Hylics was always one of those games that was just a fact that I'd play this game someday. Yesterday was that day and honestly it was everything I'd thought it'd be. Vibes off the charts with its 3D models digitized into RPG Maker VX Ace (seriously how TF did they make those maps so well???) And the experimental guitar riffs to accompany the odd journey of Wayne and the crew. When I heard the soundtrack as a younger gal I wasn't really into it but since listening to more experimental tracks I've grown to love it!!

My one major gripe with the game is progression. I spent like a solid 2 hours bashing my head against the wall as I tried solo Graveyard with just Wayne. I didn't realize that you could recruit Somsnosa and Dedusmuln so early on and that made my journey so much more difficult 😭😭😭. I wish there was a better way to find out. Other than that progression was alright. I really liked the idea of fights being limited, the enemies permanently die when you beat them, and you get a ton of spoils after you're done. No leveling is a neat take on the RPG Maker formula too. Instead, once you die, you can grind meat in the Afterlife to gain more health which incentivizes said fighting. Ultimately, if you learn to play by Hylics's obtuse rules then the difficulty isn't bad.

Speaking of obtuse, how about that dialogue. The fact that it's randomly generated just makes it all the funnier because you're not supposed to get what people are saying. I kinda love it. I feel like in that regard the game is just trying to get me to not question everything and instead just enjoy the world.

Overall as a project, I am well-pleased with Hylics and what Mason Lindroth set out to accomplish. However, if I were to have a thirst for those vibes again I would go for Hylics 2 instead.

An ambitious and provoking narrative spanning across many generations.

1000xResist, Sunset Visitor's debut work, is undoubtedly one of my favorite releases of the year. Gameplay-wise, it's mostly a walking simulator with light puzzles, but with some excellent direction, it effectively portrays what it wants at various points. Chapter 2 is a clear example of such display by switching to a different gameplay perspective and utilizing more non-linear memory sequences. Each chapter has a distinct feel to it when it comes to its gameplay/art direction. It does look really low budget at many points, with some amateurish voice work. But I loved the style, vision, and methods the developers worked with in order to capture the game.

The game and its themes centering around the 2019 Hong Kong protests, immigration, COVID-19 pandemic, etc. are very prominent. I'm not well-versed with some of the matters the game links itself to, but I believe everything is incredibly weaved into the story and is properly handled. The allusions can be a bit on the nose at times. However, they're still so powerfully portrayed that I don't really have a problem with it. Even if you aren't familiar with what I've described, I'd still recommend to play it even if you slightly understand these problems more afterwards.

Aside from all this, the game has an intriguing mystery to follow with constantly shifting situations and a great cast to boot. There's a great mystique to the game, with every twist and turn pulling you in. The cast of humans and sisters change greatly over the course of the game (or rather unfold), whether it be for better or for worse. There's a lot going on for this game as it focuses on forgiveness, trauma, and so much more to look into.

Other aspects of the game I loved:

In the short time that I spent with them, I enjoyed some of the minor characters. There were some pretty fun interactions and dialogues.

Though the voicework is not consistently good as stated earlier, there were still some fantastic parts.

a great journey about self discovery with the expected dragon quest flair, one of the better parties in the series, and some beautiful overworld environment art all but completely make up for a bad fan translation and a lack of worthwhile villains after mudo. the reveal about the lower and upper worlds is one of my favorite concepts in the series and i had enough of a good time that the 6 hero isn't even my least favorite hero design in the series anymore. dragon quest 6 and 7 are forever proof that 90% of the time if a game is a "black sheep" of a jrpg series it's actually pretty good and that some gamers just get scared when a game stops holding their hand or has a slower pace to let itself breathe

The funniest shit in the world is how this game’s “mental health consultant” is the first name listed in the opening credits. Paul Fletcher must be a pseudonym for Kanye West because this game’s representation of schizophrenia feels forced at best and exploitative at worst.

I also like how the game is basically slowly walking around and looking at shapes like you're a two-year-old with occasional breaks of dogshit over-the-shoulder combat.

B-b-but bro, it’s scary voices constantly beating your eardrums! Did you play it with headphones? Yeah, I did, and the gimmick gets old super quick.

FOLLOW YOUR MIND’S EYE TO THE NEXT COMBAT ARENA SENUA. Dogshit “psychosis is my superpower” ass game.

Apparently, the ending is hilarious, but I couldn’t bear to get any further than the first two levels.

They dared to change, just like Simon dared to rid himself of Dracula's affliction in the face of ridicule by his fellow townsfolk.

At the approach of midnight, I began my journey home, my boots trudging through the mud as I pumped my fists to the Dance of Monsters. The chill of the wind rustles through the trees as I keep myself at the ready, for any moment the skeleton or wolfman could walk out from the brush begging for death's sweet release by the hand of my mighty whip passed down to me by my ancestors. Upon entry to town the sunrise brings about temporary peace, wherein I decide to visit the local grocery and throw my bottled water at it's floor to reveal the garlic salesman hiding underneath the floorboards from minions of the Count who has decreed that garlic was illegal.

Perhaps I'm obsessed with the idea of pretending to be Simon, perhaps he really is just the world's biggest badass being able to beat Dracula by himself and then again later while he's dying of a curse placed on him by the same guy. You think I wouldn't want to role play as him?

A color palette of putrid dilapidation, reminiscent of Hammer horror films, a land that continues to be ravaged by monsters chaotically stalking about despite the Count's destruction. Simon himself now as pale as a ghost due to the curse that has been sapping away at him for the past seven years, a depressing tone for what should've been a peaceful reconstruction after our past victory. The last town in the game Ghulash is completely monochrome in color with only one person residing in it, showcasing the devastation that has expanded from Dracula's castle. The townsfolk talk in riddles and lies, done in either genuine good faith or as an act of sabotage to keep Simon from completing his quest for fear of Dracula's early return. The ringing of tears flowing from a ballroom mask echo across the land, a most legendary composition.

They say if you wish to follow up perfection, then you better hit strong, differently, or both.

As I have once said before, a game that becomes more enjoyable the more you replay is but a sign of perfection. For the original Castlevania it became more enjoyable as I grew quicker at conquering it from sheer skill, and for Simon's Quest it became more enjoyable as I grew more wary of it's tricks. Instead of a test of strength, it is a test of shrewdness and clever understanding. Whereas the original opted to try and beat you into the grave, Simon's Quest looks to baffle you with illusions and misdirection. Typos appaering, translations such as the Fist of the North Star reference getting turned into a weird shout out to the Galactic Empire's infamous space station, and signs of a rushed development seem to only help it, perhaps it is perfectly imperfect. A perfect sibling to what was a perfect game.

Maybe I am obsessed, maybe Dracula exists and he put a curse on me to forever defend Simon's Quest from the never ending ridicule that comes it's way thanks to videos that were made for humor back in the times of the ancients. Simon's last adventure now cursed to being used as the butt of a joke, and constantly used as a punching bag by armchair game designers. Those who hate are numerous, and me and my fellow Simon supporters are small in number, but we are steadfast and strong in our beliefs. We stand together in the face of hostility and look onward at the army in front of us, I unsheathe my whip, brandishing it in hand and turn to my allies with but two quiet words, "For Simon", I rush into the ensuing battle leading the charge into our forever war.

Our battle is never over, but despite our curse we forever fight to the bitter end just as a Belmont would.

beautiful, amazing, and mesmerizing game. i hardly even feel equipped to talk about it much past surface level comments, but flower sun and rain is maybe the game that embodies "kill the past" the best to me. it's funny, it's thought provoking, and the way it ties into the silver case retroactively makes me like the silver case more. it's one of those games that resonated with me so heavily that i literally have nothing i can say about my time with it without it being a jumbled mess but i love it all the same.
fsr also has great vibes and an amazing soundtrack as well that really elevates everything that much further for me. sadly, the game is only available in english for the nintendo ds, but the presentation is so downgraded in every conceivable way and is how most people are going to play it until the inevitable remaster. i personally played with pcsx2 rendering to a desktop crt with a translation guide on another window and that visual and auditory boost was well worth it, especially with how short the game really is, but i understand how that might not be ideal for everyone. regardless of how you can or can't play fsr, as much as these are all great games i sincerely think that the initial kill the past trilogy of the silver case, flower sun and rain, and killer7 is worth checking out just for it alone, and i hope one day the remaster comes out so more people will play it and i can recommend it to people more readily

Papas: Hmm? You are...? Is there anything I can do for you?

> Yes
No

Papas: What? You say you're my child?

> Yes
No

Papas: Hahahaha! The world could end tomorrow, but I'll only ever have one kid, and that's Jamie.

“The sinner shall be atoned. Even though no punishment will be enough for your sin.”

What is the worth of this experience we know of as life? There is a popular response to this question that has persisted throughout human social understanding. That the purpose of life is to be judged. That this existence we are experiencing is merely transitory. That it serves as a filter to determine which of us are worthy to behold the infinite love of the universe or to instead suffer in ceaseless unfathomable torment.

Seig Wahrheit is a condemned man. A character awaiting judgment. It does not matter to Seig that the sins on which he is accused are not the ones that he actually bears any guilt for. He is guilty all the same and knows it. Yet most insidiously still, despite the nigh certainty of his ultimate fate, he must ensure he persists until his day of judgment. To expire prematurely would disservice those whom have allowed him to prolong in this existence, this torture that is being alive. Such is his belief in life’s purpose as he has been taught to perceive. It is a trial to be endured, to exist is to be in pursuit of a knowingly futile atonement. To become a lamb marching willingly to their own slaughter.

Chaos Legion is a game that distills this idea of self-flagellation into essence. The struggle of life and existence is brought up, but extracting meaning from it is not to be sought. It is an answered question after all. Rather this game seeks to revere in the struggle itself. Absolution for Sieg is not even on the cards, he is to suffer eternally. This game seeks to beat you down and beat you down and beat you down until you understand you only exist to be beaten down. Yet you must get up each time. Powerful obstacles will incrementally show up to crush you. Through both perseverance and gradual acclimation towards these inferno legions in which you are eternally bound you will eventually overcome them. Your reward in doing so? More frequent and harsher trials. The challenge which you struggled to overcome repeated until mundane. Despite statistically growing over the course of the game, it never quite gets any easier. Rather you merely build up a tolerance to the pain. Even this is not ideal. The pain is all Sieg has after all to remind himself that he is in fact, still alive.

So, what awaits you at the end of all this? What is the final verdict in this perseverance that embodies Sieg’s existence? What reprieve will he be granted in death? You poor naive fool. You will never have been made to suffer enough. A judgment postponed. You get to be alive in this living hell for a while longer.

How cruel the creators of such a world must be.

(Chaos Legion is a game entirely dedicated to its mechanical nuance and is tightly crafted to be as such. Despite my framing its story and narrative elements is incredibly minimal. In its international localization it has been finely retuned in response to criticism of the Japanese version being boringly easy. The result of which is this game made for the sensibilities of sadomasochists. It demands mastery of obtuse systems that you will likely need to consult external references to truly understand. but feel ‘satisfying’ once mastered. If you are more inclined to experiencing it for its cool vibes you can forgo this suffering and should seek out the original Japanese version instead. Myself though? I think it is only through this pain it afflicted upon me that allowed me to connect to it at all)

We were young, and we were still learning. Coming into our own, yet still not quite there.

The second generation was much like some of us who had experienced the series from the beginning as bright eyed and optimistic children. Maturing, finding our footing in life, and trying to figure things out for what we really wanted out of our future. Do we continue onward with our current path and continue developing our skill? Are we seeking to make a career of said skill? Those drawings bearing a similar crudeness to generation one sprites that we etched on the back of our tests, those little characters that you made from your own two hands and the ocean of your imagination. They would need to be refined, perhaps to the point you would be sick of seeing them again through the months and months of practice. We struck gold on something we were good at, but were we ready to make this our life? How do we get ready for life? Would we even make it to that path we dreamed of?

For us, this was the sequel. A sequel to childhood, and the path to maturity.

If we were to get ready for life, we would need to learn how to maintain a schedule and utilize a form of communication to keep in touch with our contacts. Through our little battery-powered clock in our cartridges, we kept track of the time of day in order to search for different friends on different paths. We would remember what day it was, so we could participate in a bug catching contest and try to find that Scyther. If we couldn't get up in the morning early enough to catch a Ledyba, what good were we in participating in life? It was at this point we were starting to get into the thick of things, we weren't children anymore, but teenagers who aspired to be more like adults. We were excited of all that upcoming opportunity that would only be granted to us with age, and with that age in due time came responsibility and expectations to provide. Life would soon not be all about fun anymore.

It was soon time to grow up, and perhaps move away from home to master our craft elsewhere...

It's hard however to leave behind everything that you grew up with. We traveled to Johto to learn how to better ourselves, perhaps like the bike shop owner who got unlucky on their new shop placement in Goldenrod, but for us it wasn't truly home. We would long for our old pals, our old hangout spots, and our favorite order from our childhood fast food place. We desired a return trip home to Kanto, so we can say hello to everybody one last time before we begin our life's career. Home however, wasn't quite the same as we had remembered. Forests were chopped down, caves were cleared out, and Lavender Town's place of remembrance had been converted into a radio tower. Kanto has changed, or has it matured like us? Resources have been plundered for practical use over the thoughts of those who had lived there, and spirituality has been pushed to the side in the name of technological advancement. Have we lost our way, or is this what is to be expected of us in the future?

When I finally climb this mountain and end this visit home, what will await me at it's peak?

The last lingering strand of childhood I had left made manifest, the past me armed with the very first friends I had made on this adventure. If I must let go of the past, I must defeat the longing memories of what once was. Even if I were victorious, will the memories finally rest or will they continue pursuing me? With the destruction of the past, we make way for the future. This is the way. This is the way we grow up. We no longer have room for trifling matters such as our childhood friends, memories, or the places we once held dear. It's time to make way for adulthood and to only go forward without ever looking back. Home is no longer home, it's no longer even a memory for us, it was thrown back into the toybox where it belonged. With this we continue our adventure elsewhere, and we leave everything behind. It was a fad, and it's time to bury those McDonalds toys and trading cards in a box or sell them off in a yard sale.

It was never to be the same again, for we have both grown up. Us now simple mature adults, and them a fully-realized juggernaut of a franchise with no end in sight. We've defeated our childhood, there was no reason to keep going with this series obviously geared towards what we had grown out of. We could take a peek once in a while to check on them when they make the television, but we would do so with a look over our shoulder to try and maintain our mask of adulthood and maturity. It was time to only watch mature programming, and play mature games while doing other such mature things, like swearing while our parents weren't around. This is what is expected of us now, it's time to leave it behind to the next generation who will grow with the next set of games, whom may also leave once they have grown past it....with another generation to follow.....and the cycle repeats....

My time was over, much like Kanto and the Game Boy, but despite what life and middle school demanded of me, I would never be too far away.

I am home, I always have been.