Araz188
423 Reviews liked by Araz188
I'm gonna miss these losers...until Mahoyo 2 through 7 come out!
Titanfall 2
2016
There is a scene here where Cooper gives BT a thumbs up and BT tries to do the same for a moment before giving him a thumbs up back, and I start smiling like an idiot before I pull a thumbs up myself, and all I'm thinking the whole time is, "Man, I'm way too easy to please."
I genuinely believe that, outside of the ridiculously fun combat system, the best decision made here was to give the hulking Evangelion a personality of its own. Not the snarky, know-it-all techno-babbling AI, but just an intelligent robot that doesn't necessarily know everything outside of its specialization on the battlefield. The exchanges between Cooper and BT are both hilarious and compelling, generating immense interest in their evolving relationship. Of course, the campaign is fairly short-lived, but it does wonders at crafting memorable moments through those interactions spliced in between the chaos of militia and titans.
BT, you will always be famous.
(PS. THE "WHEN YOU GET TO HELL, TELL EM VIPER SENT YA" AND "DODGE THIS" WAS FROM THIS GAME????? THAT'S SO COOL)
I genuinely believe that, outside of the ridiculously fun combat system, the best decision made here was to give the hulking Evangelion a personality of its own. Not the snarky, know-it-all techno-babbling AI, but just an intelligent robot that doesn't necessarily know everything outside of its specialization on the battlefield. The exchanges between Cooper and BT are both hilarious and compelling, generating immense interest in their evolving relationship. Of course, the campaign is fairly short-lived, but it does wonders at crafting memorable moments through those interactions spliced in between the chaos of militia and titans.
BT, you will always be famous.
(PS. THE "WHEN YOU GET TO HELL, TELL EM VIPER SENT YA" AND "DODGE THIS" WAS FROM THIS GAME????? THAT'S SO COOL)
Octopath Traveler II
2023
Octopath Traveler II is an overall improvement of the first game in every single possible way. The OST, the artstyle, the battle-system, the gameplay, the characters, the UI, it's all great. I will always hold this game close to my heart because of how much of an enjoyable experience it was. I was reluctant to replay Octopath Traveler I before this game, but I'm honestly glad I did because now I can see the great parts of both games, but also some potential flaws.
The story for this game is great. Unlike OT1 where I only actively liked three of the stories, there really wasn't a story I disliked, despite how cliche some of them are. Standouts for me are definitely Partitio, Castii, and Temenos. I also enjoyed the addition of side stories between two of the characters but they really didn't do much for me and just felt like an addition to have the bare-minimum of interconnectedness between the stories. I did enjoy the overarching plot of the story, but I refused to fight the final boss because of my experience with the final boss of OT1, and decided to just watch it on YouTube. Great stories and was a big improvement from OT1.
Gameplay wise, this game is great. You got the addition of Day and Night Path Actions, with different quests being present during the night, and others present during the day. Also have Latent Power, which probably makes Castii broken as an Apothecary. I also enjoy the little additions they put into some of the classes, like how Hikari can learn different skills from dueling different NPCs, and how Agnea can have different bonuses depending on the NPC that she has Allured. I'll also include exploration in the gameplay section because that's another big thing for me. I love that there's a Western and Eastern continent, and the different towns, like OT1, just make the game that much more enjoyable for me. There's also definitely more lore that I haven't gotten into, which seems pretty great for the people who like lore. I also enjoy the little addition of being able to ride a boat in the water on certain maps, it just makes exploration that much better. Also, I can't forget the big overworld map, and how you can essentially buy a ship, and you're able to explore many previously unexplorable islands. Some things I will take away from the gameplay is the encounter rate, I despise random encounters, especially the encounter rate without having the reduced counter rate skill equipped. Also, I dislike grinding, but thanks to getting two lucky Bewildering Grace procs, I didn't have that much of an issue with it. However, that's a minor incovenience, as the game as a whole is great, and clearly outclasses its predecessor in terms of gameplay.
Music & the artstyle slaps so hard in this game. They really gave me the nostalgia factor for OT1 even though I had just completed that game, and the different tracks are great. The artstyle is gorgeous and I just loved seeing each little sub-section in this artstyle, I was just amazed by nearly everything in this game.
Overall, Octopath Traveler II is a great game that improves all of the problems that Octopath Traveler I had (with a few exceptions of course). If you're thinking of giving this game a chance, then please do, it's a great experience.
The story for this game is great. Unlike OT1 where I only actively liked three of the stories, there really wasn't a story I disliked, despite how cliche some of them are. Standouts for me are definitely Partitio, Castii, and Temenos. I also enjoyed the addition of side stories between two of the characters but they really didn't do much for me and just felt like an addition to have the bare-minimum of interconnectedness between the stories. I did enjoy the overarching plot of the story, but I refused to fight the final boss because of my experience with the final boss of OT1, and decided to just watch it on YouTube. Great stories and was a big improvement from OT1.
Gameplay wise, this game is great. You got the addition of Day and Night Path Actions, with different quests being present during the night, and others present during the day. Also have Latent Power, which probably makes Castii broken as an Apothecary. I also enjoy the little additions they put into some of the classes, like how Hikari can learn different skills from dueling different NPCs, and how Agnea can have different bonuses depending on the NPC that she has Allured. I'll also include exploration in the gameplay section because that's another big thing for me. I love that there's a Western and Eastern continent, and the different towns, like OT1, just make the game that much more enjoyable for me. There's also definitely more lore that I haven't gotten into, which seems pretty great for the people who like lore. I also enjoy the little addition of being able to ride a boat in the water on certain maps, it just makes exploration that much better. Also, I can't forget the big overworld map, and how you can essentially buy a ship, and you're able to explore many previously unexplorable islands. Some things I will take away from the gameplay is the encounter rate, I despise random encounters, especially the encounter rate without having the reduced counter rate skill equipped. Also, I dislike grinding, but thanks to getting two lucky Bewildering Grace procs, I didn't have that much of an issue with it. However, that's a minor incovenience, as the game as a whole is great, and clearly outclasses its predecessor in terms of gameplay.
Music & the artstyle slaps so hard in this game. They really gave me the nostalgia factor for OT1 even though I had just completed that game, and the different tracks are great. The artstyle is gorgeous and I just loved seeing each little sub-section in this artstyle, I was just amazed by nearly everything in this game.
Overall, Octopath Traveler II is a great game that improves all of the problems that Octopath Traveler I had (with a few exceptions of course). If you're thinking of giving this game a chance, then please do, it's a great experience.
This review contains spoilers
The surprise of 2024
IDK where to begin but let's begin with story
the story was good
I really enjoyed it
I loved the characters, loved the momenta between them etc.
Now about the combat system
it was really great
You have bunch of characters with different combat style and skills
Unfortunately one of negative points that you can't change the character during the fights
although the combat is great
the enemys is great the game has a lot of different enemys
The bosses were freaking great
I really liked every boss in the game
specially Angra Mainyu, I can't forget the moment when Bahamut showed up and I controlled him to defeat the boss
also Bahamut versa boss fight in Final Chapter was great
also his boss fight in chapter 0 were amazing
similar to Angra Mainyu, you control Bahamut to defeat Bahamut versa.. bro that was fire!
The game's world is so beautiful
The level design for every chapter is great and of course, beautiful
yeah I like the world so much
for skills, they are good, each character has the two skill tree, both of them contains skills like increase HP or damage, and of course a REAL Skills, they are good and there's a lot of them from attack skill, buff and debuff skills, and healing skills.
The Sigil system is good, there's a lot of them in the game with different kinds and Level (I, II, III, etc.) you can make such a powerful character with Sigils (that's what I did with Id)
also there's fate episodes, they are good, it's a good thing to learn the lore of the characters, also for every character there's two fate episodes contain fights, the rest is just Visual novel-like
Now for the quest
yes I enjoyed playing quest but not with chapter 0, like I was doing an endless quests just th get some stupid diaries just to progress the main story, and not to mention sometimeas when you finish quests, another quests appear.. and I do them and others appear.. the others are in a higher difficulty, which will take you time to finish them... Luckily there's an online in this game so can finish them faster 'couse most people that join you are in higher level with good builds
I think I talked about everything, lastly I hope there's a new GF title coming.. I hope so.
IDK where to begin but let's begin with story
the story was good
I really enjoyed it
I loved the characters, loved the momenta between them etc.
Now about the combat system
it was really great
You have bunch of characters with different combat style and skills
Unfortunately one of negative points that you can't change the character during the fights
although the combat is great
the enemys is great the game has a lot of different enemys
The bosses were freaking great
I really liked every boss in the game
specially Angra Mainyu, I can't forget the moment when Bahamut showed up and I controlled him to defeat the boss
also Bahamut versa boss fight in Final Chapter was great
also his boss fight in chapter 0 were amazing
similar to Angra Mainyu, you control Bahamut to defeat Bahamut versa.. bro that was fire!
The game's world is so beautiful
The level design for every chapter is great and of course, beautiful
yeah I like the world so much
for skills, they are good, each character has the two skill tree, both of them contains skills like increase HP or damage, and of course a REAL Skills, they are good and there's a lot of them from attack skill, buff and debuff skills, and healing skills.
The Sigil system is good, there's a lot of them in the game with different kinds and Level (I, II, III, etc.) you can make such a powerful character with Sigils (that's what I did with Id)
also there's fate episodes, they are good, it's a good thing to learn the lore of the characters, also for every character there's two fate episodes contain fights, the rest is just Visual novel-like
Now for the quest
yes I enjoyed playing quest but not with chapter 0, like I was doing an endless quests just th get some stupid diaries just to progress the main story, and not to mention sometimeas when you finish quests, another quests appear.. and I do them and others appear.. the others are in a higher difficulty, which will take you time to finish them... Luckily there's an online in this game so can finish them faster 'couse most people that join you are in higher level with good builds
I think I talked about everything, lastly I hope there's a new GF title coming.. I hope so.
P.T.
2014
PT has accomplished more as a tech demo that basically any other full release horror project and its not even close. AAA devs have even had the opportunity to copy PTs homework with its sense of tension or unsettling character design and theyre still falling short somehow.
This review contains spoilers
‘Now Rean, Let us begin. Together, we shall write the end to this wretched fairy tale. In ink, black as despair.’
People have been debating for a while now whats the best entry into the series. There's Trails in the Sky FC, which is a little dated, but is probably the best entry point (Though I do agree that it is hard to get into so maybe getting hooked into the series first is better). Trails from Zero, although more modern, is also hard to get into, but I would personally recommend this to people who wanted to get into the series. Trails of Cold Steel is also another great entry point, and people have also said Daybreak is another great entry point. Why is this relevant you might ask, well my entry point was Trails of Cold Steel III. Yeah, not my proudest moment, I thought they were standalone games when I initially played this game but I was invested and didn't want to give up there. If i've told anyone that I started with CS1, I apologise, but it's kind of embarassing. Anyways..
Trails of Cold Steel III is the DEFINITION of peak fiction and cinema. This game got me into the series, despite me not knowing anything about it and being confused like 95% of the time, so that has to say something. A smaller group of main characters and a setup that will make you miserable, angry, and depressed, that is what this game is all about. I could write a whole ass essay on this game, but if I did that, this would be the longest review on Backloggd. Just gotta say it's my favourite game in the series, and despite some pretty minor flaws, its a banger in many categories.
Storywise, this game is throwback central. You get callbacks to characters like Tita, Agate, Lloyd, KeA, Arios, and some others who are more relevant to the story like Randy. Instead of being a student this time around, Rean is an instructor for Thors Branch Campus, taking lead over his own Class VII. Each member has their own personality quirks, and some experience more development than others, but that's probably because they still have CS4 to develop. This game is like the replication of CS1, but in my opinion, done so much better because this game just has higher-stakes. Field Exercises are way more enjoyable than Field Studies, going to places like Saint-Arkh, Parm, Hamel, Crossbell, Ordis, Raquel, and Heimdallr. Heimdallr especially feels more high-stakes, even the music, sounding less juvenile, like in CS1. Class VII isn't the only new characters in this game, and I like interacting with all of the major students from the branch campus, each having their own individual quirks and struggles too. Now talking about the main story, Chapter 1 just makes me so excited for the rest of the game because of the return of Ouroboros, as well as the raid on the Field Exercise Camp, and the reunion of a couple of Class VII members. I will say, finally getting to explore Hamel was great, and just made it that much eerie, especially with the appearance of Fie's 'father' and a divine knight that looks eerily similar to Valimar. I will say that I believe Chapter 2 is probably my favourite chapter across the entire trails series because of how pissed it made me. I've heavily invested in the Trails world, and when they stir shit with Crossbell, I lose it, which is probably why Juna is my favourite character in this game, because of her entire arc in this chapter, I completely get her. Chapter 2 is just great in general because we get more development from Ash and Musse, and more insight into how dodgy the Ironbloods and related parties are becoming. Can't forget 3D Crossbell, with the return of Tio, and reunions from Emma and Alisa (Machias is there as well I guess). We also get more of Sharon's backstory, as she's remained a mystery most of the first-half of the arc. We also get a great segment from McBurn and Campanella (though I wish I could say the same about both boss fights but Emma just destroys both of them). I've never been as politically invested into a world and into a country as I am with Crossbell and I was literally on the verge of breakdown when they kept slandering it (this what happens when I got to invested into Zero and Azure). Overall, a great chapter that just has so many highs. Chapter 3 Ash and Musse join Class VII, and I'm happy to get to learn more about them. We get to go to Ordis, probably one of the most gorgeous towns in Trails, and everything is just jampacked. From jaegers, to the Imperial Provincial Council, to the infamous Wilhelm Ballad, and the railway cannons that are aimed at Ordis. We also can't forget the Stahlritter, Arianrhod, and the battle for Juno. This chapter is great and everything just kept changing and changing, and we even get cryptic conversations from both Ash and Musse, making me even more interested in them, as well as the cliffhanger with Angelica at the cemetry. The highlight of the chapter is of course the battle between Class VII and Aurelia vs. Arianrhod and the Stahlritter, it truly is that epic. Chapter 4 is probably where all hell breaks loose. The branch campus versus the main campus, the catacombs, terrorists, and then the inevitable curse that prompts Ash to shoot the Emperor. You can really tell how much the tone shifts between Chapter 4 and the finale. Everyone turns on Class VII. The Ironbloods, Sharon, Aurelia and co (though I wouldn't call that turning on us), George, everyone truly sucks in this timeline. The Infernal Castle didn't feel that satisfying because people kept saving us, but the Spiral of Erebos was truly a great dungeon. There is no cavalry following Class VII to aid us, we are truly the sole cavalry. It's Class VII versus everyone else to prevent the 'end of the world'. The series of events that occur in this dungeon just sweeps me off of my feet. Olivier, Toval, and Viscount Arseid die in an explosion, George turns traitor on everyone, Gaius reveals himself as a member of the Gralsritter, 'Siegfried's' mask breaks, Alisa whips out another orbal gear, Cedric choking Altina (screw you Cedric), Millium sacrificing herself to save Altina and Rean, Rean going berserk due to Millium's death causing the end of the world, and then that bone-chilling cliffhanger that gives me goosebumps anytime I witness it, this is truly the best game in the series for me, hands down. I will say I am not fond of the developers painting Rean as a pedophile at the start of Chapter 2 in Crossbell over a misunderstanding from Altina, didn't find it very funny and probably the worst part of the game for me imo. The game also heavily reuses the 'Heed my call Vali-' and the 'That won't be necessary' schtick. The story in this game had me sitting on the edge of my seat the entire time, and I thoroughly enjoyed my time with it.
Characters. There's just so many great additions, between all of the new Class VII members, Aurelia, Arianrhod, Duvalie, they are all great. Highlights for me are definitely Juna and Altina. I'm still annoyed by the bonding point system, but it doesn't affect me on NG+ runs. This game is also great at making me hate certain characters, like Cedric and Rufus, they're written to perfection, but I hate their guts and want to deck them in the face. Then there's misses, like Angelica, who's libido has been upped by like x1000 since the last game, and Black Alberich, dude is boring as hell. I also want the game to stop pushing Rean and Elise, as well as Agate and Tita together. The game has a great cast of characters, with a couple of duds, but these do not sour my experience with the game.
The music is great. My favourite is definitely the Spiral of Erebos theme. I also enjoy the new Abend Time theme, and all of the town themes, and the battle themes, and probably all of the music in this game. The composers truly do not disappoint me with more banger tracks in each game.
Gameplay! I love how games where you can just abuse the system to make the game x100 easier. Brave Orders completely break the game, with Juna's especially allowing you to insta-break any enemy and send them to the shadow realm. Musse is a war machine in the late game with high tier arts, and Rean is just an overall powerful unit with Gale now on his craft list. I love break gauges in gameplay, and Trails is no exception, it just makes me enjoy combat way more. I love building Fie as a 'plague-spreader' as she can equip every status ailment quartz, and just give every enemy cancer. Nightmare is pretty much a breeze in this game, but that's porbably because I'm well-experienced in the games combat. Overall, solid gameplay, that offers a wide variety of customisation.
I have to always praise trails and their NPC dialogue, because its so great. I love how little substories develop as the game goes on, like how some of the shop owners are getting together, or two nobles are planning to run away together, i just love seeing how these subplots unfold, in relation to the main story. Probably one my favourite features of trails games (and probably the main reason why I don't play any of the other released trails games in Japanese because I don't believe the translators translate all NPC dialogue). If you haven't given talking to every NPC a go, I highly recommend it, it is very enjoyable.
I need to end this review somehow, and I just want to talk about how much of a masterpiece this game truly is. I enjoy every second of this game, and it truly is the reason why I've gotten into this series, so I do have a place in my heart for it. The story is amazing, with a brilliant cast of characters, with great gameplay and music, with a couple of duds, but not everything can be perfect. Osborne is the perfect villain, and the way this game leaves you on a cliffhanger is exhilarating. I could talk about a lot more, but I'm going to stop my review here before I keep rambling.
UPDATE: I lied. I need to ramble more. This game reminds me of the end of the Infernal Castle with the amount of plot twists that they throw at you at the end of the game. We beat the final boss, but it doesn't feel like a good ending, no, Rean just unleashed a curse onto the entire world. Rean is even taken captive by the enemy. Can my man catch a break? Seriously, this series just loves dunking on Rean, he deserves the best. Also they made Shining op for the fact that it has a small AoE now and isn't single target, what were they thinking? Also, CROW ARMBRUST IS BACK AAAAAAAAAAAA!
People have been debating for a while now whats the best entry into the series. There's Trails in the Sky FC, which is a little dated, but is probably the best entry point (Though I do agree that it is hard to get into so maybe getting hooked into the series first is better). Trails from Zero, although more modern, is also hard to get into, but I would personally recommend this to people who wanted to get into the series. Trails of Cold Steel is also another great entry point, and people have also said Daybreak is another great entry point. Why is this relevant you might ask, well my entry point was Trails of Cold Steel III. Yeah, not my proudest moment, I thought they were standalone games when I initially played this game but I was invested and didn't want to give up there. If i've told anyone that I started with CS1, I apologise, but it's kind of embarassing. Anyways..
Trails of Cold Steel III is the DEFINITION of peak fiction and cinema. This game got me into the series, despite me not knowing anything about it and being confused like 95% of the time, so that has to say something. A smaller group of main characters and a setup that will make you miserable, angry, and depressed, that is what this game is all about. I could write a whole ass essay on this game, but if I did that, this would be the longest review on Backloggd. Just gotta say it's my favourite game in the series, and despite some pretty minor flaws, its a banger in many categories.
Storywise, this game is throwback central. You get callbacks to characters like Tita, Agate, Lloyd, KeA, Arios, and some others who are more relevant to the story like Randy. Instead of being a student this time around, Rean is an instructor for Thors Branch Campus, taking lead over his own Class VII. Each member has their own personality quirks, and some experience more development than others, but that's probably because they still have CS4 to develop. This game is like the replication of CS1, but in my opinion, done so much better because this game just has higher-stakes. Field Exercises are way more enjoyable than Field Studies, going to places like Saint-Arkh, Parm, Hamel, Crossbell, Ordis, Raquel, and Heimdallr. Heimdallr especially feels more high-stakes, even the music, sounding less juvenile, like in CS1. Class VII isn't the only new characters in this game, and I like interacting with all of the major students from the branch campus, each having their own individual quirks and struggles too. Now talking about the main story, Chapter 1 just makes me so excited for the rest of the game because of the return of Ouroboros, as well as the raid on the Field Exercise Camp, and the reunion of a couple of Class VII members. I will say, finally getting to explore Hamel was great, and just made it that much eerie, especially with the appearance of Fie's 'father' and a divine knight that looks eerily similar to Valimar. I will say that I believe Chapter 2 is probably my favourite chapter across the entire trails series because of how pissed it made me. I've heavily invested in the Trails world, and when they stir shit with Crossbell, I lose it, which is probably why Juna is my favourite character in this game, because of her entire arc in this chapter, I completely get her. Chapter 2 is just great in general because we get more development from Ash and Musse, and more insight into how dodgy the Ironbloods and related parties are becoming. Can't forget 3D Crossbell, with the return of Tio, and reunions from Emma and Alisa (Machias is there as well I guess). We also get more of Sharon's backstory, as she's remained a mystery most of the first-half of the arc. We also get a great segment from McBurn and Campanella (though I wish I could say the same about both boss fights but Emma just destroys both of them). I've never been as politically invested into a world and into a country as I am with Crossbell and I was literally on the verge of breakdown when they kept slandering it (this what happens when I got to invested into Zero and Azure). Overall, a great chapter that just has so many highs. Chapter 3 Ash and Musse join Class VII, and I'm happy to get to learn more about them. We get to go to Ordis, probably one of the most gorgeous towns in Trails, and everything is just jampacked. From jaegers, to the Imperial Provincial Council, to the infamous Wilhelm Ballad, and the railway cannons that are aimed at Ordis. We also can't forget the Stahlritter, Arianrhod, and the battle for Juno. This chapter is great and everything just kept changing and changing, and we even get cryptic conversations from both Ash and Musse, making me even more interested in them, as well as the cliffhanger with Angelica at the cemetry. The highlight of the chapter is of course the battle between Class VII and Aurelia vs. Arianrhod and the Stahlritter, it truly is that epic. Chapter 4 is probably where all hell breaks loose. The branch campus versus the main campus, the catacombs, terrorists, and then the inevitable curse that prompts Ash to shoot the Emperor. You can really tell how much the tone shifts between Chapter 4 and the finale. Everyone turns on Class VII. The Ironbloods, Sharon, Aurelia and co (though I wouldn't call that turning on us), George, everyone truly sucks in this timeline. The Infernal Castle didn't feel that satisfying because people kept saving us, but the Spiral of Erebos was truly a great dungeon. There is no cavalry following Class VII to aid us, we are truly the sole cavalry. It's Class VII versus everyone else to prevent the 'end of the world'. The series of events that occur in this dungeon just sweeps me off of my feet. Olivier, Toval, and Viscount Arseid die in an explosion, George turns traitor on everyone, Gaius reveals himself as a member of the Gralsritter, 'Siegfried's' mask breaks, Alisa whips out another orbal gear, Cedric choking Altina (screw you Cedric), Millium sacrificing herself to save Altina and Rean, Rean going berserk due to Millium's death causing the end of the world, and then that bone-chilling cliffhanger that gives me goosebumps anytime I witness it, this is truly the best game in the series for me, hands down. I will say I am not fond of the developers painting Rean as a pedophile at the start of Chapter 2 in Crossbell over a misunderstanding from Altina, didn't find it very funny and probably the worst part of the game for me imo. The game also heavily reuses the 'Heed my call Vali-' and the 'That won't be necessary' schtick. The story in this game had me sitting on the edge of my seat the entire time, and I thoroughly enjoyed my time with it.
Characters. There's just so many great additions, between all of the new Class VII members, Aurelia, Arianrhod, Duvalie, they are all great. Highlights for me are definitely Juna and Altina. I'm still annoyed by the bonding point system, but it doesn't affect me on NG+ runs. This game is also great at making me hate certain characters, like Cedric and Rufus, they're written to perfection, but I hate their guts and want to deck them in the face. Then there's misses, like Angelica, who's libido has been upped by like x1000 since the last game, and Black Alberich, dude is boring as hell. I also want the game to stop pushing Rean and Elise, as well as Agate and Tita together. The game has a great cast of characters, with a couple of duds, but these do not sour my experience with the game.
The music is great. My favourite is definitely the Spiral of Erebos theme. I also enjoy the new Abend Time theme, and all of the town themes, and the battle themes, and probably all of the music in this game. The composers truly do not disappoint me with more banger tracks in each game.
Gameplay! I love how games where you can just abuse the system to make the game x100 easier. Brave Orders completely break the game, with Juna's especially allowing you to insta-break any enemy and send them to the shadow realm. Musse is a war machine in the late game with high tier arts, and Rean is just an overall powerful unit with Gale now on his craft list. I love break gauges in gameplay, and Trails is no exception, it just makes me enjoy combat way more. I love building Fie as a 'plague-spreader' as she can equip every status ailment quartz, and just give every enemy cancer. Nightmare is pretty much a breeze in this game, but that's porbably because I'm well-experienced in the games combat. Overall, solid gameplay, that offers a wide variety of customisation.
I have to always praise trails and their NPC dialogue, because its so great. I love how little substories develop as the game goes on, like how some of the shop owners are getting together, or two nobles are planning to run away together, i just love seeing how these subplots unfold, in relation to the main story. Probably one my favourite features of trails games (and probably the main reason why I don't play any of the other released trails games in Japanese because I don't believe the translators translate all NPC dialogue). If you haven't given talking to every NPC a go, I highly recommend it, it is very enjoyable.
I need to end this review somehow, and I just want to talk about how much of a masterpiece this game truly is. I enjoy every second of this game, and it truly is the reason why I've gotten into this series, so I do have a place in my heart for it. The story is amazing, with a brilliant cast of characters, with great gameplay and music, with a couple of duds, but not everything can be perfect. Osborne is the perfect villain, and the way this game leaves you on a cliffhanger is exhilarating. I could talk about a lot more, but I'm going to stop my review here before I keep rambling.
UPDATE: I lied. I need to ramble more. This game reminds me of the end of the Infernal Castle with the amount of plot twists that they throw at you at the end of the game. We beat the final boss, but it doesn't feel like a good ending, no, Rean just unleashed a curse onto the entire world. Rean is even taken captive by the enemy. Can my man catch a break? Seriously, this series just loves dunking on Rean, he deserves the best. Also they made Shining op for the fact that it has a small AoE now and isn't single target, what were they thinking? Also, CROW ARMBRUST IS BACK AAAAAAAAAAAA!
Alan Wake II
2023
I'm pretty sure most of us can agree that most videogames incorporate art in some way. However, there aren't many games that they themselves are art.
I deeply believe Alan Wake II is one of those games.
Where do I start? The story narrative, the characters, the world design, the art direction, the game design, everything just fits together beautifully to craft this game. My jaw was constantly dropping at the beautiful environments, and at the seamless transitions of live action scenes and in-game sequences. And I think this feeling peaked in a certain "musical" section where I just had to step away from my keyboard and just stare in awe at what I was experiencing.
The two sides of the story have their own personalities: one of them shows off what Remedy aspired the classic Alan Wake to be (which was at one point a open world survival horror game) and the other side plays with the mindfuckery they have shown off so well in Control. Both of the stories intertwine and interact in ways you only notice once you reflect on everything after those end credits. I haven't even done the NG+ yet, but once I finish writing this review that is exactly what I'll be doing.
Overall, despite the game having some flaws, I think that everything else is just perfect.
I deeply believe Alan Wake II is one of those games.
Where do I start? The story narrative, the characters, the world design, the art direction, the game design, everything just fits together beautifully to craft this game. My jaw was constantly dropping at the beautiful environments, and at the seamless transitions of live action scenes and in-game sequences. And I think this feeling peaked in a certain "musical" section where I just had to step away from my keyboard and just stare in awe at what I was experiencing.
The two sides of the story have their own personalities: one of them shows off what Remedy aspired the classic Alan Wake to be (which was at one point a open world survival horror game) and the other side plays with the mindfuckery they have shown off so well in Control. Both of the stories intertwine and interact in ways you only notice once you reflect on everything after those end credits. I haven't even done the NG+ yet, but once I finish writing this review that is exactly what I'll be doing.
Overall, despite the game having some flaws, I think that everything else is just perfect.
My "comfort" game. This is the one game I can keep coming back to consistently no matter how many hours I've put into it.
This game perfectly blends 2 of my favourite gaming elements (Proper Stealth & Sandbox with emergent gameplay) and does it really well.
There are so many ways you can replay the missions in this game it almost feels unlimited, and now with the addition of freelancer (a new rogue lite mode) this feeling is even more true.
This game perfectly encapsulates that James Bond/John Wick modern high society espionage feeling that very few games do capture.
My only 1 wish with this game is that IOI release an offline patch so you can have progression and freelancer without needing to connect to the internet
This game perfectly blends 2 of my favourite gaming elements (Proper Stealth & Sandbox with emergent gameplay) and does it really well.
There are so many ways you can replay the missions in this game it almost feels unlimited, and now with the addition of freelancer (a new rogue lite mode) this feeling is even more true.
This game perfectly encapsulates that James Bond/John Wick modern high society espionage feeling that very few games do capture.
My only 1 wish with this game is that IOI release an offline patch so you can have progression and freelancer without needing to connect to the internet
Time to mix drinks and change lives
This is how to make your very own VA-11 Hall-A: Cyberpunk Bartender Action, right from the comfort of your own home! 🍸✨
Here’s what you’ll need:
- 5 parts Blorbo-Bicon Extraordinaire
- 3 parts Purified Heart-warm
- 3 parts Feelings That I Still Don’t Know How to Process
- 2 parts Banger OST
- 2 parts Fucking Funny Shit
- 1 part Nanomachines
- 1 part Girl 4chan
- 1 part Mega Christmas
- 1 part Bad Touch pffts
- 1 part Dorothinquisition (your ass was not expecting this shit)
Directions
1. Start by smiling a little, maybe throwing in some laughs if you’re feeling adventurous (note: you are feeling adventurous).
2. Feel every emotion under the sun.
And you’re done !~
i’m always wary of any usage of the word “waifu”, but this game is simply delightful. admittedly, i have only had any amount of interest in the visual novel genre for less than a year at this point, but this game has already earned a spot in my top 5 favorites. it’s literally so fucking sweet i don’t know what to do with myself??? almost every character radiates such warmth and authenticity that i can’t help but smile. even when a character’s kinda a piece of shit, i still just feel so damn charmed by the whole presentation and atmosphere that it’s virtually impossible* to have a client interaction i dislike. it is clear that there was a lot of thought put into the backgrounds of many of the characters; not only do you get to experience storied friendships between your clientele, but you also get to forge your own relationships with them. character development WIN!! it’s so fucking fantastic to watch characters change over the course of the game. one thing i find incredibly well-done about this game is just how involved our main character is with the entire narrative. in Coffee Talk (2020), a game that came out after this (but one I played before), the barista player character repeatedly says things to the effect of “just being an observer.” in VA-11 Hall-A, however, Jill is front and center, albeit often off-screen. yes, you do get to act as an observer sometimes when a group of people come in talking to each other, but the vast majority of the time, our girlie is integral to the conversation. quite literally, this motherfucker is out here changing lives. the B.T.C. should make a fun little catchphrase based on that notion and pay me e-royalties (in the future they call them e-royalties).
so,, how the fuck does Jill even change lives? she mixes drinks, silly! this is where the Bartender portion of the Cyberpunk Bartender Action comes into play. a goofy individual—a creature, if you will (unless you won’t)—will come into the bar and either directly ask for a Bad Touch smirk emoji, some other specific drink, or give you some constraints for what they want. the game’s interface then lets you sort through the modest selection of possible drinks by name, flavor, or type to allow you to discern what could be a good option. you drag set amounts of the 5 ingredients into the mixer, select to add ice/age the drink, then mix for a specified amount of time. it’s not too complex, but offers just enough interaction to really make you feel like you’re Cyberpunk Bartending Action. sometimes a client will speak in riddles or ask for “the usual” like haha did you remember what Joe Barbeque always orders? no??? what are you a fucking idiot or something??
while there is a plot in this game, i think it would definitely be classified more as character-driven versus a story-driven narrative. this is ABSOLUTELY not a bad thing. i love me some characters! they’re often far more important to me than any sort of story beats. the game starts with a narrative hook, but it kinda just disappears by the end of the game. it’s mentioned semi-frequently, but there’s just not really any resolution to that thread. gone. there’s some pretty significant in-world events that occur over the course of the story that tie into some of the characters’ arcs, which is pretty cool. there’s even a TV in the bar that you can change the channel on, and different channels become available depending on the point in the story you’re at. really though, i’m not here for the happenings in Glitch City. there’s some honestly pretty good social/ political commentary for the most part, and the game leverages its cyberpunk setting to talk about the consequences of technological advancement, like any good piece of cyberpunk media should, but i’m here for the critters on my screen ordering they goddamn drinks. fucking hell, i think Jill’s arc might be one of my favorite character arcs in any piece of media ever now. i genuinely cannot think of any nugget of character development i like more than her’s. even ‘unimportant’ side characters get to grow, and it’s just really fucking awesome. fantastic characters and writing overall. extremely funny, too.
speaking of characters: gang, we need to talk about Dorothy (good song btw). to start off, i will say that from a pure personality standpoint, Dorothy is probably one of my favorite characters in this game. she’s fun, has an infectious energy to her, and can even end up being pretty serious and philosophical when she feels like it. i probably enjoyed every single time she showed up at Valhalla looking for a drink and a chat. now, i do not know any backstory behind the motivations of the writing behind this character, so anything i say will be my own interpretation of solely what can be gleaned from the game. however, from what i understand about the writer of this game, they seem to be excessively horny and i would not be surprised if they hold some unsavory views on women and potentially even worse things. but again, i am locking in on what can be understood from the game. while i 100% think there is merit to be had in taking the author behind a piece of work into account, i’m personally here on this website to review VA-11 Hall-A: Cyberpunk Bartender Action, not some horny twitter user.
Dorothy is a sex-worker Lilim (a robot, of sorts), who is mentally about 24, but has the body of 13-year-old. the game feeds you some background along the lines of “oh like Lilim are just kinda created looking like kids cuz we’re tryin’ to mimic humans as much as possible or whatever and most ‘upgrade’ to look more adult later,” but this alone can obviously not explain its inclusion. at one point, Dorothy says something to the effect of not wanting to get said upgrade because her young appearance helps her immensely in her line of work. some people hire her for pedophilic reasons, and others hire her for non-sexual reasons, such as asking her to pretend to be their late daughter. isn’t that just kinda fucked up? like, that’s so clearly fucked. willingly choosing to look like a child for the expressed purpose of elevating sex-work is absolutely a terrible reality. yet, in that same vain, i feel like the reasons this is fucked is more because of what it makes me feel about society. pedophiles do exist, and if such an individual like Dorothy existed in our world, i can guarantee there would be similar occurrences. the problem here is that i don’t feel like this whole concept was given the care it needs. in my opinion, if you’re going to attempt a scathing critique of society’s sexual obsessions with underaged individuals blended in with cyberpunk-based worries about integration of self-aware artificial intelligence and body modifications, you better fucking make it SCATHING. yes, i can see media literacy, she’s that cutie sitting over at the corner of the bar, but i wish i was fucking talking to her too!!! (that one doesn’t really make sense, i just wanted to say it, sorry.) seriously, though, i feel like there’s some topics that you can kinda dance around with when you’re trying to get across a message in a piece of media, but sometimes being explicit is completely warranted, and in this case i think it is. it’s a little difficult to try to tackle a dicey topic such as this, but then also try to make that same character be a silly little goofball. like, yeah, i love silly little goofballs, but maybe we shoulda divorced the two concepts if we’re gonna attempt this at all. i’m glad they gave her some more depth than ‘just’ being a sex-worker, but i don’t think the overall depiction was all that fantastic. i don’t think it’s a complete failure, though i do still wish it was handled with a little more grace and tact than it was given. i one-hundred percent understand if the inclusion of this character in the way it was done is off-putting to the point of ruining the entire experience of the game, as unfortunate as that may be.
i don’t wanna end this review on a sour note after talking about all that jazz, so i’m gonna end by talking just a little bit about the music in this game. it’s good! like, really good! i like to listen to it?? at the start of each day and after each break, you get to select 12 songs to play on the jukebox, which is nice, cuz you get to listen to the bangers you bang to, and not just the bangers you don’t. there’s a seriously great soundtrack here, and i enjoyed pretty much all of the songs i had access to during my playthrough. there’s a shuffle feature you can use, but it’s like that ‘shitty’ shuffle where it doesn’t care if it plays the same song it just played. it’s a little annoying, but really nothing all that terrible, seeing as you can just press skip song anyways. some of my favorites (non-exhaustive) were:
Nighttime Maneuvers
Synthestitch
Digital Drive
Through the Storm, We Will Find a Way
despite my critiques, i really loved this game. i can see why it is loved by many, and now i get to be excited for the sequel. sigh, add it to the pile,,,
all booze and no firecrackers makes mae a dull girl.
This is how to make your very own VA-11 Hall-A: Cyberpunk Bartender Action, right from the comfort of your own home! 🍸✨
Here’s what you’ll need:
- 5 parts Blorbo-Bicon Extraordinaire
- 3 parts Purified Heart-warm
- 3 parts Feelings That I Still Don’t Know How to Process
- 2 parts Banger OST
- 2 parts Fucking Funny Shit
- 1 part Nanomachines
- 1 part Girl 4chan
- 1 part Mega Christmas
- 1 part Bad Touch pffts
- 1 part Dorothinquisition (your ass was not expecting this shit)
Directions
1. Start by smiling a little, maybe throwing in some laughs if you’re feeling adventurous (note: you are feeling adventurous).
2. Feel every emotion under the sun.
And you’re done !~
i’m always wary of any usage of the word “waifu”, but this game is simply delightful. admittedly, i have only had any amount of interest in the visual novel genre for less than a year at this point, but this game has already earned a spot in my top 5 favorites. it’s literally so fucking sweet i don’t know what to do with myself??? almost every character radiates such warmth and authenticity that i can’t help but smile. even when a character’s kinda a piece of shit, i still just feel so damn charmed by the whole presentation and atmosphere that it’s virtually impossible* to have a client interaction i dislike. it is clear that there was a lot of thought put into the backgrounds of many of the characters; not only do you get to experience storied friendships between your clientele, but you also get to forge your own relationships with them. character development WIN!! it’s so fucking fantastic to watch characters change over the course of the game. one thing i find incredibly well-done about this game is just how involved our main character is with the entire narrative. in Coffee Talk (2020), a game that came out after this (but one I played before), the barista player character repeatedly says things to the effect of “just being an observer.” in VA-11 Hall-A, however, Jill is front and center, albeit often off-screen. yes, you do get to act as an observer sometimes when a group of people come in talking to each other, but the vast majority of the time, our girlie is integral to the conversation. quite literally, this motherfucker is out here changing lives. the B.T.C. should make a fun little catchphrase based on that notion and pay me e-royalties (in the future they call them e-royalties).
so,, how the fuck does Jill even change lives? she mixes drinks, silly! this is where the Bartender portion of the Cyberpunk Bartender Action comes into play. a goofy individual—a creature, if you will (unless you won’t)—will come into the bar and either directly ask for a Bad Touch smirk emoji, some other specific drink, or give you some constraints for what they want. the game’s interface then lets you sort through the modest selection of possible drinks by name, flavor, or type to allow you to discern what could be a good option. you drag set amounts of the 5 ingredients into the mixer, select to add ice/age the drink, then mix for a specified amount of time. it’s not too complex, but offers just enough interaction to really make you feel like you’re Cyberpunk Bartending Action. sometimes a client will speak in riddles or ask for “the usual” like haha did you remember what Joe Barbeque always orders? no??? what are you a fucking idiot or something??
while there is a plot in this game, i think it would definitely be classified more as character-driven versus a story-driven narrative. this is ABSOLUTELY not a bad thing. i love me some characters! they’re often far more important to me than any sort of story beats. the game starts with a narrative hook, but it kinda just disappears by the end of the game. it’s mentioned semi-frequently, but there’s just not really any resolution to that thread. gone. there’s some pretty significant in-world events that occur over the course of the story that tie into some of the characters’ arcs, which is pretty cool. there’s even a TV in the bar that you can change the channel on, and different channels become available depending on the point in the story you’re at. really though, i’m not here for the happenings in Glitch City. there’s some honestly pretty good social/ political commentary for the most part, and the game leverages its cyberpunk setting to talk about the consequences of technological advancement, like any good piece of cyberpunk media should, but i’m here for the critters on my screen ordering they goddamn drinks. fucking hell, i think Jill’s arc might be one of my favorite character arcs in any piece of media ever now. i genuinely cannot think of any nugget of character development i like more than her’s. even ‘unimportant’ side characters get to grow, and it’s just really fucking awesome. fantastic characters and writing overall. extremely funny, too.
speaking of characters: gang, we need to talk about Dorothy (good song btw). to start off, i will say that from a pure personality standpoint, Dorothy is probably one of my favorite characters in this game. she’s fun, has an infectious energy to her, and can even end up being pretty serious and philosophical when she feels like it. i probably enjoyed every single time she showed up at Valhalla looking for a drink and a chat. now, i do not know any backstory behind the motivations of the writing behind this character, so anything i say will be my own interpretation of solely what can be gleaned from the game. however, from what i understand about the writer of this game, they seem to be excessively horny and i would not be surprised if they hold some unsavory views on women and potentially even worse things. but again, i am locking in on what can be understood from the game. while i 100% think there is merit to be had in taking the author behind a piece of work into account, i’m personally here on this website to review VA-11 Hall-A: Cyberpunk Bartender Action, not some horny twitter user.
Dorothy is a sex-worker Lilim (a robot, of sorts), who is mentally about 24, but has the body of 13-year-old. the game feeds you some background along the lines of “oh like Lilim are just kinda created looking like kids cuz we’re tryin’ to mimic humans as much as possible or whatever and most ‘upgrade’ to look more adult later,” but this alone can obviously not explain its inclusion. at one point, Dorothy says something to the effect of not wanting to get said upgrade because her young appearance helps her immensely in her line of work. some people hire her for pedophilic reasons, and others hire her for non-sexual reasons, such as asking her to pretend to be their late daughter. isn’t that just kinda fucked up? like, that’s so clearly fucked. willingly choosing to look like a child for the expressed purpose of elevating sex-work is absolutely a terrible reality. yet, in that same vain, i feel like the reasons this is fucked is more because of what it makes me feel about society. pedophiles do exist, and if such an individual like Dorothy existed in our world, i can guarantee there would be similar occurrences. the problem here is that i don’t feel like this whole concept was given the care it needs. in my opinion, if you’re going to attempt a scathing critique of society’s sexual obsessions with underaged individuals blended in with cyberpunk-based worries about integration of self-aware artificial intelligence and body modifications, you better fucking make it SCATHING. yes, i can see media literacy, she’s that cutie sitting over at the corner of the bar, but i wish i was fucking talking to her too!!! (that one doesn’t really make sense, i just wanted to say it, sorry.) seriously, though, i feel like there’s some topics that you can kinda dance around with when you’re trying to get across a message in a piece of media, but sometimes being explicit is completely warranted, and in this case i think it is. it’s a little difficult to try to tackle a dicey topic such as this, but then also try to make that same character be a silly little goofball. like, yeah, i love silly little goofballs, but maybe we shoulda divorced the two concepts if we’re gonna attempt this at all. i’m glad they gave her some more depth than ‘just’ being a sex-worker, but i don’t think the overall depiction was all that fantastic. i don’t think it’s a complete failure, though i do still wish it was handled with a little more grace and tact than it was given. i one-hundred percent understand if the inclusion of this character in the way it was done is off-putting to the point of ruining the entire experience of the game, as unfortunate as that may be.
i don’t wanna end this review on a sour note after talking about all that jazz, so i’m gonna end by talking just a little bit about the music in this game. it’s good! like, really good! i like to listen to it?? at the start of each day and after each break, you get to select 12 songs to play on the jukebox, which is nice, cuz you get to listen to the bangers you bang to, and not just the bangers you don’t. there’s a seriously great soundtrack here, and i enjoyed pretty much all of the songs i had access to during my playthrough. there’s a shuffle feature you can use, but it’s like that ‘shitty’ shuffle where it doesn’t care if it plays the same song it just played. it’s a little annoying, but really nothing all that terrible, seeing as you can just press skip song anyways. some of my favorites (non-exhaustive) were:
Nighttime Maneuvers
Synthestitch
Digital Drive
Through the Storm, We Will Find a Way
despite my critiques, i really loved this game. i can see why it is loved by many, and now i get to be excited for the sequel. sigh, add it to the pile,,,
all booze and no firecrackers makes mae a dull girl.
This review contains spoilers
𝓘'𝓵𝓵 𝓻𝓮𝓶𝓮𝓶𝓫𝓮𝓻 𝔂𝓸𝓾.
The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel II is the second game of the Erebonian arc, and the seventh game overall in the Trails series. Like Azure, in my opinion, this game has the highest of highs, but the lowest of lows (so low in fact that it's my least favourite of the series). Just because it's my least favourite, DOES NOT MEAN I do not enjoy it. The endgame is peak, and it is only let down by the earlier parts of the game, and therefore drags the entire game down for me personally. I went straight into this after Cold Steel II because that cliffhanger was nasty as shit and I needed to find out what happened next. Feels bad for the people who had to wait in translation hell for this game to get translated. With all of that said, let's begin the review.
Going to talk about setting first. This game is a stark contrast compared to Cold Steel I. Cold Steel I is your typical high school setting, filled with tropes, but still sort of dark because of a terrorist sub-plot. In Cold Steel II's case, Erebonia is amidst a civil war between the Noble Alliance, led by Duke Cayenne, and the Reformist Faction, who was led by the now deceased Chancellor Osborne (that's what you thought too, right?) This game, in my opinion, has one of the more unique settings in Trails, closer to the feeling of Azure as you're literally playing in the middle of a war. The war-aspect of the game is truly amplified at some parts, but other parts it just seems dumb. You don't really get to explore anywhere new, except the Schwarz Drache Barrier, The Twin Dragons Bridge, The Four Elemental Shrines, The Remains of Garrelia Fortress, Within Aurochs Fort, and the Reverie Corridor, situated within the Old Schoolhouse. However, one of the locations that I was dying to go to was Rean's hometown, Ymir. I'm still mad that they excluded that class trip from the base game after Chapter 6 in Cold Steel I, it would've been sooo much better. Honestly, I think that no matter where the series takes us, I will always be in love with the setting.
Story! I'm splitting this up into two parts, the first-half of the game, which spans from Rean waking up in the Eisengard Range till the middle of Act 2, after saving Irina, Angelica, and Roer, and the second-half of the game, spanning from Celdic's Arson Attack till the depression fest where the end of the game makes you feel some type of way.
The first-half of the game... I don't know how to say this, but it just doesn't do it for me. The start of the game is perfect though, you got Rean reminiscing about his time at Thors and remembering his classmates which makes me emotional, and you wake up in the Eisengard Range, an entire month after flying into the horizon away from your friends with a talking cat. Honestly, I love the hostility Rean has for Celine because its understandable, you'd probably be pissed if some random ass cat commands your flying transformer to leave your friends for dead. Regardless, Toval, Alfin and Elise saving Rean from a divine knight was something I didn't have on my bingo card, but it's more Toval screentime, so I'll take it. Thennn the rest of the first-half just falls flat from there on. Exploring Ymir is good and talking to everyone (including the NPCs, Trails NPCs are peak dialogue), and you even get a cute scene between Elise and Celine with Celine apologising to Elise for almost getting her killed in the Old Schoolhouse. My main problems start to begin after Toval, Elise and Rean hear gunshots in Ymir. Why do they let Rean's father live? What was the entire point of sparing him? It would've done much more for Rean's character growth if his father died at the hands of the Noble Alliance, turning him further against the Noble Alliance, but nope, he lives, got it. Alfin and Elise are kidnapped by a flying twelve year old girl who looks eerily similar to Millium, got it. Now I get it, Toval and Rean are essentially criminals (branded by the Noble Alliance) and they dont want to be seen travelling on foot, but seriously, you take sooo much away from the game by just instantly teleporting the group to Lunaria Nature Park, you get no sense of the world, or anything. The one time I feel like this makes sense is when the group teleports to the Nord Highlands, like yeah how are they going to get to another country that's also part of the civil war without being spotted by the Noble Alliance. It's just such a downer, and to top it all off, the reunions don't really give me that much of an emotional feeling than what Rean was reminicising about at the start of the game. The game continues to throw Alisa down your throat, and you recruit people like Claire, Sharon, and Sara. You also get to fight some members of Ouroboros, Zephyr, and a mysterious puppet. The return of Bleublanc was immaculate, but it just didn't have the same impact with the absence of Olivert. Rean fighting soldiers in Valimar is just so funny to me because these trained soldiers are just instantly getting destroyed by a teenager who has minimal combat experience in a transformer, but to be fair, that transformer is of very high quality, so I guess it works. The best reunion is probably with Jusis, because you can truly understand his position, but he's just being selfish, and the little duel Rean and Jusis have is probably the best part of Act 1 for me. The Intermission arrives and Rean is on the Pantagruel. Despite the low quality food that Crow gets, we get his full backstory, and it makes me love Crow even more (despite him being a terrorist, trust me im not down bad at all, I can fix him). I really don't care for anyone on the Pantagruel besides Zephyr, Duvalie, McFireBro, and Altina. The other members of the Imperial Liberation Front just trauma dump on you before their boss fights in the previous game and I just couldn't care less for them. Another positive about this half is you have Ashen Rean just speeding down the corridor, carrying Princess Alfin, and just avoiding all of the big baddies who have had like 10,000 HP in each of their boss fights, but aight. Probably the highlight is the Courageous coming to save Rean and having Olivert and Towa save him. Act 2 then begins with the courageous, and that's just so hype. You do your regular Trails stuff and you gotta do your sidequests and talk to NPCs, and then you find out that Elliot's sister, Fiona is being held captive at Twin Dragons Bridge. I just want to talk about the voice acting of the Noble Alliance soldiers, they roll their R's everytime they speak and it had me cackling everytime for every single playthrough, that was great. I didn't really have any opinions for Fiona so I didn't really have any real thoughts about this part of the act. Act 2 is where I have trouble. The main characters of this part of the Act are Alisa, who is continuing to grow on me, but then you have Angelica and Irina, probably my two least favourite characters of the entire first-half of the arc. I really couldn't give a single shit for these two, so this entire Roer part is just muffled for me, especially the amount of places you have to go to, including the Reinford Building, The Mine, and the Schwarz Drache Barrier. I also have zero shits to give for Vulcan's death because I didn't even care about him, like yeah it sucks he died, but you gave me no reason to care about him. But I will admit it does fit Rean's character to worry about anyone dying, including Vulcan, considering how one main part of his character is how he always puts others before himself, gotta respect Rean for that.
The second-half of the game has probably the best Trails endgame of any Trails game (in my opinion). Everything is either really messed, nostalgic, hype, and jaw-dropping. Act 2 Part 3 is the burning down of Celdic, and when I tell you I had literal chills during this part of the story, would be an understatement. It just puts it into perspective how real war is, and this includes the death of Market Manager Otto which actually gutted me, because I liked him as an NPC. Arresting Duke Albarea is number one priority for the scum he is, and we also get a great backstory reveal from Sara. Rean is able to redeem himself by rescuing Scarlet before her soldat self-destructs, and Crow showing up for a brief moment just made me all giddy. We get some peak Duvalie and her almost sibling-like banter with McBurn, and I also believe this is the same day that she fights Class VII, as well as fights the SSS in the Stargazer Tower in Azure, she's putting in overtime. Act 2 Part 3 has a satisfying conclusion and we essentially purge the Eastern Erebonia Noble Alliance forces, as well as arresting the scum that is Duke Albarea, who burnt down Celdic for clout. Act 2 Part 4 is great, the takeback of Trista. I am always fond of Trista, because I got to talk to a bunch of NPCs there, so taking it back was just the icing on top. I love the fight between Class VII and the Noble Students to take back Thors. You can truly tell how Patrick has grown as a character, and it really shows. You got your final bonding events to take care of, with stand outs for me of course being Jusis and Emma.
The finale (or so you thought). Separated into two parts, the taking back of the Karel Imperial Villa where the royal family (minus Cedric), Elise and Governor Regnitz are being held, and the Infernal Castle. The Karel Imperial Villa doesn't have much, you get a great reunion between Rean and Elise, as well as a glimpse into Altina and how similar she is to Millium, despite the personality part. The infernal castle is where all of the good stuff goes down. You got the first boss rush of the arc. Duvalie, Bleublanc, Zephyr, McFireBro, and the ultimate battle against Vita and Crow. You get some weird hints about things, such as Zephyr reviving the Jaeger King, and McFireBro really bringing the heat (sorry its the only pun in this entire review I promise). The fight between Rean and Crow feels so special because its essentially a rematch for the fight that happened on the outskirts of Trista. It was so sweet Rean was able to defeat Crow, but then Duke Cayenne's dumbass decides to awaken the Vermillion Apocalypse with Cedric, and here comes a tragic turn of events. You have everyone working together: Class VII, Vita, Crow, it's so epic. And now for the part that killed me the most, FUCK THE VERMILLION APOCALYPSE, why did you have to pierce Crow in the heart.. Literally depressing. Crow's monologue literally destroys me, especially his statement to Alisa about getting along with her mother, that really hit the spot. To top it all off, you got Lieutenant Dumbass Cayenne threatening to slit the throat of the crown prince, with Altina pinning him to the ground. And guess what? CHANCELLOR OSBORNE IS ALIVE.. What the actual heck? You think that's the end of the plot twists? Nope. Rufus is the leader of the Ironbloods! Screw him! Screw everyone! Osborne is also Rean's father holy fuck and essentially blackmails him into doing the Government's work. And after all this information dump, do you know what the game decides to do? It decides to play I'll Remember You.. My heart is pierced like Crow's at this turn of events.
Crossbell in 3D was not something I had on my Bingo Card but it was greatly appreciated, especially the Lloyd and Rixia cameo. The fight between those two, Altina, and Rean is probably one of the hypest parts of the series, because you have two sets of parties you've used and gotten to know, and they have to fight each other, heart-wrenching. The epilogue is just depressing, especially considering its called Spring Once Again, I don't want the game to end but it inevitably does. Rean being pissed at Claire is understandable, considering he was forced into a 'Hero' role he didn't want. The Reverie Corridor opens and you have the reveal of the 2nd Dominion of the Gralsritter, Thomas Lysander, the Partitioner. Why this is locked behind New Game+ I will never understand. I have no thoughts about the actual Reverie Corridor but it truly is the 'everybody is here' moment of Cold Steel, because you have the biggest party ever, and you can even purchase mirrors that let you play as other characters like Lloyd. Loa Luciferia was a mid-boss, but the highlight of it was after the fight itself, as Millium cries for the first time, and this scene just shows that this is end of Class VII, because if you've played the game, you know what happens next..
This game is not a good ending, it's a bad ending. Rean is not happy, his classmates are not happy, no one is happy. Elliot leaves for music school, Alisa and Sharon become core members of the Reinford Group, Machias plans to become an Inspector, Gaius protects his homeland, Fie and Sara join and return to the Bracer Guild, Jusis becomes the next Duke Albarea, Emma becomes a travelling witch to search for Vita, Millium returns to the Intelligence Division, and Laura plans to hone her skills with her sword. It's just soo sad, everyone leaves Thors one year early, EXCEPT Rean, who has become the government's puppet to essentially take control of Crossbell, and to put the Noble Alliance in check. Depressing.
That was just the story section LOL. Okay, let's talk about characters. Many arcs conclude, while some still seem unfinished. Gaius still remains boring, Emma is still sort of mysterious, but we know a lot more now, Fie has come a long way, Jusis is no longer a dick except to Machias and Machias is no longer uptight except to Jusis. I still hate Angelica and Irina, nothing changes about that, I can officially add Rufus and Dukes Cayenne and Albarea to the shitlist, the game is really good at making me hate the antagonists which is probably the intended purpose. The game makes me emotional whenever I think about Crow, and it gave me a new character to enjoy in Duvalie. Still unsure about Toval and Altina, but we'll get to that another day I guess. Overall, the characters in this game are pretty damn good.
Music. I will not lie, I hate the main battle theme of this game. It sounds like Rean's desperation to find his friends and put an end to the war, sure, but it just doesn't vibe with me. At least we got some bangers like Altina's own theme, Blue Destination, and Remaining Glow. I'll Remember You is in a tier of its own because of the sheer emotional factor that it grips me with. Iconic. Great game and great music.
Gameplay. There was like zero changes, except they nerfed Delay Rean a bit (he still works) and they added upgraded slots, as well as new Lost Element Quartz from Cryptids. The Cryptids didn't pose much of a challenge because I waited until the final day to complete them so they didn't really phase me. The game wasn't that difficult, even on Nightmare. Snowboarding was fun in Ymir, despite the clunky controls, I enjoyed it. Solid gameplay.
I also just want to shoutout the Courageous Quest where it was essentially Among Us, that stuff was peak comedy, and of course Machias was the impostor, absolutely great.
As always, NPC dialogue was great, especially from the displaced students around the country. It was a great look into how each of them handles being separated from their friends, and it's just great in general.
Overall, the first-half of the game can have major improvements, but the second-half of the game is pure cinema (should've ended a lot earlier because there was two fake endings). Although it's my least favourite game in the series, as you can tell by this review, I am still quite passionate for this game. It has great set-up for the second-half of the Cold Steel arc. Play it, and PLAY THE SECOND HALF OF COLD STEEL NOW!
The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel II is the second game of the Erebonian arc, and the seventh game overall in the Trails series. Like Azure, in my opinion, this game has the highest of highs, but the lowest of lows (so low in fact that it's my least favourite of the series). Just because it's my least favourite, DOES NOT MEAN I do not enjoy it. The endgame is peak, and it is only let down by the earlier parts of the game, and therefore drags the entire game down for me personally. I went straight into this after Cold Steel II because that cliffhanger was nasty as shit and I needed to find out what happened next. Feels bad for the people who had to wait in translation hell for this game to get translated. With all of that said, let's begin the review.
Going to talk about setting first. This game is a stark contrast compared to Cold Steel I. Cold Steel I is your typical high school setting, filled with tropes, but still sort of dark because of a terrorist sub-plot. In Cold Steel II's case, Erebonia is amidst a civil war between the Noble Alliance, led by Duke Cayenne, and the Reformist Faction, who was led by the now deceased Chancellor Osborne (that's what you thought too, right?) This game, in my opinion, has one of the more unique settings in Trails, closer to the feeling of Azure as you're literally playing in the middle of a war. The war-aspect of the game is truly amplified at some parts, but other parts it just seems dumb. You don't really get to explore anywhere new, except the Schwarz Drache Barrier, The Twin Dragons Bridge, The Four Elemental Shrines, The Remains of Garrelia Fortress, Within Aurochs Fort, and the Reverie Corridor, situated within the Old Schoolhouse. However, one of the locations that I was dying to go to was Rean's hometown, Ymir. I'm still mad that they excluded that class trip from the base game after Chapter 6 in Cold Steel I, it would've been sooo much better. Honestly, I think that no matter where the series takes us, I will always be in love with the setting.
Story! I'm splitting this up into two parts, the first-half of the game, which spans from Rean waking up in the Eisengard Range till the middle of Act 2, after saving Irina, Angelica, and Roer, and the second-half of the game, spanning from Celdic's Arson Attack till the depression fest where the end of the game makes you feel some type of way.
The first-half of the game... I don't know how to say this, but it just doesn't do it for me. The start of the game is perfect though, you got Rean reminiscing about his time at Thors and remembering his classmates which makes me emotional, and you wake up in the Eisengard Range, an entire month after flying into the horizon away from your friends with a talking cat. Honestly, I love the hostility Rean has for Celine because its understandable, you'd probably be pissed if some random ass cat commands your flying transformer to leave your friends for dead. Regardless, Toval, Alfin and Elise saving Rean from a divine knight was something I didn't have on my bingo card, but it's more Toval screentime, so I'll take it. Thennn the rest of the first-half just falls flat from there on. Exploring Ymir is good and talking to everyone (including the NPCs, Trails NPCs are peak dialogue), and you even get a cute scene between Elise and Celine with Celine apologising to Elise for almost getting her killed in the Old Schoolhouse. My main problems start to begin after Toval, Elise and Rean hear gunshots in Ymir. Why do they let Rean's father live? What was the entire point of sparing him? It would've done much more for Rean's character growth if his father died at the hands of the Noble Alliance, turning him further against the Noble Alliance, but nope, he lives, got it. Alfin and Elise are kidnapped by a flying twelve year old girl who looks eerily similar to Millium, got it. Now I get it, Toval and Rean are essentially criminals (branded by the Noble Alliance) and they dont want to be seen travelling on foot, but seriously, you take sooo much away from the game by just instantly teleporting the group to Lunaria Nature Park, you get no sense of the world, or anything. The one time I feel like this makes sense is when the group teleports to the Nord Highlands, like yeah how are they going to get to another country that's also part of the civil war without being spotted by the Noble Alliance. It's just such a downer, and to top it all off, the reunions don't really give me that much of an emotional feeling than what Rean was reminicising about at the start of the game. The game continues to throw Alisa down your throat, and you recruit people like Claire, Sharon, and Sara. You also get to fight some members of Ouroboros, Zephyr, and a mysterious puppet. The return of Bleublanc was immaculate, but it just didn't have the same impact with the absence of Olivert. Rean fighting soldiers in Valimar is just so funny to me because these trained soldiers are just instantly getting destroyed by a teenager who has minimal combat experience in a transformer, but to be fair, that transformer is of very high quality, so I guess it works. The best reunion is probably with Jusis, because you can truly understand his position, but he's just being selfish, and the little duel Rean and Jusis have is probably the best part of Act 1 for me. The Intermission arrives and Rean is on the Pantagruel. Despite the low quality food that Crow gets, we get his full backstory, and it makes me love Crow even more (despite him being a terrorist, trust me im not down bad at all, I can fix him). I really don't care for anyone on the Pantagruel besides Zephyr, Duvalie, McFireBro, and Altina. The other members of the Imperial Liberation Front just trauma dump on you before their boss fights in the previous game and I just couldn't care less for them. Another positive about this half is you have Ashen Rean just speeding down the corridor, carrying Princess Alfin, and just avoiding all of the big baddies who have had like 10,000 HP in each of their boss fights, but aight. Probably the highlight is the Courageous coming to save Rean and having Olivert and Towa save him. Act 2 then begins with the courageous, and that's just so hype. You do your regular Trails stuff and you gotta do your sidequests and talk to NPCs, and then you find out that Elliot's sister, Fiona is being held captive at Twin Dragons Bridge. I just want to talk about the voice acting of the Noble Alliance soldiers, they roll their R's everytime they speak and it had me cackling everytime for every single playthrough, that was great. I didn't really have any opinions for Fiona so I didn't really have any real thoughts about this part of the act. Act 2 is where I have trouble. The main characters of this part of the Act are Alisa, who is continuing to grow on me, but then you have Angelica and Irina, probably my two least favourite characters of the entire first-half of the arc. I really couldn't give a single shit for these two, so this entire Roer part is just muffled for me, especially the amount of places you have to go to, including the Reinford Building, The Mine, and the Schwarz Drache Barrier. I also have zero shits to give for Vulcan's death because I didn't even care about him, like yeah it sucks he died, but you gave me no reason to care about him. But I will admit it does fit Rean's character to worry about anyone dying, including Vulcan, considering how one main part of his character is how he always puts others before himself, gotta respect Rean for that.
The second-half of the game has probably the best Trails endgame of any Trails game (in my opinion). Everything is either really messed, nostalgic, hype, and jaw-dropping. Act 2 Part 3 is the burning down of Celdic, and when I tell you I had literal chills during this part of the story, would be an understatement. It just puts it into perspective how real war is, and this includes the death of Market Manager Otto which actually gutted me, because I liked him as an NPC. Arresting Duke Albarea is number one priority for the scum he is, and we also get a great backstory reveal from Sara. Rean is able to redeem himself by rescuing Scarlet before her soldat self-destructs, and Crow showing up for a brief moment just made me all giddy. We get some peak Duvalie and her almost sibling-like banter with McBurn, and I also believe this is the same day that she fights Class VII, as well as fights the SSS in the Stargazer Tower in Azure, she's putting in overtime. Act 2 Part 3 has a satisfying conclusion and we essentially purge the Eastern Erebonia Noble Alliance forces, as well as arresting the scum that is Duke Albarea, who burnt down Celdic for clout. Act 2 Part 4 is great, the takeback of Trista. I am always fond of Trista, because I got to talk to a bunch of NPCs there, so taking it back was just the icing on top. I love the fight between Class VII and the Noble Students to take back Thors. You can truly tell how Patrick has grown as a character, and it really shows. You got your final bonding events to take care of, with stand outs for me of course being Jusis and Emma.
The finale (or so you thought). Separated into two parts, the taking back of the Karel Imperial Villa where the royal family (minus Cedric), Elise and Governor Regnitz are being held, and the Infernal Castle. The Karel Imperial Villa doesn't have much, you get a great reunion between Rean and Elise, as well as a glimpse into Altina and how similar she is to Millium, despite the personality part. The infernal castle is where all of the good stuff goes down. You got the first boss rush of the arc. Duvalie, Bleublanc, Zephyr, McFireBro, and the ultimate battle against Vita and Crow. You get some weird hints about things, such as Zephyr reviving the Jaeger King, and McFireBro really bringing the heat (sorry its the only pun in this entire review I promise). The fight between Rean and Crow feels so special because its essentially a rematch for the fight that happened on the outskirts of Trista. It was so sweet Rean was able to defeat Crow, but then Duke Cayenne's dumbass decides to awaken the Vermillion Apocalypse with Cedric, and here comes a tragic turn of events. You have everyone working together: Class VII, Vita, Crow, it's so epic. And now for the part that killed me the most, FUCK THE VERMILLION APOCALYPSE, why did you have to pierce Crow in the heart.. Literally depressing. Crow's monologue literally destroys me, especially his statement to Alisa about getting along with her mother, that really hit the spot. To top it all off, you got Lieutenant Dumbass Cayenne threatening to slit the throat of the crown prince, with Altina pinning him to the ground. And guess what? CHANCELLOR OSBORNE IS ALIVE.. What the actual heck? You think that's the end of the plot twists? Nope. Rufus is the leader of the Ironbloods! Screw him! Screw everyone! Osborne is also Rean's father holy fuck and essentially blackmails him into doing the Government's work. And after all this information dump, do you know what the game decides to do? It decides to play I'll Remember You.. My heart is pierced like Crow's at this turn of events.
Crossbell in 3D was not something I had on my Bingo Card but it was greatly appreciated, especially the Lloyd and Rixia cameo. The fight between those two, Altina, and Rean is probably one of the hypest parts of the series, because you have two sets of parties you've used and gotten to know, and they have to fight each other, heart-wrenching. The epilogue is just depressing, especially considering its called Spring Once Again, I don't want the game to end but it inevitably does. Rean being pissed at Claire is understandable, considering he was forced into a 'Hero' role he didn't want. The Reverie Corridor opens and you have the reveal of the 2nd Dominion of the Gralsritter, Thomas Lysander, the Partitioner. Why this is locked behind New Game+ I will never understand. I have no thoughts about the actual Reverie Corridor but it truly is the 'everybody is here' moment of Cold Steel, because you have the biggest party ever, and you can even purchase mirrors that let you play as other characters like Lloyd. Loa Luciferia was a mid-boss, but the highlight of it was after the fight itself, as Millium cries for the first time, and this scene just shows that this is end of Class VII, because if you've played the game, you know what happens next..
This game is not a good ending, it's a bad ending. Rean is not happy, his classmates are not happy, no one is happy. Elliot leaves for music school, Alisa and Sharon become core members of the Reinford Group, Machias plans to become an Inspector, Gaius protects his homeland, Fie and Sara join and return to the Bracer Guild, Jusis becomes the next Duke Albarea, Emma becomes a travelling witch to search for Vita, Millium returns to the Intelligence Division, and Laura plans to hone her skills with her sword. It's just soo sad, everyone leaves Thors one year early, EXCEPT Rean, who has become the government's puppet to essentially take control of Crossbell, and to put the Noble Alliance in check. Depressing.
That was just the story section LOL. Okay, let's talk about characters. Many arcs conclude, while some still seem unfinished. Gaius still remains boring, Emma is still sort of mysterious, but we know a lot more now, Fie has come a long way, Jusis is no longer a dick except to Machias and Machias is no longer uptight except to Jusis. I still hate Angelica and Irina, nothing changes about that, I can officially add Rufus and Dukes Cayenne and Albarea to the shitlist, the game is really good at making me hate the antagonists which is probably the intended purpose. The game makes me emotional whenever I think about Crow, and it gave me a new character to enjoy in Duvalie. Still unsure about Toval and Altina, but we'll get to that another day I guess. Overall, the characters in this game are pretty damn good.
Music. I will not lie, I hate the main battle theme of this game. It sounds like Rean's desperation to find his friends and put an end to the war, sure, but it just doesn't vibe with me. At least we got some bangers like Altina's own theme, Blue Destination, and Remaining Glow. I'll Remember You is in a tier of its own because of the sheer emotional factor that it grips me with. Iconic. Great game and great music.
Gameplay. There was like zero changes, except they nerfed Delay Rean a bit (he still works) and they added upgraded slots, as well as new Lost Element Quartz from Cryptids. The Cryptids didn't pose much of a challenge because I waited until the final day to complete them so they didn't really phase me. The game wasn't that difficult, even on Nightmare. Snowboarding was fun in Ymir, despite the clunky controls, I enjoyed it. Solid gameplay.
I also just want to shoutout the Courageous Quest where it was essentially Among Us, that stuff was peak comedy, and of course Machias was the impostor, absolutely great.
As always, NPC dialogue was great, especially from the displaced students around the country. It was a great look into how each of them handles being separated from their friends, and it's just great in general.
Overall, the first-half of the game can have major improvements, but the second-half of the game is pure cinema (should've ended a lot earlier because there was two fake endings). Although it's my least favourite game in the series, as you can tell by this review, I am still quite passionate for this game. It has great set-up for the second-half of the Cold Steel arc. Play it, and PLAY THE SECOND HALF OF COLD STEEL NOW!
Octopath Traveler
2018
Octopath Traveler was an interesting game for me, I initially started playing this game near the beginning of 2023, but dropped it just because I had other games I wanted to prioritise. I didn’t dislike the game, in fact I loved it.
Octopath Traveler, as in Eight-Path Traveler, covers the stories of eight different characters on each of their own journeys with different motivations and goals. My starting traveler was Therion, The Thief, and that was a great choice imo, I love thieves in games. You meet a variety of NPCs throughout each characters story, and many villains. It is truly a bummer that this game didn’t have the stories intertwine at all, as that could’ve been a huge selling point for the game.
The game has it all, a beautiful art style, great music, good combat, good exploration (thought I hate the encounter rates without an ability that reduces them). I didn’t mention stories because that’s what I want to cover mainly in this review.
I will say that a majority of the stories aren’t that great (in my opinion), without any spoilers, I’ll just say that the only stories that really captivated me were from the Dancer, Thief, and Apothecary. The others just didn’t click for me. Now I will say this may be because I stopped playing the game for a bit after completing each characters Chapter 1s, and some of their Chapter 2s, but that definitely wasn’t the main reason. Some of them personally just seemed really really boring that I didn’t really care about what happened. Also, the language used in one of the protagonists stories was a HUGE turn off, especially coming from me who hates that type of language. Like I stated before, they should’ve made the stories interconnect at different points, it would’ve been much more interesting that way, truly a missed opportunity.
In terms of the world, I enjoyed how each sub area had three different cities/towns. You had the sunlands (deserts), frostlands (snowy plains), flatlands (plains), highlands (mountains), riverlands (river banks), cliftlands (cliffs), woodlands (forests), and the coastlands (by the sea). I enjoyed exploring each of the different little towns and their own unique styles. One has a grand theatre and prioritises theatrics, whilst another is very reminiscent of Salem. All in all, the world of Orsterra was full of life and I enjoyed exploring the world.
Now, in regards to gameplay, I thoroughly enjoyed it. The boosting system is probably one of my favourite systems (except when enemies either disable your boost gauge or steal your BP, that’s not fun). I guess I just love doing big unga bunga damage. Bewildering Grace is simultaneously the best and worst skill, and it probably killed me more times than it actually helping me. I initially had no idea how to use the Apothecary class, but once I found out how good it was, I could never be stopped. The one thing about gameplay I dislike is the fact you have to grind, you might’ve not needed to grind (might be a skill issue on my part then), but the grinding just probably killed the momentum of the game for me, especially trying to reach the minimum level for each story chapter. I liked how each character came with a different path action, like Steal, Purchase, Allure, Guide, Challenge, Provoke, Scrutinize, and Inquire. Stealing was a god send, and found it funny how you could (if you really wanted to torture yourself), attempt to steal a high level item that has a 3% successful steal rate, and if you fail, to just reset the game and resume your save, and repeat. Another dislike about the gameplay is that each dungeon had a purple chest, and only Therion was able to open it (I had Therion on my team all the time so it didn’t really affect me at all, but I can understand how annoying it is). Also, the side quests being riddles from hell did not incentivise me to complete them. I also tried doing the true final boss, but after finishing the boss rush and dying like instantly from the final boss and having to do it all over again, I called it a day.
In my opinion, the game is solely carried by the world, the art style, and the music. Everything is either tedious or boring.
Overall, the game is solid, and I enjoyed my time with it. It was tempting to play OT2 before this game with the many quality of life changes, but I decided against it so I could have a better experience with both games. The game might not be your cup of tea, and that’s okay, don’t try to force yourself to like something like this, it can turn people off. Great game, with some questionable decisions, but they do not affect my overall enjoyment with the game.
Octopath Traveler, as in Eight-Path Traveler, covers the stories of eight different characters on each of their own journeys with different motivations and goals. My starting traveler was Therion, The Thief, and that was a great choice imo, I love thieves in games. You meet a variety of NPCs throughout each characters story, and many villains. It is truly a bummer that this game didn’t have the stories intertwine at all, as that could’ve been a huge selling point for the game.
The game has it all, a beautiful art style, great music, good combat, good exploration (thought I hate the encounter rates without an ability that reduces them). I didn’t mention stories because that’s what I want to cover mainly in this review.
I will say that a majority of the stories aren’t that great (in my opinion), without any spoilers, I’ll just say that the only stories that really captivated me were from the Dancer, Thief, and Apothecary. The others just didn’t click for me. Now I will say this may be because I stopped playing the game for a bit after completing each characters Chapter 1s, and some of their Chapter 2s, but that definitely wasn’t the main reason. Some of them personally just seemed really really boring that I didn’t really care about what happened. Also, the language used in one of the protagonists stories was a HUGE turn off, especially coming from me who hates that type of language. Like I stated before, they should’ve made the stories interconnect at different points, it would’ve been much more interesting that way, truly a missed opportunity.
In terms of the world, I enjoyed how each sub area had three different cities/towns. You had the sunlands (deserts), frostlands (snowy plains), flatlands (plains), highlands (mountains), riverlands (river banks), cliftlands (cliffs), woodlands (forests), and the coastlands (by the sea). I enjoyed exploring each of the different little towns and their own unique styles. One has a grand theatre and prioritises theatrics, whilst another is very reminiscent of Salem. All in all, the world of Orsterra was full of life and I enjoyed exploring the world.
Now, in regards to gameplay, I thoroughly enjoyed it. The boosting system is probably one of my favourite systems (except when enemies either disable your boost gauge or steal your BP, that’s not fun). I guess I just love doing big unga bunga damage. Bewildering Grace is simultaneously the best and worst skill, and it probably killed me more times than it actually helping me. I initially had no idea how to use the Apothecary class, but once I found out how good it was, I could never be stopped. The one thing about gameplay I dislike is the fact you have to grind, you might’ve not needed to grind (might be a skill issue on my part then), but the grinding just probably killed the momentum of the game for me, especially trying to reach the minimum level for each story chapter. I liked how each character came with a different path action, like Steal, Purchase, Allure, Guide, Challenge, Provoke, Scrutinize, and Inquire. Stealing was a god send, and found it funny how you could (if you really wanted to torture yourself), attempt to steal a high level item that has a 3% successful steal rate, and if you fail, to just reset the game and resume your save, and repeat. Another dislike about the gameplay is that each dungeon had a purple chest, and only Therion was able to open it (I had Therion on my team all the time so it didn’t really affect me at all, but I can understand how annoying it is). Also, the side quests being riddles from hell did not incentivise me to complete them. I also tried doing the true final boss, but after finishing the boss rush and dying like instantly from the final boss and having to do it all over again, I called it a day.
In my opinion, the game is solely carried by the world, the art style, and the music. Everything is either tedious or boring.
Overall, the game is solid, and I enjoyed my time with it. It was tempting to play OT2 before this game with the many quality of life changes, but I decided against it so I could have a better experience with both games. The game might not be your cup of tea, and that’s okay, don’t try to force yourself to like something like this, it can turn people off. Great game, with some questionable decisions, but they do not affect my overall enjoyment with the game.
XDefiant
2024
A Call of Duty clone paired with hero shooter elements that somehow works and is fun?
The game features excellent movement and gunplay mechanics, combined with classes and abilities, creating a perfect blend for fans of both genres. It is very easy to pick up and play, with straightforward three-lane maps designed around objective-based gameplay (such as capturing the flag or pushing the payload). The combat is satisfying, with each class (currently five in total) having two unique abilities, and guns that you can customize in your loadout.
For me, the best part is that the abilities serve as an additional way to engage in fights, while gunplay remains the main focus. Unlike games like VALORANT, which, in my opinion, failed to balance this and ended up with overpowering hero abilities, this game keeps the emphasis on shooting skills.
The main downside will be game balance and the fact that it is managed by UBISOFT. Maybe this will become garbage in the upcoming months/years because of introducting P2W elements, badly managing the game etc. However, for now, the game is perfectly fine to play and serves as an interesting competitor to modern-day shooters.
As a fan of fast-paced shooters, this game was exactly what I needed, especially after skipping last year's lackluster Call of Duty release.
The game features excellent movement and gunplay mechanics, combined with classes and abilities, creating a perfect blend for fans of both genres. It is very easy to pick up and play, with straightforward three-lane maps designed around objective-based gameplay (such as capturing the flag or pushing the payload). The combat is satisfying, with each class (currently five in total) having two unique abilities, and guns that you can customize in your loadout.
For me, the best part is that the abilities serve as an additional way to engage in fights, while gunplay remains the main focus. Unlike games like VALORANT, which, in my opinion, failed to balance this and ended up with overpowering hero abilities, this game keeps the emphasis on shooting skills.
The main downside will be game balance and the fact that it is managed by UBISOFT. Maybe this will become garbage in the upcoming months/years because of introducting P2W elements, badly managing the game etc. However, for now, the game is perfectly fine to play and serves as an interesting competitor to modern-day shooters.
As a fan of fast-paced shooters, this game was exactly what I needed, especially after skipping last year's lackluster Call of Duty release.
Spec Ops: The Line
2012
backloggd mfs are losers sometimes this game goes hard as fuck
Being caught up on this gacha feels weird to me, not because of the game is bad or anything neither that i have with issues with the story, as matter of fact i love Penacony story and the how the climax is looking to be my favorite in the next patch.
It's funny though, i started this game one month ago for shits and giggles in the anniversary but for me i was quite suprised how much content it had for a beginner and how it was completely overwhelming at first but going back at it, i never expected to get hooked as much i did and how having the reputation of ''It's another mihoyo game'' and that was how my mutuals and especially me viewed the game itself at first.
Going through at first i always had my expectations lowered as usual but i'm still suprised how generous and how much stuff the game gives you just by playing it, of course there's issues that disapears when you get mid game which being locking the relics on story even though you have the level required to grind it but they still lock you regardless, the gap in difficulty whenever you increase the eidrolons levels making the boss tanky and being more painful to get through which it would be fine if the stamina was good enough to grind the relics with the right SUBSTATS for the characters that i need for and how i can randomly start a patch from 1.6 while i just finished Luofu (1.2)...
With that aside, Star Rail story was still a ride to get into and i'm very excited for Penacony's climax
It's funny though, i started this game one month ago for shits and giggles in the anniversary but for me i was quite suprised how much content it had for a beginner and how it was completely overwhelming at first but going back at it, i never expected to get hooked as much i did and how having the reputation of ''It's another mihoyo game'' and that was how my mutuals and especially me viewed the game itself at first.
Going through at first i always had my expectations lowered as usual but i'm still suprised how generous and how much stuff the game gives you just by playing it, of course there's issues that disapears when you get mid game which being locking the relics on story even though you have the level required to grind it but they still lock you regardless, the gap in difficulty whenever you increase the eidrolons levels making the boss tanky and being more painful to get through which it would be fine if the stamina was good enough to grind the relics with the right SUBSTATS for the characters that i need for and how i can randomly start a patch from 1.6 while i just finished Luofu (1.2)...
With that aside, Star Rail story was still a ride to get into and i'm very excited for Penacony's climax
People will literally pray to the gods for glorious battle than get therapy