Oliver
Well this was a bit of a tough one. Really liked the first half as the atmosphere remains brilliant, but it then started throwing endless waves of monsters and enemies at you which really left me with a bit of a sour note.
2023
A culmination of everything Remedy has done so far and very rewarding for someone who has been there from the start. Truly unique in the landscape in the way it ties together mediums, and does enough cool things that me not being a huge fan of horror didn't end up being a massive knock against it (survival horror is not my favorite genre, but it does fit this game, and the narrative Remedy is crafting)
2016
If American Nightmare was the weakest game Remedy has made then Quantum Break is likely their most disappointing one. It had so much promise, and I can clearly see the love and passion they put into it but it just didn't land for me.
I've always had a rocky relationship with American Nightmare, and even though I am able to appreciate the work put into what is essentially a low budget Xbox Live Arcade game it still doesn't feel like something I am looking for.
On the positive side they have tightened up the gameplay. We have weapon variety now, Wake doesn't run out of breath after 2 minutes, manuscript pages unlock new and more powerful weapons incentivizing exploration, movement feels more solid, and there is more enemy variety.
Interestingly enough all of the gameplay changes I did like were actually planned for the eventual sequel, but Microsoft didn't pick it up which led to all this being used in the downloadable title.
At the end of the day though - while it is nice that the combat feels crisp, I find it very difficult to get invested in a smaller, combat focused Alan Wake game. I understand why it had to be this way, but something is missing and American Nightmare just doesn't play to the strengths of the series.
On the positive side they have tightened up the gameplay. We have weapon variety now, Wake doesn't run out of breath after 2 minutes, manuscript pages unlock new and more powerful weapons incentivizing exploration, movement feels more solid, and there is more enemy variety.
Interestingly enough all of the gameplay changes I did like were actually planned for the eventual sequel, but Microsoft didn't pick it up which led to all this being used in the downloadable title.
At the end of the day though - while it is nice that the combat feels crisp, I find it very difficult to get invested in a smaller, combat focused Alan Wake game. I understand why it had to be this way, but something is missing and American Nightmare just doesn't play to the strengths of the series.
2010
The storytelling, world and atmosphere Remedy has created here is incredibly compelling, although I do wish that there was more to the gameplay. There are a lot of cool combat moments all throughout the game that stay brilliant, but it's mixed with large amounts of throwaway enemies that you have to kill over and over again with the same weapons which can become a bit repetitive at times.
This game has a good idea in offering a more strategic approach to the WW2 shooters, but the execution is sadly just not good enough for it to stand out.
The suppress & flank tactic is novel for a minute, but once you realize that every level is built on repeating the same move without any real variety the gameplay starts feeling hollow. It doesn't help that the actual gunplay is made extremely unappealing and imprecise (probably because they wanted to push the player towards using their squad)
There's some fun to be had in the first half, but overall it comes across as a relatively mediocre project.
The suppress & flank tactic is novel for a minute, but once you realize that every level is built on repeating the same move without any real variety the gameplay starts feeling hollow. It doesn't help that the actual gunplay is made extremely unappealing and imprecise (probably because they wanted to push the player towards using their squad)
There's some fun to be had in the first half, but overall it comes across as a relatively mediocre project.
2013
Evoland is such a cool idea, but sadly it never manages to land the execution. It is very charming near the start, but it soon becomes clear that apart from the idea every actual gameplay mechanic you touch during your evolution is incredibly shallow compared to the history it is channeling.
That being said I do find the story of how this game got made and the rise of Shiro Games inspiring. I am glad that Evoland found an audience because from what I have seen they took this idea and polished it a lot in the sequel which I definitely plan to check out!
That being said I do find the story of how this game got made and the rise of Shiro Games inspiring. I am glad that Evoland found an audience because from what I have seen they took this idea and polished it a lot in the sequel which I definitely plan to check out!
2013
Ys II kept the charming nature of the first game and fixed nearly everything that I didn't like about it. Better bosses, better environments, the combat feels snappier, and the addition of magic gives the player more options. It's just all-around a better game to play. And the music continues to be amazing! I still don't enjoy the massive labyrinth type areas near the end, but the game was enjoyable enough for that not to be a massive issue.
2013
The first half of Ys I is just lovely! It's a very cozy world with a sweet cast of characters. Slowly leveling up and trying to make it through while exploring was wonderful. The map also isn't all that big which I enjoyed. All of this is supported by a relatively satisfying combat system and a ridiculously good soundtrack. There's just something very charming about it.
Then about 50% through the game you hit the level cap, and the rest of the game becomes one of the most obnoxious gauntlets I have ever been put through without any clear rewards. Some of these bosses took me dozens of tries as they combined massive difficulty spikes with unforgiving mechanics. I did enjoy figuring out the 'trick' for some of them, but then you had to repeat that 20 times in a row trying to get to hitboxes the size of a needle without getting hit yourself. Now this could have been mitigated a little by playing on a lower difficulty. It only effectively changes the HP, but you'll have to endure the pain less.
That being said I still view Ys 1 fondly due to the start. If the sequel improves on the weaker elements then I am in for a great journey!
Then about 50% through the game you hit the level cap, and the rest of the game becomes one of the most obnoxious gauntlets I have ever been put through without any clear rewards. Some of these bosses took me dozens of tries as they combined massive difficulty spikes with unforgiving mechanics. I did enjoy figuring out the 'trick' for some of them, but then you had to repeat that 20 times in a row trying to get to hitboxes the size of a needle without getting hit yourself. Now this could have been mitigated a little by playing on a lower difficulty. It only effectively changes the HP, but you'll have to endure the pain less.
That being said I still view Ys 1 fondly due to the start. If the sequel improves on the weaker elements then I am in for a great journey!
2018
Yakuza 3 was always going to be a little jarring, but it ended up being so for different reasons than I expected.
My biggest fear was that it was going to feel dated compared to 0, Kiwami, and Kiwami 2. Thing is that never truly bothered me. There are some conveniences that aren't there anymore and the movement feels different, but these are all quirks I can deal with. If anything I thought it was charming and closer to the Yakuza games I know than I expected. The remaster also looks good visually. Okinawa was an interesting new location and I was happy to see something with a different vibe. The sub stories were classic wacky Yakuza scenarios and they were so much fun. I guess the minigames did feel a little off at times, but hey I got to play golf so the game has that going on for it. The main plot was also decent although I have to agree with nearly everyone else that the pacing is off. The contents itself were good, and I think the orphanage stuff did wonders for this big set of characters, but the flow of it doesn't really work out as well as it should. That's not the end of the world though and I could have lived with that.
The jarring aspect ended up being the combat and it truly soured my time with the game. I feel like I deserve an award for completing Y3 on Hard difficulty because I don't think I have ever had a more tedious experience with a combat system. Funny part is that it isn't even a difficult game! The combat encounters are essentially drawn out since everyone has massive health pools (including the player), and enemies block the majority of your attacks. Then you just go around and try to exploit your way through their defenses to remove that next little sliver from your opponent. This is frequently made harder by very small arenas and a large amount of enemies. The camera is also placed extremely close to the player and the mob attacks you all at the same time which makes dealing with them all even more annoying (they never do enough damage to actually hurt you much - you are just locked in animations of getting hit).
Now I do agree that the skill cap in Y3 is the highest I have seen in the series because you can technically get past the block by stun locking the enemy and using wall bounds - I just don't think it is satisfying. The enemies generally block most hits after the first one that connects so you can punch the air and waste your weaker attacks and then make the powerful one that knocks them over connect - then just do that over and over again (preferably near a wall so you can get even more hits in).
To make things worse the Remaster took away the one other thing that could have helped get past the blocks. Quickstep distance was lessened by a lot so dodging to get behind enemies became way more difficult compared to the original. There's a mod that reverses that change, but I found out too late. That being said I somehow survived, and luckily Yakuza never returned to this style of combat so I can continue in peace.
My biggest fear was that it was going to feel dated compared to 0, Kiwami, and Kiwami 2. Thing is that never truly bothered me. There are some conveniences that aren't there anymore and the movement feels different, but these are all quirks I can deal with. If anything I thought it was charming and closer to the Yakuza games I know than I expected. The remaster also looks good visually. Okinawa was an interesting new location and I was happy to see something with a different vibe. The sub stories were classic wacky Yakuza scenarios and they were so much fun. I guess the minigames did feel a little off at times, but hey I got to play golf so the game has that going on for it. The main plot was also decent although I have to agree with nearly everyone else that the pacing is off. The contents itself were good, and I think the orphanage stuff did wonders for this big set of characters, but the flow of it doesn't really work out as well as it should. That's not the end of the world though and I could have lived with that.
The jarring aspect ended up being the combat and it truly soured my time with the game. I feel like I deserve an award for completing Y3 on Hard difficulty because I don't think I have ever had a more tedious experience with a combat system. Funny part is that it isn't even a difficult game! The combat encounters are essentially drawn out since everyone has massive health pools (including the player), and enemies block the majority of your attacks. Then you just go around and try to exploit your way through their defenses to remove that next little sliver from your opponent. This is frequently made harder by very small arenas and a large amount of enemies. The camera is also placed extremely close to the player and the mob attacks you all at the same time which makes dealing with them all even more annoying (they never do enough damage to actually hurt you much - you are just locked in animations of getting hit).
Now I do agree that the skill cap in Y3 is the highest I have seen in the series because you can technically get past the block by stun locking the enemy and using wall bounds - I just don't think it is satisfying. The enemies generally block most hits after the first one that connects so you can punch the air and waste your weaker attacks and then make the powerful one that knocks them over connect - then just do that over and over again (preferably near a wall so you can get even more hits in).
To make things worse the Remaster took away the one other thing that could have helped get past the blocks. Quickstep distance was lessened by a lot so dodging to get behind enemies became way more difficult compared to the original. There's a mod that reverses that change, but I found out too late. That being said I somehow survived, and luckily Yakuza never returned to this style of combat so I can continue in peace.
2017
Breath of fresh air after Kiwami 1 and a game I truly enjoyed. It has a bunch of quirks though. Not massive ones, but there are enough to pull the game down a little for me.
The first thing I noticed with the new engine were the convenient changes to the gameplay. Being able to enter buildings without a loading screen opened up a lot of smaller places that no one bothered to make a separate room for before. Inventory management is easier with less restrictions. Everything in general is just snappier whether you are talking to someone or going through menus. The changes to the food system were great. Eating at restaurants is now an important part of leveling up and not something I only did for roleplay or the completion list (although they criminally lowered the rewards you get for some other places which sometimes feels odd).
I quite enjoyed the story as well. It's maybe a little convoluted, but the overall vibe felt like this gritty police / mafia drama which I really enjoyed. It's also extremely emotional at moments which is always a bonus. The only really negative thing I can say, is that at times it felt a bit too padded. There's a few chapters that felt more like side story material, and since they happen near the mid way point and the end it really dragged down the pacing for these sections.
Speaking of actual side stories though I am very happy that Kiwami 2 returned to the wacky nature of what I saw in Yakuza 0. There is so much fun stuff to see! I saw a lot of parallels to Yakuza 0 in general here. We have two 'bigger' minigames again with actual storylines to follow; Cabaret Club makes a return continuing the actual storyline from 0 and there are a lot of narrative ties in Sotenbori in general.
The biggest thing that would make or break peoples experience with this game is probably the combat. It's quite a big change and not everyone is obviously going to like it. I'm somewhere in the middle. I don't dislike the new style, but at the same time I do feel like it's missing some precision. Everyone sort of feels like a drunk person flailing around trying to catch anything that gets in their way. This creates some very comedic moments combined with the ragdolls in the engine, but as I went on it started feeling less and less satisfying. The game is also incredibly easy for the most part which creates some conflicting emotions in me. I've never been a die hard action combat fan, so being stun locked by bosses and 80% of my punches being blocked was incredibly frustrating at times in the earlier games. That being said this time around it was less about surviving and more about seeing how quickly it is possible to delete someone from existence. This can be fun, but it likely won't be for a lengthy playthrough. Especially as we don't have multiple styles now so you are essentially just doing the same moves over and over.
The first thing I noticed with the new engine were the convenient changes to the gameplay. Being able to enter buildings without a loading screen opened up a lot of smaller places that no one bothered to make a separate room for before. Inventory management is easier with less restrictions. Everything in general is just snappier whether you are talking to someone or going through menus. The changes to the food system were great. Eating at restaurants is now an important part of leveling up and not something I only did for roleplay or the completion list (although they criminally lowered the rewards you get for some other places which sometimes feels odd).
I quite enjoyed the story as well. It's maybe a little convoluted, but the overall vibe felt like this gritty police / mafia drama which I really enjoyed. It's also extremely emotional at moments which is always a bonus. The only really negative thing I can say, is that at times it felt a bit too padded. There's a few chapters that felt more like side story material, and since they happen near the mid way point and the end it really dragged down the pacing for these sections.
Speaking of actual side stories though I am very happy that Kiwami 2 returned to the wacky nature of what I saw in Yakuza 0. There is so much fun stuff to see! I saw a lot of parallels to Yakuza 0 in general here. We have two 'bigger' minigames again with actual storylines to follow; Cabaret Club makes a return continuing the actual storyline from 0 and there are a lot of narrative ties in Sotenbori in general.
The biggest thing that would make or break peoples experience with this game is probably the combat. It's quite a big change and not everyone is obviously going to like it. I'm somewhere in the middle. I don't dislike the new style, but at the same time I do feel like it's missing some precision. Everyone sort of feels like a drunk person flailing around trying to catch anything that gets in their way. This creates some very comedic moments combined with the ragdolls in the engine, but as I went on it started feeling less and less satisfying. The game is also incredibly easy for the most part which creates some conflicting emotions in me. I've never been a die hard action combat fan, so being stun locked by bosses and 80% of my punches being blocked was incredibly frustrating at times in the earlier games. That being said this time around it was less about surviving and more about seeing how quickly it is possible to delete someone from existence. This can be fun, but it likely won't be for a lengthy playthrough. Especially as we don't have multiple styles now so you are essentially just doing the same moves over and over.
2016
Yakuza Kiwami makes me happy and frustrated at the same time. The happy side almost wins out, but not quite. The characters and the story are great! I was connected to everything that was going on and always wanted to push forward.
That being said most other aspects come with caveats. Kiwami gives you something with one hand and takes something else away with the other. The combat is fun, but the bosses can be annoying and the game really likes to stun lock you keeping your character immobile for much of it. The side content can be interesting, but a lot of it feels like busywork. Majima everywhere was brilliant, but is so drawn out that unless you grind it you can forget about keeping up with the final skill tree.
That being said most other aspects come with caveats. Kiwami gives you something with one hand and takes something else away with the other. The combat is fun, but the bosses can be annoying and the game really likes to stun lock you keeping your character immobile for much of it. The side content can be interesting, but a lot of it feels like busywork. Majima everywhere was brilliant, but is so drawn out that unless you grind it you can forget about keeping up with the final skill tree.
2023
Hogwarts Legacy is quite an odd title, because in theory I like all the elements that the game comprises of, and I had a lot of fun in the first 20 or so hours but then something just snapped and I didn't really see myself wanting to play any more.
The environments are beautifully crafted with the Hogwarts Castle being exceptionally well done. I enjoyed the combat, the story and I think the initial exploration was nicely done. There's definitely love for the universe in this title. The game started running into more issues once the wider world opened up, and it just sadly became a bit of a chore. It's a tiny bit repetitive and the more time I spent in the open world the more I realized that I want to be in the actual castle more than anything else. Once I realized that a bunch of omissions like proper focus on the actual school life became more apparent and the magic was lost for me.
The environments are beautifully crafted with the Hogwarts Castle being exceptionally well done. I enjoyed the combat, the story and I think the initial exploration was nicely done. There's definitely love for the universe in this title. The game started running into more issues once the wider world opened up, and it just sadly became a bit of a chore. It's a tiny bit repetitive and the more time I spent in the open world the more I realized that I want to be in the actual castle more than anything else. Once I realized that a bunch of omissions like proper focus on the actual school life became more apparent and the magic was lost for me.
1997
Probably one of the most influential racing games to exist and it's still just as fun to play as it was 20 years ago. It was perhaps made a tiny bit redundant by its masterpiece of a sequel, but it still remains very special to me.
I don't think it's a badly put together game, but none of the gameplay design appealed to me during my time with it. It just wasn't fun. I applaud the teams love for Star Wars, but as a game it just isn't for me.