Mega Man 9 seemingly came out of nowhere as an excellent addition to the Mega Man series that felt like it would start the ball rolling to not only appease fans of the old games, but also bring in new younger fans. Mega Man 10, in my opinion, put a quick and sturdy stop to the proverbial ball. 

Mega Man 10 is the only game in the series that brings nothing new to the series. Mega Man 1 obviously started it all. Mega Man 2 added more bosses, a password/save system, and E Tanks. Mega Man 3 added Proto Man and Rush as well as sliding, Mega Man 4 added item purchasing, the charge shot, and, for a minute. a new "main villain." Mega Man 5 is by far the closest to Mega Man 10 with really only adding beat, which is a nuke bird so still pretty cool. Mega Man 6 added new rush adapters and energy balancer. Mega Man 7 added bolts to collect to use as money for a shop you can go to between levels, changed the bosses from 8 to two sets of four, ushered in the 16 bit era, and most importantly introdeced Bass and Treble. While I'm not a fan of eight they tried many new things with cutscenes, voice acting,  much improved graphics, and improved sounds. Mega Man 9 is a super polished NES style that introduced playing as Proto Man and time trials. Mega Man 11 came with new graphics and the double gears system.

Mega Man 10 not only added nothing new at all but it followed the polished Mega Man 9 and instead of continuing in its footsteps he ditches the amazing level design and instead sacrifices all level design for set pieces. The doubled down on the bad level design with terribly placed traps and enemies that jump out of holes that will stop you in your tracks so that you fall into a insta kill hole. Let me give you an example of both of these things. The worst level in the history of Mega Man is, in my opinion, Commando Man’s stage. There are several rooms with instakill spikes, insta kill pits, where in most of them are enemies that shoot up out of no where while a sand storm will randomly pops up and blows you forward or backward. Doesn’t sound to bad. Here comes the set piece over level design. When the sandstorm comes you can’t see anything. On top of all this the if you run against the wind you won’t stay in the same spot so you can’t just run in place to fight out the sandstorm. You basically have to guess if you’re in the right spot and if you’re not you will find out immediately because you’ll be dead. It’s maybe the worst level design I’ve ever seen in a competent level game. The game is littered with this nonsense but this level is the most egregious by far.

As big of a fan as I am of the Blue Bomber and as sad as I am to report this I just can’t recommend this game.

My Mega Man Rankings:

https://www.backloggd.com/u/DVince89/list/my-mega-man-rankings/

My 2024 games ranked:

https://www.backloggd.com/u/DVince89/list/games-i-played-in-2024-ranked-1/

For years I avoided playing this game because it looked so stupid and silly that I thought there was no way I could have fun. I have no idea why I decided why to go ahead and pull the trigger and start playing it. Turns out it is stupid but it was also very funny and a nice game to be able to turn off your brain and just play. Its weird to say about a game where your a shark that can fly 50 feet out of the water and your sole purpose is to eat everything in sight can be relaxing but it truly was for me.

The best part of this game by far is the narration, voiced by Chris Parnell. Maneater understands its game is off the rails and uses this opportunity to give Parnell some incredibly off the wall and funny lines. The gameplay at first is very fun but it does quickly become a game of hitting the same few buttons to eat anything whether it be a fish, seal, human, great white shark, a boat, or a sperm whale. To be honest though that was part of what I enjoyed about it in a way. I just sat back, turned off my brain, got collectables, attacked humans, and listened to Parnell say funny things. Its not a great game by any means but if you've just played some challenging games or a few long RPG's I think this game is a good option to kind of reset you mentally to get ready for your next challenge or long adventure.

Also fuck Scaly Pete.

2024 games played ranked.
https://www.backloggd.com/u/DVince89/list/games-i-played-in-2024-ranked-1/

How can I explain a game that I got the platinum trophy for and found every item, egg, candle, and everything it asks you to get yet still have no idea what’s going on story wise and barely scratched the surface as far as finding all the secrets? A game where I feel like I know so much about yet somehow know very little. It is hard to explain but I also think most people that have completed it will understand.

Animal Well is a uniquely wonderful experience that was made for serious gamers as it doesn’t tell you anything and refused to hold your hand or coddle you. If you’re new to Metroidvanias this is not where to start but if you are experienced in the genre I can’t recommend this game enough.

The number one thing that in my opinion this game does better than anything is it’s very unique clever puzzles. Very few games have made me think to myself “damn that was a clever design” but I felt I was thinking that in every few rooms in Animal Well. The puzzles and traversal forces you use not only your brain but every item at your disposal. Some puzzles make you use multiple in quick succession at the proper timing. Some have many solutions. Some will have you so stumped you start believing you don’t have the correct item yet. But every single one is designed wonderfully. The mystery in this game is unbelievable. Every single small detail seems to have a rhyme and reason to it. Nothing is wasted. Yet still the game remains a mystery even as the credits roll. The maker of the game has said it may take years before everything in this game is figured out and while that sounds crazy I believe it. Another thing that stood out to me was the art. I understand it is devolved graphics but that doesn’t mean anything to me. It just feels right for some reason. It fits with the mystery and I honestly feel like better graphics could possibly take away some of the things that make this game great.

The only real negative I have is a few of the items are absurdly difficult to find. But at the same time it adds to the mystery so can I really count that as a negative.

There are many games better than Animal Well. There are even many Metroidvanias that are better than Animal Well. For me this a rare case of a game though. It isn’t so much about how good of a game it is. It isn’t about the gameplay, or the art, or the music, and it surely isn’t about the story, as again, seriously wtf is going on. What Animal Well should be judged by to me is less the game and much more an experience. I know a lot of my feelings on this may sound like a mix of cliches and confusions. I hope I’ve made some sense. But it really is a game that’s a lot easier experienced than explained. One thing that I am certain of is you owe it to yourself to experience Animal Well.