You know Nintendo's entire philosophy about making video games that make people smile while they play them?

I think Wonder manages to be the complete embodiment of that idea. So many times have I just smiled and giggled like a dumbass from whenever some big gameplay change happens from touching the Wonder Flower, to breezing through obstacles or knocking out the new, creative enemies back to back, or even when the game just becomes an outright musical. The level design and environments are at their absolute finest here, and paired with the Wonder Flowers, it becomes a completely different beast in itself. It manages to be creative and charming while still being really fun, engaging, and at times challenging, something that was starting to get lost by the time New Super Mario Bros. Wii was rolling around. Something about the toy/clay-like expressions from the characters and the story (which is easily the most I've ever seen in a 2D Mario game) that even comes full-circle in small ways throughout the journey really gives so much life to the Flower Kingdom and everything that's going on. Even the new inclusion of badges really add a lot to the movement kit and really gives you some new ways to tackle the obstacles thrown your way. The only small grip I really have is the bosses being on the weaker side, but everything else about the game exceeds so well that it's such a small issue in the grand scheme of things, although 2D Mario has never had the most balls to the wall bosses a lot of the time anyway. Obviously the music is as wonderful as ever but that goes without saying.

I really did not anticipate this being on-par with Yoshi's Island or even a GOTY candidate for myself, but Nintendo has been on an incredible run this console generation. I'm very glad to see that they're finally starting to give an equal amount of love and ideas to their 2D subseries like with their 3D outings. It's great to see so much of previous entries' DNA here and built upon, I hope this continues to be the standard for 2D Mario and onward, and it's very nice to see that Nintendo's philosophy come shining through here.

The writing falls off a fucking cliff towards the end and its ambition becomes a double-edge sword but ooooo does it nail basically everything else right and is a crazy good blueprint for how the rest of the series goes. The individual stories are so captivating, the combat is probably some of the most fun I've had in the franchise, the content is very rich and plentiful, and a lot of the characters make such a strong impact and impression which is a crazy feat to pull off giving there's so much going on in the story.

It's the most Yakuza game out there for better and for worse, and is such a big reason for why I love the series as a whole.

It's about what you expect from RGG's first outing in its new janky engine gameplay-wise and you do feel the content cut compared to previous entries, but the story's heavy-lifting really brings the game out and some great storybeats and surprisingly memorable characters that stick with you alongside the writing and parallels.

It is a little funny that this was suppose to be Kiryu's "final" outing in the series in retrospect, but it definitely was a good ending for its time for such a legendary character.

If Yakuza: Like a Dragon is the soft reboot of the series, then Gaiden is the epilogue for everything before it.

I think a lot about RGG is reflected back here, with its most thoughtful and personal journey of Kiryu and a study of not only the character, but the franchise. It's kinda crazy how once was a series that started out as open-brawler influenced by the likes of River City and Shemue has turned into a giant that is now basically juggling multiple genres, storylines, and side-content that might as well be games in themselves. I think Gaiden really does continues to embody Yakuza and its becomes self-aware in a way, while still finding ways to refine itself and improve on what was built before. It's a beautiful thing in a way, not often do you see franchises keep finding ways to keep topping itself without becoming unrecognizable from its origins. I really hope we get more side-games like this one and maybe some deeper character studies on others in the franchise.

(and oh yeah the game itself is great of course)

Remember when Naughty Dog used to make games like Jak & Daxter and Uncharted while not being held hostage by a egotistical Zionist who believes he can do no wrong and a bigger company who so desperately wants the same 7 franchises they've relied on heavily since 2017 to be cinematic video game showcases so they can easily translate them into movies and TV shows because said-company's previously existing movie/TV IPs have either underperformed or is forced to have shared custody with the Mouse™?

On a completely unrelated note the Last of Us Part II is a very nothing remaster and they're now announcing the new cast for season 2 of the show.

So this is gonna be a first impressions preview since I just started the game not too long ago, but as some might know, I think that Persona 3 FES is a good game with a lot of potential that's held back by the fact that it was ATLUS' first attempt at a 3D, modern Persona. There were things that I disliked about it, including how mediocre and weirdly handled some of the social links can be, how repetitive and eye-straining Tartarus gets towards the end, I'll even admit I found the song quality a bit all over the place at times and for lack of better terms, somewhat shitpost-y. There were a few other things I had issues with as well, but those were my core problems I had with the original game, so you could only imagine my excitement when I found out that the long-awaited remake was actually a real thing that was coming out, the thing that would finally resolve all my issues with Persona 3 and could claim the title to be the best of the modern games without the baggage it comes with. I spent months waiting and researching and anticipating this thing, and that day has finally arrived....

Yet it feels weird in a way? The visuals are absolutely there and they're stunning, the new voice acting is wonderful and a step up in some areas compared to the original game, the combat is snappier and fun....but I can't help but to feel that something is off. The ingredients are there, the recipe is coming together, but I cannot tell if something is missing or if the flavor isn't what I expected. It's like going from a car that feels like sometimes it might pop a tire any second now but it gets the job done and you grow really fond of it throughout the times you have it, to a brand new fancy sportscar with all the new bells and whistles, yet it feels more comforting to drive your old flawed junky vehicle. I know I'm basically just going on a tangent at this point, and my feelings could easily change as I keep playing the game, but I just can't help but to think of that silly little ol' JRPG from the PS2-era and the dubbing that had a budget of a penny and a dream.

I don't wanna say P3R is "generic" or "soulless" (though I think soulless as a criticism is severely abused and misused) because I don't think it is and it still feels endearing like FES, but is it as endearing as that game, even with the flaws it carries? I don't know. Maybe I've been so used to FES and how it presents itself, with the endless memes and clips and voice audios, and how much it stands out with its darker tone, that art style, that original soundtrack even if there are times where it feels like a panic attack is coming on (Although I think the genuine criticism I have of Reload so far is the remixes of the old soundtrack are also hit or miss for completely different reasons).

Maybe it’s the nostalgia goggles being on way too tight for its own good. I wish I knew the exact feelings right now, but I'm still figuring it out as I'm going along. Ultimately, I think anyone who's really into Persona 3 or has been extremely used to that game's existence may have a strange transition into this one, but for anyone who's new to the series or only exposure is Persona 4 and 5, this should feel right at home for you! Despite it all, I think it's great that Persona 3 has a chance with a new generation that isn't just a lazy AI-upscale version of Persona 3 Portable, and I hope those experiencing this story for the first time love it. Hopefully I find out how I feel about it soon as well.