SamC
Recent Activity
SamC
reviewed
Super Mario Bros. Wonder
It’s just so much fun!
Everything has been revamped, rebooted, improved upon. Soul has been injected back in compared to the ‘New’ series.
Mario has been stylised to face the camera more like how he appears in Super Mario World. That change already makes a huge difference.
The Wonder flowers are all fantastic and break up any chance of monotony in really interesting ways. There are also a slew of fantastic new enemy types, goombas and koopas take a much-needed break.
Power-ups aren’t the absolute strongest in the series but they’re fun - being able to jump on Bubble Mario’s bubbles almost feels like a 2D variation of the hat from Odyssey which is good.
Just a really fun title from start to finish, would be great to play through with future children.
Everything has been revamped, rebooted, improved upon. Soul has been injected back in compared to the ‘New’ series.
Mario has been stylised to face the camera more like how he appears in Super Mario World. That change already makes a huge difference.
The Wonder flowers are all fantastic and break up any chance of monotony in really interesting ways. There are also a slew of fantastic new enemy types, goombas and koopas take a much-needed break.
Power-ups aren’t the absolute strongest in the series but they’re fun - being able to jump on Bubble Mario’s bubbles almost feels like a 2D variation of the hat from Odyssey which is good.
Just a really fun title from start to finish, would be great to play through with future children.
6 days ago
SamC
reviewed
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain
This review contains spoilers
IN PROGRESS:
I’m not really equipped to comment on the story of MGSV, as this is my first MGS game.
But I think the divisiveness of the story just comes from people not getting what they wanted, closure, a boss battle with Solid Snake, and I think that’s pretty fitting because it makes us feel like Venom Snake, he doesn’t get what he wants either.
There’s a real mystique to this game and so much open for interpretation.
This game makes me very excited to go back and enjoy the series. I love the juxtaposition of realistic, serious military gameplay with campy, silly, over-the-top, fantasy elements. It also has shocking horror moments.
Gameplay-wise: It is fantastic. Venom’s movements are hyper-polished, disciplined and solely player-influenced. Without our input, he sits depressed on the helicopter’s edge completely still, he lies prone in the field completely motionless. It all really sells him as a super-soldier.
The war-torn environment is immersive and looks great for 2015 (even somewhat 2024) standards. Vehicles feel like they have weight to them, and weapons are appropriately powered.
The semi-open world adds so much freedom to how you can approach an enemy stronghold or outpost. I really enjoy scoping the area and taking my time quietly, but also often end up shooting my way through.
Your arsenal is very expansive.
The idroid base management systems, and levelling up your gear, are all addictive. Coinciding with that is the goofy Fulton system, which has me capturing knocked out enemies like Pokémon for Mother Base.
I don’t love the mobile-game-inspired real world time-locks on later gear upgrades, but I suppose they do keep you from unlocking everything without a second thought.
While I didn’t think they were ideal, once you’re feeling invested, the cassette tapes provide much-needed dialogue and exposition during otherwise silent missions.
They also make you feel like a militia leader sorting through important files. And jumping around between them reflects Venom’s fractured and unreliable memory.
I just think this is a fantastically polished game. I suppose that one gripe with it is that while the gameplay loop was impeccable, the mission objectives got stale eventually. Boss, today you’re going to this country to capture / kill this general. Repeat. You and your allies at Mother Base are kind of just working, accepting contracts and committing sanctioned war crimes for a lot of the game.
Despite that, the game is simply a masterclass of the stealth and action genres, and I can’t wait to dive into the series.
I’m not really equipped to comment on the story of MGSV, as this is my first MGS game.
But I think the divisiveness of the story just comes from people not getting what they wanted, closure, a boss battle with Solid Snake, and I think that’s pretty fitting because it makes us feel like Venom Snake, he doesn’t get what he wants either.
There’s a real mystique to this game and so much open for interpretation.
This game makes me very excited to go back and enjoy the series. I love the juxtaposition of realistic, serious military gameplay with campy, silly, over-the-top, fantasy elements. It also has shocking horror moments.
Gameplay-wise: It is fantastic. Venom’s movements are hyper-polished, disciplined and solely player-influenced. Without our input, he sits depressed on the helicopter’s edge completely still, he lies prone in the field completely motionless. It all really sells him as a super-soldier.
The war-torn environment is immersive and looks great for 2015 (even somewhat 2024) standards. Vehicles feel like they have weight to them, and weapons are appropriately powered.
The semi-open world adds so much freedom to how you can approach an enemy stronghold or outpost. I really enjoy scoping the area and taking my time quietly, but also often end up shooting my way through.
Your arsenal is very expansive.
The idroid base management systems, and levelling up your gear, are all addictive. Coinciding with that is the goofy Fulton system, which has me capturing knocked out enemies like Pokémon for Mother Base.
I don’t love the mobile-game-inspired real world time-locks on later gear upgrades, but I suppose they do keep you from unlocking everything without a second thought.
While I didn’t think they were ideal, once you’re feeling invested, the cassette tapes provide much-needed dialogue and exposition during otherwise silent missions.
They also make you feel like a militia leader sorting through important files. And jumping around between them reflects Venom’s fractured and unreliable memory.
I just think this is a fantastically polished game. I suppose that one gripe with it is that while the gameplay loop was impeccable, the mission objectives got stale eventually. Boss, today you’re going to this country to capture / kill this general. Repeat. You and your allies at Mother Base are kind of just working, accepting contracts and committing sanctioned war crimes for a lot of the game.
Despite that, the game is simply a masterclass of the stealth and action genres, and I can’t wait to dive into the series.
8 days ago
SamC
completed
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain
8 days ago