KommaChameleon
1993
As far as JRPGs go, this is... okay? It's easy to enjoy, but hard to finish. The lack of well-developed central characters and its terse dialog style mean a lot of the typical JRPG appeal just isn't present here. I enjoy the way the world incorporates different cultures and imaginative scenarios, but it feels like I'm reading an outline rather than a stage play.
No, this is a game you play for the challenging turn-based combat. I would say it aims for a mid-point between the streamlined fights of the Dragon Quest series and grid-based tactics games like the Fire Emblem series. Your control in battle is picking an attack per character from a menu and watching them play out. It's simple and fast enough that you can play dozens of random battles in a typical session, but with enough complexity that things can go wrong and make you stop to think about equipment loadout, damage types, status effects, formations, etc. The game does not feel "grindy" per se, because you always want to be working towards quest objectives (to unlock new classes and improve your empire's income) but the distribution of battles in the way is pretty dense. Like combat, character progression likewise has a simple bottom line--if you use your weapons and spells to win battles, you will gradually get stronger and wealthier--but the precise details make it tricky to optimize. A great deal of this is opaque to you in the game itself, and I can't tell if the game wants you to experiment and analyze or just rely on intuition. Regardless, there's an excellent technical guide by Nicolas Codron that you can refer to if you ever feel stuck or want to look under the hood.
A big factor in whether you will enjoy this game is its UX, which is unfortunately very 1993. The good news is that in its remastered form (I played on the Switch), the game is forgiving enough to autosave at the end of every battle victory. You'll basically never lose progress. Huzzah! The bad news is that this game wants you to change your party to adapt to the challenges of different dungeons, but provides no way to kick people out of a party you have formed. You have to intentionally get everybody killed, and that feels awful. When you're forming a new party (you'll need to, several times) there's no way to start from a previous loadout. Let's say you're forming a new party and want to add an archer similar to their deceased predecessor. You first need to talk to the NPC associated with that class--this might be the ranger in your home castle, or it might be the hunter in a remote village half-way across the world, which you access by fast travel but need to walk to a nearby port to escape. Then you have to talk to the NPC that manages your item storage to pull out the bow, armor, helm, etc you want them to use. (I hope you remember which ones you like, and don't forget that gloves impose a huge accuracy penalty on bows.) Then you have to talk to the NPC that lets you learn weapon techs mastered by previous generations. THEN you have to talk to up to three different spellcasting NPCs to load up the eight support spells you want your archer to have, one spell at a time. At no point in this process can you say, "give me this bundle of spells I used last time." Multiply this by five, and you have a huge block of mandatory prep work you need before heading back out into the field.
There are other UI quibbles--it's hard to determine attack effects from reading a scrolling marquee, there's no clear value that shows how powerful one move is relative to the next, armor only shows "slash defense" and hides its defense against the three other physical damage types. The remastered game runs at 30 FPS, which makes moving around and handling menus slightly less responsive than it ought to be. These are annoying flaws, but they're forgivable if you can accept the big process of setting up your characters. I wouldn't call RS2 a must-play import classic, but there is a lot here to enjoy for the right kind of player.
No, this is a game you play for the challenging turn-based combat. I would say it aims for a mid-point between the streamlined fights of the Dragon Quest series and grid-based tactics games like the Fire Emblem series. Your control in battle is picking an attack per character from a menu and watching them play out. It's simple and fast enough that you can play dozens of random battles in a typical session, but with enough complexity that things can go wrong and make you stop to think about equipment loadout, damage types, status effects, formations, etc. The game does not feel "grindy" per se, because you always want to be working towards quest objectives (to unlock new classes and improve your empire's income) but the distribution of battles in the way is pretty dense. Like combat, character progression likewise has a simple bottom line--if you use your weapons and spells to win battles, you will gradually get stronger and wealthier--but the precise details make it tricky to optimize. A great deal of this is opaque to you in the game itself, and I can't tell if the game wants you to experiment and analyze or just rely on intuition. Regardless, there's an excellent technical guide by Nicolas Codron that you can refer to if you ever feel stuck or want to look under the hood.
A big factor in whether you will enjoy this game is its UX, which is unfortunately very 1993. The good news is that in its remastered form (I played on the Switch), the game is forgiving enough to autosave at the end of every battle victory. You'll basically never lose progress. Huzzah! The bad news is that this game wants you to change your party to adapt to the challenges of different dungeons, but provides no way to kick people out of a party you have formed. You have to intentionally get everybody killed, and that feels awful. When you're forming a new party (you'll need to, several times) there's no way to start from a previous loadout. Let's say you're forming a new party and want to add an archer similar to their deceased predecessor. You first need to talk to the NPC associated with that class--this might be the ranger in your home castle, or it might be the hunter in a remote village half-way across the world, which you access by fast travel but need to walk to a nearby port to escape. Then you have to talk to the NPC that manages your item storage to pull out the bow, armor, helm, etc you want them to use. (I hope you remember which ones you like, and don't forget that gloves impose a huge accuracy penalty on bows.) Then you have to talk to the NPC that lets you learn weapon techs mastered by previous generations. THEN you have to talk to up to three different spellcasting NPCs to load up the eight support spells you want your archer to have, one spell at a time. At no point in this process can you say, "give me this bundle of spells I used last time." Multiply this by five, and you have a huge block of mandatory prep work you need before heading back out into the field.
There are other UI quibbles--it's hard to determine attack effects from reading a scrolling marquee, there's no clear value that shows how powerful one move is relative to the next, armor only shows "slash defense" and hides its defense against the three other physical damage types. The remastered game runs at 30 FPS, which makes moving around and handling menus slightly less responsive than it ought to be. These are annoying flaws, but they're forgivable if you can accept the big process of setting up your characters. I wouldn't call RS2 a must-play import classic, but there is a lot here to enjoy for the right kind of player.
1995
This game is aesthetically pleasant, short, and has a great soundtrack. If you can pick it up cheap you may enjoy it on that basis.
The problem playing it is that, outside of a promising start, it doesn't really consist of the kind of exploration and puzzle-solving you would expect from a point-and-click adventure. Instead, you have a very light strategy layer that sees you repeating the same basic formula in each location: speak to the locals, then befriend three types of dinosaurs in sequence by using matching items that are scattered randomly around the environment. It's not really possible to drive yourself into a corner or fail (short of walking directly into a t-rex's mouth), as each territory is either making correct progress or is stalled out. The story has some interesting concepts and a couple neat twists, but doesn't quite succeed at stringing them together effectively moment-to-moment. Tough to recommend.
The problem playing it is that, outside of a promising start, it doesn't really consist of the kind of exploration and puzzle-solving you would expect from a point-and-click adventure. Instead, you have a very light strategy layer that sees you repeating the same basic formula in each location: speak to the locals, then befriend three types of dinosaurs in sequence by using matching items that are scattered randomly around the environment. It's not really possible to drive yourself into a corner or fail (short of walking directly into a t-rex's mouth), as each territory is either making correct progress or is stalled out. The story has some interesting concepts and a couple neat twists, but doesn't quite succeed at stringing them together effectively moment-to-moment. Tough to recommend.
2021
I waited until a sale to try this game because I was hesitant to pay full price, and I was right to be skeptical. This game is minimal to a fault with little visual appeal, a lack of interesting character development, and infuriating music. There's simply no fun to be had.
2021
It's fine. You can play it and have a pretty good time!
I think Everhood's strongest qualities are its intense visuals and use of music. It is not a rhythm game, but the battle themes deliver a strong impression of each character and suit the hectic energy--even if they aren't as melodic or consistent as Undertale. The "Replay Battles" mode is excellent if you enjoy chasing high scores. I definitely wish Everhood did more to distinguish itself from its peers on a surface level because it's pretty different underneath.
However, I'm not sure the narrative themes hit for me. The game is too coy as to what it's actually about, and that means it takes too much time twisting and untwisting its plot instead of getting me attached to its cast. If you're looking for an emotional catharsis, I'm not sure Everhood lands it, but if you want to dodge notes in creative ways, check it out.
I think Everhood's strongest qualities are its intense visuals and use of music. It is not a rhythm game, but the battle themes deliver a strong impression of each character and suit the hectic energy--even if they aren't as melodic or consistent as Undertale. The "Replay Battles" mode is excellent if you enjoy chasing high scores. I definitely wish Everhood did more to distinguish itself from its peers on a surface level because it's pretty different underneath.
However, I'm not sure the narrative themes hit for me. The game is too coy as to what it's actually about, and that means it takes too much time twisting and untwisting its plot instead of getting me attached to its cast. If you're looking for an emotional catharsis, I'm not sure Everhood lands it, but if you want to dodge notes in creative ways, check it out.
2022
A haunting point-and-click adventure game in the Southern Gothic style. It's a dark story set in the American South about flawed, eccentric characters and sinister happenings, rendered in an appropriately derelict pixel art style. Luckily some great character writing and puzzles give it a foothold for its social critique and emotional release.
Recommended for fans of games like Kentucky Route Zero or Night In The Woods, or the film Beasts of the Southern Wild.
Recommended for fans of games like Kentucky Route Zero or Night In The Woods, or the film Beasts of the Southern Wild.
2020
It's cool, it's fun, it's short. The $15 price tag might be a bit much if you're not interested in checking off every achievement, but it's fantastic as a part of Game Pass.
2018
A just-okay conversion of a modern board game classic. The convenience of being able to jump into a game without setting up the box is stymied by the inefficient interface and slow animations.
If you want a snappier digital version (albeit one that's less pretty), consider the implementation at https://terraforming-mars.herokuapp.com/
If you want a snappier digital version (albeit one that's less pretty), consider the implementation at https://terraforming-mars.herokuapp.com/
2019
It's a co-op shoot-and-loot fest with a lot of ups and downs, but at least its heart is in the right place. On the plus side the comic-inspired environments are always a treat to look at, characters feel great to control, and the scattergun approach to jokes sometimes caught me off-guard. On the negative side, the writing really makes the adventure feel longer than it should. It's not just that jokes fall flat, but significant supporting characters are tough to like. The PCs themselves don't have much agency in the plot and disappear in cutscenes. The number balance can also feel wacky, usually in the party's favor, with very rapid gear churn and boss encounters that melt in seconds in co-op. It's a fair way to spend time with people you like. I don't regret finishing it, but I don't think I'll get into the DLC or any post-campaign content.
My group also experienced some significant technical problems that caused crashes or required a program restart to un-break quests. Not unplayable but certainly disruptive. (Windows 10, Epic Launcher)
My group also experienced some significant technical problems that caused crashes or required a program restart to un-break quests. Not unplayable but certainly disruptive. (Windows 10, Epic Launcher)
2015
The best thing I can say about Hylics is that it is utterly incomprehensible in a way that isn't tedious. The dialog is mostly nonsense and it lacks an emotional throughline... but if you want a short, weird experience then I think you can accept that.
1990
A breezy delight with just enough secrets to keep things interesting. I like it about as much as SMB3!
It's a functional (read: not great) shooter with some extremely fun environments and FMV sequences, plus some spooky interesting lore. I recommend keeping a guide handy in case you get stuck on a puzzle you don't like.
1995
This game is pretty rough to play today, even compared to other games with "tank controls". However, I feel compelled to review it because the soundtrack RULES.
1996
It's an interesting history lesson (with laugh-out-loud voice acting) but for most people the Gamecube/HD remake is much easier to recommend.
I really enjoy the portrayal of Ethan Winters as this below-average, uncool guy stuck in a world of ludicrous peril and weirdness. His only real assets are his ability to survive cartoonish amounts of injury and the will to endure. As for the play itself, it's an "FPS with an inventory", set in gorgeously spooky environments, staged with action where every bullet counts. Recommended if you like fun scares and scrounging around for ammo.
1992
Kind of a fun history lesson before it gets old. I highly recommend playing with a source port like ECWolf that supports automapping and modern control schemes. Give it a pass if hitscan enemies enrage you.