Raxyz
Honestly, way too overpriced for what it offers. Little to no single player content, playerbase is dead in certain regions (in south america I can confirm it's a discord fighter already) and it doesn't do things that differently from the previous title.
Like, it's a good fighting game. But it's behind the times. You can get an indie fighting game for less than half of this price that does largely the same or spend a little more and get SF or Tekken with loads more content and a healthy playerbase each.
Like, it's a good fighting game. But it's behind the times. You can get an indie fighting game for less than half of this price that does largely the same or spend a little more and get SF or Tekken with loads more content and a healthy playerbase each.
2019
Decent boomer shooter. Not much to say, it's simple on its premise and just delivers it with no faults.
I'll be honest, I'm not a Pokemon fan as far as the games are concerned. I love the idea of a "cute critters collectathon" but the battle is just the most insufferable turn-based combat to ever exist. The entirety of battles are decided before they even begin with 2 simple questions:
1- Do you have pokemons that can exploit the weakness of your opponent?
2- Did you grind enough?
And that's it. The biggest challenge these offer is awkwardly try and cause damage without outright killing so you can capture, and the game still obscures numbers to make it more "guess" and less "calculate".
That being said, Arceus is what I wanted from this franchise ever since I played SoulSilver. Just give me something else than the combat and the vague objective of completing the pokedex. There's an actual story here, it's not much but it's already miles ahead of the main games. You have plenty to do besides battling (thank God) in the form of gathering resources, completing quests, crafting and completing research tasks. If the game ever moves to action RPG or maybe just tries to spice up the turn formula, then I think it'll finally be the game I always wanted.
Of course, it's not going to happen on the main franchise. But I'm thankful that Legends exists for them to try different ideas without upsetting the competitive fanbase of the franchise.
1- Do you have pokemons that can exploit the weakness of your opponent?
2- Did you grind enough?
And that's it. The biggest challenge these offer is awkwardly try and cause damage without outright killing so you can capture, and the game still obscures numbers to make it more "guess" and less "calculate".
That being said, Arceus is what I wanted from this franchise ever since I played SoulSilver. Just give me something else than the combat and the vague objective of completing the pokedex. There's an actual story here, it's not much but it's already miles ahead of the main games. You have plenty to do besides battling (thank God) in the form of gathering resources, completing quests, crafting and completing research tasks. If the game ever moves to action RPG or maybe just tries to spice up the turn formula, then I think it'll finally be the game I always wanted.
Of course, it's not going to happen on the main franchise. But I'm thankful that Legends exists for them to try different ideas without upsetting the competitive fanbase of the franchise.
Fun "zen" game, but maybe a bit too slow. I know that the idea is to take it one day at a time, but sometimes it's hard not to think the game is just wasting your time for no good reason.
Overall, I feel like it's just not for me. I prefer games that offer either a compelling narrative or a great gameplay. While this does neither, it's actually quite successful at still being engaging for a while.
Overall, I feel like it's just not for me. I prefer games that offer either a compelling narrative or a great gameplay. While this does neither, it's actually quite successful at still being engaging for a while.
By far the best of the trilogy. Personally I still think it doesn't hold a candle to S.T.A.L.K.E.R. in gameplay and freedom, but it has an amazing story and ambience with the best gameplay in the series.
The DLC are fun but flawed. Two Colonels is a great story that essentially works like a rail shooter. Sam's Story tried some things a little different from the base game, most ideas were good, but their implementation wasn't the best.
The optimization in this game is also pretty bad. I don't know if it's engine limitations, but getting it to work flawlessly can be a pain, even if you're well within the recommended specs.
The DLC are fun but flawed. Two Colonels is a great story that essentially works like a rail shooter. Sam's Story tried some things a little different from the base game, most ideas were good, but their implementation wasn't the best.
The optimization in this game is also pretty bad. I don't know if it's engine limitations, but getting it to work flawlessly can be a pain, even if you're well within the recommended specs.
I'm still unsure about giving it such a high score but... My reasoning is this: I hate the archetype that Hellblade is a part of. It does everything I hate the most about games. It's light on gameplay. Has that godawful close over-the-shoulder camera that doesn't allow for a dynamic fight nor is it immersive as going first-person entirely. It can be painstakingly slow. It's full of metaphors and unexplained shenanigans you never know what it meant. And, probably the worst of all, it intentionally lies to the player about its systems.
And yet... I feel like this game is the only one that justifies these design choices. For a game where you play as someone with schizophrenia, all of this really works in tandem to create a "faux" madness to you. Of not being in control and not knowing what the fuck is happening.
And even despite this gimmick there's still plenty to compliment here. There's a pretty thorough retelling of the Norse-myth as collectibles. The combat is actually pretty slick. The audio design for everything is top notch. The story... While not what I personally like in a narrative, I can't point any flaw in it either. It does exactly what it's supposed to do in a pretty great way.
So even though I can't say the game "touched" me, I can't help but be amazed at the idea at play here. Even if it technically does a lot that I hate in game design, it also justifies those decisions perfectly.
And yet... I feel like this game is the only one that justifies these design choices. For a game where you play as someone with schizophrenia, all of this really works in tandem to create a "faux" madness to you. Of not being in control and not knowing what the fuck is happening.
And even despite this gimmick there's still plenty to compliment here. There's a pretty thorough retelling of the Norse-myth as collectibles. The combat is actually pretty slick. The audio design for everything is top notch. The story... While not what I personally like in a narrative, I can't point any flaw in it either. It does exactly what it's supposed to do in a pretty great way.
So even though I can't say the game "touched" me, I can't help but be amazed at the idea at play here. Even if it technically does a lot that I hate in game design, it also justifies those decisions perfectly.
2022
This is such a weird game. Going into it, I wondered whether I'd come out of it still disliking the franchise and agreeing with so many negative reviews, or it would finally be the one where I would finally understand what people see in this game and that it wasn't as bad as some paint it out to be.
And it turns out that... They're both kinda right?
This game is optimized like ass. I never though a console exclusive could run so poorly, and it's not like the game is incredibly ambitious in its scope or visuals. Hell, the newest Zelda games are far more ambitious AND more stable. And then there's some animations, Tail Swipe is literally the creature spinning on Z axis. It's actually embarrassing.
But I can't in good conscience say that the game is lazy, that there's no personality in it and that they aren't trying to innovate. More than 1 objective is given to you this time, the Gym Leader thing doesn't account for the full game. There's an actual story now, it's no masterpiece of writing but it's the relaxing RPG shenanigans you'd expect. It's overall very cozy, which kinda contrasts with some other "serious" moments they were going for, but it's not bad. The gameplay itself it's still the most boring turn-based RPG I've ever player, but they did add a ton of things for you to do prior to battles. Getting TMs is easier, changing the natures and affinities of your pokemon to create the cutest war-machine you can possibly muster isn't something that takes ages of grinding anymore. The progression isn't a slog, the objectives are varied, the open world isn't great but it's a clear step up from what the series had before.
All in all... I don't know. Maybe making two games is splitting too much dev time? I know they're both basically the same, but there has to be SOME reason the game feels like it's missing something even though it's clearly not a soulless cash grab. Maybe the franchise just got too big for its own good and they're afraid of both playing too safe or changing too much. But I feel like they'll have to pick a lane soon because I don't think either philosophy is truly being served here. At the end of the day, the cute critters are still a crutch though. If you didn't had a cute weed cat as your front face, I don't think the game would sell nearly half as much...
And it turns out that... They're both kinda right?
This game is optimized like ass. I never though a console exclusive could run so poorly, and it's not like the game is incredibly ambitious in its scope or visuals. Hell, the newest Zelda games are far more ambitious AND more stable. And then there's some animations, Tail Swipe is literally the creature spinning on Z axis. It's actually embarrassing.
But I can't in good conscience say that the game is lazy, that there's no personality in it and that they aren't trying to innovate. More than 1 objective is given to you this time, the Gym Leader thing doesn't account for the full game. There's an actual story now, it's no masterpiece of writing but it's the relaxing RPG shenanigans you'd expect. It's overall very cozy, which kinda contrasts with some other "serious" moments they were going for, but it's not bad. The gameplay itself it's still the most boring turn-based RPG I've ever player, but they did add a ton of things for you to do prior to battles. Getting TMs is easier, changing the natures and affinities of your pokemon to create the cutest war-machine you can possibly muster isn't something that takes ages of grinding anymore. The progression isn't a slog, the objectives are varied, the open world isn't great but it's a clear step up from what the series had before.
All in all... I don't know. Maybe making two games is splitting too much dev time? I know they're both basically the same, but there has to be SOME reason the game feels like it's missing something even though it's clearly not a soulless cash grab. Maybe the franchise just got too big for its own good and they're afraid of both playing too safe or changing too much. But I feel like they'll have to pick a lane soon because I don't think either philosophy is truly being served here. At the end of the day, the cute critters are still a crutch though. If you didn't had a cute weed cat as your front face, I don't think the game would sell nearly half as much...
Fun-ish roguelike, even if it doesn't actually have anything to do with actual BlazBlue. Gameplay is good, artstyle is good (the imported characters sometimes actually clash with the environment actually), music is alright, story is nonsense gibberish. All in all it's fun for some 10~20 odd hours until it gets too repetitive.
Second time playing it, and it's just as bad as I remembered it. Last Light is a mess.
It's not an immersive sim. It pretends to be one, with minimalistic HUD and "alt routes", but when it really counts the game doesn't care about your expression. You do what the script demands it, and even when you aren't shackled by it, you're penalized by not taking the intended route.
It's not a survival horror. Stealth absolutely sucks and it's super inconsistent. Humans have the vision skills of a bat, but every now and then you'll get spotted through a wall too. Beasts are fully scripted. If the game doesn't want you to kill them, it'll make them dumb and completely unaware. If suddenly the moral system is on vacation and you're allowed to genocide an entire pack of mutants, they'll dart straight towards you like homing missiles.
It's not a run and gun game, despite thinking it is with several arenas and "unlock waves" with obnoxious amount of enemies and limited ammo. The controls also suck when it tries to be a fast paced shooter. You run like an old man out of breath, there's no crosshairs, aiming from the hip has an 180 degree accuracy penalty if you don't have a laser sight...
And probably the worst thing is how the game blatantly lies to you on the difficulty settings. "A more realistic mode where enemies deal more damage, but so does you"? That's bullshit. You can still take the usual Call of Duty worth of bullets and so does the enemies. People shouldn't take a sniper round in the gut and still run about full of vigor. Unless russians have discovered some special superpower with vodka that I'm not aware of, it's as realistic as any generic military shooter.
The story is what kinda salvages this game since it bridges the good 2033 to the amazing Exodus, but dear heavens, this game is an absolute drag otherwise...
It's not an immersive sim. It pretends to be one, with minimalistic HUD and "alt routes", but when it really counts the game doesn't care about your expression. You do what the script demands it, and even when you aren't shackled by it, you're penalized by not taking the intended route.
It's not a survival horror. Stealth absolutely sucks and it's super inconsistent. Humans have the vision skills of a bat, but every now and then you'll get spotted through a wall too. Beasts are fully scripted. If the game doesn't want you to kill them, it'll make them dumb and completely unaware. If suddenly the moral system is on vacation and you're allowed to genocide an entire pack of mutants, they'll dart straight towards you like homing missiles.
It's not a run and gun game, despite thinking it is with several arenas and "unlock waves" with obnoxious amount of enemies and limited ammo. The controls also suck when it tries to be a fast paced shooter. You run like an old man out of breath, there's no crosshairs, aiming from the hip has an 180 degree accuracy penalty if you don't have a laser sight...
And probably the worst thing is how the game blatantly lies to you on the difficulty settings. "A more realistic mode where enemies deal more damage, but so does you"? That's bullshit. You can still take the usual Call of Duty worth of bullets and so does the enemies. People shouldn't take a sniper round in the gut and still run about full of vigor. Unless russians have discovered some special superpower with vodka that I'm not aware of, it's as realistic as any generic military shooter.
The story is what kinda salvages this game since it bridges the good 2033 to the amazing Exodus, but dear heavens, this game is an absolute drag otherwise...
2023
Look, artistic-wise the game seems alright, which is a surprise. But Jesus Christ, this has to be the absolute worst PC port I've ever seen in my life. I got all the way to chapter 7 when I finally couldn't take anymore. Who the fuck still does shader caches in 2023 and on top of it puts it on a 10+ deep folder structure? This game has to be made by the most computer illiterate devs the industry has to offer. It's not even worth it through gamepass because the time spent will just infuriate you to no end. "Free" would still be too expensive.
Mechanically excellent. The controls are great, the combat is probably among the best the genre has to offer, the level design is creative and will require you to master its nuances. I just have a small gripe when it comes to boss design. It's not that it's bad, but cinematics happen way too often and break the flow of the battle constantly. Certain attacks are also pretty strict when it comes about the answer it expects from you. While on regular combat you're allowed to use certain moves and tricks for their i-frames, bosses are far more scripted and will only accept the "planned" response. For a game with such an interesting combat, I find this rigidness to be a waste of potential.
Artistically... I'm torn on it. The music is forgettable. The 3D feels like Bloodstained RotN except even less stylized. Environment design is great, but otherwise it doesn't have much to write about its visuals.
Nothing that really drags the game down, but it's not as great as it could be.
Artistically... I'm torn on it. The music is forgettable. The 3D feels like Bloodstained RotN except even less stylized. Environment design is great, but otherwise it doesn't have much to write about its visuals.
Nothing that really drags the game down, but it's not as great as it could be.
One of the best combat system in games, hands down. Quoting one famous gaming philosopher: "It just works".
The story is still Fromsoft's trademark nonsensical gibberish, but otherwise it's an perfect game. Artstyle, gameplay, sound design, hit on all sixes. (PC port is still kinda iffy though)
The story is still Fromsoft's trademark nonsensical gibberish, but otherwise it's an perfect game. Artstyle, gameplay, sound design, hit on all sixes. (PC port is still kinda iffy though)
A good art style and interesting use of Resident Evil-like puzzles isn't enough to salvage what's otherwise an well below average metroidvania.
The animations are terrible, the movement is generic, combat is boring, exploration is standard, additional abilities aren't interesting, the story is kind of a mess, the soundtrack is forgettable...
Really, the only reason this isn't flat out the worst I've played is because this game really does make a great use of Lovecraftian aesthetics and I loved the idea of incorporating puzzles in a metroidvania. Because otherwise this game is just... One of the games ever made. It isn't even outright bad, it's just perfectly mediocre.
The animations are terrible, the movement is generic, combat is boring, exploration is standard, additional abilities aren't interesting, the story is kind of a mess, the soundtrack is forgettable...
Really, the only reason this isn't flat out the worst I've played is because this game really does make a great use of Lovecraftian aesthetics and I loved the idea of incorporating puzzles in a metroidvania. Because otherwise this game is just... One of the games ever made. It isn't even outright bad, it's just perfectly mediocre.
It's really impressive what they accomplished in 2012. The game takes into account player agency in a way a lot of modern RPGs don't. It's also one of the few games that took inspiration from Demon's Souls, but didn't just copied mechanics 1:1. The online component is an unique take on players helping each other asynchronously, something we only saw again in 2020 with Death Stranding.
Gameplay is fun. A bit of a thoughtless hack'n slash where the gear matters more than skill. It starts off really hard and with the heavy "wait and punish" combat, but by the end it allows for some ridiculously overpowered skill combinations. I might be tempted to say that it "didn't aged well", but fuck it, I still enjoyed it far more than a lot of modern titles. It's fun, that's something Capcom always put in their list of priorities even in their bad games.
The attention to detail is quite impressive at times, like making heavier characters activate pressure plates faster and taller ones having more reach in melee weapons. The oil lamp goes out if you roll in the water. Metal conducts electricity so every armored enemy is a walking "please thunder magick me" sign. There's one quest that allows you to forge the delivery item and "complete" the quest twice by delivering it to both people who want it. It doesn't actually change events later, which is a shame, but these things make the game more memorable by itself.
Sadly, the story is a trainwreck. Starts off fine and honestly stays at mostly "OK fodder" throughout its play time, but the ending throws it all away. It's clearly not a narrative-focused game, yet the ending tries to pretend it is and... It doesn't pull off gracefully. At all. It's so messy that it makes me wonder if the second game will just quietly never acknowledge the events of the first game, or will "reboot" it entirely but this time trying to flesh it out.
Dragon's Dogma is a great game, but also visibly an incomplete one. It's a game where you can see the signs of "crap, we've blown the entire budget. Wrap it up and release it NOW", a sign that is depressively common in the gaming industry. It's still a good game on it's own right and worth playing it, but clearly doesn't reach its full potential.
Gameplay is fun. A bit of a thoughtless hack'n slash where the gear matters more than skill. It starts off really hard and with the heavy "wait and punish" combat, but by the end it allows for some ridiculously overpowered skill combinations. I might be tempted to say that it "didn't aged well", but fuck it, I still enjoyed it far more than a lot of modern titles. It's fun, that's something Capcom always put in their list of priorities even in their bad games.
The attention to detail is quite impressive at times, like making heavier characters activate pressure plates faster and taller ones having more reach in melee weapons. The oil lamp goes out if you roll in the water. Metal conducts electricity so every armored enemy is a walking "please thunder magick me" sign. There's one quest that allows you to forge the delivery item and "complete" the quest twice by delivering it to both people who want it. It doesn't actually change events later, which is a shame, but these things make the game more memorable by itself.
Sadly, the story is a trainwreck. Starts off fine and honestly stays at mostly "OK fodder" throughout its play time, but the ending throws it all away. It's clearly not a narrative-focused game, yet the ending tries to pretend it is and... It doesn't pull off gracefully. At all. It's so messy that it makes me wonder if the second game will just quietly never acknowledge the events of the first game, or will "reboot" it entirely but this time trying to flesh it out.
Dragon's Dogma is a great game, but also visibly an incomplete one. It's a game where you can see the signs of "crap, we've blown the entire budget. Wrap it up and release it NOW", a sign that is depressively common in the gaming industry. It's still a good game on it's own right and worth playing it, but clearly doesn't reach its full potential.
2014
Did you ever said or though that modern games are too handhold-y? Did you wished for puzzles that treat you like an adult and not a toddler? If so, you're legally complied to play this game.
If I were to be fully objective about it, the game's around 4 stars, but it gets full marks from me for having such a strong design and sticking to their guns. It's an old-school dungeon crawler/RPG with "outdated" controls (which are still fun if I'm being honest) and an amazing level design.
I mean, let me just end this review with an personal anecdote so that you understand what kind of game this is, and why I love it so much:
I was walking around a dungeon and spotted a small button hidden among the stones. It opened up an ambush and a large subsection of the dungeon. At its end I found some loot and a scroll. The scroll is a cypher with things like AR UHU LAM written alonside some symbols. I went back to a part of the dungeon where I remembered using these words. Spent a while theorycrafting and put my guess to work. The gate opened! Inside there were... Three letters. Telling a story. Out of order. After putting these in chronological order and deciphering the sentences into directions, I remembered one place in another biome entirely where this might've been pointing at. I went there, tried the combination, nothing. Then I remembered I needed an additional item to further give context to the instruction and then, BAM. Solved.
Know what was my reward for it?
I got to continue the story.
That wasn't a secret, the game expects you to do all that just to finish it.
I absolutely love this "ur problem, make it work" design. The game isn't afraid to have you stumped. It's not interested in having you LOOK badass, it actively challenges you to beat it. People praise From Software for this kind of design and I kinda agree. But this here? This is the real, unfiltered thing. Because this game isn't just intentionally cryptic in directions, it's also hard as fuck.
This is a gem in the rough, and I wish more games were made with this design in mind. It doesn't need to be AAA 6 billion USD budget titles, but it wish it wasn't something once every 10 years...
If I were to be fully objective about it, the game's around 4 stars, but it gets full marks from me for having such a strong design and sticking to their guns. It's an old-school dungeon crawler/RPG with "outdated" controls (which are still fun if I'm being honest) and an amazing level design.
I mean, let me just end this review with an personal anecdote so that you understand what kind of game this is, and why I love it so much:
I was walking around a dungeon and spotted a small button hidden among the stones. It opened up an ambush and a large subsection of the dungeon. At its end I found some loot and a scroll. The scroll is a cypher with things like AR UHU LAM written alonside some symbols. I went back to a part of the dungeon where I remembered using these words. Spent a while theorycrafting and put my guess to work. The gate opened! Inside there were... Three letters. Telling a story. Out of order. After putting these in chronological order and deciphering the sentences into directions, I remembered one place in another biome entirely where this might've been pointing at. I went there, tried the combination, nothing. Then I remembered I needed an additional item to further give context to the instruction and then, BAM. Solved.
Know what was my reward for it?
I got to continue the story.
That wasn't a secret, the game expects you to do all that just to finish it.
I absolutely love this "ur problem, make it work" design. The game isn't afraid to have you stumped. It's not interested in having you LOOK badass, it actively challenges you to beat it. People praise From Software for this kind of design and I kinda agree. But this here? This is the real, unfiltered thing. Because this game isn't just intentionally cryptic in directions, it's also hard as fuck.
This is a gem in the rough, and I wish more games were made with this design in mind. It doesn't need to be AAA 6 billion USD budget titles, but it wish it wasn't something once every 10 years...