An excellent JRPG that pretty much exceeds at just about everything it sets out to do. The characters are charming and memorable, and the world is truly one of the best to grace the genre with stunning maps and art direction that is just mesmerizing front to back. The combat is great and easy to jump into, while being deeply rewarding at the same time to learn all of its complexities. All of that, and the cherry on top being an amazing score assembled by so many GOATs within the medium.

What holds the game back, unfortunately, is everything outside main content. The game is stuffed with so much meandering, dreadful side content. It wouldn't be so bad if it was TRULY optional, but the game has some difficulty spikes that are nigh impossible to overcome unless you've leveled up from mindlessly doing these, as well being locked out from endgame-tier skills and equipment. Also, while I enjoy most party members, there are some that are just kind of terrible. Some, just because, and some because the AI for them sucks (cough Shulk cough Melia)

There's just things about XC that don't completely mesh with me, but stomach the few setbacks and you have a truly exceptional JRPG experience.

Hoo boy...

I just don't see much of a really good game here, to be honest. When you're not watching cutscenes for a story that is kind of intriguing albeit really boring to watch, you're forced to slog through shitty combat or run at an insanely slow pace through maps. My condolences to anyone that plays this game without the use of an emulator's turbo mode because holy shit this game is so... damn... SLOOOWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW.

Takahashi is trying to do something here and I just don't know if what this game offers is enough to get me really interested in seeing what the other two games in this series have to offer.

My first venture into Takahashi's video game design, as well as the "Xeno" series and well... it's interesting that's for sure.

This game is insanely ambitious, to a fault. The combat is unique, but poorly executed and therefore mediocre. The platforming is atrocious, and the sudden shift in puzzle-heavy dungeon level design near the very end is confusing. It just doesn't mesh. But at the same time, I respect the game even at its faults because I can tell there was a lot of innovation, or at least an attempt.

What makes Xenogears iconic is its story and presentation and, even then, I'm widely conflicted. There's much that I really liked, but much of the plot beats and resolutions either just didn't hit or were compelling but extremely convoluted and so rushed that it all comes at you in waves of exposition instead of natural build-up. It's a real shame that the most intriguing portion of the story (Disc 2) is incredibly rushed and cut. Therefore, the most climactic and important part of the story felt kind of... hollow.

I respect the hell out of the ambition this game has, but I also equally don't care for how much that ambition really got in the way of itself sometimes.

Loved the anime for years, and finally got around to completing the actual game. It's really good, and when it's at its absolute best it's stellar as hell. Unfortunately, I don't think the entire experience is golden. The initial half is fine. I personally don't mind the slow build-up to the crescendo that is the second half because it's what makes THAT moment all the more iconic and impactful.

It's actually the latter half of the game where I find most of my biggest issues. The pacing fluctuates between being either engaging or just really meandering in spots. I think the last three chapters are really great stuff, but there's also some stuff in this big exciting, climactic latter half that really pulls me out. Chapter 7, I think, being the most egregious of these sins for me.

What ties into some of those issues I have with that last half is largely the cast. I can't sympathize with how people say S;G has an "amazing cast of characters." I think maybe HALF of the cast is great. Okabe is a flawed but compelling protagonist. Mayuri, Kurisu, Suzuha, are all characters that I enjoyed, but the rest just isn't on equal footing. You have characters like Luka, who is just explored very poorly and in such a way that it leaves most fans of the game with a bad taste in their mouth. Daru, who is essentially just a trope character that isn't explored ever. Faris, who I think is way too annoying to find any semblance of interest in, and so on and so forth. Hell, even a character like Kurisu - who I do really like - also suffers from this issue of the writers never stopping with the corny tsundere bullshit and just letting her character be just genuinely fun and compelling.

The game gives so much time to characters like Luka and Faris in that second half, who are just not all that fantastic in my opinion, and it lowkey irritates me because there's characters like Moeka and FB who I think ARE very neat characters that I want to know more about.

I'm only so critical about this because it's essentially the ONLY complaint I have with Steins;Gate's visual novel. The whole presentation is fantastic. The science talk is interesting, the use of time travel and how it explores it is genuinely some of the best I've ever seen, the music and art style is beautiful, iconic, and easily identifiable. If it wasn't for some of its hiccups, I'd probably consider this to be a masterpiece or, at least, damn near close.

A lot of what I love about Metroidvanias isn't quite here for me, I think. While I really love the art direction and gorgeous pixel art, it's also probably the only thing about this experience that really stood out. Level design is uninspired, platforming is a bit awkward at times, boss fights lack impact, etc. Combat is okay, but I don't find it as satisfying to do as SotN or Hollow Knight for examples. Compile all that together and even the traditional "backtracking" element of metroidvanias feels like a chore here after a while.

Gave it about 7-8 hours before I decided it just wasn't my cup of tea ultimately. I'll be curious to see what the reception on Blasphemous 2 is. If it works out the kinks, it could be a really solid game.

While it isn't that interesting in terms of combat and survival horror, it at least has engaging and memorable level design/art direction that kept me invested enough to explore every possible crevasse. The voice acting was also pretty charming as well.

The most surprising part of this game was that it actually has a pretty decent quality story to it. There's a lot of themes, symbolism, and topics that the game explores and the writing covers it all with a lot of sincerity. The plot could have easily missed and been extremely corny and try-hard, but I think it ends up working quite well and standing out supremely among most "mascot horror" narratives. I expected a very stupid, afterthought story attached to the gameplay and, instead, I got something that actually had me fairly invested.

Definitely worth playing if you ever see it on sell.

This game is so good, especially considering it's from an indie developer who's asking only $6 for it. If you love platformer-centric metroidvanias, then it's a no-brainer to give this a shot.

BUT... I don't have the urge to keep playing, and that's because of this game's biggest issue for me: the lack of any map. In the year of our lord 2023 every metroidvania game should be having a map function within it. The lack of one, here, is just odd. I can't be bothered to wander around for multiple hours because there's no way to see a map of the areas and where I haven't explored yet, etc.

Hoping that the developers add this in a future update. I'd gladly come back and complete and rate this title afterwards for sure.

The Shell -- or Kara no Shoujo, as it's more commonly known as -- is a solid title within the visual novel genre that I'd recommend to folk both experienced AND new to visual novel titles. It's got an engaging story and mystery that will keep you on your toes till the very end, an awesome, completely redone localized script, and a banger OST that's only setback is that I wish it contained a larger amount of tracks.

Like a lot of VNs though, it falls under the issue of being once more another great narrative that is consistently hurt by the insertion of random, largely unnecessary erotic/sexual content. Sadly, there's no way to experience this game fully without just having to deal with it so... yeah. Is what it is.

Also, there's some stuff in this game that is just absolute BS when it comes to getting all the endings. Getting one ending, in particular, requires you to click on a very VERY specific part of the screen in order to achieve it. There's stuff in this game that just feels like total crap to expect of players without having a guide right next to you.

It's not perfect, but it's a great visual novel that's a solid recommendation from me if you're looking for something within the genre that doesn't require you to spend 50+ hours of your life to, but also offers a lot to get invested on.

In terms of presentation, I think this game is solid. Art direction is pretty and Takeshi Furukawa's score is stand-out in many sections. But in terms of gameplay, it's really nothing special. Not bad, per se, but it does little to surprise or have some inspiration behind its various levels. It's clear where the most passion lied, and it wasn't the gameplay.

It's on Game Pass so if you're looking for a Limbo/Inside-like game combined with something like Journey or Ori, then I say it's worth trying.

Amnesia's had a strange history. It's entry into the video game medium was monumental, and it lead into a few sequels that were overall considered disappointments. There's a niche that enjoys Machine for Pigs and Rebirth, but overall the consensus is that neither felt like a true successor to what made The Dark Descent quite possibly the most influential horror game of all time right up there with both Silent Hill and Resident Evil.

Amnesia: The Bunker, however, feels like the first title post-TDD to sort of get it. Its disturbing, putrid heart is in the right place and I think its a hopeful evolution of the core original gameplay.

That being said, it's pretty flawed. For one, and it's obviously subjective here, but I just don't think it's that scary. CONSISTENTLY scary, I should say. The first hour or two of being dropped in this strange location, trying to figure shit out while this creepy monster is always crawling around reminding you that you're being observed is quite unsettling. But once I got comfortable with the outlay of the map and the mechanics, nothing here felt that scary. The only thing I feared was losing my progress and having to do the shit all over again. It just doesn't shake it up enough. For a game promoting a lot how the main creature is heavily AI-driven, a la the Xenomorph from Alien: Isolation, it just feels extremely predictable. Make loud noise? Go hide in obvious hiding spots which it will never catch you in. Rinse and repeat. The only time it's pretty challenging to overcome is when the generator runs out of fuel and you lose all light. But if you're paying attention to the game, you'll seriously never run out of fuel.

The other hazard in the game is the rats, which are completely unneeded additions to the game. Burning corpses to ward off rats didn't feel intuitive. Just felt half-ass really.

The game also goes for this "immersive sim" spin on the formula. You have an open layout for a map and you can progress in multiple fashions and in whatever order you please... or so they say. But the reality is that it's really limited. You can break a door down with a brick, or a grenade. Ergo, there's "options." That's it. The game is not truly offering really substantial different ways to tackle something. It's a pretty meh attempt at immersive sim.

The other big thing is the inventory management/crafting system. If you've played RE, you know what you're in for here. It's a fine addition. Felt like a nice element of decision making. Whether to load up on guns and grenades, or save space for fuel canisters and key items, and whether you're prepared to make a second trip to finish an area out because of it. Having it in Amnesia alongside things like actual guns and ammunition felt very fitting and not overload. Can't complain, it's one of the better new additions to the game.

It's a decent horror game. Just decent. But it's a good stepping stone for the series. I'm curious how they'll take these elements of The Bunker and form it into something, hopefully, much stronger.

Tears of the Kingdom feels like more or less what I wanted Breath of the Wild to be. As much as I tried to get into BotW, it was never a Zelda title that clicked for me like it did for the majority. I appreciate what it did, but it just didn't move me.

So, with Tears, I was cautiously optimistic as to whether this game would fulfill my issues, or go even farther down the path laid about by Breath. And... it sort of does both?

Tears feels like both an expansion of what people who loved Breath will want, but it also feels like an answer to the many Zelda fans who felt like a lot of the beloved elements of the "Zelda experience" just wasn't as apparent, or of a lesser form. The world is bigger, the expansive nature of how you choose to play is even greater, yada yada yada you've heard it all by now at this point I'm sure. But it throws in exciting new elements like ACTUAL dungeons and a more involved story to quell some of those complaints people had with the original. It's arguably the most accessible Zelda title, since there's something in this one that I think will appeal to the fans no matter which type of Zelda structure is your favorite.

"It's got a little something for everyone." - IGN

There's a lot to say, so I'm gonna try to keep this organized a bit differently than my reviews typically go but bare with me.

Here's things I LIKED:
- Combat feels improved a lot, weapon degradation is never an annoying mechanic to constantly be reminded of. Bigger variety of enemies, and the fuse mechanic allows you to have fun with even the most barebones weapons. It's the items you find that make your weapons special and I think that's cool.

-The physics in this game are absurd. It's insane how this game can do what it does and not just completely crash at every given second. What they've done here is nothing short of a huge feat.

-Soundtrack is a step up from Breath. While it's still got a lot of the same "ambient" type music, there's a lot more loud and traditional sounding pieces in this title that were nice to have. A lot of dynamic tracks, too. Hearing a music piece progressively evolve as you progress deeper in a dungeon was a wonderful touch.

-Speaking of dungeons, it's lovely to see them back in a much better form here than they were in Breath. Wind and Water temple in particular were really exciting parts of the game to both get to and to actually conquer. The dungeons are great fun, and so is the process of actually GETTING to them.

-The new abilities (Ultrahand, Fuse, Rewind, and Ascend) are all very exciting tools to take advantage of and really add a whole new layer to how EVERYTHING in the game goes about, whether it's traveling, combat, or puzzle solving.

-The game really allows you to go about in a plethora of different ways. Solving puzzles or reaching obstacles can be solved in more normal ways, or you go absolutely nuts with some "out of the box" type methods and it can still work. There's no right or wrong way to play this game and that goes a long way in making your adventure through Hyrule feel like your very own.

-It's just nice to look at. It's a beautiful game.

- The boss fights are all really great. Especially the final boss which is just absolutely incredible.

Things that I DISLIKED:
- The plot feels like both a step forward and backwards from what we got in Breath. It's a bit more complex, but it's also hurt majorly by the fact that the game is so open. Once you do a temple, that's it. Repeat the same plot point 3 more times. Because there's no set order, there's no sense of plot progression. It hurt the experience a bit for me to realize that basically each temple is repeating the same plot point. So each time you do a temple, it sort of feels less exciting because it quickly becomes a predictable set of events that all play out broadly the same. The "memories" portion of the plot is a tad bit interesting but the fact that you are unraveling it in a jumbled order hurts the experience of learning how things unfolded as well. I see what they were going for, but it's a miss overall even if there were some exciting moments here and there.

- Sky Islands and the Depths were both underwhelming additions overall. While they're both exciting new ventures for the first 30 or so hours, they quickly become copy-pasted feeling and the joy of exploring them just went away for me eventually. Sky Islands had a lot of potential but are devoid of a lot of unique designs so it's just like repeating the same thing over and over. The Depths and its odd layout, combined with the darkness, starts to be less of a fun twist on the playstyle and more of just a hindrance. Again, like the Sky, the initial mystery and potential of these new areas quickly diminish when you realize everything is extremely samey looking and your rewards for going out of your way to explore them didn't feel that worth it.

- The Sages as companions is a neat concept, but it felt like their helpfulness was rather mixed. Sometimes they felt useless in certain fights. Other times they were the opposite.

- The shrines are improved from Breath, but I still feel like the majority of the game is spent running between towers and shrines and they get in the way of making the more natural exploration feel encouraged and rewarding.

- Side quests were never interesting to me. I couldn't be bothered to go out and do random fetch quests for people or go help someone so a great fairy would give me something. Same thing with Koroks and the one signpost dude. Nothing about it all felt worthwhile which I think further hurts my desire to further explore every nook and cranny, since most discoveries and things you run into are nothing that special.

- Not enough Purah.

There's probably a vast amount of other good/bad points I could bring up, but ultimately I really loved this title even if it has a noteworthy amount of hiccups from my perspective. The sheer quality and polish, not to mention the insane innovation present in so much of the gameplay, is too grand and respectable for me to feel comfortable giving this game anything less than a 9/10.

Yeah, man... this game fucks. I love Prime a lot. It's a comfort game of mine.

Pretty perfect as far as remasters go. The visuals have been updated with a shiny coat of paint, but it doesn't overdo it. The game looks better than vanilla while still staying very true to the aesthetic of it. Being able to play with dual sticks + gyro makes this easily the most enjoyable way to play Prime.

It's the definitive way to experience this title for sure.

Yeahhhh...nah.

Seems like it's a fun game that's gonna have a lot of stuff to enjoy if you were already pretty into what we got with Fallen Order, but the state of this title upon release is pretty unacceptable even on consoles which are, apparently, the most playable versions of this title currently. The framerate is terrible and inconsistent across the board. Certain spans of gameplay will run at a pretty smooth 50-60fps, and then quickly plummet to what feels like 20fps and screen tearing as soon as you move into a more open area of the map. Not even the cutscenes are safe from this crap, because they have frame drops and such as well. To make matters worse, performance mode feels like it's taking a considerable chunk of visual clarity from the graphics. I've encountered one moment where a larger enemy just randomly despawned when I turned back around.

It feels like this game barely got far into the optimization stage of a lot of its development, because this shit is just obnoxiously abundant. It feels like I'm playing the beta of this game. It's clear that they just said, "fuck finishing the game actually", and threw it out for people to give their hard-earned money to. Respawn already delayed it for further polish. If I had to guess, I'm sure they actually desired a longer delay but EA probably forced them to drop it no later than Q1 2023 because they were scared it wouldn't do so hot if it was sandwiched in between quite possibly the two biggest and most hyped games of the year: Tears of the Kingdom and Final Fantasy XVI.

Regardless, it's difficult to enjoy this game to its fullest when I can't stop being bothered by how rough it feels currently. I'll come back later this year and try it out again in the hopes that it's where it needs to be by then. As of right now, I can't recommend picking this game up. Hold off and wait until the word is out that it's fixed most of these issues before you purchase it.

I don't know how Capcom does it, but these boys have just got the video game remake formula down almost perfectly ("almost", because RE3make is the exception due to its mixed reception).

Despite my utter belief that a remake for a game like RE4 was wholly unnecessary, Capcom has done it again and created another masterclass gaming experience. It's about as perfect of a RE game to me as it gets; right up there next to REmake and the original RE4.

It's gonna be difficult to ever return to the original after this, because the gameplay is so polished and perfected that I don't know if anything else can hit the same. It's like they took what made RE4 already so fantastic and said, "okay but how can we make this even greater somehow?" and they did. The additions brought to the gameplay loop are amazing, but never overdo it and get in the way of what made the core gameplay so beloved to begin with. The only change I initially felt weary of was how much more weighty controlling Leon felt. But it shortly became natural feeling. It felt very reminiscent of how the classic RE tank controls can feel alien at first; but that satisfaction in completely mastering it is a reward in its own right and only adds to to gradual feeling of badassery you get as you progress farther in.

Is everything from the original campaign here in RE4make? No. There's a few iconic moments that didn't make it in and it's a bit of bummer, but I can't be upset for too long when everything else is so awesome. The game finds a very excellent balance between retaining the charm of the original, while also making tonal/story changes to stay in line with the consistency Capcom has been trying to achieve since RE7.

Speaking of consistency, this is probably the most consistent RE title I've beaten. Maybe even more than REmake, which I consider to be the only competition to that claim. RE4make fixed my issue with the OG, which is that I felt Village and Castle were the only truly exceptional parts of the experience and the rest were a bit more flawed (don't get me started on the Island section).

Each section in RE4make is fantastic. Village and Castle? Still amazing. But even areas like the Island, this time around, were just as sensational to play through as the rest. I never once felt a bit of a slight dip between sections throughout this game as I have with many other RE titles. It's a joyride from beginning to end with little to no bumps on the road.

As I've grown older, replaying games constantly has become less and less of a tendency of mine. I'm typically a one-and-done person these days. But RE4make will very likely become a game I will come back to ritually every so often just to scratch the itch that it's infected me with. In this day and age, when a game can achieve that feeling for me, that means something.

Capcom, I kneel. I don't even care if it's a meme at this point, remake CV, 5 and 6 too because this shit was gas and I need more.