After years of playing it on and off during a decent number of podcasts I finally consider my goals finished.

I love the look and the customization of my little town. The goals for each character are fun to pursue while decorating and finding the best place that fits your style and their preferences. I think the characters are also really charming and fun to interact with.

At some point I'd say things get a bit grindy, especially considering some of the RNG involved with rarer items, but I think every cozy-style game reaches the point sooner or later. My only real disappointment is that they do build up a background plot and never really conclude it, so reaching the final area left me with an empty feeling.

I played the demo of Tunic and even though I loved the concept I found it a little too difficult for me, delayed my playthrough until now, played on "Reduced" combat difficult and have no regrets.

The puzzles and discovery are definitely what I'm here for. I love the concept of discovering this instructions manual, which is actually very interactive with really cool touches. The little hints of the previous owner scribbled on it. Unveiling the neat hidden stuff in this world little by little, and reaching the culmination as you get the last page you are missing.

The game is full of amazing and heartfelt moments, try to play as much as possible without looking at guides, it is very worth it.

Super Mario Bros. Wonder is a delightful take on 2D Mario, but as a couch co-op first player, I can't help but feel like it is a small step down from New Super Mario Bros. Wii and U.

Getting the worst out of the way first, the camera following the crown player is just terrible. I've never had problems playing Mario titles co-op with my brother, but with Wonder it was hard to have a play session when we did not curse the camera at least once, sometimes much more. It is also not the funny kind of problems collision had before, they are just plain irritating situations. Aside from the camera I'd say some stages also don't really bother trying to fit more than one player, and on these stages the problem with the camera is usually worse.

With that aside, the game really shines with its implementation of the online ghosts, the matchmaking is impressive and the ghosts not only helping with revives but also pointing secret exits and blocks is just really well done, it feels made for this style of multiplayer instead of the simultaneous couch play.

The wonder effects are a mixed bag of cool and whatever. I have only really used one badge and I feel like they are massively underutilized. The badges actually make me want some kind of Metroidvania game for Mario.

Overall, I'm one of the weirdos that prefers the New games over Wonder. I think stages are better structured and co-op was much better. Wonder has an amazing presentation, but it feels like just the foundation for greater games in the future.

The game in the current state feels like a prototype. Even putting aside the performance issues, it feels like they created a system but struggled to create a compelling structure around it.

There is some good though, as with other Forza games driving feels really good, and the Rivals (time trial) mode is a great step up from the Horizon games at least.

The car experience and car point system is not inherently bad in my opinion, but the Builders Cup mode, what is basically the campaign, just doesn't really work with the system. If you start on a fresh car it feels like you don't earn enough levels or points to really build your car, and if you start with a leveled up car, the practice rounds are basically useless. I think they need a big revamp of the system to actually make you feel like you are building the car, and to make practice feel interesting. I would prefer more of a qualifier than the practice and I also dislike the "challenge the grid" system.

I don't care about online multiplayer, but I generally enjoy spending time in Rivals, the Builders Cup is not a great career mode and the game needs some big fixes on PC. I think the game can be OK in a few months, but it will take a lot of effort to make it great.

One of those hard to review games when I don't think there is something wrong, it is just not vibing with me.

The good stuff: The visuals are great and the story has a great mix of creepy and funny.

The (maybe) bad stuff: The gameplay drags, probably too much backtracking? I usually really enjoy crafting systems so a game about crafting shouldn't make me feel like this but I just don't want to craft another pot and fill it with water again.

Played until the end of the "first act" (collecting four souls) and I feel satisfied.

Ys IX is at the same time very similar but also quite different from Ys VIII. Lacrimosa of Dana is my only experience with Ys before this game so I don't have much else to compare it too.

On one hand the gameplay, combat and exploration are quite fun, and just as good, but I feel the setting doesn't quite work as much to me. Equipment progression also has some bumps, I guess they had a specific balance of crafting and purchasing that I wasn't quite grasping.

The group of characters you meet is quite endearing and I really liked the interactions between them. I might not think the game is as great as VIII (tough act to follow really), but it was still a fantastic journey, let's see where the wind takes us next.

Cocoon is a beautifully weird adventure with nice puzzles but most importantly, it knows when to show off and make an impact.

Overall I don't think the game is particularly challenging if you are used to puzzle games, but the ideas are certainly unique, and the presentation makes sure the moment something cool happens you can feel the surprise.

There is one mechanic (the purple orb) that feels a bit disconnected from the whole, but it was still cool in the section it happens. The boss fights were very fun and also have their own unique ideas. Overall, a really wonderful journey.

Chants of Sennaar is an incredibly well crafted puzzle game about deciphering languages. You encounter multiple cultures and you have to learn how each of them express themselves, be it through what they say or the environment, with signs, illustrations and other clues.

The game seems to strike the perfect balance in being challenging enough that it makes you feel good about getting things right and it never feels unfair or too obvious. Each language also feels unique, and figuring out the structure of a sentence is just as important as discovering what each symbol means.

I do feel like the middle ends up being the most challenging section, and the end feels a bit weird by shaking things up a little too much, but it is just a very small part that doesn't negatively impact my impressions too much.

With a curious world, portrayed in a beautiful art style, the game keeps pushing your observation and analysis skills, and it is extremely rewarding to feel the mystery unravel as your knowledge grows.

This one is hard to review. It is probably one of the best farming games I played, but at the same time it sabotages itself in multiple ways.

Most notable of all, if you are interested in characters and relationships in these games, this one is not for you. Characters barely have unique dialogue, they repeat some tips constantly, it is clear the budget went to other aspects of the game. It hurts more because some characters are really lovely designed, but there isn't really much to this aspect.

The farming stuff is really well done, and the crafting related systems are also greatly incorporated in your daily routine. The flower breeding is one of my favorite features, and it is rewarding to get new dyes after collecting a variety of species.

I think the game does stumble a bit at the start, focusing too much on the first dungeon, before truly opening up possibilities for the player. But after that I felt the pace at which I got to explore new stuff was great, and getting more magical stuff mixed in help bring out the uniqueness of the game.

I feel like while the game can be a lot of fun, it might be more fun a few months from now. At the moment I think the game is good, but it really needs some fixes and tweaks to become great, and it has the potential to be really great, it just needs an extra push.

[Note: I played it all solo and don't have much insight about the multiplayer features, but it was still great playing alone]