Cute, charming, does what it says on the box, and retains the best qualities of the PS2-era LEGO titles I adored so much as a child. The open world of LEGO NYC doesn’t add a whole lot here, but it’s fun to run around and collect characters. This also didn’t need much of its linear story, but it helps with overall “direction” and purpose, I suppose. Most of the boss fights are pretty bad and repetitive, but since they’re so low-stakes where you just watch LEGO bricks explode, it’s still enjoyable to power through. Very easy to get in a quick rhythm once you understand each character archetype and their corresponding powers and abilities. Also great to see a lot of lesser-shown Marvel characters who don’t typically get the spotlight in comics, films, or TV series. Definitely want to try DC Super-Villains next.

A fun, breezy time with intriguing yet simple level design that no doubt would have felt revelatory at launch. I felt it important for me to play this, to better understand the influences of some of the games I love if nothing else. The incredibly lightweight, smooth dynamics of motion make for engaging gameplay. When your primary from of defense is the environment, this is SO helpful. Oh, to be a mid-90s Cybergoth/Punk fucking around with friends in this game for hours, writing our own crude code, blasting NIN, Ministry, and Skinny Puppy! Onto Quake 2.

Decent and intriguing enough plot establishment in this very unfinished game jam product. Always rad to see what folks can conceptualize and bring together over the course of just a few hours (tho I believe some 24-hour - and longer - game jams do exist). Clearly and effectively embedded into the context of the lore and the broader VTM politics, so obviously made by people who have experience with the TTRPG. Even though we only get about an hour of play time here, it intrigued me enough to want to see this built on and fleshed out in the future. Regardless, it’s refreshing as hell to play something set in the White Wolf universe that is NOT a visual novel with quasi-survival mechanics. Since Bloodlines, they have predominantly gone that route and produced a mass of unremarkable games.

Speaking of, each time I see Bloodlines 2 in the GOG store with the subscript of “Coming Soon,” my heart breaks just a little bit more.

Tried to re-play for only the second time ever, but abandoned late in Act II because of the absolutely atrocious design of wave combat encounters. An awfully, lazily designed game from (inconsequential) dialogue choice to setting to endlessly re-used assets to random encounters to equipment. The only saving graces are the companions and the Friendship-Rivalry scale (that I'd like to see utilized more often if BioWare is going to continue to write railroaded bullshit like this). Amazing what a second playthrough can do for the revelation of what I somehow previously did not see as wildly naked flaws. I think this game can be appropriately historically upheld as one of the greatest case studies in the exploitative and vile labor politics of the industry. One of the dev team's biggest mistakes was naming this Dragon Age II -- i.e. positioning it as a direct sequel to Origins, when nearly everything it does serves as a massive slap in the face to all the greatness that came before it.