Bio
As a PC gamer drawn to 3D titles, intricate melee combat, and thoughtful strategy, I firmly believe that the PC should be the cornerstone of any gaming setup. I seek games that resonate with me deeply, blending challenge with joy, and grounded in the nuanced pacing of arcade design. My aim is to find experiences that are both engaging and that I'll fully explore.

https://www.backloggd.com/u/GalaxyOfSin/list/good-melee-curated/

https://howlongtobeat.com/ shorter=more gameplay density
Personal Ratings
1★
5★

Badges


Noticed

Gained 3+ followers

Organized

Created a list folder with 5+ lists

Gamer

Played 250+ games

Early Access

Submitted feedback for a beta feature

Liked

Gained 10+ total review likes

Listed

Created 10+ public lists

GOTY '23

Participated in the 2023 Game of the Year Event

Busy Day

Journaled 5+ games in a single day

N00b

Played 100+ games

Roadtrip

Voted for at least 3 features on the roadmap

Favorite Games

Ninja Gaiden II
Ninja Gaiden II
Ninja Gaiden Black
Ninja Gaiden Black
Divinity: Original Sin II - Definitive Edition
Divinity: Original Sin II - Definitive Edition
Killer Instinct: Definitive Edition
Killer Instinct: Definitive Edition
Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection Vol. 2
Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection Vol. 2

291

Total Games Played

003

Played in 2024

209

Games Backloggd


Recently Played See More

God of War III: Remastered
God of War III: Remastered

Apr 05

Kannagi Usagi
Kannagi Usagi

Apr 01

Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty - Complete Edition
Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty - Complete Edition

Mar 29

Mortal Shell
Mortal Shell

Sep 19

Risk of Rain
Risk of Rain

Sep 19

Recently Reviewed See More

think I played through this 5 times and hyperstone heist twice.
Really enjoyable experience, but I remember it being really easy, with the exception of the slash boss fight.
while it's not straight up better than shredders revenge it's faster and more fluid to play and doesn't have dumb movement inertia. Also takes about 50 minutes to complete

I'd recommend Raphael since he has the fastest walk speed



Pros:

Fluid Combat and Stable Performance: Experience seamless transitions between moves and enjoy smooth gameplay on both PS5 and PS4, with a consistent 60 fps. Technical enhancements, including improved graphics and reduced loading times, enhance immersion and polish.
Cons:

Opening Momentum: While the game starts with a thrilling cutscene, it struggles to maintain the same level of excitement throughout the experience.

Boss Encounter Disappointment: Boss encounters in 'God of War III Remastered' disappoint overall. Helios and Hermes are missed opportunities, and encounters with Poseidon and Leviathan feel out of place and underwhelming. Additionally, battles against Scorpion and Cerberus, while challenging, often become more annoying than enjoyable.

Difficulty Balancing: Certain sections, particularly in Chaos mode, suffer from unbalanced difficulty spikes, leading to frustration and encouraging gameplay styles focused solely on efficiency.

Simplistic Puzzles: Puzzles lack complexity and fail to offer significant mental challenges, serving as mere breaks in combat.

Repetitive Combat Mechanics: Combat can feel monotonous due to reliance on button-mashing, QTE events, and simple enemy patterns. The inclusion of an upgrade that auto-wins QTE events underscores the need for a more dynamic combat system.

Extended Labyrinth Section: The labyrinth feels overly long and tedious, disrupting pacing and testing players' patience.

Missed Opportunity with Titans: The potential for deeper exploration of Titans as allies or adversaries is overlooked, representing a missed opportunity for narrative and gameplay depth.

Unskippable Cutscenes: The presence of unskippable cutscenes disrupts player pacing and leads to frustration during repeated playthroughs.

Lack of New Game Plus: The absence of a New Game Plus mode and the need to recollect items in a new playthrough may detract from the action experience, though this can be mitigated by utilizing a 100% save file.

Comparison to Other Titles: "God of War III Remastered" falls short compared to other titles in the series, lacking the balanced narrative and gameplay of "God of War II" and the improved mechanics of "Ascension." Additionally, the absence of a strong narrative in "God of War III" is a missed opportunity, making it feel more like a glorified tech demo.


"Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice" artfully merges its combat mechanics with its narrative, presenting an elegantly straightforward system. However, this simplicity, while narratively fitting, slightly misses the opportunity to delve into the complexities that could elevate the game into a realm of more strategic melee combat.

Parrying and Blocking Distinction: Currently, the game combines blocking and parrying into a somewhat undifferentiated defensive tactic, which may simplify engagements more than necessary. Introducing a more pronounced distinction—such as preventing parrying from a block stance and possibly requiring a directional input to parry—would compel less experienced players to adopt a more deliberate approach to defense.

The Role of Spacing in Combat: As it stands, the game's combat system underutilizes spacing, heavily favoring parrying over positional strategy. Making spacing a fundamental aspect of combat would introduce a significant tactical layer, requiring players to consider their positioning meticulously. Reworking enemies to punish predictability and prolonged close-quarters combat would force players to use the entire arena, making every step and swing into a calculated duel.

Utilizing the Environment in Boss Fights: The boss arenas in Sekiro offer scant chances for environmental interaction, a feature that, if expanded, could radically transform boss encounters. Envisioning arenas with embedded strategic elements and interactive hazards would not only make the surroundings a pivotal component in the strategy for victory but also add a layer of depth to each battle, making environmental awareness as crucial as swordsmanship.

Dodging Mechanics and Combat Philosophy: Despite Sekiro’s emphasis on aggressive forward motion and parrying precision, the ability to dodge without limit seems out of sync with the rest of the game’s mechanics. By limiting dodging, players would be nudged towards mastering timing and parrying, aligning more closely with the game’s philosophical underpinnings and heightening the combat challenge.

Visual Cues and the Art of Anticipation: Sekiro leans on visual cues to signal perilous attacks, a choice that simplifies the anticipatory dance between player and enemy. Diminishing or even removing these cues could elevate the combat experience, pushing players to become finely attuned to enemy patterns and tells, thereby rewarding skill and keen observation over mere reaction.

Ranking System for Mastery Recognition: The introduction of a ranking system—evaluating players on damage avoidance, combat efficiency, and minimizing healing—would not only honor mastery but also motivate players to delve deeper into Sekiro’s combat. This system could serve as a benchmark for players, encouraging them to explore and master the game's combat.