16. Dead Space

11:24h. Normal difficulty most of the game, but changed to Easy near the end because I wanted to finish the game quickly.

Finishing this game back to back with RE4 was an interesting experience, because they're two very different ways to understand horror. In RE4, you very rarely feel helpless; after all, you're a super cool, super tough himbo that carries a veritable arsenal and has the backing of the US Government and a host of allies. But in Dead Space, you're this middle-aged plumber guy fighting for his fucking life in a derelict spaceship, with an assortment of tools being used as improvised weapons, and a handful of friends who either die or betray you.

Obviously, Dead Space is the most effective of the two at unnerving the player. While there is no shortage of action, the game is more comparable to Silent Hill, as Isaac fights his own personal demons (apart from, you know, the literal demons) and there are a big bunch of moments where you're really alone the only enemy is the ship itself, either because it's falling to pieces or just because of the eerie ambience. Of course, it helps that the game looks super good with the new fancy graphics.

SteamDeck: As I got the game on EA Play, it required quite a bit of fiddling to get it working. Once I did, though, it worked beautifully at 40fps... except for the constant shader building which caused unreasonable stuttering. I've been told the Steam version runs great on SteamDeck now though.

My Score: ★★★★★

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