Rushmore0Miles
BACKER
2000
This is the game that made me like jrpgs
it is also a perfect example of why they are bad.
this game is only good because of the characters. the gameplay is still bad on the face of it...
it is also a perfect example of why they are bad.
this game is only good because of the characters. the gameplay is still bad on the face of it...
2004
HL2 is an overrated shooter, not as good as HL1 and aged poorly... but it also released with an engine called source...
Source was the single greatest physics engine ever created. Everything good about games that has come since this game exists BECAUSE of this game. no way around it.
Source was the single greatest physics engine ever created. Everything good about games that has come since this game exists BECAUSE of this game. no way around it.
2007
This is the best puzzle game ever made.
Assassin's creed chronicles as a trilogy is one of my all-time favorite entries into the AC catalog.
Understandably shunned by most mainstream fans of the series for being so radically different yet nevertheless fully within Ubisoft's wheelhouse, the games are a departure from the open-world RPG style assassin's creed games and a return to Ubisoft's roots in the prince of Persia games.
Chronicles feature 2.5D mostly linear levels, testing the player in tight counter-combat, and stealth tactics.
The trilogy concludes with Russia... and oh boy this one is tough...
The story to Russia is the most fleshed out of the three, both main characters feel fairly lifelike and the plot isn't half bad, I never played these for the story, given these games are side-stories within a larger AAA franchise I was never expecting much; but nonetheless Russia does deliver. The world and gameplay within all have a strong oppressive feeling to them which goes really well with the plot, you're on the run, everyone has betrayed you, the whole game is a mad dash to escape Russia as everything goes to hell. Both characters must find strength they didn't know they had to escape the night.
Visually this is the most striking of the three titles, the stark posterization is reminiscent of sin city and historic Russian propaganda. There's no mistaking the grey world for lazy design here, it really does look incredible, there are a small handful of repeated areas but you won't notice it at all until the final section, this game really looks gorgeous.
Finally we have to talk about the gameplay... this is where things get a bit unfortunate, Russia feels rushed to say the least. There are a handful of really great new ideas but there barely used since in this installment you spend almost the entire game getting railroaded from one linear section to the next. There's a grand total of three sections that honestly let you make choices, everywhere else you get one option and it almost always feels like the brute force way.
The problem here is Anastasia, while she is an interesting character, they made the choice of separating tools and helix with Anastasia getting the latter of the two.
Every one of her segments with the exception of the sniper escape level, feels claustrophobic.
You get one, insanely demanding path through all her levels, and it's always at least a little painful.
I've defended to the hilt that the deaths in the past two games are almost never cheap, I cannot defend this on however, many deaths really are. Far too many times you fail for reasons you cannot possibly predict or prepare for.
When you're not being railroaded (literally at several points) from timed levels, chase segments, or those unforgivable broken machine gun escapes; it's either obnoxiously tight stealth segments where you aren't even allowed to be spotted, or searchlight spam.
The few segments that do give you genuine agency are incredible, and despite how frustrating this game can be, it is all the more rewarding to beat; at least until the last mission which is a ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ joke.
it's a shame because there's a lot to like here, but just as much (if not more) to be disappointed by.
Orelov's kit is really clever, they've tied everything into his sniper and included a good deal more of those sniper sections to boot, not the most interesting stuff in the world but not offensive either, and it feels cohesive so I did ultimately enjoy it all.
This is the most recent setting of any AC game so it feels appropriate to have an emphasis on guns, and it's done in a way that makes thematic sense for the assassin/templar conflict.
The emphasis on air ducts, better use of the 3d with multi-plane infiltration, and electricity allowing you to completely turn an indoor environment to your advantage; are all great additions. I just wish the game spent more time focusing on these sections, and far less on the chases, and timed crap.
Finally I have to acknowledge bugs, there are plenty in this one.
I recall virtually zero bugs in the past two titles so it's pretty baffling how common they were in this one. I found orelov's position slowly shifting inside of cover with each takedown during the train segment, likely because the train is genuinely moving (or at least some feature is included to make things like smoke move along the outside).
I also found the detection on boundaries fairly unreliable, and worst of all: enemies would frequently turn around within their pathing in seemingly unintended ways resulting in some sections being near impossible for a shadow gold run.
By the end I still did manage to complete the game on shadow gold so it does basically function, just not as smoothly as the first two installments did which is a damn shame.
On the whole Russia is the hardest to like of the three, as someone who truly enjoyed the concept of Chronicles I still found plenty to enjoy, but I'll admit I was far more frustrated than I'd ever allow myself to be with any other game of this length.
It was too short to be this inconsistent.
I can't know for sure without a good deal of research but I get the feeling this installment was rushed out, the big open ended sections of India almost certainly took more time and effort than the linear levels in Russia. There's less to design and test if you only program one solution, and less to animate if you keep locations tight. The literal train segments almost certainly saved a lot of time and effort. I don't want to believe laziness or an unreasonable deadline made this game what it is, but I find it hard to come up with a better reason for it.
So why, given all its faults, do I still recommend this game?
Truth be told I just really do love that core concept, and by the end I still do feel like I had fun despite everything. I enjoyed Chronicles as a trilogy for all its highs and lows, and feel that if you enjoy any part of chronicles you can and should enjoy all of it.
If for no other reason, I recommend this game because I think you should support this kind of game design, it's different, and worthwhile.
TLDR:
Russia is the weakest of the trilogy, but if you liked the other two, definitely still give it a try.
Understandably shunned by most mainstream fans of the series for being so radically different yet nevertheless fully within Ubisoft's wheelhouse, the games are a departure from the open-world RPG style assassin's creed games and a return to Ubisoft's roots in the prince of Persia games.
Chronicles feature 2.5D mostly linear levels, testing the player in tight counter-combat, and stealth tactics.
The trilogy concludes with Russia... and oh boy this one is tough...
The story to Russia is the most fleshed out of the three, both main characters feel fairly lifelike and the plot isn't half bad, I never played these for the story, given these games are side-stories within a larger AAA franchise I was never expecting much; but nonetheless Russia does deliver. The world and gameplay within all have a strong oppressive feeling to them which goes really well with the plot, you're on the run, everyone has betrayed you, the whole game is a mad dash to escape Russia as everything goes to hell. Both characters must find strength they didn't know they had to escape the night.
Visually this is the most striking of the three titles, the stark posterization is reminiscent of sin city and historic Russian propaganda. There's no mistaking the grey world for lazy design here, it really does look incredible, there are a small handful of repeated areas but you won't notice it at all until the final section, this game really looks gorgeous.
Finally we have to talk about the gameplay... this is where things get a bit unfortunate, Russia feels rushed to say the least. There are a handful of really great new ideas but there barely used since in this installment you spend almost the entire game getting railroaded from one linear section to the next. There's a grand total of three sections that honestly let you make choices, everywhere else you get one option and it almost always feels like the brute force way.
The problem here is Anastasia, while she is an interesting character, they made the choice of separating tools and helix with Anastasia getting the latter of the two.
Every one of her segments with the exception of the sniper escape level, feels claustrophobic.
You get one, insanely demanding path through all her levels, and it's always at least a little painful.
I've defended to the hilt that the deaths in the past two games are almost never cheap, I cannot defend this on however, many deaths really are. Far too many times you fail for reasons you cannot possibly predict or prepare for.
When you're not being railroaded (literally at several points) from timed levels, chase segments, or those unforgivable broken machine gun escapes; it's either obnoxiously tight stealth segments where you aren't even allowed to be spotted, or searchlight spam.
The few segments that do give you genuine agency are incredible, and despite how frustrating this game can be, it is all the more rewarding to beat; at least until the last mission which is a ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ joke.
it's a shame because there's a lot to like here, but just as much (if not more) to be disappointed by.
Orelov's kit is really clever, they've tied everything into his sniper and included a good deal more of those sniper sections to boot, not the most interesting stuff in the world but not offensive either, and it feels cohesive so I did ultimately enjoy it all.
This is the most recent setting of any AC game so it feels appropriate to have an emphasis on guns, and it's done in a way that makes thematic sense for the assassin/templar conflict.
The emphasis on air ducts, better use of the 3d with multi-plane infiltration, and electricity allowing you to completely turn an indoor environment to your advantage; are all great additions. I just wish the game spent more time focusing on these sections, and far less on the chases, and timed crap.
Finally I have to acknowledge bugs, there are plenty in this one.
I recall virtually zero bugs in the past two titles so it's pretty baffling how common they were in this one. I found orelov's position slowly shifting inside of cover with each takedown during the train segment, likely because the train is genuinely moving (or at least some feature is included to make things like smoke move along the outside).
I also found the detection on boundaries fairly unreliable, and worst of all: enemies would frequently turn around within their pathing in seemingly unintended ways resulting in some sections being near impossible for a shadow gold run.
By the end I still did manage to complete the game on shadow gold so it does basically function, just not as smoothly as the first two installments did which is a damn shame.
On the whole Russia is the hardest to like of the three, as someone who truly enjoyed the concept of Chronicles I still found plenty to enjoy, but I'll admit I was far more frustrated than I'd ever allow myself to be with any other game of this length.
It was too short to be this inconsistent.
I can't know for sure without a good deal of research but I get the feeling this installment was rushed out, the big open ended sections of India almost certainly took more time and effort than the linear levels in Russia. There's less to design and test if you only program one solution, and less to animate if you keep locations tight. The literal train segments almost certainly saved a lot of time and effort. I don't want to believe laziness or an unreasonable deadline made this game what it is, but I find it hard to come up with a better reason for it.
So why, given all its faults, do I still recommend this game?
Truth be told I just really do love that core concept, and by the end I still do feel like I had fun despite everything. I enjoyed Chronicles as a trilogy for all its highs and lows, and feel that if you enjoy any part of chronicles you can and should enjoy all of it.
If for no other reason, I recommend this game because I think you should support this kind of game design, it's different, and worthwhile.
TLDR:
Russia is the weakest of the trilogy, but if you liked the other two, definitely still give it a try.
Assassin's creed chronicles as a trilogy is one of my all-time favorite entries into the AC catalog.
Understandably shunned by most mainstream fans of the series for being so radically different yet nevertheless fully within Ubisoft's wheelhouse, the games are a departure from the open-world RPG style assassin's creed games and a return to Ubisoft's roots in the prince of Persia games.
Chronicles feature 2.5D mostly linear levels, testing the player in tight counter-combat, and stealth tactics.
Assassin's Creed Chronicles continues with India,
This entry subtly improves upon the basic mechanics in a number of ways, and on the whole is my favorite in the trilogy.
It tightens the controls and introduces some much needed additions to basic stealth and movement.
Arbaz is a better character right out of the gate, though the story is nothing exceptional here either, it is at least more engaging with a motivation we can relate to at the end.
Every part of gameplay is better emphasized in India by its sprawling and partially non-linear level design.
Several sections have you going around large vistas in any order you choose, stealthing through these sections is an incredible rush.
India has stripped out the combat option from China and now focuses fully on stealth; You can still kill enemies and enter combat but it is no longer a way to get high scores in any category.
I personally believe this change is a positive one, with the additions to stealth such as non-lethal take-downs, pick-pocketing, and ricocheting projectiles;. it feels like this game has matured in it's stealth focus and demands you to do the same.
The linear segments in India feel more confident and less like simple running levels, the worlds themselves are more vibrant and full of surprises.
The two sniper sections aren't the best but they're a neat change of pace.
As for the new tailing missions, I get finding these frustrating, I sure did my first time playing.
On replay however I've realized how easy these are once you recognize the power of your tools, I got to the first tail with a full pouch of smokebombs and ended up getting ahead of the guy.
similarly during the final segment, nothing says you can't smoke bomb your way past the searching circle.
India to me feels like a massive improvement upon China, a game I already liked plenty. It's an often demanding but highly rewarding stealth game that really speaks to me as a fan of games like thief and dishonored.
If you decide to only play on of the chronicles trilogy let it be this one.
Understandably shunned by most mainstream fans of the series for being so radically different yet nevertheless fully within Ubisoft's wheelhouse, the games are a departure from the open-world RPG style assassin's creed games and a return to Ubisoft's roots in the prince of Persia games.
Chronicles feature 2.5D mostly linear levels, testing the player in tight counter-combat, and stealth tactics.
Assassin's Creed Chronicles continues with India,
This entry subtly improves upon the basic mechanics in a number of ways, and on the whole is my favorite in the trilogy.
It tightens the controls and introduces some much needed additions to basic stealth and movement.
Arbaz is a better character right out of the gate, though the story is nothing exceptional here either, it is at least more engaging with a motivation we can relate to at the end.
Every part of gameplay is better emphasized in India by its sprawling and partially non-linear level design.
Several sections have you going around large vistas in any order you choose, stealthing through these sections is an incredible rush.
India has stripped out the combat option from China and now focuses fully on stealth; You can still kill enemies and enter combat but it is no longer a way to get high scores in any category.
I personally believe this change is a positive one, with the additions to stealth such as non-lethal take-downs, pick-pocketing, and ricocheting projectiles;. it feels like this game has matured in it's stealth focus and demands you to do the same.
The linear segments in India feel more confident and less like simple running levels, the worlds themselves are more vibrant and full of surprises.
The two sniper sections aren't the best but they're a neat change of pace.
As for the new tailing missions, I get finding these frustrating, I sure did my first time playing.
On replay however I've realized how easy these are once you recognize the power of your tools, I got to the first tail with a full pouch of smokebombs and ended up getting ahead of the guy.
similarly during the final segment, nothing says you can't smoke bomb your way past the searching circle.
India to me feels like a massive improvement upon China, a game I already liked plenty. It's an often demanding but highly rewarding stealth game that really speaks to me as a fan of games like thief and dishonored.
If you decide to only play on of the chronicles trilogy let it be this one.
2010
This is the best racing game ever made, and you've probably never played it. Shame on you.
The presentation and sound design perfectly capture the feeling of speed and excitement, it isn't the deepest racer but it's the most cinematic.
The music carefully plays around the action, cutting in and out to punctuate carnage. The explosions come through crystal clear to make you feel their impact.
The lighting and graphics are just good enough to hold up and look gorgeous.
It's all in service to the core mechanic of this racing game: power plays.
Trigger massive explosions on the course to wreck your opponents.
Tracks are filled with smaller and larger power plays as well as course changes that alter a large portion of the race track by triggering the largest power plays of all.
These have their own sound design, elaborate animations, and introduce new sections of track with more power plays of their own.
This game was mishandled at launch by disney and has received no support since. It plays fine on consoles if you've got an original copy lying around. They even got DLC.
The PC port hasn't faired as well, not only is it a little bugged, but it never received the extra content.
Mercifully valve fixed controller support with the steam controller/deck settings suite, just make sure to use that before launching.
I haven't played it on PC recently but it plays perfectly on steam deck.
There's also a shockingly good PSP port that I've reviewed separately.
The presentation and sound design perfectly capture the feeling of speed and excitement, it isn't the deepest racer but it's the most cinematic.
The music carefully plays around the action, cutting in and out to punctuate carnage. The explosions come through crystal clear to make you feel their impact.
The lighting and graphics are just good enough to hold up and look gorgeous.
It's all in service to the core mechanic of this racing game: power plays.
Trigger massive explosions on the course to wreck your opponents.
Tracks are filled with smaller and larger power plays as well as course changes that alter a large portion of the race track by triggering the largest power plays of all.
These have their own sound design, elaborate animations, and introduce new sections of track with more power plays of their own.
This game was mishandled at launch by disney and has received no support since. It plays fine on consoles if you've got an original copy lying around. They even got DLC.
The PC port hasn't faired as well, not only is it a little bugged, but it never received the extra content.
Mercifully valve fixed controller support with the steam controller/deck settings suite, just make sure to use that before launching.
I haven't played it on PC recently but it plays perfectly on steam deck.
There's also a shockingly good PSP port that I've reviewed separately.
2009
Man this game blew my fucking mind as a child.
It's not as good as AC1 if you're familiar with the full depth of movement in these games, and while ezio is easier to like, altair has way more development, and this game kinda botches the assassin-templar conflict turning it into a family feud.
it's still a great game. absolutely worth your time.
It's not as good as AC1 if you're familiar with the full depth of movement in these games, and while ezio is easier to like, altair has way more development, and this game kinda botches the assassin-templar conflict turning it into a family feud.
it's still a great game. absolutely worth your time.
2013
This is one of those games I've HEAVILY turned on with age. If you don't know what I mean please watch Matthewmatosis' review of this game. it shows the cracks masterfully.
This goofy fucking game is so much fun I can't even fully describe it
2015
absolutely one of the games of all time
2007
The first and possibly best AC game.
Graphics somehow never look dated, gameplay has shocking amounts of depth that even AC2 started to walk back on.
The environments feel denser than in any other open world...they don't make games like this anymore.
Graphics somehow never look dated, gameplay has shocking amounts of depth that even AC2 started to walk back on.
The environments feel denser than in any other open world...they don't make games like this anymore.
2016
to see this review you have to find a circle in real life and trace it up your own ass.
Yeah this game is pretentious but it was fun.
Yeah this game is pretentious but it was fun.
I'll never understand how people hate this game. It's better than the original and mastered every idea that game made popular. wtf do yall want?
just FEEL how this game feels and tell me it isn't exactly the free-running fantasy you've been having since the OG.
sure the story is... a lot.
but the world is gorgeous, the soundtrack bops, and the gameplay is exhilarating.
just FEEL how this game feels and tell me it isn't exactly the free-running fantasy you've been having since the OG.
sure the story is... a lot.
but the world is gorgeous, the soundtrack bops, and the gameplay is exhilarating.
2019
I fucking tried man, this shit is weird. and underneath the weird it's honestly just kinda basic. there isn't actually much depth to the gameplay.
People seem to be convinced that Kojima is this secret genius with the most illusive and deep stories to him, but like... I got it... it was just needlessly weird. The characters know what's going on, they're choosing to be obtuse. people don't talk like this for a fucking reason.
It's still cool, and I have a soft spot for originality.
People seem to be convinced that Kojima is this secret genius with the most illusive and deep stories to him, but like... I got it... it was just needlessly weird. The characters know what's going on, they're choosing to be obtuse. people don't talk like this for a fucking reason.
It's still cool, and I have a soft spot for originality.
2003
This is the very definition of hidden gem.
Monolith (yeah the fucking mordor people) made a tron game in 2003 and it slaps.
Every detail is made with such care and fully captures the nerdy tone of the original movie. All the program-refrencing lore of the original is on brilliant display. the npc programs have file names, the enemy users have email addresses.
It's all so perfect I love it.
The upgrades are version points. items get slotted into your ID disc and each level has fucking BANDWITH so you can only have so many items cause they take up file space... this game is amazing.
if only this game had Daft motherfucking Punk to do the soundtrack it'd be the Tron that every Tron nerd wants you to think Tron really is.
Monolith (yeah the fucking mordor people) made a tron game in 2003 and it slaps.
Every detail is made with such care and fully captures the nerdy tone of the original movie. All the program-refrencing lore of the original is on brilliant display. the npc programs have file names, the enemy users have email addresses.
It's all so perfect I love it.
The upgrades are version points. items get slotted into your ID disc and each level has fucking BANDWITH so you can only have so many items cause they take up file space... this game is amazing.
if only this game had Daft motherfucking Punk to do the soundtrack it'd be the Tron that every Tron nerd wants you to think Tron really is.