Surrealist walking simulator that never ceases to surprise you with novel gameplay quirks.

The core gameplay is walking though this game really does everything it can to make that interesting short of adding any other actions (unless you count inspecting something as an action). From the dynamic text that writes itself across scenic points of interest to large amounts of internal dialogue from the main character, walking never seems like a huge chore because you'll frequently be taking breaks to soak in plot exposition. And since you aren't always walking in the shoes of the main character, the walking the game reserves for other characters is heavily differentiated and tailored to express the themes and experiences of that specific character. I can't really say much more without spoiling the magic.

On the topic of the plot, I found it to be a sweet, self-contained, narrative that has the right amount of breadth and mystery for it to be relatable to a lot of different people. While I personally didn't relate to the main character, one of the other characters in the game really hit close to home which triggered some self-introspection that I was totally not expecting (though the developers stated that one of their goals was to create a very introspective experience for all players).

Where the game really stands out is in its environment design and how it leverages this for incredible environmental story telling. While a lot of games place miscellaneous props to make it seem like a space is lived in, the props in every space in this game are curated so meticulously that it's hard to believe that the characters who lived in them AREN'T real. This level of detail really ties in well with the "slice of life" quality of the storytelling as each space is a snapshot of that character's life free for you to look around in however you'd like to.

I probably should have talked about this back in the gameplay section but each the objects you interact in this game have a very tactile feel through intuitive analog control schemes that really conveys the feeling that you're combing through every scrap in someone's belongings you can get your hands on to unravel their story. For example, to turn the pages in a book, you physically need to move the joystick from right to left as if flipping a page. When turning the key on a lock, you need to move your joystick in a clockwise turning motion. The design of these very personal, analog objects is of the same stellar quality the environments are, and makes these moments of interaction feel very Wes Anderson-esque.

Overall, I recommend this game for anyone who enjoys short but memorable gaming experiences. It certainly breaks the mold that games are one repetitive task repeated over and over again with small amounts of plot interspersed to make those task seem like parts in a larger narrative. Each and every task in this game is special and begs to be toyed with in such a way that slows down your interaction with the game as to be incredibly impactful and introspective.

Highly stylized 2D samurai fighting game that makes you feel like the main character in an Akira Kurosawa film.

Gameplay wise, Trek to Yomi isn't anything particularly interesting though I personally found it fun. It's a standard beat'em up style game where enemies surround your character from 2 sides and you use combinations of your light and heavy attack to fend them off. You are provided with a large number of combos for different situations however I found myself only using like 2 of them that carried me through the game. Perhaps on a higher difficulty the other combos are more useful. You also have some ranged weapons though I barely used them except for during boss battles when I was really close to finishing them off and didn't want to get close.

Aesthetics wise, the game is beautiful. The choice to use set camera positions in the environment that focus on a whole scene rather than just the player character really sells the cinematic quality of the game. I feel the need to stress the cinematography of the camera placements even more so I'll just say that almost every scene you enter into could be screenshotted and it would look like it came straight from a Kurosawa film. Animations are pretty crisp and allow you to orchestrate some awesome fight scenes if you know what you're doing with the combos.

Storywise, the game is what you'd expect from a samurai game. I didn't find it particularly compelling and there were some choices to be made that I think (?) just affected some cutscenes but nothing major. If the choices led to different levels or endings I'd be very surprised.

Overall, good game if you like strong, stylized aesthetics with a cinematic quality to them. I finished the game in like two 3ish hour sittings though I wish I took more time to savor the visuals.

As many have already said, this is probably the best tactical shooter of all time. SWAT 4 is truly one of the only fps games where you really have to think before you act. While twitch reflexes will get you some way through the game, exercising tactical thinking by appropriately applying your available tools to the situation is absolutely required to win. Every room demands your full attention to detail and analysis as it only takes one bad guy to wipe your entire squad. The random placement of enemies each time a level is loaded prevents you from brute forcing your way through levels through memorization and you are required to think through the situations in each level all over again every time you play. The amount of command you have over your AI squadmates is unlike anything I've seen and really allows you to think about how to approach a situation from different angles and the different maneuvers you can execute.

The shooting and movement are clunky, though I consider this a conscious design choice as the game is a tactical strategy game first and an fps second. Most of the time, if you've applied the best tactics to your situation, your AI squadmates will neutralize all the threats without you having to fire a single shot.

The overall aesthetics of the game are slightly dated but the environments have a high level of variety so you won't find yourself staring at one for too long. The attention to detail to the props found in each level is noticeable and goes a long way to making the environments seem realistic and lived in.

The sound design is extremely well done and is probably responsible for 70% of the immersion factor. The dynamic music that intensifies when breaching rooms is also a great.

Overall, SWAT 4 is a flawless game. Highly recommend it to players who are fans of tactical fps games or strategy games in general.