Devixicus
They made it so ugly. So so so ugly. I never knew how beautiful the original game was until years later. Seriously how did they make it look so horrible.
60fps is nice I guess but this game is better when it actually works as intended
60fps is nice I guess but this game is better when it actually works as intended
For their first DLC of this kind, FromSoft really hit the ground running. From the moment you are pulled in to whichever boss you beat last, it's an enrapturing ride with the most consistently good gameplay throughout Dark Souls. The spectacle, storytelling, and just general detail of everything is some of the most complete and thorough to come out of the studio. And you can really tell this was a special project to them just as Dark Souls itself was, that everything they set aside during the game's development for this got all the attention it needed to fully shine.
Despite all that, I think this DLC pushes somewhat past the capabilities of Dark Souls 1 as a gameplay system. All bosses are fast and active enough that the flaws in input handling as well as limitations of the lock on and roll mechanics provide more deaths and wasted time than usual for this game. "git gud" me all you want but 15-ish playthroughs in and I still stop short after Artorias sometimes to not have to grind so long on bosses I don't like as much as him.
And frankly the reason it's 4.5 instead of 5 stars is this game codified the "Dark Souls formula" that I feel was run into the ground. Sure it's solid, but it's not as interesting as Demon's or Dark, and I think that's generally true of later Souls games as well.
Despite all that, I think this DLC pushes somewhat past the capabilities of Dark Souls 1 as a gameplay system. All bosses are fast and active enough that the flaws in input handling as well as limitations of the lock on and roll mechanics provide more deaths and wasted time than usual for this game. "git gud" me all you want but 15-ish playthroughs in and I still stop short after Artorias sometimes to not have to grind so long on bosses I don't like as much as him.
And frankly the reason it's 4.5 instead of 5 stars is this game codified the "Dark Souls formula" that I feel was run into the ground. Sure it's solid, but it's not as interesting as Demon's or Dark, and I think that's generally true of later Souls games as well.
2013
This game is the definition of "That was good while it lasted", I forget I even played it a lot of the time. It was the first AAA game I played when I built my PC!
If only it happened...
Pretty much everything I would want out of a source port of Sonic 2. No major complaints other than the options menu only relating to game logic, with most graphics settings in the ini.
If this was some map I downloaded my only takeaway would be "meh, it was pretty I guess"
2021
This isn't the type of game I thought I'd ever say this about, but the presentation is absolutely outstanding here. I've been following this series for quite some time (I think I came across it on Sonic Retro) and they're all very solid mechanically compared to a lot of the mediocre 2D platformers that end up on Steam. I always appreciated the musical and visual variety but this newest entry is on another level. Each level has its own song, all of them bright and cheery electronic that's a bit reminiscent of old video game jams if they were made with 90s analog synths.
Love is a very simple game in every sense of the word. The game has a trim color palette of one color for the level, black for the background, and white for the player and obstacles/interact-ables. The series was a bit confusing at first with communicating the difference between "hazardous white" and "helpful white" but the design language evolved in the second game and here things are more clear than ever. But the real impressive stuff is the level visuals. Each level really captures the imagination in representing spaces in these strict limitations, in ways I never would have expected.
Each Love game comes with more stuff and features the older games included. This one lets you go down memory lane with the new features and animations, or switch the style to be more classic if you wish. It's a great value proposition and also lets you appreciate how much these games have improved over time. But it also shows how solid the design always was. For a game trying to capture a fantasy history in which old PCs had platformers as smooth as the consoles of the time had, Love 3 nails that "rose tinted glasses" approach with such grace that it's convinced me to give more time and attention to the throwback indie movement I've been neglecting for a while.
Love is a very simple game in every sense of the word. The game has a trim color palette of one color for the level, black for the background, and white for the player and obstacles/interact-ables. The series was a bit confusing at first with communicating the difference between "hazardous white" and "helpful white" but the design language evolved in the second game and here things are more clear than ever. But the real impressive stuff is the level visuals. Each level really captures the imagination in representing spaces in these strict limitations, in ways I never would have expected.
Each Love game comes with more stuff and features the older games included. This one lets you go down memory lane with the new features and animations, or switch the style to be more classic if you wish. It's a great value proposition and also lets you appreciate how much these games have improved over time. But it also shows how solid the design always was. For a game trying to capture a fantasy history in which old PCs had platformers as smooth as the consoles of the time had, Love 3 nails that "rose tinted glasses" approach with such grace that it's convinced me to give more time and attention to the throwback indie movement I've been neglecting for a while.
You would think after making so many pinball minigames for this series that the Generations throwback DLC would be any good. It's not at all. Don't even bother downloading.
2014
You see, I grew up playing a flash game called "Dino Run"... so when this dinosaur time-waster game was the talk of the school, I was not impressed.
2021
Cute! I liked following the life of the woman this game oversees, the little stories you can piece together through the items she and her eventual partners brought from home to home. Though I am the type of person who prefers more self-expression in a game like this, I know it's not the point here but there were times I wasn't engaged.
2011
Sad to see the series' last hurrah (at least in the classic sense of Ridge Racer) be such a hollow retool of what already existed in 6, 7, and 3D. The music is great as always but there's no real campaign. You're asked to race with the only progression being that you get more car parts and higher speeds after some (???) races. Visuals are nice but not as impressive as Ridge Racer PSP for the time, and performance leaves a lot to be desired. If only the Vita was just a year or two later with nicer hardware...
2001
This is a game I wanted to like so much more than I actually did. The sound design, visuals and especially the pre-rendered backgrounds are such a treat, though the music left a lot to be desired. I like the idea of a samurai-Resi hybrid action game. The thing is, I don't think the tank controls do this particular game any favors.
Combat is very simple in this game. You've got a handful of weapons with a basic combo and metered attack, plus a perfect parry that does loads of damage (great touch for a samurai game). You can move around survival horror style or lock onto an enemy, changing left and right into strafe buttons to allow for dodging incoming attacks or circling around threats. I'll be the first to admit my skill issue here, I fumbled with the controls quite a bit in my time with this game. My complaint isn't so much that "controls bad", it's that combat is so brutally simple that there isn't much to engage with, no hook to keep trying when the going gets tough.
Three weapons with one power move each makes for very repetitive encounters, and the progression of wandering and puzzle solving often lead me to walking around enemies just like Resident Evil. The game also has limited healing items you have to use the same XP that levels weapons to upgrade, and I unfortunately wasted all of it on the weapons before realizing I screwed my save to require near perfect gameplay for the entire end section. Perhaps I'll come back to this and find more enjoyment later, but for now I'll consider this playthrough good enough and move on to Onimusha 2 when I crave more B-tier Capcom action schlock.
Combat is very simple in this game. You've got a handful of weapons with a basic combo and metered attack, plus a perfect parry that does loads of damage (great touch for a samurai game). You can move around survival horror style or lock onto an enemy, changing left and right into strafe buttons to allow for dodging incoming attacks or circling around threats. I'll be the first to admit my skill issue here, I fumbled with the controls quite a bit in my time with this game. My complaint isn't so much that "controls bad", it's that combat is so brutally simple that there isn't much to engage with, no hook to keep trying when the going gets tough.
Three weapons with one power move each makes for very repetitive encounters, and the progression of wandering and puzzle solving often lead me to walking around enemies just like Resident Evil. The game also has limited healing items you have to use the same XP that levels weapons to upgrade, and I unfortunately wasted all of it on the weapons before realizing I screwed my save to require near perfect gameplay for the entire end section. Perhaps I'll come back to this and find more enjoyment later, but for now I'll consider this playthrough good enough and move on to Onimusha 2 when I crave more B-tier Capcom action schlock.