JetWolfEX
BACKER
1999
This is a Picross knockoff, usually a clone of a game is worse but this is the best version of this type of puzzle game I've played. This PS1 game is a modified port of an arcade series, it's extremely obscure and I was lucky to find a copy.
This has the same foundation as Nintendo's Picross series (similar to mine sweeper on PC) but since it's an arcade series action and quick thinking are much more of a focus the game has characters and items from action puzzle games mixed in.
While most other puzzle games like this time how long the puzzle takes and are more laid-back, these games have a timer counting down prioritizing quick thinking and strategy it makes the game a lot more exciting.
There's more depth than typical puzzle games since you can refill the time by clearing the right blocks, I came up with a strategy of leaving some parts blank that I knew were part of the picture so if the time was running out I could quickly fill the area in.
Items are randomly found too, these can reveal parts of the puzzle and up to 5 can be stored at once, there's some basic risk/reward design.
The entire game is very colorful and well animated, with good character designs and catchy music.
mechanics like score and continues don't really do anything, so it's still very low stakes and not punishing. I would've like some more tension from losing progress but at least it's accessible and not frustrating.
To get the last level requires going back to levels and grinding collectibles, it wasn't too bad but the only real complaint I have other than the main mode being short.
This all applies to the main story mode which is short but has a wide variety of music and backgrounds, and is 1 or 2 players.
Besides the Main story mode there's a time trial mode with no items or collectibles, it's much more standard but has its own unique graphics and stage themes.
I was surprised to find over 700 different puzzles to complete and they can be done in any order, the game saves progress thankfully. It's far above average for the amount of content.
I try to avoid using terms like hidden or overlooked to describe games, but this one definitely is.
I didn't expect much from this game but it exceeded all of my expectations, this entire series is worth playing (Logic Pro 1 and 2).
People who enjoy these kinds of puzzle games will enjoy this.
This has the same foundation as Nintendo's Picross series (similar to mine sweeper on PC) but since it's an arcade series action and quick thinking are much more of a focus the game has characters and items from action puzzle games mixed in.
While most other puzzle games like this time how long the puzzle takes and are more laid-back, these games have a timer counting down prioritizing quick thinking and strategy it makes the game a lot more exciting.
There's more depth than typical puzzle games since you can refill the time by clearing the right blocks, I came up with a strategy of leaving some parts blank that I knew were part of the picture so if the time was running out I could quickly fill the area in.
Items are randomly found too, these can reveal parts of the puzzle and up to 5 can be stored at once, there's some basic risk/reward design.
The entire game is very colorful and well animated, with good character designs and catchy music.
mechanics like score and continues don't really do anything, so it's still very low stakes and not punishing. I would've like some more tension from losing progress but at least it's accessible and not frustrating.
To get the last level requires going back to levels and grinding collectibles, it wasn't too bad but the only real complaint I have other than the main mode being short.
This all applies to the main story mode which is short but has a wide variety of music and backgrounds, and is 1 or 2 players.
Besides the Main story mode there's a time trial mode with no items or collectibles, it's much more standard but has its own unique graphics and stage themes.
I was surprised to find over 700 different puzzles to complete and they can be done in any order, the game saves progress thankfully. It's far above average for the amount of content.
I try to avoid using terms like hidden or overlooked to describe games, but this one definitely is.
I didn't expect much from this game but it exceeded all of my expectations, this entire series is worth playing (Logic Pro 1 and 2).
People who enjoy these kinds of puzzle games will enjoy this.
1991
I'm not much of a fan of this series in the first place, but I've played a few of them. This one isn't the worst but it's still overall disappointing.
This game does well for being a 1991 snes game. some of the backgrounds had really good parallax effects, other than that it's a barren often static looking game.
I really like the music too, though the guitar samples sound very aged.
Everything nice I have to say about it is more than negated by one the worst final levels I have seen in any game, I was actually having a great time with it until that point.
There's no real design to it, they just throw 3 mid-bosses at the player at once and have them respawn like 15 times.
They clearly weren't designed to be together and lead to extremely unfair situations. It also goes on for way too long then ends with a boring and forgettable final boss.
I don't think the end of the game was finished or tested, it seems like the devs ran out of time and just re-uesed assets.
The endings are boring, I questioned why I bothered to play through this. It's a decent playthrough with savestates but I shouldn't have to rely on that to enjoy a game.
It's like a 7/10 until the last level then it suddenly drops to a 2/10 game. Average at best, but overall mediocre.
Still better than Darius Force.
This game does well for being a 1991 snes game. some of the backgrounds had really good parallax effects, other than that it's a barren often static looking game.
I really like the music too, though the guitar samples sound very aged.
Everything nice I have to say about it is more than negated by one the worst final levels I have seen in any game, I was actually having a great time with it until that point.
There's no real design to it, they just throw 3 mid-bosses at the player at once and have them respawn like 15 times.
They clearly weren't designed to be together and lead to extremely unfair situations. It also goes on for way too long then ends with a boring and forgettable final boss.
I don't think the end of the game was finished or tested, it seems like the devs ran out of time and just re-uesed assets.
The endings are boring, I questioned why I bothered to play through this. It's a decent playthrough with savestates but I shouldn't have to rely on that to enjoy a game.
It's like a 7/10 until the last level then it suddenly drops to a 2/10 game. Average at best, but overall mediocre.
Still better than Darius Force.
2001
Headhunter is a recklessly ambitious game.
That's the best way I can sum it up.
The effort put into it can be immediately seen in the visuals, it doesn't look like a Dreamcast game.
Textures are clean and sharp, models look good, decent animation and smooth environments, and nice lighting effects. It's possibly the best looking Dreamcast game I've seen so far, I would often just wander around in rooms and look at all the small details and backdrops.
The game excels in atmosphere overall, the visuals, tone, and soundtrack perfectly fit together.
It's also noticeable in the story and writing and in this case that was one of the better aspects, it was entertaining throughout it's not the deepest story or anything but it has a strange satire/semi serous tone that makes it stand out, numerous cutscenes both pre rendered and live action.
The last overall positive aspect is the music by Richard Jaques, it adds a lot to the game. It's one thing that stands out in a good way.
The dev team simply tried to do too much, you have driving segments, stealth gameplay, third person shooting, VR missions, and various Resident Evil style puzzles crammed into a small game, as a result none of them are all that polished or deep.
The combat is not great, stealth take-downs wouldn't work most of the time, the enemies aim is terrible so the entire game I would just walk toward them while shooting and usually take no damage, instead of coming up with any strategy.
The boss fights were better but often were more of a DPS race. Targetting would often get stuck on objects or far enemies I didn't want to aim at. It was clunky but still fun in a mindless way, when the stealth worked and I could sneak up on enemies it was fun and trying to use mines and grenades strategically was satisfying, it was never hard enough to be frustrating and losing doesn't send the player back that far (most of the time).
I could definitely tell this was supposed to be an open mission based game, but something must have happened in development because the game has a pointless empty overworld to drive around in despite progress being linear.
They clearly had to cut back on this one a lot, yet confusingly they kept the open world hub anyway they seemed to really want to keep it in the game no matter the cost, and to make sure players are forced to explore it there is a driving exp system the prevents you from continuing until a certain number is reached, it's one of the strangest design decisions in a game I can think of in recent memory.
even the slightest graze with any obstacle makes you lose points, it's far too punishing this lead me to have to grind driving back and forth through an empty lot for about 30 minutes before I could finish the game.
This holds the game back a lot, it does add a bit of identity to it but maybe not in a good way.
I did enjoy wandering around in the hubworld just exploring sometimes.
To add to all of this the game is glitchy, new game plus softlocks itself, it's easy to clip in to some areas, a wall in the overworld has no collision, and I died while exiting areas or beating bosses several times leading to strange and funny results.
Near the end of a game I left a room I wasn't supposed to and found it couldn't be re-entered. I had to circle back around the route to get back in, an the event that stopped a bunch of instant kill lasers blocking the way forward wouldn't re activate, so I had softlocked my game at the very end.
In order to beat this game I had to resort to using an out of bounds glitch to walk around the blocked doors, it was incredibly easy to cause this softlock.
That's generally how this game is, poorly executed but almost never dull, it has what you might call Dreamcast era charm that keeps it from becoming boring sometimes ironically. Despite the problems I had it was worth sticking with this one, it wasn't too long either.
This game was awkward, a bit glitchy, but still a fun playthrough. I'd recommend this to people that want something a bit experimental that has an aged feel to it, like a time capsule representing the late dreamcast era.
People with less patience for unintuitive control and lack of polish should definitely avoid this game.
That's the best way I can sum it up.
The effort put into it can be immediately seen in the visuals, it doesn't look like a Dreamcast game.
Textures are clean and sharp, models look good, decent animation and smooth environments, and nice lighting effects. It's possibly the best looking Dreamcast game I've seen so far, I would often just wander around in rooms and look at all the small details and backdrops.
The game excels in atmosphere overall, the visuals, tone, and soundtrack perfectly fit together.
It's also noticeable in the story and writing and in this case that was one of the better aspects, it was entertaining throughout it's not the deepest story or anything but it has a strange satire/semi serous tone that makes it stand out, numerous cutscenes both pre rendered and live action.
The last overall positive aspect is the music by Richard Jaques, it adds a lot to the game. It's one thing that stands out in a good way.
The dev team simply tried to do too much, you have driving segments, stealth gameplay, third person shooting, VR missions, and various Resident Evil style puzzles crammed into a small game, as a result none of them are all that polished or deep.
The combat is not great, stealth take-downs wouldn't work most of the time, the enemies aim is terrible so the entire game I would just walk toward them while shooting and usually take no damage, instead of coming up with any strategy.
The boss fights were better but often were more of a DPS race. Targetting would often get stuck on objects or far enemies I didn't want to aim at. It was clunky but still fun in a mindless way, when the stealth worked and I could sneak up on enemies it was fun and trying to use mines and grenades strategically was satisfying, it was never hard enough to be frustrating and losing doesn't send the player back that far (most of the time).
I could definitely tell this was supposed to be an open mission based game, but something must have happened in development because the game has a pointless empty overworld to drive around in despite progress being linear.
They clearly had to cut back on this one a lot, yet confusingly they kept the open world hub anyway they seemed to really want to keep it in the game no matter the cost, and to make sure players are forced to explore it there is a driving exp system the prevents you from continuing until a certain number is reached, it's one of the strangest design decisions in a game I can think of in recent memory.
even the slightest graze with any obstacle makes you lose points, it's far too punishing this lead me to have to grind driving back and forth through an empty lot for about 30 minutes before I could finish the game.
This holds the game back a lot, it does add a bit of identity to it but maybe not in a good way.
I did enjoy wandering around in the hubworld just exploring sometimes.
To add to all of this the game is glitchy, new game plus softlocks itself, it's easy to clip in to some areas, a wall in the overworld has no collision, and I died while exiting areas or beating bosses several times leading to strange and funny results.
Near the end of a game I left a room I wasn't supposed to and found it couldn't be re-entered. I had to circle back around the route to get back in, an the event that stopped a bunch of instant kill lasers blocking the way forward wouldn't re activate, so I had softlocked my game at the very end.
In order to beat this game I had to resort to using an out of bounds glitch to walk around the blocked doors, it was incredibly easy to cause this softlock.
That's generally how this game is, poorly executed but almost never dull, it has what you might call Dreamcast era charm that keeps it from becoming boring sometimes ironically. Despite the problems I had it was worth sticking with this one, it wasn't too long either.
This game was awkward, a bit glitchy, but still a fun playthrough. I'd recommend this to people that want something a bit experimental that has an aged feel to it, like a time capsule representing the late dreamcast era.
People with less patience for unintuitive control and lack of polish should definitely avoid this game.
TBD
This was an interesting PS1 game, It is probably one of the most obscure games I've played.
It's a "dungeon crawling" game with a randomly generated 50 floor dungeon. This one is specifically 2 player cooperative, and you can pick form 4 classes of characters, this adds a lot of replayability and uniqueness.
Just like any "rouge-like" game if you aren't prepared it's very hard to progress, this game prevents you from speeding through to the end by implementing a hunger meter that only very specific items fill, if it runs out you lose large amounts of health constantly. So I would reach a certain depth and have to warp out to restock and heal, then go back and get a bit further each time.
I like that this game is generally more forgiving and less punishing than most other dungeon focused RPGs, there is no instant death or equipment durability, this game was difficult but not in unfair ways.
There's an expansive list of weapons, items, armor, ect in the game so there was a lot to experiment with, I was always finding new tools to use and try out in the game.
Combat fells stiff and outdated but it was still fun trying to maneuver around enemies and attack during their openings. The game has magic, long range, and melee combat but the enemy tracking isn't very accurate and hard to control.
There are good enough environments ingame, they are somewhat generic but have some nice visual touches, you will see the same rooms recycled as the game randomly builds the map out of them, it does get repetitive after long sessions of playing.
While this game is simple, it also has some elements that are truly strange, the main dungeon is really just for looting good equipment and leveling up, most players will get to the final floor expecting the end of the game only to find a regular floor with no exit or ending.
At the 25th floor is the real goal of the game, from there the focus changes to gathering four special keys.
What made this very odd is they are randomly dropped in treasure chests the last 20 floors and there's no real indication that they are important (besides text I cant read), you can stockpile them for no reason, sell them, or discard them (which I did unknowingly) one of them simply refused to spawn for me even after 10 hours of grinding the dungeon, the RNG (randomness) can be really frustrating at times, I had really bad luck with this.
Another very strange thing is there's no bosses in the game until the very end, then you get like 8 with small premade dungeons in between, very unusual pacing. They were fun and challenging to fight and added some needed variety, the bosses were definitely a highlight of this game.
The game is light on content but it gets a lot out of what's there, it's about 5 hours to beat. Overall it was a fun experience, and didn't get old. I feel like if it was any longer it would have significantly detracted from the game, the way it is it's easier to get into and try another run.
These kinds of games can be very hit-or-miss but I will definitely come back to this one, for fans of the genre I would recommend trying this game, be aware of the language barrier, I was still able to beat this one and understand basically everything with some persistence.
It's a "dungeon crawling" game with a randomly generated 50 floor dungeon. This one is specifically 2 player cooperative, and you can pick form 4 classes of characters, this adds a lot of replayability and uniqueness.
Just like any "rouge-like" game if you aren't prepared it's very hard to progress, this game prevents you from speeding through to the end by implementing a hunger meter that only very specific items fill, if it runs out you lose large amounts of health constantly. So I would reach a certain depth and have to warp out to restock and heal, then go back and get a bit further each time.
I like that this game is generally more forgiving and less punishing than most other dungeon focused RPGs, there is no instant death or equipment durability, this game was difficult but not in unfair ways.
There's an expansive list of weapons, items, armor, ect in the game so there was a lot to experiment with, I was always finding new tools to use and try out in the game.
Combat fells stiff and outdated but it was still fun trying to maneuver around enemies and attack during their openings. The game has magic, long range, and melee combat but the enemy tracking isn't very accurate and hard to control.
There are good enough environments ingame, they are somewhat generic but have some nice visual touches, you will see the same rooms recycled as the game randomly builds the map out of them, it does get repetitive after long sessions of playing.
While this game is simple, it also has some elements that are truly strange, the main dungeon is really just for looting good equipment and leveling up, most players will get to the final floor expecting the end of the game only to find a regular floor with no exit or ending.
At the 25th floor is the real goal of the game, from there the focus changes to gathering four special keys.
What made this very odd is they are randomly dropped in treasure chests the last 20 floors and there's no real indication that they are important (besides text I cant read), you can stockpile them for no reason, sell them, or discard them (which I did unknowingly) one of them simply refused to spawn for me even after 10 hours of grinding the dungeon, the RNG (randomness) can be really frustrating at times, I had really bad luck with this.
Another very strange thing is there's no bosses in the game until the very end, then you get like 8 with small premade dungeons in between, very unusual pacing. They were fun and challenging to fight and added some needed variety, the bosses were definitely a highlight of this game.
The game is light on content but it gets a lot out of what's there, it's about 5 hours to beat. Overall it was a fun experience, and didn't get old. I feel like if it was any longer it would have significantly detracted from the game, the way it is it's easier to get into and try another run.
These kinds of games can be very hit-or-miss but I will definitely come back to this one, for fans of the genre I would recommend trying this game, be aware of the language barrier, I was still able to beat this one and understand basically everything with some persistence.
2022
It makes sense the story mode is supposed to be a side mode and the multiplayer is the main focus of the game
The campaign alone was boring, the first game was trying something new and was basic as expected, 2 expanded story mode and added fun gimmicks and more interesting level design, but it seems like after 2 they ran out of good ideas and had to still add things in since it's a sequel.
So nearly all the new gameplay ideas in three's campaign are either boring or tedious, and overall it's a bit padded reusing ideas, the bosses are extremely simple. I had to force myself to clear it, this review isn't coming out until a year later because I kept dropping the story mode and just going back to ranked.
The story didn't impress, it was neat lore but I didn't get invested in it, 2's expansion spoiled me on this, the final levels were really minimal and not challenging at all.
I don't have the DLC so it might be a lot better now for single-player, I haven't looked into it.
The other modes however are much better, despite connection issues the balancing, map design, new weapons and gear, and modes are better than they ever have been.
For once getting into S+ didn't make me want to snap the game cart into tiny pieces, the game is punishing but nowhere near 1 or 2 while still requiring mastery to get into S+
Salmon run is chaotic unfair but fun nonetheless, just way too grindy to get anything good out of it but I can't stop playing it.
I'm really not into online multiplayer focused games, I don't get any satisfaction form competitive matches or PvP, co-op monser hunting, ect. I become disinterested quickly and drop these kinds of games quickly.
The core gameplay is so engaging and intuitive that I can enjoy it despite really not liking multiplayer focused games.
They pulled off something noteworthy with this game, and considering I still want to go back to it this is one of the best online games this company has made.
I'd skip the story mode, everything else though was great.
(added a year later)
They keep making the balancing worse, the new maps aren't fun to play and don't have good strategy or depth in multiplayer, salmon run keeps getting new maps but they still feel the same, Splatfests are fun on paper, but when I actually go to play I get disconnected and horrible lag that ruins the experience.
creating or joining lobbies and linking up with friends in needlessly complicated and un-intuitive and by the time we get it figured out I don't want to play anymore.
It's still addicting, but maybe not in a good way personally speaking. I spend so much time on this game but in the back of my mind I know it amounts to nothing. the only person that will care about your rank or win ratio is yourself, there's nothing to gain competitively long-term.
The campaign alone was boring, the first game was trying something new and was basic as expected, 2 expanded story mode and added fun gimmicks and more interesting level design, but it seems like after 2 they ran out of good ideas and had to still add things in since it's a sequel.
So nearly all the new gameplay ideas in three's campaign are either boring or tedious, and overall it's a bit padded reusing ideas, the bosses are extremely simple. I had to force myself to clear it, this review isn't coming out until a year later because I kept dropping the story mode and just going back to ranked.
The story didn't impress, it was neat lore but I didn't get invested in it, 2's expansion spoiled me on this, the final levels were really minimal and not challenging at all.
I don't have the DLC so it might be a lot better now for single-player, I haven't looked into it.
The other modes however are much better, despite connection issues the balancing, map design, new weapons and gear, and modes are better than they ever have been.
For once getting into S+ didn't make me want to snap the game cart into tiny pieces, the game is punishing but nowhere near 1 or 2 while still requiring mastery to get into S+
Salmon run is chaotic unfair but fun nonetheless, just way too grindy to get anything good out of it but I can't stop playing it.
I'm really not into online multiplayer focused games, I don't get any satisfaction form competitive matches or PvP, co-op monser hunting, ect. I become disinterested quickly and drop these kinds of games quickly.
The core gameplay is so engaging and intuitive that I can enjoy it despite really not liking multiplayer focused games.
They pulled off something noteworthy with this game, and considering I still want to go back to it this is one of the best online games this company has made.
I'd skip the story mode, everything else though was great.
(added a year later)
They keep making the balancing worse, the new maps aren't fun to play and don't have good strategy or depth in multiplayer, salmon run keeps getting new maps but they still feel the same, Splatfests are fun on paper, but when I actually go to play I get disconnected and horrible lag that ruins the experience.
creating or joining lobbies and linking up with friends in needlessly complicated and un-intuitive and by the time we get it figured out I don't want to play anymore.
It's still addicting, but maybe not in a good way personally speaking. I spend so much time on this game but in the back of my mind I know it amounts to nothing. the only person that will care about your rank or win ratio is yourself, there's nothing to gain competitively long-term.
2001
This game is good, but without the control and variety the sequels added the game gets repetitive, there's a lot of waiting to get into the right angle of rotation, you cant speed it up like in the other games. I can't remember most of the levels in this, and after playing the other games there's no going back. It's kind of a pure arcade style game without the extra polish to make it something special.
Really nice presentation though.
Really nice presentation though.
My first experience with any game in this series, it went far above my expectations, there was a learning curve getting used to the controls of a more realistic flight game, but once I had it figured out it felt amazing to play.
The presentation and story were great, they went above expectations with this too, I was not expecting so much world building and background for the fictional setting and the acting was mostly good.
What stood out to me was the variety of play-styles and morality system that leads to having many different strategies to play the game.
I quickly realized I like using Air-to-ground and flying as low as possible while taking out targets with just the standard gun, it was thrilling breaking away at the last moment or flying through cluttered environments while dodging missiles. Looks amazing for a PS2 game.
The air combat was good to, the ai had variety between enemies, the bosses were all interesting and had to be taken on in different ways.
I have one complaint, it takes awhile to get into missions, you have to usually fly into the map for a minute and wait for all the pilot banter, and if you lose you have to wait through it all again, I got tired of certain lines that get repeated very time I had to start over.
I enjoyed this the whole way through, and I will definitely play through again to try harder difficulties and different routes and ships, this is a new favorite and I plan on trying a few others in this series. Highly recommended for a flight-combat type game.
The presentation and story were great, they went above expectations with this too, I was not expecting so much world building and background for the fictional setting and the acting was mostly good.
What stood out to me was the variety of play-styles and morality system that leads to having many different strategies to play the game.
I quickly realized I like using Air-to-ground and flying as low as possible while taking out targets with just the standard gun, it was thrilling breaking away at the last moment or flying through cluttered environments while dodging missiles. Looks amazing for a PS2 game.
The air combat was good to, the ai had variety between enemies, the bosses were all interesting and had to be taken on in different ways.
I have one complaint, it takes awhile to get into missions, you have to usually fly into the map for a minute and wait for all the pilot banter, and if you lose you have to wait through it all again, I got tired of certain lines that get repeated very time I had to start over.
I enjoyed this the whole way through, and I will definitely play through again to try harder difficulties and different routes and ships, this is a new favorite and I plan on trying a few others in this series. Highly recommended for a flight-combat type game.
2019
I did not finish this game, I completely lost interest in it. Because my experience was more limited I think it wouldn't be fair to rate the game.
What I can say is I spent 9 hours playing and really did not like this.
Random IP's are just thrown in so fans will buy it, but there's not much substance to back it up. There's several hundred extremely well animated battle animations accurate to the source material, while it's very impressive to look at it feels like they rely on them to distract players from the uninteresting story and overly expositional writing that doesn't amount to anything worthwhile and fails to try to set up an (interesting [to me at least]) original story around all these characters.
Even on Hardest settings at 5+ hours in I could just send my units directly into harms way with little thought, pick any attack and repeat every turn and still win with no allies lost. Enemy NPCs mostly behave the same way without any real strategy or unique AI.
The game-play is an illusion. There's tons of buffs equip-ables and menus within menus but there is no reason to bother with any of it, because the characters are already overpowered.
Importing this was a complete waste of time, I've played better SRW games that required thought and skill to play, had interesting characters that were better introduced with believable interactions.
Most games are an interactive experience, if a game doesn't rely on gameplay it needs a good plot, writing, or setting to keep it engaging. This does neither, it's a glorified mecha cutscene simulator.
Even if that's your thing, you can just look up all the animations and get the same experience without having to play it at all, and would be a better experience, better yet just watch the animated series connected to whatever IP.
This is probably just not for me, it seems like you have to be a fan of these IPs to enjoy it, I assume it doesn't get better or difficult 10+ hours in but I could be wrong, either way it shouldn't take that long.
Besides the weak crossover, and some really good remix tracks and original music this game has no point.
What I can say is I spent 9 hours playing and really did not like this.
Random IP's are just thrown in so fans will buy it, but there's not much substance to back it up. There's several hundred extremely well animated battle animations accurate to the source material, while it's very impressive to look at it feels like they rely on them to distract players from the uninteresting story and overly expositional writing that doesn't amount to anything worthwhile and fails to try to set up an (interesting [to me at least]) original story around all these characters.
Even on Hardest settings at 5+ hours in I could just send my units directly into harms way with little thought, pick any attack and repeat every turn and still win with no allies lost. Enemy NPCs mostly behave the same way without any real strategy or unique AI.
The game-play is an illusion. There's tons of buffs equip-ables and menus within menus but there is no reason to bother with any of it, because the characters are already overpowered.
Importing this was a complete waste of time, I've played better SRW games that required thought and skill to play, had interesting characters that were better introduced with believable interactions.
Most games are an interactive experience, if a game doesn't rely on gameplay it needs a good plot, writing, or setting to keep it engaging. This does neither, it's a glorified mecha cutscene simulator.
Even if that's your thing, you can just look up all the animations and get the same experience without having to play it at all, and would be a better experience, better yet just watch the animated series connected to whatever IP.
This is probably just not for me, it seems like you have to be a fan of these IPs to enjoy it, I assume it doesn't get better or difficult 10+ hours in but I could be wrong, either way it shouldn't take that long.
Besides the weak crossover, and some really good remix tracks and original music this game has no point.
1999
I'll never forget the first time I started up this game on N64, whenever that windy atmospheric music track starts playing all the memories I used to have playing this for that brief period of time come back.
All this time, that's what has really stuck with me, the sound and visuals of this game were really something unique, the music (only in the N64 version) really nails the apocalyptic war theming the game has, yet it's juxtaposed with cartoon style characters and environments with goofy voice lines and comical weapons.
It's always been the identity of this game series, but Armageddon does this the best out of any of them.
Sometimes returning to something I haven't played in many years might turn out to be different or not nearly as good as I had thought, but this is one game where I enjoy it even more now. I think in terms of age it holds up alright.
(I'll get into that more later)
That intense nostalgic presentation, paired with the inviting art style and immersive catchy music makes this game relaxing in a way. It's easy to just jump into a quick deathmatch or random map and blow away some bots while taking everything in, it was great stress relief.
It would be easy to write this game off as mindless shallow fun, a disposable multiplayer game, just for kids, it looks that way on the surface but there's more to this game.
First of all there's a good selection of modes available, there's your typical mission based campaign mode, and several others for quckplay, or others that vary based on how customizable they are, there's a good selection of modes here and a decent amount of content to keep anyone playing.
The main 1player mode has good variety and is extremely challenging, it was mostly fun to overcome it and learn new skills to beat the game, the difficulty curve is all over though, and there will be missions that a player will get stuck on for awhile, then clear the next in just a few attempts.
There's a lot of weapons to use and they come in a wide variety, coming up with solutions with the tools given can be satisfying and fun, the destructible environments add a lot to the gameplay, players can dig through or destroy any wall/floor and hiding in them can be an interesting strategy.
The games biggest gameplay strength is definitely the variety of actions the player can take at any given time and paired with any map this can mean tons of possibilities, the weapons and maps aren't always balanced the best, but that's part of the fun of the game, sometimes you never know what situations you'll end up in.
The bot A.I. is not great but good enough to keep me entertained, they can be easy to exploit once their pattern is noticed, they can be unfair in how good they play as well.
It's best to play with the "retro" game style to keep it balanced.
Before getting into how the N64 verison plays I have to make it clear that I am reviewing the N64 port of this game, and it is the only version I have played at the time of writing (I should give the PC or Dreamcast versions a chance sometime)
The N64 port has several differences I think I prefer, and others that make it worse to play. I am not blinded by my nostalgia for this game, there are significant flaws here.
To start with positives, there's the soundtrack which was added for just this version, it's really good, but I've said enough about it already.
The game is lower resolution, in just about any game this would be a downgrade but (at least to me) it's more like a pixel filter, on PC it looks like random clip art and characters drawn in an old flash animation, when pixelated it has more of a hand drawn look, it looks more like a Video-game and less like an app played in an online browser or something.
There's more color and variety in the backgrounds than the blank ones in other versions, and some extra options like the map randomiser.
The game is a bit more zoomed in and that does cause some problems, while it's nice to be able to see my character more closely for platforming and aiming, moving the camera around is required much more than usual.
There's less options for multiplayer, and some others are locked behind completion, the game is a bit buggy too it can occasionally crash and if you beat the campaign and try to re enter it in the menu it will also crash the game, you can't replay it by normal means, there's a lot that feels unfinished in this way, and important progression info is not displayed on profiles or in the menu.
Completing the game was fun but frustrating
Getting medals in 1 player modes unlocks more weapons and gameplay modes for multiplayer but there's a big problem. You do this by getting silver medals or gold, but they way you get these is not told anywhere not even in the manual and you can't see what you have/haven't done it's not shown anywhere.
I assumed it would be based on turns taken, time used, damage taken, ect. but it's the number of times you've attempted the mission, it's nonsense. The player has to beat each mission in at most 2 attempts (resetting or quitting out still counts) and with how difficult and punishing the game is that is unreasonable.
This is so much worse because core multiplayer options like retro or all weapons are locked behind these medals, most players will likely never get to play multiplayer the more balanced or fun way.
What is also affected badly is controlling the game, the N64 controller is already more difficult to get used to, but in this version some button mapping makes no sense an is overcomplicated, I find myself pressing the wrong button and accidentally wasting my turn or throwing a grenade at my own character, worst is the flight movement is extremely sensitive, so much so that 2 levels built around it were cut from this verison, what is still there is nearly impossible to play, as just pushing left/right for one frame will nearly turn it a full 90 degrees, just passing the tutorial for the game was difficult.
This game is turn based and AI characters take more time to make their move in this version, it's generally a slow game when against a computer opponent.
So there's definitely a lot going against this game, but a lot I like about it, I can see why players would not prefer this port or find this game in general difficult to get into, but there's enough added to it.
If someone can overcome the difficulty and get used to the game is becomes very enjoyable, not to mention the multiplayer can be endlessly enjoyable, it's easily one of the best multiplayer games on N64 or any console it was on, and one I still return to once in awhile, the one player modes are varied, provide plenty of content, and can be enjoyable at times but are less consistent.
This is a very unique and ambitious game. It was clear that despite the N64 port having a limited and possibly troubled development, it had a lot of care put into it and is worth trying at least for the multiplayer. This is one of my favorite games of this generation in spite of everything.
All this time, that's what has really stuck with me, the sound and visuals of this game were really something unique, the music (only in the N64 version) really nails the apocalyptic war theming the game has, yet it's juxtaposed with cartoon style characters and environments with goofy voice lines and comical weapons.
It's always been the identity of this game series, but Armageddon does this the best out of any of them.
Sometimes returning to something I haven't played in many years might turn out to be different or not nearly as good as I had thought, but this is one game where I enjoy it even more now. I think in terms of age it holds up alright.
(I'll get into that more later)
That intense nostalgic presentation, paired with the inviting art style and immersive catchy music makes this game relaxing in a way. It's easy to just jump into a quick deathmatch or random map and blow away some bots while taking everything in, it was great stress relief.
It would be easy to write this game off as mindless shallow fun, a disposable multiplayer game, just for kids, it looks that way on the surface but there's more to this game.
First of all there's a good selection of modes available, there's your typical mission based campaign mode, and several others for quckplay, or others that vary based on how customizable they are, there's a good selection of modes here and a decent amount of content to keep anyone playing.
The main 1player mode has good variety and is extremely challenging, it was mostly fun to overcome it and learn new skills to beat the game, the difficulty curve is all over though, and there will be missions that a player will get stuck on for awhile, then clear the next in just a few attempts.
There's a lot of weapons to use and they come in a wide variety, coming up with solutions with the tools given can be satisfying and fun, the destructible environments add a lot to the gameplay, players can dig through or destroy any wall/floor and hiding in them can be an interesting strategy.
The games biggest gameplay strength is definitely the variety of actions the player can take at any given time and paired with any map this can mean tons of possibilities, the weapons and maps aren't always balanced the best, but that's part of the fun of the game, sometimes you never know what situations you'll end up in.
The bot A.I. is not great but good enough to keep me entertained, they can be easy to exploit once their pattern is noticed, they can be unfair in how good they play as well.
It's best to play with the "retro" game style to keep it balanced.
Before getting into how the N64 verison plays I have to make it clear that I am reviewing the N64 port of this game, and it is the only version I have played at the time of writing (I should give the PC or Dreamcast versions a chance sometime)
The N64 port has several differences I think I prefer, and others that make it worse to play. I am not blinded by my nostalgia for this game, there are significant flaws here.
To start with positives, there's the soundtrack which was added for just this version, it's really good, but I've said enough about it already.
The game is lower resolution, in just about any game this would be a downgrade but (at least to me) it's more like a pixel filter, on PC it looks like random clip art and characters drawn in an old flash animation, when pixelated it has more of a hand drawn look, it looks more like a Video-game and less like an app played in an online browser or something.
There's more color and variety in the backgrounds than the blank ones in other versions, and some extra options like the map randomiser.
The game is a bit more zoomed in and that does cause some problems, while it's nice to be able to see my character more closely for platforming and aiming, moving the camera around is required much more than usual.
There's less options for multiplayer, and some others are locked behind completion, the game is a bit buggy too it can occasionally crash and if you beat the campaign and try to re enter it in the menu it will also crash the game, you can't replay it by normal means, there's a lot that feels unfinished in this way, and important progression info is not displayed on profiles or in the menu.
Completing the game was fun but frustrating
Getting medals in 1 player modes unlocks more weapons and gameplay modes for multiplayer but there's a big problem. You do this by getting silver medals or gold, but they way you get these is not told anywhere not even in the manual and you can't see what you have/haven't done it's not shown anywhere.
I assumed it would be based on turns taken, time used, damage taken, ect. but it's the number of times you've attempted the mission, it's nonsense. The player has to beat each mission in at most 2 attempts (resetting or quitting out still counts) and with how difficult and punishing the game is that is unreasonable.
This is so much worse because core multiplayer options like retro or all weapons are locked behind these medals, most players will likely never get to play multiplayer the more balanced or fun way.
What is also affected badly is controlling the game, the N64 controller is already more difficult to get used to, but in this version some button mapping makes no sense an is overcomplicated, I find myself pressing the wrong button and accidentally wasting my turn or throwing a grenade at my own character, worst is the flight movement is extremely sensitive, so much so that 2 levels built around it were cut from this verison, what is still there is nearly impossible to play, as just pushing left/right for one frame will nearly turn it a full 90 degrees, just passing the tutorial for the game was difficult.
This game is turn based and AI characters take more time to make their move in this version, it's generally a slow game when against a computer opponent.
So there's definitely a lot going against this game, but a lot I like about it, I can see why players would not prefer this port or find this game in general difficult to get into, but there's enough added to it.
If someone can overcome the difficulty and get used to the game is becomes very enjoyable, not to mention the multiplayer can be endlessly enjoyable, it's easily one of the best multiplayer games on N64 or any console it was on, and one I still return to once in awhile, the one player modes are varied, provide plenty of content, and can be enjoyable at times but are less consistent.
This is a very unique and ambitious game. It was clear that despite the N64 port having a limited and possibly troubled development, it had a lot of care put into it and is worth trying at least for the multiplayer. This is one of my favorite games of this generation in spite of everything.
1996
If I had played this at launch I probably would've liked it more.
Other than some great animation outside of battles and very good music the game feels standard in a lot of ways.
The story could have elevated the game but instead it's not very coherent or memorable, it felt very disconnected and more like an afterthought I can't actually recall any of the plot points or events in the game.
The battles can be slow in terms of framerate.
What I played was easy, there was never any real strategy or thinking I had to do in battle, it's fine for what it is.
At times the game does a poor job letting the player know where to go, once the world map opened up I had no idea where the next objective was and backtracked through the entire game trying to find it, I had to use a guide several times to get a sense of direction, I ran out of patience eventually, but that might be my own fault for not paying enough attenion or missing some important dialogue, it still felt meandering.
I never found what was supposed to be my motivation to keep playing, it had a strong start, but at some point it was no longer clear what the characters are fighting for what is important in the plot or when the game would start being enjoyable to play, and I lost interest.
I think there was a lot of potential here that just hadn't been reached yet, Maybe Wild Arms 2 will be an improvement I will give it a chance sometime
I'm glad I played this just to try it. It's an inoffensive RPG, there's nothing wrong with a game being simple or easy, but I think it could have been executed better. regardless this was good for an early PS1 game when there weren't many games to choose from.
Other than some great animation outside of battles and very good music the game feels standard in a lot of ways.
The story could have elevated the game but instead it's not very coherent or memorable, it felt very disconnected and more like an afterthought I can't actually recall any of the plot points or events in the game.
The battles can be slow in terms of framerate.
What I played was easy, there was never any real strategy or thinking I had to do in battle, it's fine for what it is.
At times the game does a poor job letting the player know where to go, once the world map opened up I had no idea where the next objective was and backtracked through the entire game trying to find it, I had to use a guide several times to get a sense of direction, I ran out of patience eventually, but that might be my own fault for not paying enough attenion or missing some important dialogue, it still felt meandering.
I never found what was supposed to be my motivation to keep playing, it had a strong start, but at some point it was no longer clear what the characters are fighting for what is important in the plot or when the game would start being enjoyable to play, and I lost interest.
I think there was a lot of potential here that just hadn't been reached yet, Maybe Wild Arms 2 will be an improvement I will give it a chance sometime
I'm glad I played this just to try it. It's an inoffensive RPG, there's nothing wrong with a game being simple or easy, but I think it could have been executed better. regardless this was good for an early PS1 game when there weren't many games to choose from.
2002
I played this without knowing any Japanese, what this game is could be described as a "virtual fish tank" game, this is a niche genre typically not localised, I've seen other examples of it.
Another way to describe this game would be similar to the chao garden in Sonic adventure (2) where you raise a creature, and maybe watch it compete in a race. In other words it is a "virtual pet" game only less interactive.
Visually it's a mixture of cel-shaded and very colorful abstract environments. It's not very polished looking using simple geometry and sparse areas but the way it looks was striking to me.
Most of the game is just watching this Mutsu creature randomly wander around as it finds collectibles and talks to other strange abstract creatures.
You can only start with one area out of 12, so when playing the actual game you can't really interact, pushing directions seems to indicate you are directing the character but for me it always ignored it, you can talk to it with typed messages or give basic commands in japanese but these don't seem to do much.
The character randomly finds items you can select to make it transform what you get is random every time, I think they also improve it's attributes in some way, it seems to have a mood status too.
Each of the 12 areas has an objective, I couldn't really figure out what they were but when waiting around long enough the character would eventually wander to whatever it was supposed to and activate these events, once this happens other levels open up.
2 of these are completely non interactive race levels where you watch Mutsu navigate them, again just like Chao Races in Sonic Adventure, I lost once but came back later and won both but I'm not sure what changed to cause it to swim faster.
The nice thing about these areas is they all look distinct and unique from each other, it more or less the main feature of the game, the colors are vibrant sometimes neon, one area was mostly pastel, but I appreciate the creative and otherworldly look some of them had.
It took forever to complete these levels since the creature randomly explores them sometimes looping around or talking to the same npc over and over again, I feel like I'm missing something but I still have no idea.
once you "complete" all 12 you can reach the credits.
I never figured out how to save and left the game on to complete it. There is no fail state, the game seems to be intended to be as stress free as possible.
The entire point of the game it to watch it, like you might a fish tank, it's not really about playing it. This is something you could leave playing in the background while doing something else.
It was nice just looking at the vibrant and trippy worlds as nice catchy music was playing, the game has a specific mood and atmosphere.
I think it does this aspect well enough.
I really enjoyed the soundtrack too, it's varied and music tracks are unusually long to not get repetitive as you may spend hours in each area, it was one reason that I went out of my way to get it.
I have mixed feeling on this, it's not fun to play, but it has really good atmosphere and it's a unique experience.
So if you want something strange to play in the background or want something else to relax with this might be worth looking into.
Another way to describe this game would be similar to the chao garden in Sonic adventure (2) where you raise a creature, and maybe watch it compete in a race. In other words it is a "virtual pet" game only less interactive.
Visually it's a mixture of cel-shaded and very colorful abstract environments. It's not very polished looking using simple geometry and sparse areas but the way it looks was striking to me.
Most of the game is just watching this Mutsu creature randomly wander around as it finds collectibles and talks to other strange abstract creatures.
You can only start with one area out of 12, so when playing the actual game you can't really interact, pushing directions seems to indicate you are directing the character but for me it always ignored it, you can talk to it with typed messages or give basic commands in japanese but these don't seem to do much.
The character randomly finds items you can select to make it transform what you get is random every time, I think they also improve it's attributes in some way, it seems to have a mood status too.
Each of the 12 areas has an objective, I couldn't really figure out what they were but when waiting around long enough the character would eventually wander to whatever it was supposed to and activate these events, once this happens other levels open up.
2 of these are completely non interactive race levels where you watch Mutsu navigate them, again just like Chao Races in Sonic Adventure, I lost once but came back later and won both but I'm not sure what changed to cause it to swim faster.
The nice thing about these areas is they all look distinct and unique from each other, it more or less the main feature of the game, the colors are vibrant sometimes neon, one area was mostly pastel, but I appreciate the creative and otherworldly look some of them had.
It took forever to complete these levels since the creature randomly explores them sometimes looping around or talking to the same npc over and over again, I feel like I'm missing something but I still have no idea.
once you "complete" all 12 you can reach the credits.
I never figured out how to save and left the game on to complete it. There is no fail state, the game seems to be intended to be as stress free as possible.
The entire point of the game it to watch it, like you might a fish tank, it's not really about playing it. This is something you could leave playing in the background while doing something else.
It was nice just looking at the vibrant and trippy worlds as nice catchy music was playing, the game has a specific mood and atmosphere.
I think it does this aspect well enough.
I really enjoyed the soundtrack too, it's varied and music tracks are unusually long to not get repetitive as you may spend hours in each area, it was one reason that I went out of my way to get it.
I have mixed feeling on this, it's not fun to play, but it has really good atmosphere and it's a unique experience.
So if you want something strange to play in the background or want something else to relax with this might be worth looking into.
An ambitious adventure with an engaging plot, simplified game-play, and lots of spectacle.
Solatorobo is a game that was filled with talent and potential, deserved to succeed despite it's shortcomings, but was quietly released on a platform when it was no longer relevant.
This is the kind of game that has severe flaws that get in the way of playing it, while having other elements made so perfectly that turns an otherwise dull game into something special and memorable, if someone values those elements they can easily make up for this games flaws, it's the kind of game that has a "cult following" for a reason.
Solatorobo takes place in floating sky islands, much like it's predecessor; Tail Concerto, and very similar to games like Skies of Arcadia.
The environments are extremely nice to look at, 3D backdrops and hand drawn layered backgrounds are seamlessly blended together with dense detail important characters and enemies are modeled polygons, textures in-game are surprisingly clean and sharp for a DS game.
Really everything in the game looks incredible for the hardware it's running on, the flat animated pixel art characters, environments, the various main character models, portraits, and even the pre-rendered and in-engine cutscenes which there several of. It's a very pleasing game to look at. The vehicle/mech the main character uses in particular is a design I like a lot and was what immediately had me interested in this game
All of this and the performance and framerate hold up well throughout the game, there are a few places where it slows down a bit when there's a lot on screen but it's rare that it happens.
The game feels large despite the actual playable areas being small and constrained. you cant navigate an overworld map as it's menu based, it's not an exaggeration to say the game is a series of small rooms and hallways connected together with a few exceptions.
Story is a major focus, there is decent character development and some very well done plot twists. The world and setting are very carefully set up to be believable "lived in" and enjoyable to experience. The game can be text heavy there is a lot of character dialogue.
The game tells an engaging story though it can come off as generic at times, it remains engaging throughout and has a great setup, conflict, and conclusion to the story, this game has a ton of lore and world-building players may find themselves getting invested in the characters struggles and the overall story. I was totally caught off guard by something I won't spoil, this plot twist is even worked into the main intro and menus after you boot up the game again which was a really nice touch.
The characters in the game are part of the appeal, I am not into anthropomorphic style characters, it doesn't appeal to me, but even so the characters in this game made an impression and were memorable, they're really well designed with distinct looks and plenty of personality. Players may find a lot of the lighthearted parts of the game charming.
So I've been very positive so far, but there are some problems with his game
First of all, the in-game music is outright terrible with a single exception. The opening animation has uncompressed "redbook" music with lyrics and it's quite good, the translators chose to keep it in Japanese and added subtitles, it still sounds nice and is a good main theme for the game.
Everything else though was bad enough to detract from the experience music is grating and overly simple. Every ingame song... Every single one uses a compressed cheap sounding stock midi instruments and too often it's a grating flute, not just as the main melody but the backing parts too, drums, beats, whatever are extremely rare in the tracks. Any time the game has tension or action cutscenes the music fails to live up to it miserably, the set of soft calm instruments do not fit whatsoever and detract from the feeling the game was going for. it's an extremely underwhelming soundtrack.
I have been avoiding talking about gameplay so far because it is this game's most significant flaw.
The core gameplay consists of light beat-em-up style action with very simplified RPG mechanics. the main action is to button mash, grab, then throw the enemy and that's mostly how the player attacks throughout the entire game.
It's not unpolished or badly implemented in any way, it just gets old kind of fast because there isn't much depth to it, there's some strategy introduced to help like special attacks, limited weapons and projectiles, and some enemies will introduce strategy like having to be grabbed only from behind or only damaged by being hit by another thrown enemy.
Sometimes you need to catch a projectile and throw it back, most of the action is done through QTEs. It's sort of cinematic and fun to watch but isn't always fun to do.
There's a customization mechanic that prevents this shallow gameplay from ruining the whole playthrough, players can build stats such as speed, power, ect and choose where to spend stat boosts essentially making your own class or build, these boosts are from parts hidden throughout the world and buyable in shops, they are physical tetris-like objects you have to try and fit into a grid so it's also a mini puzzle game, this helps add a lot to the game and is fun to try and find these parts.
The gameplay sounds awful the way I'm describing it, but I think it was inoffensive overall and has a few occasional highlights.
Between combat you can get out of your vehicle/mech to do very basic puzzles and occasional stealth sections, these are never fun to be completely honest and the puzzles are mindlessly easy, they thankfully don't use this aspect of the game very often.
It does get very stale, but throughout the story there are mini-games that play differently and keep it engaging, there's one where you can freely fly around a 3D sky area and find hidden items that was one of the highlights of the game, it was fun to control, this was followed by a decent flight-racing minigame, there's several more for the player to discover like a rail-shooting section.
The progression of the game is an entire other issue, you start in a town having to talk to certain npcs to progress the plot and find your next objective but before you can start you have to do mandatory sidequests to reach a certain number, this happens in every town and can break the pace depending on the quests selected.
Nearly each one warps you into a small room to defeat a wave of enemies, others make you replay sections of the game sometimes large parts at once to defeat X number of enemies or find a bunch of items, they're generally distractions that don't add much, some are more interesting scavenger hunts or have new locations, but this is a deal breaker for some people, exploring the towns and some dungeons is the most enjoyable part of progressing.
Once you are qualified you can go to each main objective which is basically a JRPG dungeon, these are typically linear with some hidden treasures to find and an occasional hidden room and end with a boss, the bosses at least are more interesting and involved than regular enemies; they usually have other ways to defeat them and require problem solving to figure out how to damage them and dodge their attacks.
There's lots of optional content in this game, it ranges from chore-like to decent, I found the arena to be one of the better examples.
What makes the game fun to explore are hidden collectibles that either enhance your abilities or unlock art for a gallery, it kept the linear hallway dungeons from getting unbearable.
It was difficult to stay invested when most of the game was the same gameplay loop and it was mindlessly easy, I was overpowered the entire game without intending to be. I didn't grind or do every sidequest, it's definitely a problem when the intimidating final boss that was being built up to in the story was defeated in a few attacks in under 30 seconds, the gameplay has almost no challenge outside of post game content.
Overall I enjoyed the game despite these problems, it's something someone has to try for themselves, I recommend playing in short bursts, this is a game that I enjoy finishing but would not replay again for several years, it's not as easy to go back to.
It is a game I would still recommend trying and the things it does right it does exceptionally well.
I am giving this a high rating, that should convey just how great those aspects were.
Anyone invested in retro games for long enough knows this situation well. This is one of those...
Games like Panzer dragoon Saga, the original Klonoa, Earthbound, ect. Games that failed to sell despite being unusually high quality, that were virtually unknown at the time.
Try this game if you can.
Solatorobo is a game that was filled with talent and potential, deserved to succeed despite it's shortcomings, but was quietly released on a platform when it was no longer relevant.
This is the kind of game that has severe flaws that get in the way of playing it, while having other elements made so perfectly that turns an otherwise dull game into something special and memorable, if someone values those elements they can easily make up for this games flaws, it's the kind of game that has a "cult following" for a reason.
Solatorobo takes place in floating sky islands, much like it's predecessor; Tail Concerto, and very similar to games like Skies of Arcadia.
The environments are extremely nice to look at, 3D backdrops and hand drawn layered backgrounds are seamlessly blended together with dense detail important characters and enemies are modeled polygons, textures in-game are surprisingly clean and sharp for a DS game.
Really everything in the game looks incredible for the hardware it's running on, the flat animated pixel art characters, environments, the various main character models, portraits, and even the pre-rendered and in-engine cutscenes which there several of. It's a very pleasing game to look at. The vehicle/mech the main character uses in particular is a design I like a lot and was what immediately had me interested in this game
All of this and the performance and framerate hold up well throughout the game, there are a few places where it slows down a bit when there's a lot on screen but it's rare that it happens.
The game feels large despite the actual playable areas being small and constrained. you cant navigate an overworld map as it's menu based, it's not an exaggeration to say the game is a series of small rooms and hallways connected together with a few exceptions.
Story is a major focus, there is decent character development and some very well done plot twists. The world and setting are very carefully set up to be believable "lived in" and enjoyable to experience. The game can be text heavy there is a lot of character dialogue.
The game tells an engaging story though it can come off as generic at times, it remains engaging throughout and has a great setup, conflict, and conclusion to the story, this game has a ton of lore and world-building players may find themselves getting invested in the characters struggles and the overall story. I was totally caught off guard by something I won't spoil, this plot twist is even worked into the main intro and menus after you boot up the game again which was a really nice touch.
The characters in the game are part of the appeal, I am not into anthropomorphic style characters, it doesn't appeal to me, but even so the characters in this game made an impression and were memorable, they're really well designed with distinct looks and plenty of personality. Players may find a lot of the lighthearted parts of the game charming.
So I've been very positive so far, but there are some problems with his game
First of all, the in-game music is outright terrible with a single exception. The opening animation has uncompressed "redbook" music with lyrics and it's quite good, the translators chose to keep it in Japanese and added subtitles, it still sounds nice and is a good main theme for the game.
Everything else though was bad enough to detract from the experience music is grating and overly simple. Every ingame song... Every single one uses a compressed cheap sounding stock midi instruments and too often it's a grating flute, not just as the main melody but the backing parts too, drums, beats, whatever are extremely rare in the tracks. Any time the game has tension or action cutscenes the music fails to live up to it miserably, the set of soft calm instruments do not fit whatsoever and detract from the feeling the game was going for. it's an extremely underwhelming soundtrack.
I have been avoiding talking about gameplay so far because it is this game's most significant flaw.
The core gameplay consists of light beat-em-up style action with very simplified RPG mechanics. the main action is to button mash, grab, then throw the enemy and that's mostly how the player attacks throughout the entire game.
It's not unpolished or badly implemented in any way, it just gets old kind of fast because there isn't much depth to it, there's some strategy introduced to help like special attacks, limited weapons and projectiles, and some enemies will introduce strategy like having to be grabbed only from behind or only damaged by being hit by another thrown enemy.
Sometimes you need to catch a projectile and throw it back, most of the action is done through QTEs. It's sort of cinematic and fun to watch but isn't always fun to do.
There's a customization mechanic that prevents this shallow gameplay from ruining the whole playthrough, players can build stats such as speed, power, ect and choose where to spend stat boosts essentially making your own class or build, these boosts are from parts hidden throughout the world and buyable in shops, they are physical tetris-like objects you have to try and fit into a grid so it's also a mini puzzle game, this helps add a lot to the game and is fun to try and find these parts.
The gameplay sounds awful the way I'm describing it, but I think it was inoffensive overall and has a few occasional highlights.
Between combat you can get out of your vehicle/mech to do very basic puzzles and occasional stealth sections, these are never fun to be completely honest and the puzzles are mindlessly easy, they thankfully don't use this aspect of the game very often.
It does get very stale, but throughout the story there are mini-games that play differently and keep it engaging, there's one where you can freely fly around a 3D sky area and find hidden items that was one of the highlights of the game, it was fun to control, this was followed by a decent flight-racing minigame, there's several more for the player to discover like a rail-shooting section.
The progression of the game is an entire other issue, you start in a town having to talk to certain npcs to progress the plot and find your next objective but before you can start you have to do mandatory sidequests to reach a certain number, this happens in every town and can break the pace depending on the quests selected.
Nearly each one warps you into a small room to defeat a wave of enemies, others make you replay sections of the game sometimes large parts at once to defeat X number of enemies or find a bunch of items, they're generally distractions that don't add much, some are more interesting scavenger hunts or have new locations, but this is a deal breaker for some people, exploring the towns and some dungeons is the most enjoyable part of progressing.
Once you are qualified you can go to each main objective which is basically a JRPG dungeon, these are typically linear with some hidden treasures to find and an occasional hidden room and end with a boss, the bosses at least are more interesting and involved than regular enemies; they usually have other ways to defeat them and require problem solving to figure out how to damage them and dodge their attacks.
There's lots of optional content in this game, it ranges from chore-like to decent, I found the arena to be one of the better examples.
What makes the game fun to explore are hidden collectibles that either enhance your abilities or unlock art for a gallery, it kept the linear hallway dungeons from getting unbearable.
It was difficult to stay invested when most of the game was the same gameplay loop and it was mindlessly easy, I was overpowered the entire game without intending to be. I didn't grind or do every sidequest, it's definitely a problem when the intimidating final boss that was being built up to in the story was defeated in a few attacks in under 30 seconds, the gameplay has almost no challenge outside of post game content.
Overall I enjoyed the game despite these problems, it's something someone has to try for themselves, I recommend playing in short bursts, this is a game that I enjoy finishing but would not replay again for several years, it's not as easy to go back to.
It is a game I would still recommend trying and the things it does right it does exceptionally well.
I am giving this a high rating, that should convey just how great those aspects were.
Anyone invested in retro games for long enough knows this situation well. This is one of those...
Games like Panzer dragoon Saga, the original Klonoa, Earthbound, ect. Games that failed to sell despite being unusually high quality, that were virtually unknown at the time.
Try this game if you can.
1995
Considering the context the game was made in I think it should not be as good as it is.
Cho Ren Sha 68k (which translates to Super Rapid Fire) is a top down view arcade shooting style game that was originally made for the Japan exclusive X68000 computer in 1995. I'm playing the PC version
This game doesn't hide its influences, much like a modern indie-shooter like ZeroRanger it feels like a celebration of mid-nineties arcade games made by someone who is not only a true fan but has a deep understanding of the games they appreciate.
In this case; late Toaplan and Raizing games and maybe a touch of Recca and Raiden 2.
Despite being inspired by other games by very talented developers with decent budgets it is somehow competes with that level of quality and (arguably) transcends it while having its own identity and unique mechanics in a time when high quality indie and homebrew games were very uncommon.
There's nothing about this game (besides a few minor elements) that feels outdated, it seems like they wanted to make a challenging game but prioritized making it as fun and inviting as they could.
This game has style, it's really nice to look at, there's shrapnel, explosions, and particle effects that often fill the screen and the enemies and boss designs are top-tier, all-around it's just a pleasing spectacle to watch.
animations are smooth and sometimes creative, this game can impress from visuals alone.
But it's more than just a good looking game.
This is a game that seems simple at first but has more depth and intricacies to discover than most games in this genre at the time, after over 10 years I am still discovering new things when I play it.
It can be deceptive, at first it won't seem like much more than a typical STG for it's time, but the more time you invest the more secrets and game mechanics you discover the better it gets.
There are hidden extra enemies that can show up if you play a certain way, some bosses have secret attack phases, or alternate ways to fight them under certain conditions, most players might never find them.
And that's just on the surface; there's also hidden modes and options that completely change core mechanics of the game.
You can fine-tune the game to play the way you want it to if you know how.
This game is difficult, as you might expect. but it is far more reasonable than the arcade games of this generation, extra lives are not finite and powerups are frequent, you can get a sheild to take an extra hit or stockpile powerful bombs that leave you invulnerable for a short time.
There's a creative risk-reward mechanic within the powerup system that feels ahead of it's time, but even at base power the ship is powerful enough to take care of enemy waves and won't take that much longer to take out even the most intimidating bosses, recovery from losing a life is thankfully very forgiving.
Enemy bullets are easy to see and follow, I never lose track of my ship even when the screen is covered in enemy projectiles, hitboxes feel generous as well, I can slip through walls of bullets often without getting hit.
The game has a nice flow to it and there's no wasted space, new enemies and patterns are introduced often at a quick pace, it's an extremely varied game that doesn't get stale.
Not only does it flow well but the in-game music fits each level perfectly, the music always matches the intensity, and pace, slower levels have calmer themes that typically put me in a trance like state while playing. levels where enemies are dense and oppressive have equally intense music to match, tracks like the final level theme "all or nothing" give the impression that you're up against an impossible threat but always has hopeful undertones it really motivates the player to keep trying.
The boss theme is great, late into the game the theme unexpectedly changes and the boss is so much larger and aggressive than what came before, it perfectly gave the feeling of intimidation like you know you're in for a tough battle before it even starts, it goes way harder than you would expect and makes those later challenges even more memorable despite still being fair. If the player can overcome them it feels superhuman like you've transcended your own abilities. I wouldn't hesitate to call the final few bosses iconic.
The soundtrack really is very good, this is to be expected from games like this but it still stands on it's own. I like every track, the stage three theme "Pleasure Trip" especially stands out in a great way.
The soundtrack is incredibly good I can't do it justice with this review even with the sound limitations the composer was working with I think it so well done and still holds up.
The sound effects for things like powerups and enemy explosions are satisfying as they should be.
So far I've been going on and on about how great this game is, but there's just a few things I need to point out.
First of all, you don't have rapid-fire and have to repeatedly tap to fire, it adds to the intensity of the game. thankfully this is a PC game so if the player doesn't want to play that way all that's needed is a controller mapping apps and a decent controller and rapid fire can be used.
But there's two real weakness this game has:
For all of it's 7 stages there is one background. just one endlessly scrolling image, to make up for this the game is continuous.
It never fades or has to load in a new level, it's completely seamless and it pays off in a way I won't spoil, the player will have to manage to beat the game once to understand what I'm referring to.
Like many games of this time from Konami or Cave the game will loop when you beat it, but there's some extra content if you manage to clear it again. While the game does end there is no ending cutscene, no credits, no intro, no story, the game lacks this category of presentation, this may be a deal-breaker for some players, the game is all about it's gameplay and not much else.
Typically a legendary, well-polished decades old STG like this will cost way too much. The good news is, it's free.
The bad news is it has not been ported to modern systems, it's locked to X86k or Windows 10, you might have to make a serious effort to get it running properly, but it is more than worth the effort.
All of the positive elements I've mentioned perfectly come together to make a very addicting game I never stop playing and one I could never forget, it comes very close to being my overall favorite game. I think it was truly ahead of it's time and a game I don't think will ever be perfectly replicated.
If you like overhead arcade shooting games this is one you really should find a way to play.
Cho Ren Sha 68k (which translates to Super Rapid Fire) is a top down view arcade shooting style game that was originally made for the Japan exclusive X68000 computer in 1995. I'm playing the PC version
This game doesn't hide its influences, much like a modern indie-shooter like ZeroRanger it feels like a celebration of mid-nineties arcade games made by someone who is not only a true fan but has a deep understanding of the games they appreciate.
In this case; late Toaplan and Raizing games and maybe a touch of Recca and Raiden 2.
Despite being inspired by other games by very talented developers with decent budgets it is somehow competes with that level of quality and (arguably) transcends it while having its own identity and unique mechanics in a time when high quality indie and homebrew games were very uncommon.
There's nothing about this game (besides a few minor elements) that feels outdated, it seems like they wanted to make a challenging game but prioritized making it as fun and inviting as they could.
This game has style, it's really nice to look at, there's shrapnel, explosions, and particle effects that often fill the screen and the enemies and boss designs are top-tier, all-around it's just a pleasing spectacle to watch.
animations are smooth and sometimes creative, this game can impress from visuals alone.
But it's more than just a good looking game.
This is a game that seems simple at first but has more depth and intricacies to discover than most games in this genre at the time, after over 10 years I am still discovering new things when I play it.
It can be deceptive, at first it won't seem like much more than a typical STG for it's time, but the more time you invest the more secrets and game mechanics you discover the better it gets.
There are hidden extra enemies that can show up if you play a certain way, some bosses have secret attack phases, or alternate ways to fight them under certain conditions, most players might never find them.
And that's just on the surface; there's also hidden modes and options that completely change core mechanics of the game.
You can fine-tune the game to play the way you want it to if you know how.
This game is difficult, as you might expect. but it is far more reasonable than the arcade games of this generation, extra lives are not finite and powerups are frequent, you can get a sheild to take an extra hit or stockpile powerful bombs that leave you invulnerable for a short time.
There's a creative risk-reward mechanic within the powerup system that feels ahead of it's time, but even at base power the ship is powerful enough to take care of enemy waves and won't take that much longer to take out even the most intimidating bosses, recovery from losing a life is thankfully very forgiving.
Enemy bullets are easy to see and follow, I never lose track of my ship even when the screen is covered in enemy projectiles, hitboxes feel generous as well, I can slip through walls of bullets often without getting hit.
The game has a nice flow to it and there's no wasted space, new enemies and patterns are introduced often at a quick pace, it's an extremely varied game that doesn't get stale.
Not only does it flow well but the in-game music fits each level perfectly, the music always matches the intensity, and pace, slower levels have calmer themes that typically put me in a trance like state while playing. levels where enemies are dense and oppressive have equally intense music to match, tracks like the final level theme "all or nothing" give the impression that you're up against an impossible threat but always has hopeful undertones it really motivates the player to keep trying.
The boss theme is great, late into the game the theme unexpectedly changes and the boss is so much larger and aggressive than what came before, it perfectly gave the feeling of intimidation like you know you're in for a tough battle before it even starts, it goes way harder than you would expect and makes those later challenges even more memorable despite still being fair. If the player can overcome them it feels superhuman like you've transcended your own abilities. I wouldn't hesitate to call the final few bosses iconic.
The soundtrack really is very good, this is to be expected from games like this but it still stands on it's own. I like every track, the stage three theme "Pleasure Trip" especially stands out in a great way.
The soundtrack is incredibly good I can't do it justice with this review even with the sound limitations the composer was working with I think it so well done and still holds up.
The sound effects for things like powerups and enemy explosions are satisfying as they should be.
So far I've been going on and on about how great this game is, but there's just a few things I need to point out.
First of all, you don't have rapid-fire and have to repeatedly tap to fire, it adds to the intensity of the game. thankfully this is a PC game so if the player doesn't want to play that way all that's needed is a controller mapping apps and a decent controller and rapid fire can be used.
But there's two real weakness this game has:
For all of it's 7 stages there is one background. just one endlessly scrolling image, to make up for this the game is continuous.
It never fades or has to load in a new level, it's completely seamless and it pays off in a way I won't spoil, the player will have to manage to beat the game once to understand what I'm referring to.
Like many games of this time from Konami or Cave the game will loop when you beat it, but there's some extra content if you manage to clear it again. While the game does end there is no ending cutscene, no credits, no intro, no story, the game lacks this category of presentation, this may be a deal-breaker for some players, the game is all about it's gameplay and not much else.
Typically a legendary, well-polished decades old STG like this will cost way too much. The good news is, it's free.
The bad news is it has not been ported to modern systems, it's locked to X86k or Windows 10, you might have to make a serious effort to get it running properly, but it is more than worth the effort.
All of the positive elements I've mentioned perfectly come together to make a very addicting game I never stop playing and one I could never forget, it comes very close to being my overall favorite game. I think it was truly ahead of it's time and a game I don't think will ever be perfectly replicated.
If you like overhead arcade shooting games this is one you really should find a way to play.
1998
I don't know how they managed to pull it off but this game was everything I'd hoped it would be and more, I was hooked from start to finish.
Amazing cinematography and texture-work I was not expecting from a PS1 game, the game has it's own film worth of memorable scenes, some dramatic, others are more action heavy, but the game keeps surprising and pushing things further than most.
I expected a standard Square JRPG but this was so much more than that, the story and atmosphere are brooding, mysterious, deep, and thoughtful.
It's a story that tries to explain an entire fictional universe, spanning thousands of years, and somehow it all made sense to me by the end, you'll have a lot of questions playing through this, and most will be answered.
the attention to detail in this game was unprecedented
The battle were mostly enjoyable, not too slow and enemies mostly don't take too long to defeat. The Deathblows you unlock ingame are a spectacle, so many and a lot of them have some nice effects, it made the tedium of some battles a bit more bearable for me.
The battle mechanics aren't that deep, it gets the job done, Xenogears is more about being prepared for battles than descisions you make in battle, there is some depth to be found with gear equipment and some hidden mechanics they introduce of the player wants to look for it. overall it was serviceable, challenge felt perfect and not too gind dependent, sometimes I had to make some tough decisions in boss fights just barely getting by and it was satisfying to overcome.
Locations in-game were varied and every town was fun to explore. The atmosphere is perfectly set up in each area.
Important characters are well written, the writing was very believable. The story can be tense and foreboding, it managed to be emotional, tragic, and hopeful by the end.
There's so many cool and unexpected things in this game I wouldn't even know where to start, there were many highs and not many lows, if you are curious about this game at all, play it for yourself.
If you know anything about this game you've probably heard about disc 2, I did not know when I played. I liked the change, the dungeons were just starting to get tedious and underdesigned, if they'd had a whole extra 40 hours of... That? I don't think I'd like the game as much, disc 2 was extremely to the point, I was glad to get so much plot without it being padded or drawn out.
I know this is a strange opinion, but I like the game exactly the way it is, and I think it has enough content as-is to justify it's existence, a "real" disc 2 would risk ruining that balance.
I don't for wish for "the full experience" because what's here is already everything I wanted no more, no less.
Some games from this time "don't age well" but this isn't one of them, I played this for the first time last year, never had a PS1 no nostalgia, this game hits hard. It made me rethink what kinds of stories could be told in a game and that no idea is too out there as long as it's set up and executed well enough. It was an unforgettable experience.
Amazing cinematography and texture-work I was not expecting from a PS1 game, the game has it's own film worth of memorable scenes, some dramatic, others are more action heavy, but the game keeps surprising and pushing things further than most.
I expected a standard Square JRPG but this was so much more than that, the story and atmosphere are brooding, mysterious, deep, and thoughtful.
It's a story that tries to explain an entire fictional universe, spanning thousands of years, and somehow it all made sense to me by the end, you'll have a lot of questions playing through this, and most will be answered.
the attention to detail in this game was unprecedented
The battle were mostly enjoyable, not too slow and enemies mostly don't take too long to defeat. The Deathblows you unlock ingame are a spectacle, so many and a lot of them have some nice effects, it made the tedium of some battles a bit more bearable for me.
The battle mechanics aren't that deep, it gets the job done, Xenogears is more about being prepared for battles than descisions you make in battle, there is some depth to be found with gear equipment and some hidden mechanics they introduce of the player wants to look for it. overall it was serviceable, challenge felt perfect and not too gind dependent, sometimes I had to make some tough decisions in boss fights just barely getting by and it was satisfying to overcome.
Locations in-game were varied and every town was fun to explore. The atmosphere is perfectly set up in each area.
Important characters are well written, the writing was very believable. The story can be tense and foreboding, it managed to be emotional, tragic, and hopeful by the end.
There's so many cool and unexpected things in this game I wouldn't even know where to start, there were many highs and not many lows, if you are curious about this game at all, play it for yourself.
If you know anything about this game you've probably heard about disc 2, I did not know when I played. I liked the change, the dungeons were just starting to get tedious and underdesigned, if they'd had a whole extra 40 hours of... That? I don't think I'd like the game as much, disc 2 was extremely to the point, I was glad to get so much plot without it being padded or drawn out.
I know this is a strange opinion, but I like the game exactly the way it is, and I think it has enough content as-is to justify it's existence, a "real" disc 2 would risk ruining that balance.
I don't for wish for "the full experience" because what's here is already everything I wanted no more, no less.
Some games from this time "don't age well" but this isn't one of them, I played this for the first time last year, never had a PS1 no nostalgia, this game hits hard. It made me rethink what kinds of stories could be told in a game and that no idea is too out there as long as it's set up and executed well enough. It was an unforgettable experience.
It's decent in blocky mode (to play at a higher framerate) and once I understood "A" speeds up and "B" slows down I started to enjoy this, I've been able to beat the game on expert and master without continues, it just takes some practice.
The game engine and limiting 8 directions makes it more difficult than it should be, it's far from great but much better than I expected from a 3D GBA game.
The game engine and limiting 8 directions makes it more difficult than it should be, it's far from great but much better than I expected from a 3D GBA game.