Very fun Pokemon game and much better to me than Sword and Shield. A ton of people have been having all kinds of crashing and visual bugs which obviously sucks, but in my 60+ hours I had only one crash and just bad pop in at certain points. Nothing to hinder my gameplay at all really. But yeah its a really solid experience and I would recommend it as the story and characters this time around are more enjoyable. This time the game is fully open world and you can do the story in no set order. I really enjoyed the turn based combat this time around and I don't know if the gameplay improved or if I have developed more of a liking for turn-based combat. I love the traversal this time around, continuing the evolution from Pokemon Legends: Arceus. There are some baffling steps back though from that game for some reason. For example the indicators for what pokemon is a shiny and the dodge move. I would say though there aren't any really steps forward for this game in particular outside of the fully open world. I really enjoyed the NPC pokemon battles and the three main varities of story so it doesn't just boil down to go to gym and beat leader. This game had really good writing at parts as well. The ending was definitely my favorite part of the story and I won't spoil the big twists. Yeah give this a shot as maybe the bugs and glitches might be slightly overblown, and beneath that is a great game. 4 ★

Severely underrated and incredible shmup roguelike. Massive shoutout to the developers on this game because this is an absolute gem and should be praised a lot more. I got introduced to this by Videogamedunkey and it was only a few bucks on steam so I had to grab it. Fast, exhilirating, and addictive gameplay is what you can expect from this. The sprite art is top tier quality and the music design is great. This is tough as nails, but not so punishing or unreasonable that you can't make strides to improve. I love this game tons. If you were going to listen to any recommendation of mine, please let it be this one. This game and the devs deserve it!

Not for me: The Game. No disrespect to the developers at all, because I know how hard it is to create a video game. This is merely just my opinion. I can point to this game as an example of what I don't like or care for in a video game. Cool if you like a legitimate hyper-realistic war game (I don't even know if it does a great job at that anyway) but personally, this is an absolute snooze in every way. This game is just not fun to play at all to me. A boring game will always be less favorable to me than a broken mess because at least you can have fun and laugh at the glitchy-ness or jank. It's not completely broken or irredeemable garbage, it just fails at being a video game in terms of what matter most. No thanks. 0.5 ★

An infuriating game with horrible design at a lot of parts. I'm a newer fan of the series after adoring the remakes of RE2 and RE3, as well as RE4 on Wii (currently playing the remake!). And yeah I agree with the tank control bad haha complaint 1000%. The greatest sin this game commits is the truly god awful and near impossible enemy placement and overall design. Vague puzzles, enemies that don't die, and VERY MINUTE health and ammo drops. I get this is a survival horror game but damn this is nearing more ammo-less run than it being a core part of the genre. It's only redeeming qualities and the reason why it's not absolute trash is that all the other aspects are great as you'd come to expect from a RE title. Spooks, decent story, atmosphere, etc. The game still looks very nice as its in that dope RE1 Remake engine. Also, I generally thought the two player back and forth was neat. It got really annoying though when the other was a liability because their health is on danger so you have to do a very difficult section twice. And for some benign reason, you both die if one does????! I maybe, MAYBE will come back to this to see out the story, using a thorough guide. But I'd have to suffer through the pile of trash that is, the game itself. I'd skip this one and just watch a lore video to be up to date with the timeline and story. 1.5 ★

Pinnacle of 3D platforming. This game is the peak of the sadly somewhat abandoned genre. Best movement in any Mario game. Best new gameplay addition with Cappy. The most varied and most adventurous game in the series. Amazing OST, fun customization, and rewarding collecting. Also, this game is packed to the brim with endless amounts of new things to find and is very, very repayable. I've sunk many hours into this game and I loved it through and through. This is one of those games that I can recommend to anyone and they're guaranteed to have a great time without feeling lost, confused, or not having at least some sort of fun. My only gripes would be a select few baffling and annoying moons, and an underwhelming 100% bonus. This is truly a love letter to the series as a whole, and this is apparent in the outfits and some gameplay sections. Also Nintendo when's the next 3D Mario?? Bowser's Fury was amazing as well but we're approaching on 6 years without a full standalone entry. A new 3D Mario would easily be my most hyped game for the year it would release. Please play this if you have not. 5 ★

I did not click with this at all. I found the game monotonous and unengaging for the most part and did not come away with my hours played really finding it memorable or really all that enjoyable. The characters and animations are charming and the game has wacky moments, but it's not enough to save a just ok PS2 platformer. In the era when these kind of games were all over the place, it stands out nowadays for only its style personally. Didn't hate it or anything, nothing in the game was offensively bad. Just very middling overall. I'm disappointed because I adore Sucker Punch's work and love 3D platformers as a genre. It has been a few months and maybe I didn't really give it a fair shake, but I don't think slogging along to beat the game would do my impressions of it any favor. 2 ★

No doubt the best the series has to offer in terms of content (and more still on the way), I just don't love it mechanic and gameplay wise compared to Mario Kart Wii. It's way too hectic in online races and it just feels like RNG is prioritized compared to a sense of skill. It's a coin toss when your perfect frontrunning race will result in you getting last because you got green shelled last second. Glad they fixed the meta where you don't just see Waluigi Wiggler bike combos only. Speaking of bikes what happened to them after Mario Kart Wii? They're not fun to use at all and control badly. I just don't find myself playing MK8 Deluxe too much. Battle mode slaps though. This game looks phenomenal and the soundtrack is loaded with bops too. This objectively IS the best Mario Kart and no doubt is for many, many people. But I'll take playing MK Wii any day of the week. 3.5 ★

Immaculate action game and the absolute peak of the genre. I had a really bad impression of this game when I booted this up on series X as there was a really awful bug, most likely caused by the HDR performance mode. This rendered my game unplayable until I finally found the problem. Aside from that this game is just masterful man. Ton of combos, weapons, and setups that provide endless fun. This game is just raw and insane . All three playable characters in the base game are all uniquely enjoyable to use. OST is incredible as well. Seriously, this game is just dope. You will be hard pressed finding an action game with better combat and gameplay. A must play. I will say the story is nothing insanely deep or incredible but it doesn't really matter at all and it still manages to have an emotional weight to it. It's still very fun. Capcom made a true modern action game masterclass. 5/5 ★

Masterful metroidvania with gorgeous art that has an impeccable atmosphere and gameplay loop. This is an absolute must play, ESPECIALLY if you are a fan of the genre. Abilities and traversal are super fun and rewarding once you get them all as well. They really nailed all the boss fights and this game has some of my favorites in any game. And my god the soundtrack is fantastic. The reputation this game has as being insanely hard I didn't understand though. There are some DLC parts I have not played, but the base game there were hardly anything that reached Souls-like or shmup levels of difficult imo. I also did get lost quite often which kind of bogged down the flow and my experience with the game a bit as I was finding myself backtracking a lot. This is definitely my only major gripe. Also, prior to you getting all of your abilities, the movement and combat is hardly the best the genre has to offer. This game is absolutely fantastic but I feel like it was missing some magical element to make it five stars, but it's damn near close. The lore is very fascinating and is worth exploring in and of itself. I also don't find this to be that replayable to be honest, but that maybe just is because it's fairly long. Overall, this is a phenomenal game and I really cant wait for Silksong! 4 1/2 ★

A solid, if not lacking, beat-em-up action game. The stealth sections were very unenjoyable as the enemy programming made sections drag on and it became a boring chore to get through. The game lacks enemy variety as well. The same giga monster enemy and common joker goons. The combat is fine, if not a bit basic. Not gonna lie I was also expecting a better story overall. The boss fights were pretty unmemorable but there were a few that were fun to blast through. I was really surprised on how well the game has aged graphically and playing it on Series X I noticed an FPS boost too. The voice acting is stellar. I know it sounds like I'm dogging on this game, but I did find it to be fun and the general gameplay loop was engaging (minus the required stealth sections). I did like how they implemented detective parts too as it's important to Batman's character. Also, I really enjoyed the collectibles via the Riddler trophies and the spider-structure thingys. Overall, I had fun but this is nothing mindblowing or anything. I am planning on playing the other games and have heard that my criticisms are addressed in the following games. 3 ★

I need to preface this with the fact that I have not played the DLC, but I don't think they would change my stance on the game tbh. This is a playable anime, for better or worse. While the story scenario, animation, artwork, and music are phenomenal, it leaves you desiring more of a game. There are a ton of cutscenes and QTEs, and the gameplay itself is fun but nothing of real depth. Don't get me wrong, I didn't hate it and enjoyed the ride despite this essential being an interactive movie with some shmup or beat 'em sections. The shmup sections I actually found to be tedious and not really all that fun to play. The gameplay in these sections feel like they are too easy and you're just locking on until something blows up, with little player agency. It lacks weight until the end where the difficulty is cranked in these sections. As previously mentioned, the combat is serviceable but nothing to really write home about. I think more combos and variety would've put this another tier up. I think the game gets maybe a little too bonkers and self-indulgent at points with Asura and his rage, but it kind of adds to the insanity of the story. I'd recommend playing this once as it genuinely is a really fun ride. Just don't go into it expecting a DMC or Platinum game level of action game perfection in regards to the combat system and gameplay. 3 ★

PEAK. A near flawless game for me and really encapsulates what I love about the medium. Exceptional effort and turned out just as well as I’d hoped. I’ve beaten it 5 times now (granted new game plus with all your upgrades and knowing where to go makes it much easier). I did find it to be very difficult at points and it can be somewhat easy to get lost. Also a vital system for progression can be too cryptic, but rewarding once you crack it. That’s about my only gripes. Must play game. Gorgeous artstyle, no handholdy nonsense, fun gameplay, top tier OST, great story, and an overall perfect action-adventure game. It’s littered with secrets as well so your exploration is rewarded (pay attention to the manual!). Andrew Shouldice goated fr 5/5 ⭑