This is one of those situations where I don't know why this game is in my Steam library, but I've purchased enough bundles over the years and this seems to be one of those games that you get from some bundle somewhere. Either way, if you have this in your library and haven't played it yet, please do.

The pitch for Valfaris is that it's a Contra-style run-and-gun but with metal music, stop motion-style animation, more forgiving checkpoints, and a much greater focus on biomechanical creatures. It looks and sounds wonderful.

This is a pretty tough game -- the end boss took me an hour or so to beat -- but it's very well designed. Valfaris gives me the type of experience I always wanted out of a Contra game. Tough-but-fair action, great-feeling guns, sick bosses, and a rip-roaring power fantasy.

It is a game that gets dramatically close to 5 stars if not for a back chunk that features both a small difficulty spike and a couple levels that go on and on. Worth playing and I fully recommend it, but with that asterisk.

Going to buy its new sequel either at full price or the next time it goes on sale to support the developers.

One of the more under-appreciated mascots of the 16-bit era. Rocket Knight Adventures feels like it was crafted with love, being one of the best looking games on the Sega Genesis.

An action platformer with a rocket boost mechanic., the game feels like Donkey Kong Country with the ability to shoot out of a blast barrel at will. Absolutely satisfying gameplay and Konami knocked it out of the park on their first try.

Difficulty is hard but fair. If you play with unlimited continues, the challenge level is somewhere around the challenge of a souls game, maybe a little easier. Bosses are easily the best part of the game.

I remember being super impressed by all the setpieces in this game, and now having finished the game, the setpieces absolutely do not slow down until the credits roll. Quite impressive again for a Genesis tile. Pls bring this boy back Konami.

A Breath of Fresh Air for Assassin's Creed Fans

The Assassin's Creed franchise has been a cornerstone of my gaming journey since childhood, but recent installments left me disheartened with their departure from the series' roots. However, amidst the disappointment, there shines a beacon of hope: Assassin's Creed Mirage.

As a devoted fan since my youth, I watched with a heavy heart as the series drifted away from its core essence, drowning in bloated gameplay and disconnected narratives. But Mirage is a refreshing deviation from this trend, a testament to what the franchise once stood for.

Set in the vibrant city of Baghdad in 861 CE, Mirage beckons players with its intricate architecture and bustling streets, reminiscent of the series' golden era. The return to a compact urban landscape, rich with verticality and hidden paths, rekindles the thrill of parkour and stealth that defined the early Assassin's Creed experiences.

In Mirage, you step into the shoes of Bassim, a young thief turned Assassin, navigating a web of intrigue and betrayal within the Order of the Ancients. While Bassim may lack the depth of some past protagonists, his journey through the streets of Baghdad is nonetheless compelling, albeit with a few narrative hiccups in the middle act.

What truly sets Mirage apart is its gameplay. Unlike its recent predecessors, Mirage embraces stealth with open arms, making it the preferred approach in every scenario. The combat mechanics are deliberately clunky, encouraging players to evade confrontation and strategize their next move. The reintroduction of tools adds layers of tactical depth, empowering players to approach missions with creativity and finesse.

While some may criticize the parkour mechanics for feeling a tad cumbersome, it's a minor flaw overshadowed by the game's overall commitment to revitalizing the Assassin's Creed experience. Considering Mirage started as a DLC expansion for Valhalla, developed by a modest team with a limited budget, its achievements are commendable.

Assassin's Creed Mirage is not just a game; it's a love letter to longtime fans yearning for the franchise's return to glory. Its success serves as a beacon of hope for the future of the series, inspiring confidence that Assassin's Creed can once again reclaim its former brilliance.

In a gaming landscape cluttered with uninspired sequels and cash-grab expansions, Mirage stands tall as a testament to the power of passion and dedication. Whether you're a seasoned Assassin's Creed veteran or a newcomer seeking an authentic experience, Mirage is a journey worth embarking on.

+ Innovative entry for the franchise
+ Great difficulty for Pokemon
+ Story and twists are good
+ Interesting region that's fun to explore
+ Completing the dex is extremely fun thanks to being able to catch Pokemon without battling them
+ Agile/Strong moves are a great yet simple innovation
- Some Pokemon locked behind owning BDSP, which prevent people who don't from catching the mascot of the game
- Not being able to buy necessities such as Ultra Balls and Max Potions without completing certain quests
- UI is annoying to navigate when it comes to items and the map

It's good to be honest

It makes it different enough from SRB2K for not leave it obsolete

It becomes obsolete on its own.

I totally understand who considers this game worst than the other two, i particularly like Shadow of the Tomb Raider, but the game does not learn with the past games.

First of all, it looks pretty as the others, in other words, graphics still good and i really appreciate this.

Now, the biggest problem to me: progression. In other two games of this trilogy, you can feel Lara becoming better and in SOTR you feel the same in all campaign.

Unfortunately, the story become worse than Rise of the Tomb Raider. It's very sad, a good story about legacy and discoveries becomes a cliche evil secret organization(It is a problem inherited from Rise of the Tomb Raider).

For me, it's the same level of Rise of the Tomb Raider, have a lot of problems and i didn't expected more. So i'm satisfied, but it's a okay game.

Being addressed only by my racing number constantly is giving Agent 47 lmao

This is genuinely the most fun I've had with a racing game in a while. The bar for progression and story in the racing genre is admittedly pretty low, but here they were the highlights of the experience for me. The career mode story was entertaining, the mix of live-action and CGI cutscenes was innovative, and the office style mockumentary had me chuckling throughout.

The simcade handling model is one of the best among EA's racing games. I hope NFS moves in this direction instead of doubling down on the drift-heavy gameplay. Docking half a star because multiplayer is a mess and you can't create custom races without opening an online lobby for some reason.

Regardless, this is a massively underrated series, and I enjoyed it FAR more than Forza Motorsport.

Yellow Taxi Goes Vroom! is a well-oiled machine.

If I were to whittle down YTGV to a catch-all sentence, I’d call the game “Mario 64 Meets Crazy Taxi”. You explore open sandbox style worlds full of gears to collect, and in certain levels, you’re set to a timer and need to carry locals to their destination.

As the player of a 3D platformer, you're always placed in the driver position of your character. How you operate this vehicle is dictated by the toolkit the developers hand you. Typically, the most common place tool would be your jump.

Yellow Taxi Goes Vroom! does not have a dedicated jump button.

Of course, there is a way to jump. Like any car, the optimal way to gain height is to cancel your spin out and flip your vehicle over and into the air. This spin move normally allows you to dash forward, which helps with verticality when you're on an incline. You can cancel twice before a cooldown timer takes its effect, but if you land on a surface, you'll regain that charge.

You’d think that’d be all your tools but put a stop on your brakes: there’s more than meets the eye here.

Before you shoot up an incline, if you tap the A button at the right moment, you’ll soar even higher than before. Similar to Mario Odyssey’s diving onto Cappy tech, this move is a game changer for your traversal. Your tiny little taxi car mind as well become a full-blown plane with the amount air you gain.

You could casually drive through YTGV without this move, but the game calls for you to keep searching for more goodies to collect. Whether that collectible be the main gears, an assortment of cash, or the many silly hats, each have given me the drive to 100% complete this game. YTGV rewards veterans of 3D platformers with depth of skill to master, along with grit to tightly crafted end game levels.

There’s a specific tone cast upon YTGV. A vibe that reflects what I think was the mindset of the developers making this: silly, wacky, feel good, fun. You can tell the developers aren’t native English speakers, so dialogue often comes out in bizarre ways that’s comical within its own right. This also translates to the random insertion of memes and references throughout the game coming across as insane non-sequiturs. Normally this would be a problem for me, but the game is just so charming from just how much fun the developers are having that I can’t help myself from smiling too. Punchy synths reverberate out your car speakers, sunny beach side views with bright blue skies, the good times are here to stay with YTGV.

I think YTGV embodies what it means to be a video game. Fun, dumb, stupid, addicting, nonsense. I’m not sure I’d crown YTGV with the title of “Most Video Game Video Game To Ever Video Game”, as that title has hard competition, but it’s most certainly in the running.

"An incredibly fun if slightly limited RTS third person shooter published by Nintendo" sounds exactly like something that doesn't exist outside of maybe the Starfox series, but here Battalion Wars goes proving that wrong in spades.

It's super good, all around. The music, the missions, the units, the variations, it's all really really good. There's a handful of exceptions of course, Air Superiority is in full force but that's a major thing in real military conflict, the vehicles are some of the worst controlling things I've ever had to play with including rough steering and physics that are either too heavy or WAY too light, and some units just bluntly outclass all other types such as Assault vets who's machine guns can mow down every infantry unit and some vehicles and emplacements with ease. But all in all, it's pretty great.

Huge kudos to the near blatant WW1/WW2 era Germany antagonist nation fused with Transylvanian vampires that are the revival of the undead warmonger empire of pure unbridled nothing held back Nazi references for 2 of the last four missions. This game is fucking wild and it takes itself completely seriously and I'm all here for it.

Made me realize just how tough it is to make a great Sonic game, even with the 2D ones.

Momentum is never that satisfying and even when you’re allowed to pick up in speed, you are cut short or downright punished for it with the shit level designs. Sonic is not the title for precise platforming sections.

I got a game over and it started me back at the very beginning. Safe to say I’m not touching this again.