ArrenSol
2023
Exoprimal is fun, frantic, absolutely off-the-wall bonkers and full of a confidence that's surprisingly not misplaced. I went into the game sold on the sci-fi PvE robots vs. dinosaur premise -- if just a little cheeky about it -- but I was surprised at how smoothly it handles its content.
It certainly reads and looks like the video game equivalent of shotgunning an energy drink, but after playing some it becomes quite clear that the game was definitely put together function-before-form. The core loop involves queueing up for matches, where you race against another team to defeat wave after wave of angry dinos before a head-to-head finale where initial advantage is determined by how well your team completed the opening phase. Completing matches progresses the story, which is revealed piecemeal via small vignettes, data logs, radio cuts, etc. and unlocks some new mission types, including some surprises in the form of 10-player cooperative raid bosses a la Monster Hunter, where chaos is really allowed to flourish. The action, gunplay, and skill sets all feel reasonably diverse even with only a handful of available exosuits at launch, and Capcom miraculously struck a balance between making players feel beastly during the dino battles and keeping PvP seeming fair.
It doesn't have a streamlined campaign quite in the way that, say, Lost Planet 2 does, opting for a completely off-the-rails story about the dangers of unchecked capitalism and AI (surprisingly relevant for what it is). Unfortunately, its initial purpose definitely feels like a clumsy impetus to get players queuin' up, which puts it in sort of a weird middle ground that admittedly may be a bit off-putting to people looking for a more curated experience -- some might not want to grind semi-competitive matches just to see story, some might not want to see story at all and feel bottlenecked by having a bunch of cutscenes and data to skip over. That said, I definitely see it as an intentional middle ground (even the repeated match queueing is "written into" the story under the guise of data collection!) rather than a game suffering from an identity crisis. A generous read, perhaps, but to be completely honest I can totally imagine Overwatch 2's now-cancelled campaign to have resembled this.
Having really loved Exoprimal, I do have some concern for its future; crossplay is limited to matchmaking only, so it's impossible to round up friends from across the game's numerous available platforms for matches (everyone's gotta be in the same ecosystem) and content updates have been entertaining but sparse. I'm really hoping that even as content starts to wind down (whenever that is) sales and the like will help breathe life into the game whenever possible. Definitely recommend it to anybody who's looking for some wacky, noncommittal fun in a shooter.
It certainly reads and looks like the video game equivalent of shotgunning an energy drink, but after playing some it becomes quite clear that the game was definitely put together function-before-form. The core loop involves queueing up for matches, where you race against another team to defeat wave after wave of angry dinos before a head-to-head finale where initial advantage is determined by how well your team completed the opening phase. Completing matches progresses the story, which is revealed piecemeal via small vignettes, data logs, radio cuts, etc. and unlocks some new mission types, including some surprises in the form of 10-player cooperative raid bosses a la Monster Hunter, where chaos is really allowed to flourish. The action, gunplay, and skill sets all feel reasonably diverse even with only a handful of available exosuits at launch, and Capcom miraculously struck a balance between making players feel beastly during the dino battles and keeping PvP seeming fair.
It doesn't have a streamlined campaign quite in the way that, say, Lost Planet 2 does, opting for a completely off-the-rails story about the dangers of unchecked capitalism and AI (surprisingly relevant for what it is). Unfortunately, its initial purpose definitely feels like a clumsy impetus to get players queuin' up, which puts it in sort of a weird middle ground that admittedly may be a bit off-putting to people looking for a more curated experience -- some might not want to grind semi-competitive matches just to see story, some might not want to see story at all and feel bottlenecked by having a bunch of cutscenes and data to skip over. That said, I definitely see it as an intentional middle ground (even the repeated match queueing is "written into" the story under the guise of data collection!) rather than a game suffering from an identity crisis. A generous read, perhaps, but to be completely honest I can totally imagine Overwatch 2's now-cancelled campaign to have resembled this.
Having really loved Exoprimal, I do have some concern for its future; crossplay is limited to matchmaking only, so it's impossible to round up friends from across the game's numerous available platforms for matches (everyone's gotta be in the same ecosystem) and content updates have been entertaining but sparse. I'm really hoping that even as content starts to wind down (whenever that is) sales and the like will help breathe life into the game whenever possible. Definitely recommend it to anybody who's looking for some wacky, noncommittal fun in a shooter.
2023
Hi-Fi Rush is nothing short of the highest-tier work from the team at Tango Gameworks.
HFR understands what makes both character action games and rhythm games so entertaining, and then does an impeccable job of blending them almost seamlessly. Attacks, parries, and movement are all tied directly into the beats of a well-curated and reasonably eclectic rock soundtrack (featuring a handful of licensed music tracks) and even if players struggle to stay in time with the music, protagonist Chai's actions still sync up, making overall harmony prevail over a pressing need for perfection.
That's all without saying basically anything about the game's audiovisual flair. Environments are PACKED with active detail, with plenty of moving parts; a ton of stage backdrops, objects and even ambient sound effects (in AND out of cutscenes!) sync to the music, injecting the locales of the Vandalay campus with life.
That life extends to Hi-Fi Rush's endearing cast, from lovable idiot Chai to a stellar supporting cast of heroes with their own quirks and abilities. Despite a fairly compact run time, everybody gets their moment (even some wonderfully-played dramatic ones!), and villains are packed with some larger-than-life personalities (though you could say that about most of the cast). Expect a ton of goofiness from the game's script -- it's not afraid to poke fun at itself, its surroundings, corporate culture, a real world meme or two (don't worry, they don't feel out of place), and even other games -- and you'll be alright.
Of course, all of Hi-Fi Rush's merits are intrinsically connected to the strength of its soundtrack, a rock-centric affair that covers a few different styles and tones accompanied by Chai's guitar strikes. Licensed tracks from the likes of huge acts like Nine Inch Nails and The Black Keys punctuate the game's grander set pieces, but even the original work from composer trio Shuichi Kobori, REO (Reo Uratani) and Masatoshi Yanagi carries Chai from zone to zone with confidence. I'd argue some of the originals hit harder than the licensed set pieces, although one in particular sticks out as probably my favorite ever use of a preexisting licensed song in a video game.
Honestly, I'm still sort of in disbelief that Tango Gameworks and publisher Bethesda decided they'd randomly drop a RHYTHM game in the middle of the week at the tail end of January and it would be so affecting. I got all the same warm-and-fuzzies I got playing Gitaroo Man for the first time -- ultimately, I guess they both are about a rudderless kid finding his confidence -- and the gameplay part itself was just so engrossing I found myself immediately wanting to go back after wrapping up the main story to tackle some of the surprisingly meaty post-game challenges.
Games like this just don't come up very often. Don't miss it.
HFR understands what makes both character action games and rhythm games so entertaining, and then does an impeccable job of blending them almost seamlessly. Attacks, parries, and movement are all tied directly into the beats of a well-curated and reasonably eclectic rock soundtrack (featuring a handful of licensed music tracks) and even if players struggle to stay in time with the music, protagonist Chai's actions still sync up, making overall harmony prevail over a pressing need for perfection.
That's all without saying basically anything about the game's audiovisual flair. Environments are PACKED with active detail, with plenty of moving parts; a ton of stage backdrops, objects and even ambient sound effects (in AND out of cutscenes!) sync to the music, injecting the locales of the Vandalay campus with life.
That life extends to Hi-Fi Rush's endearing cast, from lovable idiot Chai to a stellar supporting cast of heroes with their own quirks and abilities. Despite a fairly compact run time, everybody gets their moment (even some wonderfully-played dramatic ones!), and villains are packed with some larger-than-life personalities (though you could say that about most of the cast). Expect a ton of goofiness from the game's script -- it's not afraid to poke fun at itself, its surroundings, corporate culture, a real world meme or two (don't worry, they don't feel out of place), and even other games -- and you'll be alright.
Of course, all of Hi-Fi Rush's merits are intrinsically connected to the strength of its soundtrack, a rock-centric affair that covers a few different styles and tones accompanied by Chai's guitar strikes. Licensed tracks from the likes of huge acts like Nine Inch Nails and The Black Keys punctuate the game's grander set pieces, but even the original work from composer trio Shuichi Kobori, REO (Reo Uratani) and Masatoshi Yanagi carries Chai from zone to zone with confidence. I'd argue some of the originals hit harder than the licensed set pieces, although one in particular sticks out as probably my favorite ever use of a preexisting licensed song in a video game.
Honestly, I'm still sort of in disbelief that Tango Gameworks and publisher Bethesda decided they'd randomly drop a RHYTHM game in the middle of the week at the tail end of January and it would be so affecting. I got all the same warm-and-fuzzies I got playing Gitaroo Man for the first time -- ultimately, I guess they both are about a rudderless kid finding his confidence -- and the gameplay part itself was just so engrossing I found myself immediately wanting to go back after wrapping up the main story to tackle some of the surprisingly meaty post-game challenges.
Games like this just don't come up very often. Don't miss it.
I can't talk about this game quite the way I want to without spoiling it, but if you like sci-fi or adventure games, or both, then you absolutely owe it to yourself to play this. Vanillaware still absolutely killing it.
2020
Some goofy quirks aside, the campaign is legitimately good, and I'm sure story content to follow will be similar.
The catch here is that campaign segments are designed specifically for the heroes you play as during them, and when you take that aspect away in the multiplay side, it just turns into an amorphous brawler that doesn't really emphasize what makes some of these heroes cool. It really doesn't inspire replayability if you're looking for any sort of depth beyond a shallow grind.
The catch here is that campaign segments are designed specifically for the heroes you play as during them, and when you take that aspect away in the multiplay side, it just turns into an amorphous brawler that doesn't really emphasize what makes some of these heroes cool. It really doesn't inspire replayability if you're looking for any sort of depth beyond a shallow grind.
For the sake of brevity, I'm happy to skip over what people generally know or can find out about Metroid Prime. It's a 3D first-person action-exploration game where you collect upgrades and battle enemies. Its mechanics are well-explained elsewhere. 2003's Metroid Prime is largely referred to as one of the best games on its original platform, a timeless classic, and if you're feeling especially hyperbolic, one of the greatest games of all time. What sticks out to me is that even in 2023, Metroid Prime is every bit as brilliant and unique as it was 20 years ago...and all it really got was a facelift.
Remastered really doesn't do much to tip the scale any heavier in Prime's favor, but the visual overhaul is certainly impressive. If anything, a repackaging just serves to show how far ahead of its time the original game was; there are very few adventures quite like it, and aside from the follow-up Prime games, I'm hard-pressed to come up with another first-person explor-action example. From near-impeccable level design to a narrative style that almost certainly rivals the piecemeal world building approach of more contemporary games (I'm not gonna say Dark Souls, don't worry), Retro Studios expertise on display shows very few signs of aging.
Of course, opting for a visual overhaul and not, say, a complete remake has its drawbacks. The last 30% or so of the game, the hunt for Chozo artifacts, remains the same -- I think of it as one of the game's lone blemishes -- and the new dual-stick "modern" control scheme doesn't really do a lot to change how the game is balanced around its original control scheme. Still, the game isn't especially difficult and a lot of the experience is defined by enjoying the ambience, so balance concerns are minor at best.
If you're looking for a chance to catch up on a historic game or even just want to relive some glory days, don't be hesitant to pick this up at its $39.99 USD price point. If you didn't like Prime to begin with, this probably won't change your mind.
Remastered really doesn't do much to tip the scale any heavier in Prime's favor, but the visual overhaul is certainly impressive. If anything, a repackaging just serves to show how far ahead of its time the original game was; there are very few adventures quite like it, and aside from the follow-up Prime games, I'm hard-pressed to come up with another first-person explor-action example. From near-impeccable level design to a narrative style that almost certainly rivals the piecemeal world building approach of more contemporary games (I'm not gonna say Dark Souls, don't worry), Retro Studios expertise on display shows very few signs of aging.
Of course, opting for a visual overhaul and not, say, a complete remake has its drawbacks. The last 30% or so of the game, the hunt for Chozo artifacts, remains the same -- I think of it as one of the game's lone blemishes -- and the new dual-stick "modern" control scheme doesn't really do a lot to change how the game is balanced around its original control scheme. Still, the game isn't especially difficult and a lot of the experience is defined by enjoying the ambience, so balance concerns are minor at best.
If you're looking for a chance to catch up on a historic game or even just want to relive some glory days, don't be hesitant to pick this up at its $39.99 USD price point. If you didn't like Prime to begin with, this probably won't change your mind.
2022
Live A Live is wonderful. It's hard for me to really articulate why without getting into every little detail, but it's precisely that attention to detail that elevates this past "just some standard SNES JRPG" that we didn't get in the west for nearly 30 years.
Tokita's meticulously planned scenario, a series of disconnected vignettes spanning eras of the world from prehistory to the distant future, is a beautifully-executed -- if not lore-light -- little series of adventures, with some unexpectedly surprising twists. It reads like an affecting tribute to the human spirit; success and tragedy strike the cast in waves, and each character learns to overcome their adversities in their own way.
This sort of philosophy finds its way into the gameplay segment, too. While a pretty standard JRPG by most accounts, LAL implements different "styles" into each character's chapter, almost like a deconstruction of individual elements that make RPGs what they are. One chapter focuses on recruiting and training students; another, running around a town and snatching items up on a time limit to prevent a raid. One is All Battles, All the Time, another gives players the ability to read minds for extra information. Each has a different point of emphasis and plays up to its genre inspirations, from kung fu flicks to giant robot anime, spaghetti westerns to Street Fighter.
Punctuate all of these cool ideas with a legendary soundtrack from Yoko Shimomura, one of the undeniable composer greats, and you have yourself a breezy little adventure that upends a lot of JRPG standards and has an inspiring, satisfying conclusion for what seems like a bunch of disconnected stories. Highly recommend going in without any kind of idea what to expect.
For what it's worth, there is a demo available on the Nintendo eShop that allows you to play early segments of a couple of the chapters in case you're not sure what to expect from the gameplay itself.
Tokita's meticulously planned scenario, a series of disconnected vignettes spanning eras of the world from prehistory to the distant future, is a beautifully-executed -- if not lore-light -- little series of adventures, with some unexpectedly surprising twists. It reads like an affecting tribute to the human spirit; success and tragedy strike the cast in waves, and each character learns to overcome their adversities in their own way.
This sort of philosophy finds its way into the gameplay segment, too. While a pretty standard JRPG by most accounts, LAL implements different "styles" into each character's chapter, almost like a deconstruction of individual elements that make RPGs what they are. One chapter focuses on recruiting and training students; another, running around a town and snatching items up on a time limit to prevent a raid. One is All Battles, All the Time, another gives players the ability to read minds for extra information. Each has a different point of emphasis and plays up to its genre inspirations, from kung fu flicks to giant robot anime, spaghetti westerns to Street Fighter.
Punctuate all of these cool ideas with a legendary soundtrack from Yoko Shimomura, one of the undeniable composer greats, and you have yourself a breezy little adventure that upends a lot of JRPG standards and has an inspiring, satisfying conclusion for what seems like a bunch of disconnected stories. Highly recommend going in without any kind of idea what to expect.
For what it's worth, there is a demo available on the Nintendo eShop that allows you to play early segments of a couple of the chapters in case you're not sure what to expect from the gameplay itself.
2021
Crispy, fun action game with some gorgeous pixel art and what I'm sure is a ton of replayability (between expert mode and the arcade mode, which I'm assuming is limited continues).
I'm incredibly surprised that this is the dev studio's first game together. It plays buttery smooth on the Switch, too, so pick it up on whatever platform means more to you. Be advised, however, that the game's main campaign is staggeringly short - I think I finished it in just under an hour, even retrying multiple times from checkpoints. Even so, I think it's not something you'd want to miss.
I'm incredibly surprised that this is the dev studio's first game together. It plays buttery smooth on the Switch, too, so pick it up on whatever platform means more to you. Be advised, however, that the game's main campaign is staggeringly short - I think I finished it in just under an hour, even retrying multiple times from checkpoints. Even so, I think it's not something you'd want to miss.
2021
Wow. So this is what it's like to love video games.
Just logging this as something I saw credits on. The credit sequence is actually super rad, looks like it was inspired by something you'd see at the end of a movie.
I know this is all personal taste and what have you, but I've always felt "at home" with KOF even if my skill with the game has never really been especially high. Aesthetic, character design, music all A+ work and the game's mechanics are easy enough to understand but hint at some real depth.
I love what I've played so far, but honestly there are a couple issues with the PC version that cut into my arbitrary rating; I had to dig for community fixes to a Vsync issue before really firing up the game in earnest, because the game itself doesn't offer a lot of PC setting options beyond a simple resolution/window type change and some effect toggles. That, and I've noticed some stages tend to have some strange lag/other issues online despite both players having no issue running the same stages/conditions offline. Praise be to SNK for giving us rollback, because the fair majority of matches have been smooth, but they can have the other star back from me once more of these issues get ironed out.
I know this is all personal taste and what have you, but I've always felt "at home" with KOF even if my skill with the game has never really been especially high. Aesthetic, character design, music all A+ work and the game's mechanics are easy enough to understand but hint at some real depth.
I love what I've played so far, but honestly there are a couple issues with the PC version that cut into my arbitrary rating; I had to dig for community fixes to a Vsync issue before really firing up the game in earnest, because the game itself doesn't offer a lot of PC setting options beyond a simple resolution/window type change and some effect toggles. That, and I've noticed some stages tend to have some strange lag/other issues online despite both players having no issue running the same stages/conditions offline. Praise be to SNK for giving us rollback, because the fair majority of matches have been smooth, but they can have the other star back from me once more of these issues get ironed out.
Never am I happier than when I experience a story where things carefully play their parts.
FFXII is the whole package - it's brilliantly-written, gorgeous, packed with musical masterpieces and its fair share of difficult encounters. I'm far from being done with it in the sense that there's still plenty of side content I've yet to even scratch at.
The Zodiac Age's additions spice up an already-solid core gameplay loop, with features like speed-ups for quick grinding and traversal, a revamp of the game's license boards (its character progression mechanic) and the ability to mess with guest characters that join you for your journey. I really came around on the Gambit system, a feature present in the original that lets you set conditions for your characters to automatically follow in combat. A game is only as good as it is fun, and mileage may vary, but I did find it really satisfying to figure out some convenient setups for the team while also maneuvering my way through menus on the fly (between Active and Wait ATBs, I played on Active). In that sense, it almost feels more actiony than its interface might suggest.
All of that underscores a fantastic story about a ragtag bunch of characters finding a way to free the princess Ashe's kingdom from the clutches of a massive empire. At its most basic, it's a tale everyone's heard a few times (it frequently draws comparisons to a certain space fantasy movie), but it really comes into its own as an examination of the cycles of war and violence and the toll it takes on people from a fair few perspectives. It's paced fairly well, never really slowing to a crawl outside of the opening hours, and its finale is packed with some riveting set pieces.
Honestly, you might be able to tell how much I enjoyed FFXII by how much I have to say about it. All else I can really do is suggest with my whole chest that you find a way to give it a chance.
FFXII is the whole package - it's brilliantly-written, gorgeous, packed with musical masterpieces and its fair share of difficult encounters. I'm far from being done with it in the sense that there's still plenty of side content I've yet to even scratch at.
The Zodiac Age's additions spice up an already-solid core gameplay loop, with features like speed-ups for quick grinding and traversal, a revamp of the game's license boards (its character progression mechanic) and the ability to mess with guest characters that join you for your journey. I really came around on the Gambit system, a feature present in the original that lets you set conditions for your characters to automatically follow in combat. A game is only as good as it is fun, and mileage may vary, but I did find it really satisfying to figure out some convenient setups for the team while also maneuvering my way through menus on the fly (between Active and Wait ATBs, I played on Active). In that sense, it almost feels more actiony than its interface might suggest.
All of that underscores a fantastic story about a ragtag bunch of characters finding a way to free the princess Ashe's kingdom from the clutches of a massive empire. At its most basic, it's a tale everyone's heard a few times (it frequently draws comparisons to a certain space fantasy movie), but it really comes into its own as an examination of the cycles of war and violence and the toll it takes on people from a fair few perspectives. It's paced fairly well, never really slowing to a crawl outside of the opening hours, and its finale is packed with some riveting set pieces.
Honestly, you might be able to tell how much I enjoyed FFXII by how much I have to say about it. All else I can really do is suggest with my whole chest that you find a way to give it a chance.
August 2020 was the summer of multiplay for a couple good reasons, and I was really hoping FFCC would cap the whole deal off with an amazing jaunt reminiscent of my favorite childhood days goofing off with my friends on the GameCube.
Online, unfortunately, is a swampy mess and there are so many things I was left wanting for quality of life experience. Hype for this one died quick. It's still FF Crystal Chronicles at its core, which is cool, just...a pain to organize and actually enjoy.
Online, unfortunately, is a swampy mess and there are so many things I was left wanting for quality of life experience. Hype for this one died quick. It's still FF Crystal Chronicles at its core, which is cool, just...a pain to organize and actually enjoy.
I don't have a ton to add that hasn't already been said to exhaustion about Aria of Sorrow. It's gorgeous, readable, and fluid (all big points over its GBA predecessors) - a masterclass in Metroidvania map design with a very customizable equipment and augment system, all in the palm of my hand. Playing Aria never seems to get old, even when the base game is a bit on the easier side it's an impeccably-paced ride.
If you haven't played any of the GBA Castlevania games, Aria is the clear frontrunner by a mile. It might even be the best if you include the DS wave after, though Portrait of Ruin holds a special place in my heart. Stop reading this and find a way to go play Aria of Sorrow.
If you haven't played any of the GBA Castlevania games, Aria is the clear frontrunner by a mile. It might even be the best if you include the DS wave after, though Portrait of Ruin holds a special place in my heart. Stop reading this and find a way to go play Aria of Sorrow.
Let me be clear: I'm a fan of almost everything Suda51 and Grasshopper did with this game, except for the core gameplay. This IS essential reading for the series, but I wouldn't begrudge anyone who just tossed it for a quick wiki synopsis to get ready for NMH3.
A lot of cool concepts get thrown around in this game, which makes it a shame that the central part of the game just feels so washed out and clunky. Perhaps that's subversive beauty in and of itself.
I adored the adventure game vignettes between the larger stages.
A lot of cool concepts get thrown around in this game, which makes it a shame that the central part of the game just feels so washed out and clunky. Perhaps that's subversive beauty in and of itself.
I adored the adventure game vignettes between the larger stages.
2006
All 3 routes completed, and all 3 absolutely necessary to get the big picture of what led to the events of Ys I & II, so don't miss out. I also think Character 3 was probably the most fun of the bunch.
Origin is the one that people could argue isn't exactly "required reading", being a prequel and all (Ys protag Adol isn't at all featured in the story or even referenced) but honestly it's such a good game on its own merits that I don't think it should be missed.
Origin is the one that people could argue isn't exactly "required reading", being a prequel and all (Ys protag Adol isn't at all featured in the story or even referenced) but honestly it's such a good game on its own merits that I don't think it should be missed.
An incredibly satisfying ending to the best TWD storyline out there, bar none. I couldn't leave Clem's story behind, even after all my excitement for TWD as a franchise passed, and I'm better off for it. A particularly big surprise late in the season caught me way off guard.