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Jack Videogames · Apr 28, 2020

35:59h. Not 100%, but a pretty completionist run, with 24/26 sidequests completed. Normal difficulty.

Oh boy. This game is impossible to discuss without spoilers, so if those are not your thing, go straight to the pretty little stars at the end.

I have been debating if I should talk about this one or not. I'm a very big FFVII fan - FFVII got me into the JRPG genre and I love it so. I'm also a pretty big purist - on remakes, I hate change for the sake of change. So I was pretty fucking scared about beginning FFVIIR as I've read the ending is pretty divisive.

Instead, I got a real good game. The parts that are taken from FFVII are pure fanservice magic and a love letter to the old fans. I loved the new Wall Market (The sidequest that homages the old FFVII Wall Market made me chuckle). Every music theme is a banger, graphics are top except for some LoD issues (dancing textures in the slums, for example. Also, character models look incredible on close ups, but they look like featureless undead when the camera wanders). The combat system is an evolution of FFXV's which manages to iron out the kinks and works marvelously, though I did miss the original ATB system.

Also, the reworked personalities of the characters are great, because they go back to their original characterizations. Through Collection of Final Fantasy, the characters got flanderized: Aerith as a pure magical waifu, Barret as a scary angry black man, Tifa as a pair of boobs that knew kung-fu and Cloud as a mopey emo kid. FFVIIR restores Aerith's playful snarkyness, Barret's caring, fatherly side, Tifa's nice girl tendencies and Cloud's more earnest shy-goofy-PTSD-ness. As with FFXV, FFVIIR's characters are definitely the strongest point of the game and being a RPG, this is good.

Of course, there were many things I disliked as a purist. They completely killed the buildup to the introduction of Sephiroth by making him appear every two steps like Arthas in Wrath of the Lich King. The Time Janitors are, simply put, a bad idea and they kill every scene they appear in. There's also some seemingly minute changes that I think they change the tone of the story for the worse, like the reactor's explosion being a setup and Avalanche being a bunch of faultless do-gooders that wouldn't kill a fly instead of the original "morally grey" ecoterrorist group. Also there's the fact that NOBODY FUCKING DIES; the original game was pretty bloody and didn't pull any punches, but FFVIIR has learned from the Trails school I see.

And.... there was also the ending. I still don't know what to make of it. Did I just got Kingdom Hearts'ed? Why are there two Clouds? Why didn't they see each other? How many timelines are there? Is Aerith also a time traveler? Are there fixed points in time? Will we get David Tennant as a special guest character?

So with this all in mind, I have decided to score it on its own merits and the enjoyment I got from the game, not from the expectations I had on it, because in my mind it's sometimes a 5 star game, sometimes a GOTY, sometimes a 1 star game, sometimes a mindfuck which I wished I didn't play. I can't wait to play the sequel in my PS5!

Bottom line: did I enjoy it? Yes, yes I did. Is it a good Final Fantasy game? A great one even, better than FFXV but IMO a tad worse than, say, FFX. Is it a good remake? It's as good as a remake as ReBuild of Evangelion. Make of that what you will.

PS: Tifa's tits are still really fucking big.

My Score: ★★★★★

Original post

ROMhack · Apr 28, 2020

Jack Videogames said:
35:59h. Not 100%, but a pretty completionist run, with 24/26 sidequests completed. Normal difficulty.

Oh boy. This game is impossible to discuss without spoilers, so if those are not your thing, go straight to the pretty little stars at the end.

I have been debating if I should talk about this one or not. I'm a very big FFVII fan - FFVII got me into the JRPG genre and I love it so. I'm also a pretty big purist - on remakes, I hate change for the sake of change. So I was pretty fucking scared about beginning FFVIIR as I've read the ending is pretty divisive.

Instead, I got a real good game. The parts that are taken from FFVII are pure fanservice magic and a love letter to the old fans. I loved the new Wall Market (The sidequest that homages the old FFVII Wall Market made me chuckle). Every music theme is a banger, graphics are top except for some LoD issues (dancing textures in the slums, for example. Also, character models look incredible on close ups, but they look like featureless undead when the camera wanders). The combat system is an evolution of FFXV's which manages to iron out the kinks and works marvelously, though I did miss the original ATB system.

Also, the reworked personalities of the characters are great, because they go back to their original characterizations. Through Collection of Final Fantasy, the characters got flanderized: Aerith as a pure magical waifu, Barret as a scary angry black man, Tifa as a pair of boobs that knew kung-fu and Cloud as a mopey emo kid. FFVIIR restores Aerith's playful snarkyness, Barret's caring, fatherly side, Tifa's nice girl tendencies and Cloud's more earnest shy-goofy-PTSD-ness. As with FFXV, FFVIIR's characters are definitely the strongest point of the game and being a RPG, this is good.

Of course, there were many things I disliked as a purist. They completely killed the buildup to the introduction of Sephiroth by making him appear every two steps like Arthas in Wrath of the Lich King. The Time Janitors are, simply put, a bad idea and they kill every scene they appear in. There's also some seemingly minute changes that I think they change the tone of the story for the worse, like the reactor's explosion being a setup and Avalanche being a bunch of faultless do-gooders that wouldn't kill a fly instead of the original "morally grey" ecoterrorist group. Also there's the fact that NOBODY FUCKING DIES; the original game was pretty bloody and didn't pull any punches, but FFVIIR has learned from the Trails school I see.

And.... there was also the ending. I still don't know what to make of it. Did I just got Kingdom Hearts'ed? Why are there two Clouds? Why didn't they see each other? How many timelines are there? Is Aerith also a time traveler? Are there fixed points in time? Will we get David Tennant as a special guest character?

So with this all in mind, I have decided to score it on its own merits and the enjoyment I got from the game, not from the expectations I had on it, because in my mind it's sometimes a 5 star game, sometimes a GOTY, sometimes a 1 star game, sometimes a mindfuck which I wished I didn't play. I can't wait to play the sequel in my PS5!

Bottom line: did I enjoy it? Yes, yes I did. Is it a good Final Fantasy game? A great one even, better than FFXV but IMO a tad worse than, say, FFX. Is it a good remake? It's as good as a remake as ReBuild of Evangelion. Make of that what you will.

PS: Tifa's tits are still really fucking big.

My Score: ★★★★★

Original post

Good write-up. It's not the first time I've heard it compared to the ReBuild's, which I really dislike but that's neither here nor there...

Glad you enjoyed it as an FFVII fan

Jack Videogames · Apr 28, 2020

ROMhack said:
Good write-up. It's not the first time I've heard it compared to the ReBuild's, which I really dislike but that's neither here nor there...

Glad you enjoyed it as an FFVII fan

Thanks man! I'm not going to lie, I did try my best to like it because the wait had been so long... but the game made it easy.

I'm just real scared as to where the story is going now. At the end of the game the writers basically gave themselves carte blanche to do whatever they feel like. I think I know where this is going and I don't think I'm going to be able to forgive Aerith surviving unless they give me a fucking, real fucking good excuse.

Jack Videogames · Apr 28, 2020

36:16h. All side stories, villanous enemies and secret bosses. Highest leveled character was Gohan who ended at 103.

I had very high expectations for this game earlier this year, because it looked (and looks) fantastic. Unfortunately, Kakarot tries to chew much more than it can bite; it's a passable open-world game, an interesting action JRPG, and a very easy and repetitive fighting game.

If I completed the game it's because actually going through the story was great fun, to the point I think that Kakarot may be the best story-driven Dragon Ball Z game ever made. But most side stories were boring fecth quests which culminate in a very underwhelming "tournament", and there is a dearth of extra activities... and those available are neither fun nor rewarding. There's a lot of fanservice to keep us otakus happy though, which several guest characters that add spice to the mix.

Still, Kakarot could have been so much more. Oh well! Maybe next time.

My Score: ★★★☆☆

Original post

Kerotan Frog · Apr 28, 2020

I want in on this. I unintentionally started crushing through games and I'm at 18 games within 17 weeks.

Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order: 8.5/10
- Finally, a single player Star Wars game! And it was really fun and challenging. There were a few rough edges here and there, but I'm still thankful for it and had a nice time.
Devil May Cry 5: 9.5/10
- Wow, just wow. This is easily the best DMC game to date and looks incredible. I loved playing as all 3 characters, and the gameplay depth was welcome. I'm foaming at the mouth for DMC6 on next gen.
Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary: 6/10
- I enjoyed this up until about halfway through. Then it became a monotonous chore to play. I get the game was a pioneer for fps on console, but my god the campaign is trash. Its copy and paste level after level with enough gank squads to make Dark Souls 2 blush. I completed it, but just stopped having fun and will likely never go back to it.
Halo 2 Anniversary: 9.5/10
- A spectacular remake of my favorite Halo game. I enjoyed it from start to finish and was stunned by how amazing it looks and plays.
Halo 3: 9/10
- I enjoyed going through it again and it brought back so many memories.
Halo 3: ODST: 7/10
- It was my first time playing it and it felt disjointed at first. But the more you play, the better it gets. My only gripe is that the stealth mechanics are non existent, despite the fact that it seems like stealth is important. It was pretty fun going through the city streets and I had a good time.
Shadow of the Colossus Remake: 9/10
- One of my favorite games of all time beautifully recreated on PS4. My jaw hit the floor so many times. My only gripe is that some control issues are still there. But it was wonderful.
Halo: Reach: 7/10
- Another first time playthrough. It was good, and I liked the connections to Halo 1, but it wasn't anything too special.
Halo 4: 9/10
- This was a pleasant surprise for me. I went in nervous because I've heard a lot of negative opinions, but I really enjoyed it. The story was a refreshing change of pace and I actually got caught up in the emotional conflict between Chief and Cortana. And I love how 343 changed up the gun sound effects. So good.
Devil May Cry 4: 8.5/10
- I finally got around to finishing this. It was awesome and Dante, once again, stole the show. He was hilarious in this and I had a great time. Nero's abilities were really awesome to play with, but the story was a tad too serious.
Halo 5: Guardians: 9/10
- This was another one I was nervous about, but I really enjoyed the campaign. It was graphically stunning, the gameplay was tight, and the story was really cool. The guardians being these humongous beings was incredible to see and I loved how it shifted the dynamic between Cortana and Chief.
Gears 5: 9.5/10
- This game is simply incredible. It goes full throttle in the first Act and some big things play out. Then in Acts 2 and 3, it really pulls back and allows you to explore for the first time in the series. Open world Gears is one of my fave things ever. It helped that your reasons for being out there were intergal to Kait's development and growth. I'll sum up how cool Act 3 was: rocket ship. That was just awesome and one of the best Acts in a Gears game. Act 4 pulls you back in for a crazy climax. It was perfection.
Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice: 8.5/10
- I had no idea what to expect as I went in blind. I was kind of put off by the generic puzzles, but the combat system, presentation, and story really made me love it. I'm so excited that its getting an expanded sequel.
ReCore: 7/10
- This started out fun with really satisfying combat and traversal, but then I started seeing the jank. There are a lot of glitches and ridiculous difficulty spikes. I actually did not complete the eden tower, but I had enough of it and was mentally done. I saw enough to enjoy the experience. Anymore would've soured it for me.
God of War. 10/10
- This is it, my game of the Generation. I was blown away by everything this game had to offer. From gameplay, to story, to presentation, this game nails everything. And above all else, it made me deeply sympathize with Kratos, who I had written off as a flat character. I'm so excited for the PS5 sequel. I hope we can fight more Gods.
SUPERHOT: 9.5/10
- My only problem with this game is I need more of it. This was a genius idea executed perfectly.
Resident Evil HD: 10/10
- I had no idea when I booted up the game for the first time, that I would be playing an all-time favorite. Everything about this game is perfection and the Spencer Mansion is one of the best game settings I've ever played. There is so much depth to every room and encounter and I was blown away by how well thought out the puzzles and items were. And Capcom did right by this game by using Prerendered backgrounds. Even in 2020, this game looks phenomenal. I can't believe it took me this long to play it.
Gears of War 4: 9/10
- I recently replayed this with my brother in law and we had a blast going through the campaign. It establishes the new characters well, brings back older favorites, and ends with a bang. I really enjoyed the set pieces, especially all of Act 5.
Assassin's Creed Unity: 9.75
- I went into this game expecting a trainwreck based on the community opinion. But what I found was one of the best games in the series. Paris was legit amazing. The city felt alive and was full of NPCs. The graphics were beautiful and it ran surprisingly well, especially for a game infamous for its choppy framerate and bugs. Speaking of bugs, I actually didn't encounter any in my 35 hour playthrough. But the star of this game is easily the black box Box Assassination missions. Wow. The intricacies of the level design blew me away. There are so many huge buildings with full interiors! I absolutely loved infiltrating the feeling of starting across the street on a rooftop, hopping down and over a fence, and making my way along the roof for an open window. Then going room to room taking out guards until I find my prey. This is Assassin's Creed in its purest form. I didn't need Naval combat or dialogue trees; just me, my weapons, and a mansion full of unsuspecting enemies. In regards to story, I enjoyed the forbidden love/revenge story. It fit the setting well, and the cast was great. Arno is really brash at first, but opens up and turns out to be a nice character in the end. The story went how I thought it would, but I still really enjoyed it.
Assassin's Creed Syndicate: 10/10
- So take everything I said about Unity and find a way to improve it, then you have AC Syndicate. I couldn't believe how amazing this game was. It builds on everything Unity did win regards to the built city (London is amazing) and the black box missions (some of the best are in this game: train, asylum, tower, bank, parliament, music hall, palace). But then it adds a pair of really likeable twin protagonists, a more complex story, and the rope gauntlet. This piece of tech was a game changer and it opens up the gameplay so much. My favorite gameplay loop is stalking from the rafters of a building, air assassinating 2 guards, and popping back up like a lethal Batman. It never got old. But to differentiate the twins, Evie is a more traditional assassin and Jacob is still an assassin, but wants his own gang, which gave his section a real Peaky Blinders feel (which was awesome). Whereas Arno took some time to open up, Jacob and Evie are immediately likeable and their sibling rivalry was really fun. It starts as a joke, but their differing ideology builds believably to real tension, and the emotional payoff is well earned. They felt like real siblings. And I know Ubisoft games get a lot of flak for the side content being superfluous, but I felt it was actually really well done here. Every side mission you do liberates sections of the city and grows your gang. It can effect the main missions as you can recruit some of your thugs to help you fight enemies. The game is just so well thought out and I enjoyed it from start to finish, including the stunning DLC, Jack the Ripper. What is known in the community as one of the most divisive games actually became one of my favorites.

Faust · Apr 30, 2020

marcincz · May 1, 2020

Update:

Game 15 - Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation (360) - 13h 58m
Beat 12/04/2020 - my score: ★★★★☆

Game 16 - Shadow of the Tomb Raider (XBO) - 15h 19m
Beat 19/04/2020 - my score: ★★★★☆

Game 17 - Ridge Racer Type 4 (PS1) - 03h 29m
Beat 23/04/2020 - my score: ★★★☆☆

ROMhack · May 1, 2020

Faust said:
1. Concrete Genie (PS4) | 2nd Jan - 8-ish hrs | 3/5
2. Final Fantasy IV (DS) | 24th Jan - 25-ish hrs | 3/5
3. Rayman 2 Revolution (PS2) | 25th Jan - 11.2 hrs | 3/5
4. Yakuza Kiwami (PS4) | 30th Jan - 40-ish hrs | 4/5
5. The Spongebob Squarepants Movie (PS2) | 1st Mar - 10-ish hrs | 4/5
6. Donkey Kong (GameBoy) | 3rd Mar - 5-ish hrs | 3/5
7. Yakuza Kiwami 2 (PS4) | 11th Mar - 60-ish hrs | 4/5
8. DOOM Eternal (XBONE) | 27th Mar - 20-ish hrs | 5/5
9. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Dual Destinies | 6th Apr - 20-ish hrs | 4/5

Recently Beaten:
10. Resident Evil 3 Remake (PS4) | 8th Apr - 6.4 hrs | 3/5
11. THIEF Gold (Steam) | 23rd Apr - 12-ish hrs | 3/5
12. THIEF II: The Metal Age (Steam) | 26th Apr - 14-ish hrs | 4/5
13. Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box (DS) | 3/5
14. Kirby's Blowout Blast (3DSDL) | 30th Apr - 4-ish hrs | 4/5
15. Dedede's Drum Dash Deluxe (3DSDL) | 30th Apr - 3-ish hrs | 3/5
16. Little Misfortune (Steam) | 30th Apr - 4-ish hrs | 3/5
17. Adventure of a Lifetime (Steam) | 30th Apr - 5-ish hrs | 4/5

You guys play games? Man, you're just like us

jshackles · May 3, 2020

Game 25 - Streets of Rage 4 - Xbox One - Completed May 2nd, 2020
My son and I played through this game, and holy cow what a ride! I loved the art style, the setting, pretty much everything about this game. Once again, Xbox Game Pass is the ultimate value for gaming, hands down because this game launched on GP and that makes it an amazing value. While I played as Axel through the entire adventure, my son picked random others throughout the game just so we could see what all the character's move sets were. The game seems to have a pretty good variety of achievements as well! Overall, I'm really impressed with this game - it's simple in it's execution, but amazingly well done and lovingly crafted. A great experience.

IfuckinghateReddit · May 3, 2020

During school (Jan-April) I managed to finish

1. Danganronpa Ultra Despair Girls (PS4)

2. Pillars of Eternity (PS4)

3. Transformers Devastation (PS4)

Yesterday I finished #4

4. Syberia (Nintendo Switch)

I'm broke and have nothing to do but time to play my backlog......I'm hoping I'll reach 52 by the end of the summer.

Jack Videogames · May 3, 2020

15h-ish.

I'm usually a pretty big Picross fan, but this one was simply disappointing. Had nothing to it apart from the super annoying Mega Picross. I wonder if the next Picross games are going to be worth my while.

My Score: ★★☆☆☆

Original post

IKSTUGA · May 4, 2020

IKSTUGA said:
The FF marathon continues.

39. Final Fantasy 8 Remastered, gunblade/10
What a weird and wonderful game. Love the story, ost and some of the characters (mainly Squall and Rinoa). Edgiest of the edge meets quirky girl next door, 10/10 cringe right there. My favorite track from the OST is the airship song, super uplifting stuff.
My biggest gripes are with the battle system. I didn't like junctioning at all. Luckily there are cheats to speed up drawing and stuff, but menuing can still be a major pain in the ass, especially with forced party switches etc. Also, level scaling is dumb in single player rpgs. To me the whole point is to start out weak, but end up overpowered. You can kinda do it here, but it involves grinding in triple triad. Didn't really feel like doing that, didn't play gwent in W3 either.

40. Persona 4: Dancing All Night!, Persona/10
Interesting rhythm game, liked it a lot. No brainer for fan of Persona music and rhythm games. Story seemed stupid, so I skipped most of the dialogue to get to the good parts.

41. Final Fantasy IX, 10/10
Beautiful story and game. I hope one day we'll get another Final Fantasy like this. Also, Vivi is seriously one of the best FF characters ever, he's just so lovable.

jshackles · May 4, 2020

Game 27 - Monument Valley 2 - Android - Completed May 4th, 2020
Another game that was given away for free a couple of weeks ago that I decided to pick up and try out. I liked the first game well enough (which I also got for free) so I figured I might as well give this a go. Overall, I thought the game was a lot more simplistic than the first one. There were a couple of really good puzzles, but a lot of these were super duper obvious or took almost no time at all to figure out. I didn't care much for the "art" aspect of this game either. Pretty disappointed overall, but at least the price was right.

The Scrivener · May 5, 2020

OK, so Rocket League uninstalled after four years of daily play and 8500ish games. Sad days, but I really want to beat this challenge.

Trying to keep up with what's leaving Game Pass, so maybe finish DOOM2016 or Wolfenstein II.

Master's thesis complete, so time on my hands. Should read, but will play, and beat this sweet challenge, man!

ROMhack · May 7, 2020

Game #2

- Final Fantasy X

I really enjoyed this for the most part. The gameplay is great and the glue that holds it all together. The conditional system is an upgrade on the ATB system and feels fresh and fluid. The art style is wonderful, music is lovely, and it was a joy to play for 30 of the 50 hours it took me.

Unfortunately the game is bogged down by a few big factors: poor characters and a so-so story. It's hard to play a game for so long without having any genuine connection. It's also a case that it suffers from a bad case of difficulty spike towards the end. I loathed Braska's final aeon.

Overall, pretty good. Slightly below IX and VII for me but some way from the heights of VI.

jshackles · May 8, 2020

Game 28 - Animal Crossing: New Horizons - Nintendo Switch - Completed May 8th, 2020
After about 40 hours with Animal Crossing, I've finally "finished" the game (or at least, saw the credits roll). What a marvelous little game that is a lot of fun to chill out to. Everyone in my family has a copy of this game, and I'm the last one in the house to get a three star town. Even though I've played for 40 hours over the course of almost as many days, there is still so much that I want to do in this game so that's a bit unreal. Since everyone else is playing it still, I'll probably continue to do so. One of my favorite games of the year so far!

Game 29 - Trails of Mana - Nintendo Switch - Completed May 8th, 2020
This game was a great experience and a huge upgrade over the original game in a lot of great ways. The music was amazing and easily the best part of the game. The action in the combat was spot on, but I feel like the enemies became a bit too "damage spongey" near the end of the game. Overall, it took me 18 hours to complete and I got nearly everything. I know there is a fourth class for all of the characters, and I missed six of the little cactus hidden things, but I feel the game's good replayability comes from choosing new heroes and seeing how the adventure unfolds for the others I didn't pick this time around. A great game and highly recommended.

Jack Videogames · May 10, 2020

18:37h. Normal difficulty. Duran, Riesz and Kevin. Postgame included.

This game was pure 90's and it's nice to have something like this once in a while. The story is only there so you can have an excuse to wail on some rabites. The "collect the 8 elemental macguffins" plot takes you back to the Super Nintendo era, which is good for an old nerd like me. This, though, clashes with the neat graphics and the remade cutscenes, which leave you wanting a bit more depth. Still, the game manages to keep you interested from beggining to end, so it's done something well.

The liberty to create your party is, imo, the root of one of the biggest problems with the game. I didn't "investigate" before deciding on the three characters I thought looked the coolest, and I ended with a full melée party with almost no magical powers, which made the game a pure hack-and-slash. Against my wishes, I had to make Duran a Liege (healer) just to get some survivability. It would be nice if you got party suggestions at the beginning of the game.

My Score: ★★★★☆

Original post

Jack Videogames · May 10, 2020

4:56h. Hardened difficulty.

This was an intense 5h, full of twists and some real challenging stages (Fuck those favelas seriously). Of course, given that the story twists are 11 years old now they have lost some of their punch, but it's still one of the best story-driven military arcade FPS I've ever played (yeah, that's such a specific superlative, I know)

Could have benefited from a couple hours more though.

My Score: ★★★★☆

Original post

IKSTUGA · May 12, 2020

IKSTUGA said:
40. Persona 4: Dancing All Night!, Persona/10
Interesting rhythm game, liked it a lot. No brainer for fan of Persona music and rhythm games. Story seemed stupid, so I skipped most of the dialogue to get to the good parts.

41. Final Fantasy IX, 10/10
Beautiful story and game. I hope one day we'll get another Final Fantasy like this. Also, Vivi is seriously one of the best FF characters ever, he's just so lovable.

42. Street Fighter V, 9/10
Finally got a new arcade stick, so I've been playing a crap ton of arcade mode to get a feel for it. Arcade is by far my favorite thing about this game, still not a huge fan of online. Hopefully this corona crap ends at some point, so we can get local fight nights back rolling.

43. Final Fantasy X, 9/10
Bad: cloister puzzles, Tidus.
Good: everything else.
Final Battle managed to be pretty tricky even though I had Holy on both Yuna and Lulu and Auron was doing 9999 after an armor break. Took me around 35hrs to finish.

Jack Videogames · May 14, 2020

3h-ish. Normal difficulty. Mostly used Axel, Cherry and Adam (Adam makes the game easy mode seriously)

Another blast from the past, this one from the Mega Drive era (Genesis to you burgers). Streets of Rage 4 is exactly what you're expecting: 12 levels of beating'em-up. In Normal difficulty the game isn't hard by any means, but the lack of a Block button and the stage hazard keep you on your toes.

The graphics are good and the music is banging, but the art style is a bit all over the place seriously. The new characters, like Cherry or Estel, are tumblr-tier, but the old characters look cool. The Y twins look like they're out of a bad anime but I guess that's part of their charm?

My Score: ★★★★☆

Original post

IKSTUGA · May 15, 2020

IKSTUGA said:
42. Street Fighter V, 9/10
Finally got a new arcade stick, so I've been playing a crap ton of arcade mode to get a feel for it. Arcade is by far my favorite thing about this game, still not a huge fan of online. Hopefully this corona crap ends at some point, so we can get local fight nights back rolling.

43. Final Fantasy X, 9/10
Bad: cloister puzzles, Tidus.
Good: everything else.
Final Battle managed to be pretty tricky even though I had Holy on both Yuna and Lulu and Auron was doing 9999 after an armor break. Took me around 35hrs to finish.

44. Devil May Cry 1, 9/10
What can I say, it's a classic. I forgot how OP DT was in this game, you can basically just mash triangle and destroy the spooder and Nelo Angelo every time.

45. Street Fighter 3: 3rd Strike, 9/10
RESURRECTION!!!!! One of the best SF games.

Jack Videogames · May 20, 2020

17h-ish. Normal difficulty with occasional dips to Easy (Mostly on some Slingshot missions). All DLC active except for Enemy Within because I'm an idiot and I thought it was a separate campaign.

When I was a kid, X-Com (In Europe, UFO: Enemy Unknown) fascinated me. My early teenaged mind recognized the game had layers upon layers of complexity - yet I wasn't smart enough to get them peeled off. The fact that I didn't speak English for shit didn't help. But that didn't stop me for trying time after time. It was like a fly bumping against a closed window, if flies got a nasty five-minutes long novella of a game over screen. This trauma made me put off XCOM: Enemy Unknown until now. I saw it on sale and thought, why the fuck not.

I rushed through the campaign in three days and already purchased the complete XCOM 2 Collection.

XCOM feels simply right. The nostalgia is totally there, but the most infuriating aspects of the original game have been mellowed. Instead of getting zero exposition, you are more or less guided to the essential parts of the campaign. You no longer have to mantain several bases, and IIRC the Council is much more lenient than it used to. While the early game can still be hellish, once you get some improved gear and some experienced soldiers you start mowing down hordes of sectoids and thin men. Then stronger enemies appear and the cycle begins anew. Everything "clicks" in place. A satisfying experience from beginning to end, I can only fault it for being too short in lower difficulties, if you don't deviate from the story too much that is.

PS: I've already put 5h into XCOM 2 and even though it's a 3 y.o game, I'm wowed.

My Score: ★★★★★

Original post

jshackles · May 30, 2020

Game 30 - Capcom Beat Em Up Collection - Xbox One - Completed May 29th, 2020
There was some debate about whether or not I would list each game individually as I beat them but felt like that'd kinda be cheating since each game only took about one to two hours each to beat. There were seven total games, I believe. Of course Final Fight is classic and well known, but a few of the other games on offer here I hadn't ever played before. My son and I had so much fun playing through Streets of Rage 4 we thought we would give this a go. King of Dragons was easily our favorite title in the anthology, the level up mechanics were really really satisfying. Some of the other games were pretty meh but still fun none the less. A great collection on offer that's even better if you can score it on sale.

marcincz · May 30, 2020

Game 18 - Dragon Age: Origins (PS3) - 41h 11m
Beat 03/05/2020 - my score: ★★★★☆

Game 19 - Dragon Age: Origins - DLC The Stone Prisoner (PS3) - 01h 28m
Beat 04/05/2020 - my score: ★★★☆☆

Game 20 - Dragon Age II (PS3) - 28h 41m
Beat 16/05/2020 - my score: ★★★☆☆

Game 21 - inFamous (PS3) - 16h 25m
Beat 23/05/2020 - my score: ★★★★☆

Game 22 - inFamous 2 (PS3) - 16h 42m
Beat 30/05/2020 - my score: ★★★★☆

ROMhack · May 30, 2020

Still only on game 3. Maybe I should play some not 100 hour long titles.

Jack Videogames · May 31, 2020

40h-ish. First half of the game in Veteran difficulty, had to dip to Rookie past the middle point, then upped it back to Veteran closer to the end. All DLC active (including WotC)

Bottom line first: I have never played anything quite like this and I'm furious I passed on this back in 2016.

This said: XCOM 2 might be the perfect sequel. I know that sounds like a tall order, but it really is, for a specific value of "sequel". Basically, it gets everything that made the first game great and amps it up to 11. From the squad composition and personalization (I've spent hours making the perfect squaddies, and also with the propaganda photos, which are absolutely useless but a very nice touch)

At the beginning, XCOM 2 is daunting, particularly if you have the Collection. There are so many things to do and so many aliens ready to kill everyone in your squad. Nothing better than get an Alien Ruler and a Chosen drop in while your highest-level squaddie is around sergeant rank. The early game is hell and if you're aiming for a perfect run you will have to savescum quite a bit (I ended with 68 savegames). But as with XCOM 1, as you unlock things, research gear and get more exp, you start turning things around. In the final level, my Colonel Sharpshooter armed with the Hunter Chosen rifle managed to clean an entire room of mechs, mutons and archons by herself in a single turn. There's so much to do... and so much that can go fatally wrong, so remember, save early, save often, and don't reuse save slots. Unless you are doing an ironman in which case you're a better man than I.

XCOM 2 really makes you feel awesome, both in gameplay and in-story. The ending CGI, simple as it was, gave me chills. Given that it seems to point at a Terror from the Deep reboot I cannot wait for news on an XCOM 3.

For now I've already purchased Chimera Squad. I know it's a spinoff and not the GOTY XCOM 2 was, but it will scratch the itch for now.

My Score: ✪✪✪✪✪

Original post

IKSTUGA · Jun 1, 2020

IKSTUGA said:
44. Devil May Cry 1, 9/10
What can I say, it's a classic. I forgot how OP DT was in this game, you can basically just mash triangle and destroy the spooder and Nelo Angelo every time.

45. Street Fighter 3: 3rd Strike, 9/10
RESURRECTION!!!!! One of the best SF games.

Due to my weird job situation I decided to have my summer holiday early, so I've been playing and beating a bunch of stuff these past few weeks.

46. Jedi Fallen Order, 9/10
Best Star Wars game in years. It has some graphical issues, but wielding a light saber has never felt this satisfying. Can't wait for the next game!

47. Final Fight, 8/10
It's a classic. Simplistic, but fun.

48. Tekken 7, 9/10
I'm not a big tekken guy, but this game is great. Redid the story stuff, because I just bough it on the PS4, steam version I've had for years.

49. Trials of Mana (remake), 9/10
Loooved the game, fuck metacritic. I got 2 stars on the save file for doing pretty much everything, I think.

50. Ultra Street Fighter IV, 10/10
I played a bunch of arcade mode to get a feel for my new stick. Best SF game of all time.

51. Resident Evil 5, 10/10
I did two playthroughs with my best friend, this game is still one of the best co-op experiences ever created.

52. Rayman Legends, 8/10
I really don't like rayman characters, but those music stages are pretty amazing. Solid platformer.

53. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, GOAT/10
I basically 100%'d spirit board, because it got so addicting, I never even tried the mode when the game came out, lol. One of the best games of all time, there's just too much good stuff in here.

54. Picross S3, 8/10
It's picross.

Challenge done, BTW. Let's see if I can hit 100 by the end of the year!

wyvern_bloodfist · Jun 3, 2020

Game 26. Bloody Roar 3
1hrs. 01 mins. 16 out of 25

Game 27. 零～刺青の聲～
18hrs. 21 mins. 22 out of 25

Game 28. サムライウエスタン活劇侍道
4hrs. 03 mins. 23 out of 25

Game 29. Resident Evil 3 Remake
5hrs. 14 mins. 24 out of 25

Game 30. Nioh 2
221hrs. 11 mins. 20 out of 25

Game 31. Zombie Army Trilogy
16hrs. 47 mins. 22 out of 25

Game 32. Final Fantasy VII Remake
28hrs. 47 mins. 20 out of 25

Game 33. ANIMUS:HARBINGER
25hrs. 39 mins. 18 out of 25

Game 34. Trials of Mana
25hrs. 11mins. 20 out of 25

Game 35. Oninaki
35hrs. 12mins. 22 out of 25

Game 36. Dark Devotion
38hrs. 27mins. 16 out of 25

Game 37. Dead Cells
6 hrs. 52mins. 20 out of 25

Game 38. Final Fight
2 hrs. 50mins. 24 out of 25

Game 39. Final Fight 2
1 hrs. 35mins. 18 out of 25

Game 40. Final Fight 3
0 hrs. 45mins. 22 out of 25

Game 41. King of Monsters 2
3 hrs. 05mins. 16 out of 25

Game 42. Alien Vs. Predator
2 hrs. 10mins. 24 out of 25

Game 43. Tmnt Turtles in Time
1 hrs. 23mins. 24 out of 25

Game 44. Knights of the round
3 hrs. 08mins. 25 out of 25

Game 45. King of Dragons
3 hrs. 50mins. 24 out of 25

Game 46. 零～月蚀的假面～
8 hrs. 47mins. 25 out of 25

jshackles · Jun 5, 2020

Game 31 - Minecraft Dungeons - Xbox One - Completed Jun 4th, 2020
So I really enjoyed this game - right up until I got to the last level, and had to play it about 25 times in a row before I was able to beat it. The difficulty spike at the end of the game was absolutely insane and made no logical sense. It really felt like each "run" through the last level just came down to pure luck - once I encountered a total of SIX redstone golems in the same level. My character kept leveling up a few times each time I ran through the level, but the gear I was finding kept steady at being about 6-10 levels below my character level so it just turned into a weird slog. The issue seemed to clear up completely once I beat the final boss (finally) as the adventure mode let me replay levels and I started getting good rewards again. It's a $20 game that I played through Game Pass so I feel like I can't complain too loudly, but this was overall a VERY average game.

CuteFaceJay · Jun 5, 2020

51 birds 1 stone, 51 Clubhouse Games on the Switch?

Jack Videogames · Jun 7, 2020

91:50h. True Royal Ending. All confidants maxed except Strength (Because fuck that) and Sun (Because I wasn't aware there was a deadline). Romanced new girl. Spoilers abound.

Some people hate Persona. Some other people really love Persona. Me? I'm firmly on the "love" side. P5 was my GOTY back them and P5R will probably be my GOTY for this year.

I'm not going to extend myself because I already did back in 2016, so I'll just talk about what's new in Royal. Firstly, the QOL improvements are supreme. Being able to do Baton Pass from the get-go is a game changer and combined with Hifumi's confidant abilities the fights feel more fluid and swift than ever. Secondly, the changes to the bosses are also great - though some of them (looking at you Okumura) are a bit overtuned.

Finally, the new confidants are a bit of a mixed bag. Kasumi feels like she should have been in the game from the beginning as she fits a trope (the over-eager, supercompetent "perfect" kouhai) which was missing in the roster. But on the other side, Maruki feels a bit tacked on. Don't misunderstand me, as a character he's both memorable and lovable - but he doesn't really "fit" with the rest. If you don't unlock the extra Royal content, you will think he's one of those "extra" confidants.

As per the extra content itself, I liked it a lot, though I couldn't shake the feeling that it was a bit of a filler arc and it felt a bit out of place having to deal with a psychologist after defeating a fucking God, but the more you play, the more you can see the logic of the developers -though perhaps they could have fit this palace between DoM and Yaldabaoth somehow to keep the epicness of the last battle alive. Loved the palace itself though and how much it contrasts with the previous ones: instead of being oppresive and corrupted, it's inviting, clean and friendly. And it makes sense of course.

So, 10/10 would play Persona 5 a third time.

My Score: ✪✪✪✪✪

Original post

Jack Videogames · Jun 9, 2020

12:23h. 88% of the game completed. All sidequests except two minor ones.

The first thing I thought when I first played Ori WOTW is "Wow, this really feels like Hollow Knight". It did! The first Ori was more platformey from the get-go, while WOTW is more action-packed. Unlike HK, though, the combat is on the easy side and bosses are few and far between - the platforming though is as merciless as ever (though Ori's increased arsenal of moves makes it easier, as long as you take your time to buff up)

I think WOTW is less of a milestone than the first Ori, to be honest. Besides some bugs and some nitpicky controls, the game itself is impeccable - music, art, story, platforming, everything is top-notch. But everything has a veneer of "been there, done that". Even the story feels like a retread of the original, just backwards. It doesn't have the same punch.

The game itself, though, is best in class and absolutely recommendable. If you have gamepass and haven't played this, why do you even have gamepass?

PS: the ending is some bullshit

My Score: ★★★★★

Original post

Jooxed · Jun 9, 2020

I haven't updated in a while my Animal Crossing consumed my life but im trying to get back into it and setting Animal Crossing Aside

Completions

Saw the credits roll after about 50 hours and loved the game still love the game. I imagine I will continue playing for a few minutes everyday just to keep up with my villagers and island but I need to move on tot he rest of my back log. Too much to get through. Relaly hope the farming and swimming update is real because I really feel the game could use a little more something to do.

Mortal KOmbat is a guilty pleasure of mine playing through the story modes. Really enjoyed the new installments. Robocop was a useless addition but the rest were really fun my man Fujin was awesome. The story was decent this time around. Excited to see where it goes from here. Obviously the switch is not the best way to play but I really enjoyed my time with the game.

I finally wrapped up Dragon Quest after sitting on the Trials for so long. Probably one of my favorite RPG's of all time. I now prefer the Dragon Quest series to final fantasy in the current gen. Look forward to XII. Really great Port.

ROMhack · Jun 9, 2020

Game #3: Death Stranding - 71 hours

Believe the hype folks because this one's amazing.

Storytelling is the best Kojima has done since MGS2 and the plot has more twists and turns than a rollercoaster.

Sam's character is absolutely wonderful - a tragic, believable, anti-hero turned hero; every bit as good as Solid Snake IMO.

Wonderful portrayals really too by the main cast: Normas Reedus; Mads Mikkelson, Lea Seydoux, Margaret Qualley (such a qt).

The only ehhh from me is the writing between Sam and Amelie, although it does makes sense towards the end (no spoilers). Also there's a bit of bloat because doing so many standard orders, as you kinda need to, detracts from the enjoyment (a standard open-world game problem imo).

Oh and the gameplay is fairly interesting despite it being quite methodical. It shifts between pleasant and exciting and really never gets boring IMO. Throw on a podcast between the cutscenes and you're golden. I also loved the use of music when it kicks into gear (Low Roar are great).

Verdict: Best PS4 game I've played since Nier: Automata.

IKSTUGA · Jun 12, 2020

IKSTUGA said:
Due to my weird job situation I decided to have my summer holiday early, so I've been playing and beating a bunch of stuff these past few weeks.

46. Jedi Fallen Order, 9/10
Best Star Wars game in years. It has some graphical issues, but wielding a light saber has never felt this satisfying. Can't wait for the next game!

47. Final Fight, 8/10
It's a classic. Simplistic, but fun.

48. Tekken 7, 9/10
I'm not a big tekken guy, but this game is great. Redid the story stuff, because I just bough it on the PS4, steam version I've had for years.

49. Trials of Mana (remake), 9/10
Loooved the game, fuck metacritic. I got 2 stars on the save file for doing pretty much everything, I think.

50. Ultra Street Fighter IV, 10/10
I played a bunch of arcade mode to get a feel for my new stick. Best SF game of all time.

51. Resident Evil 5, 10/10
I did two playthroughs with my best friend, this game is still one of the best co-op experiences ever created.

52. Rayman Legends, 8/10
I really don't like rayman characters, but those music stages are pretty amazing. Solid platformer.

53. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, GOAT/10
I basically 100%'d spirit board, because it got so addicting, I never even tried the mode when the game came out, lol. One of the best games of all time, there's just too much good stuff in here.

54. Picross S3, 8/10
It's picross.

Challenge done, BTW. Let's see if I can hit 100 by the end of the year!

55. Borderlands 3, 9/10
Finally got around to playing BL3. I must say, gameplay wise it's the best one in the series. Pretty much everything looks and feels better than BL2 (didn't play pre-sequel), especially the boss fights. Some of them were just epic! One of the best parts about BL3 is also the fact that you don't get fucked in the ass as much if you're going in solo.

Writing feels way shittier for some reason, though. Jokes are more annoying than funny and the new villains are cringy as hell. Luckily you can turn down the volume and listen to a podcast instead.

jshackles · Jun 13, 2020

Game 32 - Cat Quest - PC Steam - Completed Jun 12th, 2020
I absolutely adore this game and love it to pieces. It's an open world action RPG that is full of cute cats and cat puns! An awesome level up mechanic that makes you feel really powerful. Great variety of weapons and armor that adjust your stats. An interesting and cute story. All around just a really solid game that plays really well even on systems with low specs. I'll definitely be picking up Cat Quest II now.

jshackles · Jun 13, 2020

Game 33 - Gylt - Google Stadia - Completed Jun 13th, 2020
Gylt was... not great. I started playing this a few months ago and have just kept picking it up and putting it back down again because it's pretty boring. I wanted to be impressed by the Stadia exclusive game and I had three free months of Stadia Pro so I thought I'd go ahead and finish this before I lost access to it. It's a stealth / action / adventure game which looks and sounds like it would be right up my alley - but it's bogged down with shit controls, shit resolution, muddy filters, and just in general bad presentation. The cut scenes shift from 3D to 2D drawings and it's pretty jarring. Story is woke. Not recommended.

Jack Videogames · Jun 15, 2020

10h-ish. Normal difficulty.

Unlike the first Halo, I can totally see this being a GOTY when it was first released. Halo 2 is a much more solid game from beginning to end - the boring corridors are kept to a minimum and the glorious setpieces are much more abundant. There's much more variety which was sorely lacking in the first game. Furthermore, the extra lore (Presented in some impressive CG, at least in the Anniversary edition) helps shed some light on the first game's plot, which felt a bit aimless and cliche'd sometimes.

Gameplay-wise, dual-wielding is a bit of a gimmick, and Halo 2 likes damage sponge enemies a bit too much - particularly towards the end, when the Brutes take the place of the Elites as the most common mook. Luckily the gameplay is good enough to make up for that.

I'm removing a star because of those niggles and because some genius decided that subtitles during gameplay were not necessary.

My Score: ★★★★☆

Original post

ROMhack · Jun 15, 2020

Game #4 (on a roll here) Kathy Rain - 6 hours

A neat little point and click I picked up free on Steam, uh, two years ago.

It's got a hard-faced stronk female protag with daddy (and mommy) issues. There's some decent writing in there (dialogue more than story), and it just generally fit the bill as a neat old investigation game to play in bed. Nice intuitive controls too and I thought the puzzles were well-balanced given that I only had to look up the answer for one - oh right, so you can take the thermometer when the game decides it's important to do so.

It does though have a fairly limp ending. The Twin Peaks references should have been more subtle and not an integral part of the plot. It's unfortunate because it makes it weaker than it suggests, and more like it didn't have enough of ideas despite generally being well-designed up to that point.

Verdict: Not as good at handling supernatural elements as the Blackwell games but a nice debut effort from the creator (lit. one guy).

Faust · Jun 16, 2020

Psychotic_Mantis · Jun 17, 2020

Main Post

38. Crash Bandicoot 3: Warped (PS4) - 8/10

Definitely the easiest of the 3. While my frustrations were completely gone in this game...it was missing something. With some reflection I think 2 was my favorite of the 3 games. It had some awful levels but it was the most complete package and it took some skill to beat it. This one was a lot of fun but most levels I beat on first try without much effort. Still recommended!

39. King's Quest VI: Heir Today, Gone Tomorrow (PC) - 8/10

I must have used a guide as a kid because I ran into some problems with the catacombs and other areas. I remembered many of the later areas so I must have gotten there before. This is a great classic point and click game. If you enjoy any of the previous KQ games or any PnC games I would definitely recommend it.

40. Wolfenstein: Cyberpilot (PSVR) - 6/10

It was fun while it lasted...but it didn't last very long. It was pretty basic and almost came across like a VR demo. When I got to the ending I expected more...but no I just sat there waiting. There were 4 levels and none of them are that difficult on the normal difficulty level. Hard to recommend this one...

41. The Mummy: Demastered (Switch) - 8/10

Sat on this game for a long time but I am glad this pandemic pushed me to play it. It's basically a reskin of Metroid but it works. I had a lot of fun finding the different paths and upgrading everything. The bosses are extremely difficult if you don't upgrade, so definitely do that. I wish the map was bigger and easier to see but it was fine. I would recommend it if you enjoy Metroidvaniaish games.

42. Sairento VR (PSVR) - 7/10

I didn't actually figure out how the game is meant to be played until the final 2 levels. It was much more fun when I realized how to jump and slow time. Once you figure that out the game is pretty easy though. Like many VR games, it is really short. Definitely worth a playthrough if you are into VR action games.

43. The Lost Bear (Oculus) - 7/10

Cute little VR side scroller. Find it on sale because you can beat it in an hour. There are a few tricky moments but overall it is pretty easy. The charm is what sells the game. Mild recommendation.

44. Golf Story (Switch) - 8/10

Another perfect pandemic game. It goes on a little long but I really enjoyed going through this quasi-RPG. Once you figure out the golf mechanics the game is a breeze. The story is average but the gameplay and charm will keep you going. Recommended!

45. Farpoint (PSVR) - 7/10

I try hard not to compare early VR games to Alyx but it does get difficult. If not for VR this would be a pretty generic game. The VR works well and it gets fairly chaotic in the end. I enjoyed it but you can definitely see areas that pull you from immersion. Clipping through walls, etc. Mild recommendation if you don't mind a less immersive VR FPS.

46. Final Fantasy VII: Remake (PS4) - 10/10

LOVED IT! I was hesitant to dive in so quickly because I was not looking forward to another few years of waiting to continue but I couldn't stop. There are definitely some graphic issues at times but it never bothered me. The music, the gameplay, the battle system, the story...I loved it all. I will probably dive back in at some point to clean up the side quests I couldn't complete in the first run through. I think I am too nervous to try hard mode though. Highly Recommended.

47. Haunted House (Wii) - 5/10

Pretty awful. My 3 year old had us grab this from the library before it closed. Total bargain bin type game that is super easy. You will hear the same phrases throughout the game. It's pretty boring. Avoid it!

48. Donkey Kong Country (SNES) - 9/10

This one holds up really well. I forgot how hard some of the later levels get. This was challenging at times but I always found it fair. Every boss is really easy though. I never beat 2/3 so I will jump into those sometime soon.

Getting close to 52! Hope I can get back on track with updates instead of waiting months!

marcincz · Jun 17, 2020

Half way behind:

Game 23 - Splinter Cell HD (PS3) - 16h 02m
Beat 06/06/2020 - my score: ★★★★☆

Game 24 - The Last of Us Remastered (PS4) - 15h 39m
Beat 12/06/2020 - my score: ★★★★★

Game 25 - The Last of Us Remastered - DLC Left Behind (PS4) - 02h 39m
Beat 14/06/2020 - my score: ★★★★☆

Game 26 - Resident Evil 7 - DLC End of Zoe (PS4) - 02h 28m
Beat 17/06/2020 - my score: ★★★☆☆

IKSTUGA · Jun 23, 2020

IKSTUGA said:
55. Borderlands 3, 9/10
Finally got around to playing BL3. I must say, gameplay wise it's the best one in the series. Pretty much everything looks and feels better than BL2 (didn't play pre-sequel), especially the boss fights. Some of them were just epic! One of the best parts about BL3 is also the fact that you don't get fucked in the ass as much if you're going in solo.

Writing feels way shittier for some reason, though. Jokes are more annoying than funny and the new villains are cringy as hell. Luckily you can turn down the volume and listen to a podcast instead.

56. Resident Evil 6, 8/10
Welp, beat all the campaigns with my best buddy and It's about as rough as I remembered. I really really like the game's combat and Leon's sexy new look, but the level design is just super inconsistent and weird. Those running sections especially are the worst kind of trial and error. Also, what the hell were they thinking with Chris's campaign, feels more like b-class Call of Duty than Resident Evil. Guilty pleasure/10.

57. Last of Us Remastered, 9/10
Still looks great, plays great. Love the story as well. Level design is by far my biggest gripe with the game. Constantly having to move boxes, ladders and shit gets tiring fast.

Oh and I also played the Left Behind dlc for the first time. It was alright.

58. Last of Us Part 2, 10/10
Biggest surprise of the year for me. Initially when I read the leaks, I thought I would hate this game, I even considered skipping it altogether. But, because of the universal praise among critics, I had to give it a go.

I absolutely love the combat and level design of this game. It's so well paced, I didn't have a single boring moment in my ~25 hour playthrough. Story is divisive to put it mildly, but in my opinion it works. Can't really say anything else about it without spoiling shit.

Visual and audio design are what put this into the GOAT category for me. Environments are some of the prettiest I've ever seen and the gore is unreal. Shotgun blasts for example, totally fuck up the person that's on the receiving end. Mangled bodies and agonizing screams. Most importantly, shooting somebody in the dick feels better than ever

This game is the definitive murder simulator right now.

wyvern_bloodfist · Jun 23, 2020

Game 47.Brawl Brothers
3 hrs. 45mins. 20 out of 25

Game 48.Super Double Dragon
3 hrs. 00mins. 16 out of 25

Game 49.undercover Cops
0 hrs. 45mins. 16 out of 25

Game 50.Armored Warriors
2 hrs. 33mns. 20 out of 25

Game 51.Captain Commando
2 hrs. 22min. 16 out of 25

Game 52.戦国伝承
2 hrs. 37min. 16 out of 25

Game 53.Run Saber
1 hrs. 10min. 20 out of 25

Game 54.零～濡鴉ノ巫女～
19 hrs. 27min. 24 out of 25

Game 55.Dark Souls Remastered
64 hrs. 27mins. 18 out of 25

Psychotic_Mantis · Jun 23, 2020

Main Post

49. Jurassic: The Hunted (Xbox 360) - 5/10

A bit happy and a bit sad they don't make a ton of budget games like this anymore. Don't get me wrong, this game is pretty bad...but shooting dinos gives it some points. The controls suck, the story is awful and it's super short. Not really recommended but it has dinos! Why can't there be more games with dinosaurs?!

50. Disney Classic Games: Aladdin (PS4) - 7/10

This was alright. I played through each of the versions on the PS4 but quit early on the gameboy versions. It didn't hold up as well as I anticipated and it just felt fine. Recommended if you have the itch but it's not great.

51. Disney Classic Games: The Lion King (PS4) - 6/10

This one surprised me. I thought I liked this game as a kid but man it kind of sucks. Not just the awful monkey level but everything else. Kind of felt like a chore. Hard to recommend this one but it comes on the disc with Aladdin. I didn't find much difference between the 3 versions included and was kind of just ready for it to be over.

I really wanted Final Fantasy VI to be my #52 this year but I won't beat it before I beat another VR or handheld title. So I might tackle a childhood game that I never was able to beat as a kid. There are plenty of those to choose from.

IKSTUGA · Jun 25, 2020

IKSTUGA said:
56. Resident Evil 6, 8/10
Welp, beat all the campaigns with my best buddy and It's about as rough as I remembered. I really really like the game's combat and Leon's sexy new look, but the level design is just super inconsistent and weird. Those running sections especially are the worst kind of trial and error. Also, what the hell were they thinking with Chris's campaign, feels more like b-class Call of Duty than Resident Evil. Guilty pleasure/10.

57. Last of Us Remastered, 9/10
Still looks great, plays great. Love the story as well. Level design is by far my biggest gripe with the game. Constantly having to move boxes, ladders and shit gets tiring fast.

Oh and I also played the Left Behind dlc for the first time. It was alright.

58. Last of Us Part 2, 10/10
Biggest surprise of the year for me. Initially when I read the leaks, I thought I would hate this game, I even considered skipping it altogether. But, because of the universal praise among critics, I had to give it a go.

I absolutely love the combat and level design of this game. It's so well paced, I didn't have a single boring moment in my ~25 hour playthrough. Story is divisive to put it mildly, but in my opinion it works. Can't really say anything else about it without spoiling shit.

Visual and audio design are what put this into the GOAT category for me. Environments are some of the prettiest I've ever seen and the gore is unreal. Shotgun blasts for example, totally fuck up the person that's on the receiving end. Mangled bodies and agonizing screams. Most importantly, shooting somebody in the dick feels better than ever This game is the definitive murder simulator right now.

59. Fist of the North Star: Lost Paradise, 9/10
This game was awesome and I'm not even too familiar with the source material, aside from a few youtube clips of "Omae wa mou shindeiru". Would recommend to any fan of Yakuza, it's epic anime shit from start to finish.

wyvern_bloodfist · Jun 26, 2020

Game 56.SPIRIT OF THE NORTH
7 hrs. 19mins. 20 out of 25

Psychotic_Mantis · Jun 26, 2020

Main Post

52. Batman: The Video Game (NES) - 8/10

Mission accomplished. Both finishing this challenge (super early for me) and beating this incredibly difficult game from my younger years. I loved the majority of my time with this game. Wall jumping and fighting through most of the levels was fantastic. The music holds up incredibly well and I found the cut scenes to be quite advanced, considering the tech. My main gripe is really the final level. I found the last level and final boss(es) to be incredibly tough. To be honest I think I just got lucky on my last run. Anyway, super solid platformer from decades ago. I really do recommend it but expect a solid challenge. I wish more games had that wall jump mechanic!

With the challenge complete I am now going to work on some of my longer games. Final Fantasy VI here I come!!

Jack Videogames · Jul 5, 2020

7h-ish.

Again taking care of one of the oldest games in my backlog. While Portal 2 has lost most of its technical shine (I remember Portal blowing my whole mind up back in the day) it's still a greatly enjoyable puzzle game, full of very sassy, trademark Valve humor. The puzzles are really well thought, though the second act is noticeably weaker than the first and the third ones.

Not only that, but the additional lore breathes a lot of life in the Portal-verse. I was particularly worried about the introduction of new characters, since a lot of the charisma of the first Portal comes from the chemistry between Chell and GLaDOS and the feeling of solitude, of being totally at her mercy - but they do fit great.

If I were to fault this game, I'd say that it would benefit from a little more handholding, particularly between test rooms. Sometimes you're expected to really think out of the box and shoot at walls that are not even in your vicinity. Also I would have appreciated it being a couple hours longer.

My Score: ★★★★★

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Jack Videogames · Jul 5, 2020

23:49h. Normal difficulty. Around 140 collectables found.

Okay, so.

Spoilers ahoy. If you want to play this game, seriously, stop reading now.

First thing I want to say is: the Internet has been unfair with TLOU2. Not in the "Buh buh this is a perfect, un-criticable gem, a shining masterpiece of game development". I do not think The Last of Us Part II is a masterpiece. More on that later.

The Internet has been unfair because a certain subset of people really wanted the game to suck, to the point of making things up to make the game look worse than it is. Abby is not trans. The Seraphites are not a sect hellbent on finding and killing gays. There's no sex scene with a (n inexistent) Druckmann self-insert. Joel's death wasn't his own fault (well, it was, but it was not THAT OOC). A lot of things you have heard about the game are basically false.

This is not to say TLOU2 doesn't have an agenda. Oh, it does. 10 minutes in the game hammers you in the head with maybe the cringiest sentence in videogame history ("Bigot sandwich!"). But it's not as blatant and offensive as, say, The Outer Worlds; there are positive male characters. Even if they all end dead or crippled. Oh well, you can't have it all.

It also helps that the game itself is actually good. As usual with ND games, the shooting is tight, the exploration is both tense and rewarding, and the first game's engine has been built upon and improved in significant ways (there are actually some puzzles now, and the changes to melee make it now actually viable). Graphics and sound are brilliant; I own a GPU which is 10 times more powerful than my original PS4 yet I was mesmerized at the graphics the game was outputting. Technically this game is the perfect swan song for the PS4.

Storywise, though? Well, this is a mixed bag. I do not think the plot itself is bad, though it's definitely clichéd. Most of the "bad decisions" made by characters are understandable if you think of them as humans with actual emotions, so they didn't bother me as much as they bothered some. The storytelling, though, leaves to be desired. I did like playing as Abby - in fact, it was easily my favorite part of the game, but the way the game is peppered with flashbacks detracts a lot from the narrative rhythm. Most importantly, it was a bad choice to start Abby's story right during the climax of Ellie's and taking all the wind out of the player's sails. Maybe following an Ellie Seattle Day 1 - Abby Seattle Day 1 - Ellie Seattle Day 2 etc. would have been better for the narration.

This all goes to hell in the ending. If the game had ended with Ellie chilling in the farm and Abby finding the remnants of the Fireflies, it would have been a satisfying bittersweet ending which successfully closes the cycle of revenge. But hey, we can't have a happy ending in our games right Neil? That's so 90's. No, instead, Ellie makes a really boneheaded decision, kills another bunch of people, and loses everything she still had. Yay!

So yeah, I do not think TLOU2 is a masterpiece. TLOU was a masterpiece, but TLOU2 is just a very good game, at the level of Days Gone, though it has a slight edge over it because of its technical prowess. Plot-wise though I think DG was the better game.

My Score: ★★★★☆

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