I really like this game, the writing is the best in the Mario series, I laughed a lot while playing, and generally felt engrossed by everything that was happening onscreen. I found the gameplay pretty fun for the most part as well, the overworld bits are my favorite, letting you explore gorgeous areas in a very natural fashion. The issues only start to arise when we look at the combat, it feels like Nintendo thought they had the next evolution in RPG gameplay and tried to shove it in your face as much as possible. Now, I actually liked these fights for the majority of the game, but around 75% of the way through I grew a bit weary, with the limited attack options and the near identical tactics of the enemies I stopped finding them engaging. I find the boss fights to be great variations upon the combat formula though, and they kept me invested in the gameplay style. I think the experience here is the important aspect for me, it may not be an incredible game, but I absolutely adore it as an experience, maybe just avoid the combat as much as you can. Also, that OST is magnificent.

Oatchi is the best thing to happen to gaming since Pong. The game has wild amounts of charm, simply drowning in it. I feel that you lose a bit of the isolation feeling with all the castaways you save, only really adding fluff, and messing with the overall theming of the series in my opinion. But that is a rather small complaint, they're harmless enough, and the actual act of collecting them is enjoyable and the rewards are well... rewarding. The gameplay is incredibly streamlined and sharpened up, I always felt like there was a bit of looseness in the other games (especially Pikmin 1) but I felt a higher level of control here. The worlds are huge and immersive, with so many fun different creatures. I think the progression system for how many Pikmin you can carry feels a bit awkward, but I believe it serves to help new players ease into the management this series requires. The night levels are honestly some of my favorite parts of the game, but I can't say it feels like they integrate flawlessly with the rest of the game. I think the sheer variety of Pikmin is a bit overwhelming at this point, with so many different types I feel a bit spread thin, but that is an issue of proliferation, I think the game handles it well, it's more a personal issue. The gameplay is tight, the level designs near perfect and the presentation incredible, highly recommend.

The mechanics of catching is magical, the flow is the best in any Pokemon game and the battling is more engaging than any game in the series previous or since. I find the presentation to be a bit underwhelming, only really looking outstanding with the stylistic ink flourishes added, but the character design is nice, and creates a cohesive version of Sinnoh's past. I don't love the crafting system but I find it easy enough to circumvent. My biggest hold back is the story/pacing, when I play this game I always feel bogged down by the consistent cutscenes and dialogue marathons, I don't feel like the free nature of the game lends itself well to these pace breaking interruptions. In total, the best Pokemon game in years, just held back in a few areas that I feel are somewhat tied to the Pokemon style at this point.

I find this game wildly boring, and I don't enjoy saying that, I love Pokemon, though I think it peaked on the DS. The region/route design feels incredibly simple and not at all mechanically engaging. The closest the game comes to feeling innovative is the Wild Area, but it feels very underwhelming, not cleverly designed or fun to explore just a neat concept that serves better to daydream about than actually experience. The presentation leaves me wanting at about every turn, and makes me not want to spend time in this world. Very personal, but I am not a fan of most of the designs in this game, which is unfortunate, I usually like to do my first playthrough with a team comprising only pokemon from the region. The pacing is atrocious, innumerable "press A over and over and over and over..." conversations that cannot be skipped with the writing offering very little worth paying attention to. I felt this issue most in Sun and Moon, so it is somewhat improved here, but that's like saying getting punched once is better than getting punched twice, you're right but you still have a black eye. Overall, not very engaging, but the Pokemon formula does have a base level of fun associated with it.

This game frustrates me more than anything, the design is in theory very freeing and provides the shake up that Pokemon so desperately needs. In comparison to Arceus though, the game doesn't feel fully thought out, messy and strangely railroady. The separation of the 3 quest lines is great, and allows for greater freedom, but the level scaling and world design (paired with movement upgrades) still limits the player. The turn based combat needs to be streamlined, as it is right now it feels very sluggish, I believe this is partly due to the presentation, as camera angles don't support a very engaging experience. As the animations don't make due in the battles either they feel rather hollow and disconnected from myself. I found myself bored by the writing and eventually felt more assaulted by text boxes than wild pokemon. Finally, and most importantly, this game is not in acceptable condition, it has never run on my switch, it's hobbled, and that's being generous. The business model that keeps these games launching with as short of dev times as they have is frankly unacceptable. Developers deserve the time to make the games that they envision, and players shouldn't have to accept a half finished product shipped for profit and not a sound game in its own right.

It ain't pretty, it ain't perfect, and darn it, it ain't even all that fun all the time, but this game made me feel so darn happy. The writing in this game is a huge step up to other modern Sonic games, and I think that is an aspect of the games that desperately needs more focus, as the characters are one of my main draws to the series. The gameplay itself is both magnificently freeing and frustratingly janky. The combat feels only half thought out, but flashy enough to be enjoyable when facing a new enemy. The traversal is enjoyable if a little automated and at times, WAY too automated, but a wide variety of ways to get where you're going. I haven't picked it up much since it first released, but that time was incredible and one of my favorite Sonic game experiences.

3D World: Mechanically: almost perfection. Emotionally: very muted. This is a very well crafted game that I just don't care too much about, and multiplayer is something that feels more frustrating than fun for myself. The music is great and presentation is slick, but nothing that wows me. Bowsers Fury: I... severely don't understand the acclaim for this aspect of the package, it feels like a proof of concept with a gimmick that is initially VERY striking, but as the game goes on, it grows stale and even annoying. The open world format is intriguing with this iteration of Mario, but it feels as similarly sterile as the game it's stapled onto. Love the freedom the power-up storage allows for. Well made, but little outside of the Kaiju attractions to keep me interested.

I found the combat system to be well made, but the enemies I faced never really made me utilize it to its fullest extent, except the final boss, which was probably my peak with the game. I liked the music but nothing sticks in my head outside the battle theme. The visual style isn't my favorite though, neither in this or the original. I wasn't honestly a fan of most of the writing, it felt really simple, and the only characters I really liked were Mallow and Bowser, great characterization on both, but knowing the hype around Geno I was a bit disappointed with his writing. The platforming felt herky jerk and I never really enjoyed jumping around the world. Really solid pacing though and a good basis for a game, I'm just not sure RPG's starring the jumpman are for me.