MVK23
Very disappointed by the design decisions of the final level. Obviously, with a name like "The Impossible Lair," the level should be hard, but the game does not prepare you for the difficulty spike in the final level, so it ruined the feel of the game for me. It turned a very fun, and occasionally challenging 2D platformer into a frustrating death loop akin to something like Super Meat Boy. The rest of the game is beautiful, well made, has memorable music. The final level really sours the overall experience, and it's very disappointing. 4/5 without final level, 3.5/5 with.
2017
Great artstyle, though sometimes threats aren't well telegraphed because of it. Great music. Good game flow. Jumping, grappling, and shooting are all really fun. Actually not very great for a roguelike. Feels like a lot of "gotcha!" difficulty obstacles and things designed solely to punish the player for as many things as possible. Did not beat, some unfair difficulty mechanics were not fun to play through. Also having to repeat the same ships increasingly more times further on in the game was not fun.
A wonderful JRPG with a good combat system. Somewhat of a singleplayer MMO, only with a captivating story with great characters. Side quests are almost entirely uninteresting, however. The vast majority of side quests are just meant to be completed as you work your way through the story. Few of them add anything new to the story. Excellent music as well, pretty good graphics and the environments have a great sense of scale. Can sometimes be detrimental though, as in order to get through some areas, you just have to run in a straight line for a long time. There is even an auto-run button so you don't have to hold the stick forward if you don't want to.
2013
A clever and intriguing experience, even as I quit the game a few hours in, I was still discovering new ways to walk through the office. It's a game with no actual gameplay aside from walking and occasionally pressing buttons, but it still manages to capture your attention.
2016
Beautiful environments, short and sweet, controls weren't bad. Really good soundtrack, some odd sound design choices. Good game to play while high.
2012
Explores some heavy themes. Basic gunplay, a few interesting levels. Interesting choices and story throughout. Leaves a lot of questions unanswered, but mostly good narrative.
A solid blast from the past, the gameplay of the first Crash game can feel quite dated at times however. Lot's of "gotcha" difficulty moments and questionable design. Still a great platformer. Remake has great art style, great music, commendable effort for remaking the first three Crash games along with Spyro.
2012
Masterful storytelling, lovable characters. Immersive, despite having the graphics of a Playstation 2 game. Combat was fun, dungeon crawling was decent to good. There were a few moderately BS level curves in the game, thankfully remedied entirely by the option to increase EXP gains. This option abolished all grinding and I wish more RPGs had it. Beautiful soundtrack. Appears to be very replayable as well, but likely won't replay it for a while due to its length. Some minor flaws like tedious dungeon design and progression hold it back from being perfect.
2011
I felt like revisiting one of my favorite games of all time. The gameplay, while a bit clunky at times, still holds up today and managed to keep me hooked. The first night I played for 3 hours without even realizing. Great music, atmosphere, superb level design. Fun combat and build possibilities. Some frustrating bosses, but nothing too bad. Will probably replay several more times in the future.
2020
Some of the best gunplay I've ever experienced in a game. All guns are fun to use and powerful, cycling through weapons to annihilate hordes of demons is extremely fun. Soundtrack compliments the chaos with blood pumping heavy metal and adrenaline. Sound design in general is top notch. Guns sound like they could destroy the world itself. Highly replayable, damn good.
2020
Fun and colorful, silly and whimsical. A simple idea with great execution. Takeshi's Castle and Wipeout inspired, obstacle course styled, battle royale with fun platforming gameplay. Worth every penny.
2018
Beautiful art. Great soundtrack. Pretty straightforward platformer with some puzzles. Like an interactive painting.
A classic beatifully remade for the current gen. Insanely fun gameplay that still holds up today. Big cast of skaters, great music, create a park, hours of fun and replayability. Not much more to say, childhood favorite, adulthood favorite.
Consistently good, this entry is no different. Catchy music that makes you whistle along. Fun copy abilities. They expanded the copy abilities, offering more attacks and ways to fight through enemies. Nothing extraordinary, but simple fun.
2001
Charming and unique. Interesting gameplay. A Gamecube classic and a new Nintendo favorite.