All the enemy’s being stronger than you in the DLC would be fine since it helps create the feeling of starting over in a new game without actually starting over, what isn’t fine is the pitiful amount of runes you get from enemies and bosses that is really never enough to get you to level up. The new mechanic with being able to boost your attacks is weird, I’d rather it boost my health and defenses more, it feels like a pathetic way to justify the difficulty.

Also, where are the little thingies that are supposed to guide me from grace to grace? It helps give me an idea of where to go without actually telling me the exact spot. I miss that feature and hope they add it again.


Update after beating DLC: My opinion has definitely improved on it a little bit. Just a little. I grew to appreciate the new mechanic with the Scadutree Blessings and it choosing to level up your defense and damage, though I still have problems with how I think it should be an item you should get in more abundance to guarantee you level up while not being able to go past a certain max with the level. I still think there should be more grace guidance, comparative to the main game it help gives you an idea of everywhere to go. In the DLC, you get one after the first main boss you beat, and then the rest are just in that jungle area, and that’s it.

I do have problems with the final boss. I think his first phase is mostly fantastic, that scissor attack he does is annoying and the most common best scenario is that I only got him by one of them. Second phase is a clusterfuck, you can hardly see in half the fight and definitely cannot rely on your sight and most of the time will have to hope you get where you’re going right. His attacks where he astral projects himself are insane, enough to literally make me miss waterfowl dance and find it to be an absurd attack. His third phase transition is a nice call back to the main game, but I don’t even know sometimes why I survive it. Sometimes I die, sometimes I live, it’s stupid and makes me feel lucky.

I do enjoy the dlc more overall, but I think tweaks need to be made in some parts.

My rating is just the average rating for all the games.
Overall, it's great that almost the entire series is in one complete package. Without this, I would've never experienced Halo.

Halo CE: 6/10
Halo 2: 9/10
Halo 3: 8/10
ODST: 7/10
Reach: 10/10
Halo 4: 6/10

“...We choose to go to the Moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard; because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one we intend to win, and the others, too.”

- United States President John F. Kennedy's "We choose to go to the Moon", 1962 speech.

"Magnificent Speech. Ain't it? But how is it relevant?"

“Uhh well sir. Kinda evokes a similar ideology about our mission. Ya know in Outer Wilds(OW). Plus our newest astronaut for the program has some interesting logs to see. I think you should see them.”

“Hmmm. Reports are only forwarded to me urgently for outstanding experiences. And you say he has one?”

“Without a doubt sir, I think it may shed some light on why the speech is given among other things. Though do mind his first day. The results were… not pretty on initial impressions. He also tends to label our project as a game/simulation at times while referencing relative sci-fi films… Which is odd, but not harmful.”

“Hmph, I’ll be the judge of that. He better not write anything concrete. Due to the secretive nature, it’s imperative to keep things close to the chest so to speak. If I find SPOILERS in the above mediums. I’ll expel him post-haste and zero remorse.”

Log 1 - An extremely short slow, boring beginning to a grand adventure

Initially I thought learning about space and whatnot boring. Yet decades later on I couldn't help but amusingly remember those naive days. Here I am weeks after joining the program. And I must say The Outer Wilds is odd. I signed what felt like books of NDAs, and the only thing I can definitively concerning this secretive game is that it evokes a whirlwind of cathartic emotions. Steadily rising higher despite its demure appearance. Steam succinctly describes; “open world mystery about a solar system trapped in an %^&(%^& loop.” With bolded phrases such as: “Welcome to the Space Program! Mysteries of the Solar System… A World that changes over time and lastly grab your intergalactic gear!" Statements sound interesting at a glance, but nothing to entice everyone except those with an interest going farther than our little globe in real life. Pointing at the biggest question of 'how,' 'what' & 'why' during your stay here are primary motivators to unearth the beautiful diamond. And I must whisper after trying for a small amount of occasions…

My first impressions weren’t positive. I love getting to the action real quick. So when I'm delegated to walking and reading early on. Doesn’t excite me to move on especially since I already want to progress past the atmosphere. And usually, there’s a clear prerogative of what to do. Here there’s not a hand-holding overarching narrative to follow consistently. You have to build your own goals and discover what lies in the vastness of the universe a bit. A central 'plot' does exist though, so don't worry if you think this is purely a sandbox. Moreover, upon finishing the basic tutorials on thrusters, scouters, signalscope and finally getting the launch codes. Took 30 minutes flat and I was ready to sleep. However, once I entered my ship and said goodbye to my friends. Activating thrusters and Yahoo! We're in space! Didn’t have difficulty navigating the solar system… Until I ventured to a distant foreboding sphere. Where my breath was taken away and silenced. And my previous hurdles are eradicated. Wish I could march back in a hot instant to slap my past self silly for thinking ridiculous nitpicks. Because I’m so glad to be wrong.

“If it wasn’t for the last sentence. I would’ve ordered you to flag him for disposal.”

“B-b-boss?”

“Nevermind. The 2nd record better impress. Or else…”

Log 2 - Appreciating the fear of the unknown

I’ll try to describe my emotions on the first planet. Any interstellar film or game worth its salt needs to evoke the presence of horror, hopelessness, anxiety, and tension. We can use examples from earlier works like Alien(1979) by Ridley Scott or Mass Effect(2007) series. The former needs no introduction where we see struggling survivors encountering a deadly alien threat. Managing to keep our suspense intact and the ‘surprise’ of what occurs in the future moving. Among other elements of horror such as fear. The latter presents a decent spread of hostile and friendly species to converse. Yet the traits differ. You never know what to expect despite talking to them. The element of ‘surprise,’ is inherent in the above aspects. Thus I am treated to a host of emotions I find unsettling. But not off-putting. The closest example I think is during a segment of Independence Day(1996). Where the protagonist must venture off on a final mission. Not a spoiler, most films have this action during the last act. A final hurrah. I felt a sense of uncertainty despite cautiously maneuvering my small vessel in an unknown place. Feeling lost and embracing the zero-g is a sense I felt intimately. The sentiment is further connected to a growing climb of wonder and excitement. Upon discovering something I found incredible and increased my resolve to learn further.

“Boss, you’re smiling.”

“What?! Nonono bits of food stuck in my mouth, had to move my teeth a bit.”

A cough is heard.

“A-anyway let’s move onto the 3rd report please.”

Log 3 - Fleeting wonder and magically enraptured from beginning, middle, and end

One of the main pillars is Wonder and magic is everywhere. The sensation of actually embarking on a solo declaration is fulfilling. Discovering new facets you seldom knew before is equally as powerful. Encountering and struggling against different varied biomes is a treat both planet-wise and in astral territory. Mirrors our lived life in making goals and acting upon them in a unfamiliar environment. Ya know the first moment you see snow? And you wanna build a snowman immediately? Remember those memories. The awe and jaw drops are plentiful. I’m reminded of the second when I first became enchanted by Star Wars: Episode 1 - The Phantom Menace(1999). Not because of the cool action sequences as a kid, but the big ol question mark on my face witness Tatooine. A harsh desert with a cornucopia of species living around. Beyond the nearly unlivable conditions, my eyes were glued to the racers speeding along the canyon highways in a deadly race. Different from NASCAR, the Olympics, horse racing and plenty vehicular competitions out there. The phenomenon never escaped as I climbed higher in age brackets. Games and films both share a wonderful quality to capture something different, and unique. We gaze and transport ourselves into a fictional world to our liking, dislike and nuances in between. Exploring, discovering, being lost, trails connecting pieces of lore. And starting anew, reborn with the knowledge gained. A gratifying cycle emerges. I can’t escape. But do I need to? Hmmm…

Capturing the immediate and prolonged interest of any individual varies. The dullness I experienced initially reversed course upon investing additional time. Helped by a strong point. Every 22 minutes a [censored] occurs. [Re%^&*ing] my character with intact launch codes. And crucial wisdom gained previously. Ready to start another venture. I wasn’t enthused on the mechanic early on. But after hours passed by unnoticed, I realized it's an innovative narrative helper. Demonstrating the consequences of our historical actions and what methods we can induce next. Not adhering to strictly player-centric design. The state of everything continues with or without our actions and causes self-reflection. The last point is significant. I’ll touch on it later as I dive into the process of elimination and frustration. On the opposite side, I calmly steered my cruiser to another location since the previous place scared me enough to not travel back there till I scrounged up extra courage. I traveled to a decently fast-moving object which I didn’t think was possible. Landed surprisingly safely. I was riding high on the accomplishment. Until I came upon an old recording. Turns out an ancient civilization left their findings! I learned a clue and after checking what I could, which isn’t a whole lot. I return to my vessel. Only to witness it’s not there! I recall what my translator deciphered revealing the cause. I facepalmed not registering the different data prior to later. I promptly yeeted myself into the sun to restart. What a horrible 2nd try. On my third attempt, I traveled to a fresh site.

You know the idiomatic expression the third time's the charm? Well let me tell you how it's true. I can’t dive into specifics of what I saw. In terms of relatability and vibes, I found it breathtaking. An animated film I still love today is called Treasure Planet(2002). A story about a young lad coming across stories of a cool wandering pirate with the ability to disappear with nary a trace. To the point he has amassed a great treasure. Enchanted by his tales, he resolves to follow in similar footsteps. I won’t discuss anymore, but if you splice the movie with Interstellar(2014)’s planetary discovery, with displayed awe in both protagonist's facial expressions. Then you can figure out what my face turned into. The sentiment is unsurpassed and instantly hooked me to delve deeper into the cosmos and what mysteries to unearth, understand, and utilize to the fullest extent. The magic of discovering other passages connecting to clues and answering my questions left me satisfied to a greater degree I would equate to circumspect. A notion I love to bits when connecting wonderful lorebuilding.

“Hmmm. I don't appreciate disclosing the exact minutes, but I'm happy he at least censored the important bits. To leave fresh greenies their own imagination.”

Gently smiling. The assistant silently passes the 4th transcript. Wondering if it was a trick of their eye, but they swear a slight smirk instantly emerged before vanishing. A blink if you miss it event.

Log 4 - For now a little step. Later, a giant leaps for lorebuilding

The fourth spot I journeyed to I would equate to a familiar segment from Interstellar(2014) except mixed with an animated film called Titan A.E(2000). Both deal in matters of heavy topics I won’t spoil. But it is deep and conjures mature themes. Enhancing OW’s careful lore building. Mirrors similar human fascination with space and what can we glean from minute information given to us using advanced technology. Using a suit and gadgets helps us to create a better picture. Although it can be hypothetical we can at least infer with evidence and prove claims. Therefore, I can’t help but smile whilst I'm reading texts of dialogue again where previously I thought was boring.

The genius of worldbuilding worth its salt is the ability to strongly capture an individual’s attention and let the user form their conclusions based on information given from religion, culture, laws, physics, and other info. There's merit in connecting. In video games, we discern this through dialogue given by NPCs and books we can read. Two elements work in tandem to enrich the player beyond the main plot. For better or worse, we identify an excess and perhaps too little in some cases. Here, a careful methodology concerning the non-handholding story and vital lore texts emerges. Maximized to the fullest effect I'm astounded to witness from a non-RPG. And I’ve played a decent amount removing the RPG element. What blows my mind further is the placement of lore exercised to the fullest limit. Knowledge is extremely instrumental in conducting further actions. Thereby the primary strengths result in the varied text. Ancients in humorous stories and hobbies full of quirks yet it doesn’t detract from their passion in their craft. Goals, missions, incentives, and purpose all become linked and shared. Far from piling an ever-stuffing pinata or treated to a plate made by a five-star restaurant. Rather familiar... a certain fella I watched growing up from Discovery channel. Dr. Michio Kaku who can break complex terms into explanations like I'm five format. With a dash of compelling interest. Then cooked to an extent I'm savoring the taste. With the power of my handy ship reports, I can connect lore automatically. Arrows lead me to my next destination based on evidence previously. And data entries compiling alternative bits to complete an informational packet. Categorized, neatly in concise portions of longer post-it notes. It is a miniature, but effective companion twisting the noggins in my brain not too hard unlike the Talos Principle. Disregard thinking it could be a chore. Quite the opposite.

Throwing out conventional design. From coding to world-building- constructing a trail that is rich, emotive helped by sound design, and purposeful. Yet it does not retain the intrinsic building blocks we usually associate with storytelling; the character ‘A,’ will detail information to us to character ‘B.’ We read text records instead. Some may see this as boring as hell as did I, early on. But stick with it, and you will see the splendor of their capabilities. The genius and creativity of the writings revolve back to the narrative, the curiosity. Then the question arises. What is the underlying incentive that moves the participant so much to continue? I’ll answer that by pointing to the sky beyond our planet and asking “What lies beyond outer space? And what else can we derive from there?” The incentives look plain, but usher in a tug-of-war gently luring me into the mystery and eating the delicious carrot. And it's funny because my philosophy teacher posited multiple questions to extrapolate from anything similar to the pursuit of education, and the limits of our current understanding of science. He used a pencil as an example. Why is it sharp? Why is the material wood? Can it be broken? What is the eraser made of? How long does it take to create a single pencil? What’s the cost? Why am I using a pencil instead of a pen? These questions can be applied coming across each concept or tangible stuff during a sweep in OW. Yet it doesn’t become a chore to look underneath every nook and cranny. Purpose and clues which lead to further clues and discoveries in a cyclical manner rewarding the patient and observer. Listening and understanding are key component blocks in understanding things greater than we initially perceive. Lean into the minimalistic design without being overbearing. There is enough to ride the fine line of not extracting over-complicated to the point of excess. And I 100% believe 99% of everything here is gold. Loan Verneau(Other designer) emphasizes the characteristics from a 2020 Noclip documentary.. “Minimalism is actually advantageous.”

“Boss, here’s some grub. You should eat ya know.”

“Yeah yeah don’t worry, I'll eat when I finish chronicle 5. Don’t worry.”

The assistant turns around, rolls his eyeballs around, and cheekily smirks as he watches his employer avidly reading more entries. He nonetheless hands him the fifth log.

Log 5 - Secrets, have secrets. And the critical usage of tools

Much in a minuscule vein of the Marvel Cinematic Universe(MCU) Avenger films, there’s always a layer behind a character or plot and usually you can apply the concept to films and videogames in reading behind the scenes or underneath the underneath. Underlying messages, themes, and possibly commentary on a variety of issues without implicitly being said. OW operates similarly. I follow breadcrumbs, I learn additional details, shifting the layers of my comprehension from literal, non-literal, lateral, etc. A delicate move that eases youngins and removes the over-complicated. Toeing the very fine edge of a black hole. Not descending entirely, but enough to make me struggle. My thinking process was in overdrive to determine various possible links. Frustration and impatience emanated from my head. Almost to the point I wanted to put this as a negative. But taking a deep breath, re-evaluating my options, the process of elimination, and a cool head kept my logical process running smoothly and not overheating such as a PC.

I hesitate to call this a 'puzzle' cause it's not. In the vein of Portal & Talos Principle. Where it is clear and linear of what you have to do. Definitely puzzle inspired. Elements through the environment in a non-intrusive manner. Designed in a way to be beginner-friendly yet as you gradually hit the end credits slowly ramp up. Not too cryptic and not too direct. Easy to connect the dots in my opinion. Forgive me for not enclosing the exact method or describing further, once again spoiler territory. But if you enjoy those ‘puzzles’ I mentioned earlier, then probably the process is favorable of how the developers implemented here. Tying to the lore and narrative. Enriching my overall experience, akin to pursuing an oasis in the desert after days of not eating or drinking. I was hungry, thirsty, and ravenous to continue. Here’s a hint, use the rumor and ship records to help you pinpoint possible solutions. It may not matter much early on but try to make it a habit to check. The results will surely surprise you.

Moreover, the tools gained are used to the fullest effect. You can attain most of them by equipping your suit. But also don’t forget about them! I can’t track the countless occasions I died forgetting to equip my gear. Don’t be a silly fool like me. Remember! It’s dangerous to go alone! Take this! A special craft, jetpack, scouter, translator, signalscope, A reliable suit equipped with an oxygen tank and fuel for the jets! You’ll need these essential tools before descending on new ground. Lest you die of lack of oxygen heh. The tools are a nice fusion mixing into the raw fun immediately. In expected and unexpected ways. I lost sight of my liner. Heh easy peasy, I use my jetpack to jettison slightly into the atmosphere where I can behold an overview of the planet I'm currently on. And it's fun wrestling with different forces of gravity. A past memory allowed me to soar freely, enjoying the freedom of zero-g. And testing the effects of denser gravity life. Is a super struggle to jump a mere foot. Such careful implementation, where physics and movement are acted upon deserves special praise. Always fun to test out various gravitational fields and actively maneuvering my ship based on my momentum is satisfying by demonstrating you can’t easily become a master with enough tools and tricks at your disposal. Revolves back to always something fresh to learn and discover and using that knowledge is priceless.

Navigation I found to my pleasant surprise isn’t tough. To me, I found the experience easy to get a sense of orientation to decide your ensuing travel destination. Helped by the fact you have your globe compass. Thankfully entire locations are not absurdly complex. Plenty of locations are developed with care. Distinct enough to stand on its own. Standing in the middle of nowhere, you undoubtedly easily find themselves lost on where to forge next! Well, my friend the signalscope is a radar, compass, and a handy sound detector. Simply following the source can lead to incredible discoveries! A reliable suit can protect you from various hazards so keep an eye on your health! It’s not just the vastness of the unknown that can be scary. I’m reminded of the warning Stephen Hawking once said regarding alien civilization. Maybe that will help or not. Who knows… Anyway! You should use the scouter. While it seems useless in the beginning to throw a pocket-size machine out in the distance rendering images such as mobile Mars rovers. Invaluable in checking out what’s in the distance. You rarely know what kind of matter you’ll come across. If safe to land, dangerous terrain to traverse, hell the additional light source emanating is vital in scouting too! In the darkest of moments, I determine solace in the illumination. Lastly, a handy translator to decipher old texts. Minus this little guy, I probably would’ve quit entirely! A tool to transcribe what was said long ago. Man. Wish we had this for our main cast back in Arrival(2016).

“Arrival is a damn fantastic film! A must watch along with the other sci-fi films touched on.”

“I agree, boss. Weird they haven’t watched Kubrick’s famous space film. Think he could’ve had substance to articulate about him.”

“True, perhaps they have not watched the film yet… Shame.

“Best of the best… Ah, here's the latest text.”

Log 6 - It's okay to make mistakes. History is full of them

I believe one of the hardest and maybe underappreciated qualities is to capture the attention of an individual for a prolonged period depending on the fun factor. Overcoming obstacles, finding new treasures, discovering secrets, winning against an opponent completing an objective, and my favorite is learning supplementary erudition that can be used retroactively to encounter alternate paths and solutions to obstacles. A slice different from metroidvanias with required items/abilities to progress. Similar, but different from how a rogue-lite conducts after failure. Operates by handing you enough necessary devices, not ability-gating, but sending them off at their own pace is an immensely enjoyable endeavor. 'If you can go there, you can reach it.'

But also exhibit a manageable learning curve. Thereby allowing astronauts and astralfarers to continue unabated without major insurmountable hurdles. A phenomenal example is akin to Mario falling into the abyss and we restart immediately is a simple and earliest example. Here the presence of failure and not giving up is palpable. Embracing mistakes can often lead to interesting outcomes. Making the most of what you can do within a limited ordeal reminded me heavily of my recent trip to Japan. Where I tried to do the most of what I could physically do while staying within ‘x’ amount of days. You have to embrace the logistics and persevere to rise above average motions to do as much as possible. Granted you don’t have to follow the ideology to a T. I love doing whatever you want at your leisure.

My experience in Japan was a proverbial light-bulb in parallel history of what I conducted. I didn’t come to this realization til dozens of attempts of failing, dying, and befuddlement. Concerning the failed attempts. I stand and try again. It is why I appreciate the [blank] loop occurring within 22 minutes clever. Sure a restart is feasible, but considering the full breadth is not player-centric. Enough distinct events occur within a small time frame. I won’t bring out anything explicit. But this core facet is a robust pillar holding up what makes OW remarkable. I’m reminded of the Apollo program to reach the moon after a world superpower equivalent entered the race by sending Yuri Gagarin as the first person to fly in past our blue home. Countless citizens of the Liberty Nation felt fear of being left behind. I was never born during that era, but the texts in history books detail the significance greatly of landing on the moon. The sensation of rivalry, anxiety, feasibility, capability, and what if’s are borne fruit within the OW project. How many adventures will my tiny craft be able to exert? Before I redo the whole start again? What untouched goals can I scrounge aside from virtually landing on my moon? Can I fulfill my mission parameters? And most importantly why am I doing this myself?

As a student and lover of world history: encompassing socio, technological, cultural, and countless others. Fascinating to grasp, but also our experiments to blast outside our atmosphere. The simulator has an alluring way of increasing my curiosity constantly. By approaching early interstellar travel through a museum. You don’t need to understand everything inside, but I find what’s displayed enchanting. Unseen creatures cute but terrifying. Text writing given in an untraditional manner. Artifacts changing senses of physical orientation and the mysterious Nomai talked in reverent tones leave me intrigued for new material. Teasing me, luring me to learn extra. It's lovely, the devs managed to send me into a similar fascination I had long ago as a young lad. I was enthused on entire interstellar matters and reliving the experience now. In a distinguishable manner by actively transforming a viewer's perspective into that of an active participant. “I read tales of cosmos history” takes on a whole new meaning when I traveled to the “moon and beyond.”

Despite my slight struggle in the beginning. The journey is bloody significant it in my honest opinion. It's up to you to decide the methodology a journey will advance. They say ignorance is bliss. And knowledge is power. Blah blah blah. Entertain the two notions and subsequently witness a slow, but gripping plot of pioneers embarking on treacherous expeditions and meritwhile voyages. Embracing the unknown like a partner steadily balancing their fear on a tightrope. To what end? Up to you! For what awaits fellow travelers mainly a wonderful trek to the stars.

Log 7 - My Mixed Feelings is Zero, as I Expected

I’ll be frank. I have zero mixed feelings. No negative nitpicks, and frustrations were due to the fact of my inability to jump the gun and Rambo my way to the credits. A shameful bad habit I still have trouble deterring myself from. Although, I’m glad I played until I finished the final act. The lesson I gently reminded is exercising a lesson in patience. Breathing deeply and re-focusing on my priorities whilst undergoing a process of elimination. Determining what I haven’t explored and what I couldn’t pass before, but with extra information gained. Surely I can do what I was unable to before. The backtracking wasn’t a sore spot. And sure the beginning can be slow, but I believe it's worth delving into to understand fully the tutorials. Gently nudging the player through the do’s and don’ts of star travel and the dangers that come in your travels. I’m at a sheer loss to add anything concrete regarding suggestions and I cannot for the life of me conjure meaningful examples. Everything is self-contained and at your disposal to succeed. Mayhap a gentle reminder that self-reflection is key and organizing your next list of priorities transitions into an easier task to undergo were vital to remember. Here’s a tip reviewing what you already accomplished might bring a different insight. Keep notes my friends!

“Kid already left huh? Damn. My is stomach hungry. But that can wait. I have naught urge to eat nor sleep right now.”

“Funny, I too experienced the same feelings after I entered the organization.”

Log 8 - Stories & mysteries. A positive appraisal

I always love heavy stories. It's the primary reason I look for within the medium. Everything else 2nd. So I'm extremely shocked to play a title where the plot is [redacted] in a way I didn’t expect. I’m no stranger to storytelling methods of unreliable narrators, ludo narrative dissonance, and connecting essential literary elements to craft a compelling plot. A climax full of importance and gawking. Supposedly with a loveable cast as well. I received none of these yet achieved an indescribable experience using a non-traditional progression. Which I find enormously challenging to describe in minute details. Within the confines of the simulator, I encountered many memories I don’t believe I'll forget. A stack I reminisce fondly. An aspect, so moving is a solid top quality. Ever seen any seven wonders on Earth? Or presumably some iconic nature-made landscape to leave you breathless? Same energy! In my struggle, all that's left are the sensations conjured during the moment and everlasting memories. Usually, players detail the conclusion as the ultimate moment. Others, the journey. And for a certain side the beginning. As I take my final steps into the end credits I can chiefly remark that everything is priceless, precious, and potent passion resonating to my very heart.

“Yes, I do agree the overarching story has incredible value striving towards. It's enormously challenging to display in a raw form. But I sincerely and wholeheartedly agree with their assessment.”

“Oh man, two left. Nights getting late… I have work in the morning... Meh I'll keep reading.”

Log 9 - Tips, hints, and a single weird outlier- A confession and the choice

Despite what I said early on with having zero mixed feelings I will confess to using a FAQ and hint guide near the very last stretch of my playthrough. I won’t say specifics. I primarily missed two things but I already knew beforehand and the execution. I simply missed the diminutive connection. This isn’t advocating to check FAQ or a guide. Merely suggesting if you need help. Or contacting a close friend. A blind playthrough is still highly recommended. However, this doesn’t deter me from gently conveying if you’re struggling to be careful of spoiling yourself on YouTube or a harmful thumbnail blatantly showing what to expect. It is extremely rare I would resort to such a tactic considering 99%, I found everything by myself and I suspect if I hadn't checked I would’ve eventually found the answer. I don't think there’s harm in searching for hints/tips since its impossible for every person to be on the same wavelength in understanding and processing logical thinking. It's why we don’t notice universal praise 100% of the time and barely to none flaws in every single product made. There’s always something to remark.

“Ehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh I’ll give their assessment a valid shake. It's honestly impossible to make a program and run to the finish line. Hitting the mark consistently. Playing blind to successfully reaching the ending every instances without help. The ultimate undertaking is still not within our capability. But by fine-tuning it we can achieve a close number to the triple digits. I believe Noclip demonstrates the history and the multiple developmental iteration stages in getting there. Seems the work was very challenging, but worth it. Cool guys. Was nice watching behind the scenes.”

“Oh. The last texts…”

Log 10 - The Final Log

I think the testament to a magnificent quality is the ability to grab anyone from any reasonable age and outside of searching for auxiliaries fully explore and in their understanding comprehend what is given. To an extent where the player deeply appreciates what is conveyed through memorable experiences, deep themes and reigniting a blazing heart of what makes videogames so moving. In neither too complex nor too simple aspects. Rather it strives to hit every range in the spectrum to capture the essence of what I feel is the zenith of pure discovery, supreme wonder, and incredible satisfaction through the act of accomplishment. At the very core, the devs toe the fine line to the point of frustration. Excelling in qualities I look for. And punches its weight limit beyond the super heavyweight class. Heck, shooting for 100% isn’t required either! You don’t need to worry on performance achievements. They're akin to extra credit points. A relief in my eyes. Thereby lodging a wonderfully thoughtful fun loop that keeps me coming back frequently until the final track is conveyed. Danny O'Dwyer, from Noclip puts it in the best way possible.

“...Outer Wilds is more than the sum of its parts. It's the type of game that leaves you with a feeling that can’t be explained. It has to be experienced.”

I echo the same sentiment. The herculean effort the developers at Mobius Digital created is truly one of a kind. Infrequently have I played a science fiction type hitting utterly the things I love and fear from the cosmos yet contained in a moving revolving door of themes tiny and grand. I found the grand finish line of my expeditions. Sure there were bumps on the road to get there. But OW travelers experiences hardship differently and manages to resolve them in a method to their satisfaction. For me. The venture was arduous yet left me with a marvelous sense of immense satisfaction. A sensation anyone knows intimately. Whether it's to defeat the most difficult boss, triumph over the hardest puzzle, climb the tallest pillar, or journey a thousand miles whilst completing many mini-challenges. The same feeling never escapes. The moment of victory, the HUZZAH always reigns supreme. A phenomenal caliber reverberates in spades beyond my imagination. Always surprised me to the nth degree yet ne'er blew my suspension of disbelief into a catastrophic supernova. Elevating by not prescribing to conventional designs. Connecting the sweet Chekov’s gun beautifully comparable to an intricate web. Whereupon I was helplessly comprehending every morsel of lore and thus achieved a peak Everest of worldbuilding. Through gaining knowledge. And harnessed to the maximum effect. Removing egregious copy paste areas. This wasn’t the largest universe I’ve explored, nor the prettiest graphically nor does it contain a tour de force soundtrack and an always gripping plot to unearth coupled with a loveable cast. Doesn’t hit the limit of fun gameplay. Outer Wilds is none of these. Yet the sum of its parts as Danny eloquently said earlier along with playing as blind as possible are the hallmarks benefiting an increased multiplier to the X degree. Tying the above to excellent points by a duct tape machine and launching my ship to uncharted territory is an unparalleled impression.

I implore any curious souls looking for an excellent sci-fi space adventure such as this as a one hell of a wake up palette cleanser to try between games, game pass, or even if they had an experience a stark contrast to mine then that’s entirely fair and valid. What matters is how your journey started, during, and ended. What you find at the closing of the day is the sincerest conclusion you reached with both hands and mind. Literally and figuratively. For better or worse. The cosmos exists, but so do we. And thus we venture forth to the stars. Undeterred, unbowed, and unflinchingly in the face of its daunting expanse, striving past our normal means. Similar in some respects to a tiny excerpt from a famous speech proposed decades ago.

.
.
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"Oh by the way Boss. I have something to report-"

The assistant gradually opens the door to the office. There he spies his superior sleeping soundly in the chair snoring softly. Peering closer he witnesses the final log close to his chest.

He sighs softly and gathers a jacket nearby to drape over him. But in doing so, a light object falls to the ground.

A piece of paper.

“Oh for me?”

The assistant reads the confines slowly. Eyes growing wider as paragraphs fly by until...

A single final line…

10/10 - Get me their number. We need to talk.

References and additional material:
1962 - JFK Moon speech
2020 - The Making of Outer Wilds - Documentary by Noclip
Before I play: Outer Wilds - Useful tips!
Spoiler safe FAQ - literally saved my bacon. No joke
My spoiler thoughts of Outer Wilds
Special thanks to Hotpoppah, _YALP & Phantasm for recommending OW to me.

I love Democracy!

Overall, I’m pretty mixed on this game despite loving this game a lot. Helldivers 2 is a PvE multiplayer game and I think that’s awesome considering I’m not the biggest fan of PvP. So when a game releases that focuses on PvE and PvE only, I think to myself “this game is meant for me”. So I decided to play Helldivers 2 and it was worth it to say the least. Helldivers 2 is in a Science Fantasy setting (technically just Science-Fiction but I love saying Science Fantasy just for the perspective of it) where Super Earth fights for FREEDOM, LIBERTY and DEMOCRACY against the terminids which are a monstrous bug species and the Automatons which some people see as and army of terminators but to me I see them more as an army of Dark Troppers from Star Wars. Anyway, you play this game with 3 other players where you go through to complete missions or objectives to liberate planets from either faction. These can take anywhere from 10-40 mins to complete. I love that some of these can be time consuming because you don’t necessarily have to finish the missions right away. Instead you can take time to run around the map to destroy bug nests or find other points of interest. You’ll have basic weapons to use such as guns and grenades and then you can also use more advanced weaponry called stratagems. These can range from auto turrets and drones that will defend you to weapons like rocket launchers or air strikes where you can blow up and entire area. Something I found interesting about stratagems is you have to manually call them in by pressing the right buttons to call upon them and they get delivered to you in battle. This makes things so thrilling because you need worry about that while probably being attacked at the same time. And as you level up you unlock more difficulties where monsters and robots become more difficult and complex to deal with. It really makes strategy important for an action game I love that a lot. I also LOVE the natural disasters in this game. There are planets with fire tornados that will catch you off guard and cook you to a crisp. And other planets have meteors showers that can land on you can kill you. It so thrilling to have to work through things like that while fighting for LIBERTY. An issue I did have is friendly fire. I get it adds realism to the game and add another layer of challenges but man I hate when I played with other players that would carelessly drop a bomb on me or other players. It got a little frustrating when it happens more than once per game. Missions and objectives can be confusing to do as well. I had to play with higher level players and I had to watch them carefully on what to do just so that I can learn what I do as well, it would’ve been nice if the game was more specific on what exactly to do to make progress. Playing with strangers isn’t always that fun anyway and that’s why I recommend playing this with friends. I played with 2 other friends and it made this game A LOT more fun. At least when I got killed by a teammate it didn’t feel like they carelessly dropped a bomb on me and we would apologize, laugh it off and move on. Next I really do want to talk about the graphics and visuals of this game. Graphics are nice and neat, definitely not the most impressive I’ve seen. The visuals do stand out as you can see chaos, explosions and gun fire from all directions. You can play on many planets with different biomes that look pretty. I try my best to take in the scenery sometimes to look at the beauty of the terrain or just look at other planets or moons from where I’m standing. And to top it all off I want to talk about this game being live service. To be simple about it, this is live service done right. I don’t usually play live service game because most of the time, live service games just want you to waste ridiculous amounts of money for weapons and cosmetics. In Helldivers 2, you pretty much can play for what you want. I never felt the need to grind endlessly to get new weapons I wanted or new armor I want to wear. This game is living proof that live service games can be good and done right.

For a video game that only cost $40, this game is such a great value. Of course this game still needs to be worked on as it can be repetitive and honestly I really just don’t think this game is as fun without friends since I just didn’t really want to play this without friends since playing with strangers just makes things a little more difficult than it needs to be. Other than that Helldivers 2 is a solid video game that I can’t wait for new updates to come.

There is a scene here where Cooper gives BT a thumbs up and BT tries to do the same for a moment before giving him a thumbs up back, and I start smiling like an idiot before I pull a thumbs up myself, and all I'm thinking the whole time is, "Man, I'm way too easy to please."

I genuinely believe that, outside of the ridiculously fun combat system, the best decision made here was to give the hulking Evangelion a personality of its own. Not the snarky, know-it-all techno-babbling AI, but just an intelligent robot that doesn't necessarily know everything outside of its specialization on the battlefield. The exchanges between Cooper and BT are both hilarious and compelling, generating immense interest in their evolving relationship. Of course, the campaign is fairly short-lived, but it does wonders at crafting memorable moments through those interactions spliced in between the chaos of militia and titans.

BT, you will always be famous.

(PS. THE "WHEN YOU GET TO HELL, TELL EM VIPER SENT YA" AND "DODGE THIS" WAS FROM THIS GAME????? THAT'S SO COOL)

Remedy make a boss fight that isn't shit challenge. Hartman honestly might have been full on worse than the final boss in Quantum Break. the only thing that gives me pause is the lack of a long load screen and cinematic in front of this one in comparison.

otherwise this was once again more Control. the setting has less of the drab caves which is a bonus but the connection to Alan Wake wasn't as exciting as it sounded which was a bummer. surge as an additional weapon type seemed like a gamechanger but ended up being much less immediately busted than i thought. </3

i find myself thinking that i had my fill of this one with the base game and could've done without the expansions completely. they're both serviceable but they don't have anything to offer that made me feel like i was particularly glad that i played them or anything either. that's the case for a solid 80% of the DLC i've played for any game ever so it's not a big shock, i guess.

hopefully by the time Control 2 rolls around my fatigue from these will have faded.

Enter Ashley Riot, Riskbreaker
Basic premise/Story

From developer studio Square, and directed by Yasumi Matsuno. You play as Ashley Riot, a Riskbreaker who travels to Leá Monde to investigate the connection between a cult leader and duke Bardorba. A simple investigation right? Oh, I wish. There is more at work here in the dark and a story worth uncovering.

Battle Mode Please
Unique Gameplay

Vagrant Story's gameplay is one of the most innovative or convoluted systems of systems I have ever had the pleasure of playing. But, I feel the game has some of the weirdest design decisions regarding those systems in place. So I sympathize with the sentiments of those, who feel the combat/crafting is clunky and cumbersome. I certainly felt them. However, I feel these two systems along with the progression of how to increase stats and gain affinities to be more effective against enemies is a neat twist against the traditional level-up by grinding enemies endlessly.

Here, you have to be smart since enemies feel deadlier. Encounter an undead enemy and you may find yourself having a tough time without a silver weapon or a certain type of weapon like blunt, edged, or pierce. Each monster is weak to a certain type or more. So you have to figure out their weaknesses by analyzing enemies or through trial and error. You cannot simply bash every enemy you see with your strongest weapon. The game simply doesn’t work that way.

Nonetheless, not only do you have to figure out what weapon the enemies are weak to, but their base characteristics give a hint or sign of what else they could be weak to. Such as phantoms. Weak to weapons with a high affinity to phantoms or any other element. Humans and other creatures you face become increasingly more susceptible to their nature. As long as you use the same weapon continuously to create a high affinity with the weapon. You can become more effective in dishing out more damage to the creature/humanoid/or other abominable nightmares you face.

And this is where the game truly starts to shine. As you use the same weapon since the beginning. You become more in tune and more effective at using it. Making it deadlier against say 'dragons' if you continue to kill more dragons or combat them. You gain affinity incrementally as you fight each type of enemy. And thus your weapon can become stronger. If you’re worried that the main weapon you have been using will fall behind in damage you can combine that equipment with another blade to create a more powerful blade. The catch is you need to be in a workshop with the right type as well as make sure the resulting weapon is stronger and not an inferior weapon.

As long as players pay attention to stat values in the bottom right corner and make sure your affinities are intact. Because combined weapons combined each blade's affinities. So using a piece of old equipment with a piece of new equipment and the resulting equipment will maintain the gained values and negative values the item has. So in theory and practice, you can use an old weapon you have been using since the beginning and use that weapon by endgame. Well… It’s going to be combined with other weapons, so the merged weapon would contain all the affinities you built up since the beginning. Weapons don’t degrade after continuous use either.

So then what’s the main appeal to the battle system beyond fighting and defeating enemies to make our current weapons stronger? The answer is the battle system or more aptly named ‘Battle Mode.’ With one button press Ashley can unsheathe his weapon and or shield he has equipped and a sphere starts to spread from his character. Any enemy caught within the sphere can then be attacked by Ashley on any limbs the target has. The body and head are included. This simple mode is enjoyable throughout the game to choose which area of the enemy you’re facing is weakest. Kinda like the V.A.T.S. system in Fallout, the mechanic is very similar here. With each limb/part detailing the chance to hit and how much damage Ashley can inflict. The game has buffs and debuffs as well which can increase your strengths and accuracy among other values to your benefit. Although, the enemy is pretty smart in their own right and can dish out debuffs to make you weaker. You won’t see this in every fight, but it is something to watch out for.

You don’t gain stats traditionally like other Jrpgs. Instead, every time you defeat a boss you have a slot machine with various stat increases scrolling by. And when you hit a button on the controller the scrolling will stop and whatever stat is displayed will increase your base stats. So if the last section that the scrolling stopped on was MP +2 then your mana pool will increase by 2. HP, str, agi, and int, are also possible results with the number varying. You can also find stat-boosting items whenever you delve deeper into the Leá Monde. By endgame, I had a good spread of my stats and didn’t find too much trouble in the end.

Leá Monde's Secrets
Final thoughts/Ruminations

I’ve heard of Vagrant Story over the years. Usually regarded as tough and complex for the gameplay mechanics to understand and sometimes having one of the most compelling stories out there for a JRPG. And now when the end credits are rolling, I cannot help but agree with those statements.

Despite some of the combat systems being a bit of a learning curve to understand, for the most part. The game is largely self-contained to give you the information and help you understand it. Additionally, there is a quick manual within the game, you can pull up whenever you need to. I found this helpful whenever I needed a refresher on a mechanic I needed a bit more information on.

In my case, I found the combat challenging and rewarding since they give the players so many options to dispatch enemies as I see fit. I could chain attack, my enemies, to death without giving them any moment of reprieve as long as I time my attacks to the big red exclamation point. Could switch to a mage-type build and blast my enemies with devastating spells. Or switch to any of my weapons and blast them with break arts. Using only my HP as the cost if I didn’t want to chain attack them. Defend Ashley with Defensive abilities, so the damage my enemies deal to me isn’t as severe. Switch weapons during combat anytime and rebuff/debuff my enemies before they can get a single hit and more. Heck, I can even position myself so the enemy will hit his/her comrade. And the game will let it occur! So friendly fire does exist! Sucks to be them honestly. Luckily Ashley is a solo man. So you don’t need to worry about hitting party members.

I love the freedom the devs give to the players and it shows so much. If you have the options, abuse it to your heart's content. And Vagrant Story does so magnificently in its own right. While making the enemies challenging and fair to fight. You are never in an insurmountable fight, only unprepared with the wrong equipment being used. As long as you know which type of weapon and shield to use against your enemies you should be able to breeze through the game.

Since the game doesn’t have wide open fields like the team’s previous game with Final Fantasy Tactics. The game largely takes place in box-sized levels. So you don’t have lots of room to explore. I feel the devs used this to their advantage by creating lots of rooms with purpose. Some even go so far as to include no enemies with only boxes where you will have to place them in certain ways to get to the other areas of the room or activate mechanisms to unlock the door. There are even timed events where you need to run across a series of rooms to get to the other side, making combat, not the end all be all for the game. I love this type of breather room so to speak to give players a rest and just run to another room. Granted there aren't a lot of these rooms, but their inclusion of them is still appreciated throughout the game. And while I would’ve liked more interesting rooms to use a different art palette. And a bit more differentiation from some similar corridors. I think the game still has enough surprises in store to alleviate those concerns. One aspect I didn’t see was a decent spread of platforming involved to get to the other side of the room which I took as a personal challenge to do in some rooms. It’s awesome how there is a dedicated jump button so you can evade enemies at your leisure. And the game makes full use of that.

The sound is impeccably well-tuned to the cinematic graphics for the game. Where the story would transition into a cutscene moment between antagonists or with Ashley in the picture. The music is fitting here providing the right amount of tension, anxiety, momentum, and vigor to shift the player’s mood. In my case to great success. I felt intrigued by some scenes. Worried in others, anxious in other cases, and pumped in ensuing fight scenes about to occur. All in all the music and sound effects were intricately linked with the game and I found it enjoyable to listen.

Graphics also share the teamwork load by providing excellent use of cinematic direction to push the PlayStation hardware to its absolute limits of rendering everything in 3D. And while this did limit the game in some areas. I was impressed throughout my playthrough by how the devs were able to circumvent these issues with clever lighting, camera angles, and comic book-styled visual design to accentuate the narrative and keep it intriguing. I felt rooted in my seat in anticipation for the next scene to occur and wondering what will happen next. I also liked the gritter atmosphere the game conveyed of Leá Monde and the surrounding levels and enemies reflected that greatly enhancing the immersion of something more at work here.

I wish the game had some quality-of-life improvements to make the combat a bit more fresh and more modern for newcomers. Having the menu not be slow, removing hard limits on inventory, and connecting it to the storage. Crafting/combining using your whole inventory including the storage chest to eliminate backtracking and going back and forth to the chest. A detailed map of combinations to combine weapons, armor, and shields without consulting a chart online. To help newcomers on what equipment to keep based on stat values. Saving anytime instead of within save circles. And a tiny bit more differentiation between corridors

If there is one last thing to touch on for Vagrant Story. It is how the story is detailed. Through expositional dialog. So you won’t find any factual information to peruse like lorebooks or conversing with NPCs. Pretty much everything you need is through the scenes occurring in the game. And perhaps some item descriptions you find here and there for worldbuilding.

I feel the story closes all important plot points and loose ends pretty well within Leá Monde; the place where all the events take place. It can be slow in the beginning to understand the early scenes being shown, but stick around and you'll probably be engrossed as I did with intrigue and curiosity to learn more. With clever twists and turns I didn't expect and moments I was genuinely shocked to learn as the plot moved forward. There is no cliffhanger ending either and I was quite satisfied with the ending scenes. I will admit the game can make the early scenes confusing if you skip an important cutscene by lingering at the start menu screen and don’t skip any of the following scenes after starting the game. So I recommend not skipping anything.

Be that as it may, there is something quite special here I haven't quite seen, since the time I played Final Fantasy Tactics and Xenogears. To show players something entirely new and bold to the audience without any wasted dialogue. Demonstrating a clever balance of wit in writing. Striving and succeeding in holding my interest throughout by shifting the pendulum in favor of the antagonists or the hero of the story. A fun combat system reminiscent of my time playing games from the Mother series/Witcher 1. With timing my chain attacks. An intriguing story from the beginning, middle, and end. Well-rounded antagonists to boot. Impressive cinematic direction. And takes regular tropes we associate with JRPGs and flips them on its head. To great effect.

All of this is a remarkable achievement for a Playstation 1 title. And despite some criticisms, I have with the game. I think I can safely say it's one of those PlayStation 1 gems that is a must-play for anyone looking for a nuanced story outside the scope of Final Fantasy then look no further than Vagrant Story.

Here is a quote from the director Yasumi Matsuno. I feel this sums up what Vagrant Story is.

"If FF is the game industry version of a major Hollywood movie, then VAGRANT STORY is an independent movie to be watched quietly in a small movie theatre. The scale is different, but the burning enthusiasm and the dreams behind the scenes are the same as in the majors."

Score: 9/10

This review will be my final thoughts on Cyberpunk 2077, and I’m a proud gamer to say that I LOVE the living hell out of this game.

It feels like it was only yesterday when Cyberpunk 2077 first released. If you’re like me who has played from day 1 then you’ll know exactly how far Cyberpunk 2077 has come. In this review I will talk about everything I loved within this game and my perspective on how this game has changed over the years, and ultimately why I had such a deep connection to this game to the point that I consider Cyberpunk 2077 to be my favorite video game.

Now of course Cyberpunk 2077 had a super rough launch. When I first played back in 2020 I encountered a bug after just playing 2 mins. Little did I know I was in for a very messy game. Everyone has had their own experiences playing this game, everything from having a few bugs to having game braking bugs to people who have had corrupted save game files. This game had so many problems that took a long time to fix. And it’s sad to say the least because underneath all those bugs was a truly incredible game that I did in fact get enjoyment out of. But for this review I’ll focus more on what on 2.0 or later while somewhat bringing up things before the 2.0 patch. To start things I LOVE vehicle combat. I honestly didn’t mind very much that there wasn’t vehicle combat before but then I didn’t realize just how much I needed it because I LOVE that you can use your own weapons or even use built in weapons like machine guns or rockets launchers which are SUPER effective. Use can also use throwing knives and blades while riding motorcycles which is also a nice touch for those that want to go for a blades only build. I also love this new aspect to the game simply because it adds more immersion. I LOVE the feeling of getting attacked out of nowhere because I maybe screwed over a gang of goons by stealing something from them or for killing a high ranking leader to their gang. It brings up consequences to your actions I loved that a lot. I also love the new skill tree system. Before 2.0, yes the skill tree was a mess but it was still doable to go for a build you want. I usually do netrunner builds or a mix of netrunning and gunner. In my most recent playthrough I did a blades only build and I have to say it was definitely one of my favorite builds I ever tried for Cyberpunk 2077. I LOVE the feeling of being able to block or deflect every bullet coming my way and being fast enough to zero my enemies and throwing knives brought stealth to a whole new level. Cyberpsycho gigs were also great because you can duel some of these cyberpsychos and they can offer a decent challenge depending on how powerful you make V. As for my netrunner builds I absolutely love to experiment with what I can do. You can use quickhacks like ping which show the locations of all you enemies in a building or use quickhacks like suicide or system collapse to kill off troublesome foes with little effort. Or you can even have electrical damage quickhacks to easily take down robots or any mechanical enemies you will encounter. Or perhaps you’re facing an enemy with a sandevistan that is too fast for you to shoot them, in that case you can use the cyberware glitch quickhack to disable their cyberware long enough for you to kill them. My point being, there’s so MANY quickhacks to use for many different situations and that’s why I love messing around with netrunner builds but that’s just me. The graphics are beautiful and stunning and that’s not to mention that I LOVE the level of detail through the visuals we can see. The world is a story within itself by showing us these dirty and ghetto streets full of neon light and advertisements everywhere with crime and poverty around every corner. You can even find that the more rich areas are a lot cleaner and more well maintained not because it’s a safe place to be. The sound design is also VERY underrated. I remember going to Pacifica and hearing the speaker system that played ads being all messed up and glitchy showing us a nice small detail that Night City doesn’t really take care of their districts that they hardly have much control of because either gangs took it over or a big homeless encampments took over. The sound effects for guns sound solid and crisp and that’s great since some guns can have their own unique sounds. Something I definitely liked a lot was being able to collect iconic weapons which either belonged to an important character or just simply have unique buffs or features. Something that I didn’t like that the 2.0 patch did was remove the feature where you can change the scope for the snipers you can use. I HATE that this feature was removed because now you have to get used to whatever scope you get built into whatever sniper you use. And this bothered me because sometimes the built in scope sucks and it was better when you could use whichever scope you wanted. That aside you can still use any scope you want for most weapons and even add a silencer if you’re interested enough. And one of the best parts of the gameplay is easily the cyberware. Honestly I’m 50/50 with how cyberware works now after 2.0. On one hand I still love that you can use cyberware like double jumps or monowire or have an invisibility implant which helps a lot through your adventure through Night City. What I don’t like is how this is tied to your armor. Depending what kind of cyberware you want or need, your armor will depend on that I honestly preferred it more when armor was tied to the outfit you wore. Nonetheless, it’s not a big deal and is tolerable. There’s also a cyberpsychosis system where if you have too much cyberware you begin to have debuffs to make you struggle more in combat and honestly it barely made a difference to me since my V was still a powerhouse regardless. I loved exploring Night City finding secrets and really just enjoying the gorgeous views. 2.0 added a new fast travel system where you can now use the subway system. I personally only used that system once just to enjoy the scenery and I never really used it again since I’d much rather prefer to drive with my own free will. I always like to drive to my next objective just for the fun of it. And the soundtrack is GODLY in this game. The music always hits at the right moments and I love the radio music so much. I had many times where I just didn’t want to get out of my car just because I was listening to one of my favorite songs. In 2.0 there’s a portable radio where you can listen to the radio while walking on foot which I personally didn’t like at all. I like being able to listen to the world around me instead and I didn’t like how I had to turn off the radio every time I got out of a vehicle, so I ended up turning off the portable radio in the settings of the game.

And the story for Cyberpunk 2077 is something truly special. You start off by choosing one of 3 life paths which will change dialogue options based V’s views on the world, these can either benefit you in some way or just simply be there for the story. Anyway, the story revolves around V, a solo mercenary and a professional one at that who aims high to make it to the major leagues and be the best legend Night City has ever seen. But, things don’t always go your way and V is put in a horrifying situation where V will do anything to survive. The story had so many twists and turns and yes, some of those twists will depend on your choices. Your choices won’t necessarily affect the main story at least not to a certain extent but there will be different outcomes and some things will happen to certain characters. Yes, you will hurt people, but is it in your best interest? Or is because you want to do what’s right based on your morals. The reason I bring this up is because there may be choices you have to make and sometimes it’s tough to make these choices because you don’t know what comes nexts. There’s many characters you’ll interact with and I love most of them. Johnny and Jackie are easily the most hilarious characters. There will also be characters that you don’t get to know much about like Mama Welles or Evelyn but you’ll feel sympathetic for them because of what they go through. You’ll even meet characters you’ll hate and be willing to screw them over just because you hate them. There are side storylines for characters you can romance if you’d like and I loved it a lot because it really did add more for the story. Something else I loved are the MANY computer messages you can read. If you want to know more about some characters you can find out even more about them you would never guessed about them. And honestly, props to CDPR for EVERY last data shard in the game. If you have the dedication, please take the time to read as many data shards as you can because you’ll learn a lot about the history and lore of Cyberpunk 2077. I can go on and on about what loved about the story but what I will say for this review is that is among one of the best stories I’ve ever seen for it’s exceptional writing in a dystopian dark future.

At the end of the day, I’ve realized why I loved Cyberpunk 2077 so damn much. It isn’t just because I loved the story or loved the immersion. The reason I loved Cyberpunk 2077 is because it helped me rediscover what it means to have fun in a video game. And to have fun, you simply just got to enjoy what you got. And of course I’m not saying you have to enjoy what you got, I’m saying as long you’re getting enjoyment out of it then that’s what matters most and what I got from Cyberpunk 2077 is true happiness. This is a video game I will always remember from the bottom of my heart as a reminder to have fun. I really do want to thank CDPR for not only making a masterpiece but to thank them for giving me a video game that truly changed my perspective on gaming.