ThatRetroArtist
2014
I actually already owned shovel knight on the Wii U of all things but I never beat it because I was a dumb stupid kid, now i'm a dumb stupid adult who finally beat shovel knight on the 3DS and yeah, it's as good as everyone says it is.
A solid title overall not really any complaints here.
A solid title overall not really any complaints here.
2023
This is a miracle game, something that you didn't think would ever come out but now that its here, it's amazing and feels worth the wait. Before you read this review I cannot stress enough how packed this game is with content. For $60 you're getting the best Pikmin game to date. The game does NOT end after reaching credits i'll say that much without spoiling. You will be spending hours and hours on these beautifully crafted levels with so much attention and detail put into them. This game is gorgeous, and is easily one of the best looking games on the switch. I feel like everything they did was optimized and utilized to its fullest potential with the visuals and it's true eye candy. That being said, there were a few nitpicks but those were all very minor and nothing ever made me want to stop playing or believe the design was poorly.
If you're any interested at all with the Pikmin series this one is super beginner friendly, i'd definitely check this one out because on the surface it's like a Yakuza 0. A game where you can go in knowing previous history with the series or you can go blind and find the same amount of enjoyment you just miss out on the callbacks and references. Either way, I love this game and is now my favorite Pikmin game in the series.
If you're any interested at all with the Pikmin series this one is super beginner friendly, i'd definitely check this one out because on the surface it's like a Yakuza 0. A game where you can go in knowing previous history with the series or you can go blind and find the same amount of enjoyment you just miss out on the callbacks and references. Either way, I love this game and is now my favorite Pikmin game in the series.
2020
Waited on getting all the badges before writing this review, but now that I did I can say that Pikmin 3 Deluxe is definitely worth your time and money. There is just so much content packed into here that there is virtually no reason for you to play the inferior wii u version. While it isn't my favorite Pikmin game in the series, there's a lot of things this game does right and it's definitely still fun to play. This does feel like a beginner friendly Pikmin though despite it being the 3rd game but that's more of a nitpick than anything, getting more people into this series is what we fans want so we don't have to wait a decade for another game.
But yeah, after you buy Pikmin 4 (like you should) go back and give 3 Deluxe a chance if you haven't played it already, it's one you don't want to miss.
But yeah, after you buy Pikmin 4 (like you should) go back and give 3 Deluxe a chance if you haven't played it already, it's one you don't want to miss.
This game was one I had put off many, many, MANY, times. From the very beginning I knew this game was not for me and it certainly was not on the level of the previous Xenoblade Chronicles. Sure it had its faults but the first Xenoblade Chronicles is an experience I hold near and dear to my heart. When the press release footage and trailers got shown of this game I was just simply confused at everything I was seeing. What is this shift in art direction? Why is everyone look more anime than usual? Is that girls boobs bigger than her entire head? What in the actual hell is this voice acting. Questions that just formed in my head as I was watching, but you know, it's not good to judge a book by its cover. So I decided i'd pick up the game and see if maybe those thoughts of mine will change. I popped it in my switch the morning of December 25th 2017 and...
I put it down like 3 hours into the game. I just couldn't accept these changes, the protagonist literally looked like every other brown haired protag in any game and combined with the awful voice acting and character designs I just couldn't do it. I made it to the fake-out scene where Gramps "dies" and that was the end of it. Guess the Xenoblade Series isn't what I thought it was.
Fast forward to 2023, I had just finished going through Xenoblade 3, which in my opinion is still the greatest game in the series, but knowing this game had many references to 2 made me feel curious, and then I remembered I only put 3 hours into Xenoblade Chronicles 2 so maybe I should actually give it a real chance rather than passing it off as anime cringe. I told my friends about this and they proceeded to tell me if I were to ever go through it I should stream it so they can help me understand more about the game because this games tutorials flat out lie to the player and are just horrible in general, there's no way to view them again. Here we are, years later since my first playthrough, and now that I've finally gotten through the entire thing, what do I think of it? ...eh. It's ok, but let me explain myself. This review will be split into sections because with a big ass jrpg like this I have a lot to say.
Story:
Xenoblade Chronicles 2 no matter how you slice it is going for a completely different crowd in its writing and interaction. The story itself can be classified as a "Xenoblade" story but you only see that after Chapter 5 and then from there the game cuts the bullshit and actually tries to deliver a story worth telling. In my opinion the first 4 chapters are the biggest hurdles you have to go through in order to experience a semblance of interesting storytelling because those 30+ hours were miserable. Chapter 4 has to be the worst chapter in all of Xenoblade history, there's nothing of worth here and it's all pointless anime filler that amounts to nothing. You could remove this from the game and it would change nothing, that's how bad it is. Also it's stupid ass Tora focused and if you know anything about Tora, he's a huge creep who makes little girl robots in his basement like the 50 year old weirdo he is. Absolutely one of the worst characters in the game by far and every time he was on the screen I wish he wasn't. Poppi is ok tho, I feel like if she had to be in the game remove Tora and let her be her own character. But we'll get the characters soon enough.
Gameplay:
The combat in the beginning is so slow and boring, enemies are giant hp sponges and it takes way too long for you to actually start doing interesting things in combat. Ignore what anyone tells you, gacha is and will always be required to progress throughout the story and in the combat itself, it's not simply an optional thing like I was told, its a crucial mechanic you will need to learn and take advantage of in the game. If you don't like gacha in video games then i'm sorry this game will not make you change your mind. One of its biggest flaws is having to be so reliant on it, it locks behind story progression because there are certain field skills you will need to have to bypass areas just to progress the story. Your characters without any blades are useless as they need them to stand a chance to the enemy sponges and perform blade combos. If this doesn't sound fun to you then that's perfectly ok, I just gritted my teeth and just endured the amount of RNG bullshit this game had to be at times. I would have fun during a section and then boom field skills locking out my progression. It's pointless, it's annoying, and quite honestly killed off a lot of my enjoyment of the game. However, the more you progress and the more you go through the game you start to pick up on how it plays and then from there it starts to click, for me, it started to click when I was around level 75. ...which is like at the very near end of the game. jesus christ. Yeah overall the combat is NOT better than 1's in my honest opinion, it's overly simplified and also unnecessarily complex with the gacha management. I didn't even touch upon the poppi system and I don't want to because screw Tora. I didn't find it fun to just farm enemies and rather I did it out of a necessity. If you find this combat fun good for you man, more power to you. (Xenoblade 3 clears tho)
Characters:
Rex is so lame. From the very beginning he's just the same character until the end, he doesn't go through any growth, he doesn't experience anything life changing, he's just the same cardboard cutout protag we've seen done countless times. Except everyone in this game is attracted to him for some reason even though he has no redeeming qualities only other than the fact that he's an optimist. That's it. You cannot tell me straight in the eyes that Rex cares about anyone other than Pyra and Mythra because other than maybe Gramps he's shown no appreciation over his group of comrades he earns throughout the course of the story. In Xenoblade Chronicles 1 you felt like this group know each other, are close friends, have been through a lot, some don't even like each other when they first meet like Reyn and Riki. But as a JRPG group they're believable and everyone has chemistry with each other no matter how you slice it. In this game nobody feels like they know each other and the ones that do know each other are not in the spotlight anyways. Zeke, Morag, and Nia are the definite highlights of this entire game. If you go through the game and don't like these characters then you must not like good writing because man are they the only reasons I kept going. They easily stand out of the main cast and even the antagonists Jin and Malos were just a joy from start to end. That's one thing I will give XC2 credit, it has the BEST villains in all of the series, they're just so much fun to see on screen and someone like Jin has so much personality and story that further adds to his character. Screw it lets do a lightning round on these characters.
Rex: Boring, uninteresting, completely overhyped by his defenders. Is only interesting in Xenoblade Chronicles 3: Future Redeemed (play that one)
-----
Pyra: The weakest of the female blades and has nothing going for her other than she's nice, if you remove Pyra from the game nothing would change i'm sorry to say. I wish they did more with her. Also has the worst design in the game.
-----
Mythra: Easily the more interesting aegis and has history with people other than Rex which makes her more nuanced. Would've liked her more if she wasn't forced to fall in love with Rex because of how the game is structured but eh, you can't win them all. Good character tho.
-----
Nia: Amazing character from start to finish, definitely carried the beginning half of the game. Rex really fumbled with this one, but even as i'm saying this you know he actually didn't.
-----
Dromarch: A solid character too, no complaints here. I like him :)
-----
Tora: The worst character in the series, I wish he died somewhere in the story.
-----
Poppi: Ok, not bad but I hate how she's Toras blade and overly relies on him, even calling him master and that weird shit.
-----
Morag: YEAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH BEST GIRL BEST DRIVER WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO. Amazing design, badass character, should've been the protagonist.
-----
Brighid: Delightful. I love how much she gasses up her girlfriend, I love them so much.
-----
Zeke: The REAL protagonist of Zekeblade Chronicles 2, i'm sorry but if you don't think that you're objectively wrong in every single way. He does more than Rex ever does in the story, and actually talks to his companions and isn't just somebody who sits and watches from the sidelines. He carried the show for me, he's got a silly side but he knows when to be serious and his relationship with Pandoria is adorable.
-----
Pandoria: Pyra done right.
-----
Jin: The best anti-hero of the game, was really captivated through his own story and I got attached to his character as the story went on. Phenomenal.
-----
Malos: BEST. VILLIAN. EVER. Malos is a joy to watch from start to finish, there is not a single time where he's on screen and i'm bored he absolutely makes every scene he's in and you can tell with how his voice actor is giving in 100% to really sell us on this character driven by hatred. Peak. Enough said.
Music:
It's Xenoblade man what do you expect me to say, it's peak. Monolift Soft don't miss with these games osts.
Overall Thoughts:
While i'm glad I got to see everything this game had to offer I will admit it was still a mixed bag as I thought it'd be, there were many times where I wanted to quit because the game wasn't engaging enough or the characters were being stupid and annoying. If you really want to see what this game has going for it, and you're willing to put up with more bullshit than you can count. Then go for it, there's stuff here that's actually worth going for but overall I had a mid experience and I don't think i'll ever revisit this one sadly.
I put it down like 3 hours into the game. I just couldn't accept these changes, the protagonist literally looked like every other brown haired protag in any game and combined with the awful voice acting and character designs I just couldn't do it. I made it to the fake-out scene where Gramps "dies" and that was the end of it. Guess the Xenoblade Series isn't what I thought it was.
Fast forward to 2023, I had just finished going through Xenoblade 3, which in my opinion is still the greatest game in the series, but knowing this game had many references to 2 made me feel curious, and then I remembered I only put 3 hours into Xenoblade Chronicles 2 so maybe I should actually give it a real chance rather than passing it off as anime cringe. I told my friends about this and they proceeded to tell me if I were to ever go through it I should stream it so they can help me understand more about the game because this games tutorials flat out lie to the player and are just horrible in general, there's no way to view them again. Here we are, years later since my first playthrough, and now that I've finally gotten through the entire thing, what do I think of it? ...eh. It's ok, but let me explain myself. This review will be split into sections because with a big ass jrpg like this I have a lot to say.
Story:
Xenoblade Chronicles 2 no matter how you slice it is going for a completely different crowd in its writing and interaction. The story itself can be classified as a "Xenoblade" story but you only see that after Chapter 5 and then from there the game cuts the bullshit and actually tries to deliver a story worth telling. In my opinion the first 4 chapters are the biggest hurdles you have to go through in order to experience a semblance of interesting storytelling because those 30+ hours were miserable. Chapter 4 has to be the worst chapter in all of Xenoblade history, there's nothing of worth here and it's all pointless anime filler that amounts to nothing. You could remove this from the game and it would change nothing, that's how bad it is. Also it's stupid ass Tora focused and if you know anything about Tora, he's a huge creep who makes little girl robots in his basement like the 50 year old weirdo he is. Absolutely one of the worst characters in the game by far and every time he was on the screen I wish he wasn't. Poppi is ok tho, I feel like if she had to be in the game remove Tora and let her be her own character. But we'll get the characters soon enough.
Gameplay:
The combat in the beginning is so slow and boring, enemies are giant hp sponges and it takes way too long for you to actually start doing interesting things in combat. Ignore what anyone tells you, gacha is and will always be required to progress throughout the story and in the combat itself, it's not simply an optional thing like I was told, its a crucial mechanic you will need to learn and take advantage of in the game. If you don't like gacha in video games then i'm sorry this game will not make you change your mind. One of its biggest flaws is having to be so reliant on it, it locks behind story progression because there are certain field skills you will need to have to bypass areas just to progress the story. Your characters without any blades are useless as they need them to stand a chance to the enemy sponges and perform blade combos. If this doesn't sound fun to you then that's perfectly ok, I just gritted my teeth and just endured the amount of RNG bullshit this game had to be at times. I would have fun during a section and then boom field skills locking out my progression. It's pointless, it's annoying, and quite honestly killed off a lot of my enjoyment of the game. However, the more you progress and the more you go through the game you start to pick up on how it plays and then from there it starts to click, for me, it started to click when I was around level 75. ...which is like at the very near end of the game. jesus christ. Yeah overall the combat is NOT better than 1's in my honest opinion, it's overly simplified and also unnecessarily complex with the gacha management. I didn't even touch upon the poppi system and I don't want to because screw Tora. I didn't find it fun to just farm enemies and rather I did it out of a necessity. If you find this combat fun good for you man, more power to you. (Xenoblade 3 clears tho)
Characters:
Rex is so lame. From the very beginning he's just the same character until the end, he doesn't go through any growth, he doesn't experience anything life changing, he's just the same cardboard cutout protag we've seen done countless times. Except everyone in this game is attracted to him for some reason even though he has no redeeming qualities only other than the fact that he's an optimist. That's it. You cannot tell me straight in the eyes that Rex cares about anyone other than Pyra and Mythra because other than maybe Gramps he's shown no appreciation over his group of comrades he earns throughout the course of the story. In Xenoblade Chronicles 1 you felt like this group know each other, are close friends, have been through a lot, some don't even like each other when they first meet like Reyn and Riki. But as a JRPG group they're believable and everyone has chemistry with each other no matter how you slice it. In this game nobody feels like they know each other and the ones that do know each other are not in the spotlight anyways. Zeke, Morag, and Nia are the definite highlights of this entire game. If you go through the game and don't like these characters then you must not like good writing because man are they the only reasons I kept going. They easily stand out of the main cast and even the antagonists Jin and Malos were just a joy from start to end. That's one thing I will give XC2 credit, it has the BEST villains in all of the series, they're just so much fun to see on screen and someone like Jin has so much personality and story that further adds to his character. Screw it lets do a lightning round on these characters.
Rex: Boring, uninteresting, completely overhyped by his defenders. Is only interesting in Xenoblade Chronicles 3: Future Redeemed (play that one)
-----
Pyra: The weakest of the female blades and has nothing going for her other than she's nice, if you remove Pyra from the game nothing would change i'm sorry to say. I wish they did more with her. Also has the worst design in the game.
-----
Mythra: Easily the more interesting aegis and has history with people other than Rex which makes her more nuanced. Would've liked her more if she wasn't forced to fall in love with Rex because of how the game is structured but eh, you can't win them all. Good character tho.
-----
Nia: Amazing character from start to finish, definitely carried the beginning half of the game. Rex really fumbled with this one, but even as i'm saying this you know he actually didn't.
-----
Dromarch: A solid character too, no complaints here. I like him :)
-----
Tora: The worst character in the series, I wish he died somewhere in the story.
-----
Poppi: Ok, not bad but I hate how she's Toras blade and overly relies on him, even calling him master and that weird shit.
-----
Morag: YEAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH BEST GIRL BEST DRIVER WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO. Amazing design, badass character, should've been the protagonist.
-----
Brighid: Delightful. I love how much she gasses up her girlfriend, I love them so much.
-----
Zeke: The REAL protagonist of Zekeblade Chronicles 2, i'm sorry but if you don't think that you're objectively wrong in every single way. He does more than Rex ever does in the story, and actually talks to his companions and isn't just somebody who sits and watches from the sidelines. He carried the show for me, he's got a silly side but he knows when to be serious and his relationship with Pandoria is adorable.
-----
Pandoria: Pyra done right.
-----
Jin: The best anti-hero of the game, was really captivated through his own story and I got attached to his character as the story went on. Phenomenal.
-----
Malos: BEST. VILLIAN. EVER. Malos is a joy to watch from start to finish, there is not a single time where he's on screen and i'm bored he absolutely makes every scene he's in and you can tell with how his voice actor is giving in 100% to really sell us on this character driven by hatred. Peak. Enough said.
Music:
It's Xenoblade man what do you expect me to say, it's peak. Monolift Soft don't miss with these games osts.
Overall Thoughts:
While i'm glad I got to see everything this game had to offer I will admit it was still a mixed bag as I thought it'd be, there were many times where I wanted to quit because the game wasn't engaging enough or the characters were being stupid and annoying. If you really want to see what this game has going for it, and you're willing to put up with more bullshit than you can count. Then go for it, there's stuff here that's actually worth going for but overall I had a mid experience and I don't think i'll ever revisit this one sadly.
2001
A fantastic remake of an ok game, definitely the best version of it. I'd say a close second is the Mario All Stars version but this one has voice lines which you'd think would get annoying fast but they don't. Some of the things said here are just so iconic that I often think about it on my day to day life. If you can definitely give it a look on the Switch's Game Boy Advance Emulator.
This game is fun! With a guide too!
Ok but honestly I did actually slightly for real this time like what I was playing more than I was with Zelda 1, not sure how hot of a take this is but I enjoyed Zelda 2 far more than I did Zelda 1. Once you really get past that tough as nails introduction the dungeons become pretty straight forward and having this game have like a leveling system reminds me of those very old jrpgs and that aspect was great. I'd say above everything this game is just mid, like not a real spectacular game but a game I didn't mind beating this time around and didn't actually cause me any frustration unlike Zelda 1 did.
Ok but honestly I did actually slightly for real this time like what I was playing more than I was with Zelda 1, not sure how hot of a take this is but I enjoyed Zelda 2 far more than I did Zelda 1. Once you really get past that tough as nails introduction the dungeons become pretty straight forward and having this game have like a leveling system reminds me of those very old jrpgs and that aspect was great. I'd say above everything this game is just mid, like not a real spectacular game but a game I didn't mind beating this time around and didn't actually cause me any frustration unlike Zelda 1 did.
1986
This game is so much fun! With a guide!
Ok but for real, this one hasn't aged quite well and I don't think its a surprise to say this game is not that great. It's impossible to play without a guide due to how unforgiving it can be. Even with max heart containers I was still dying left and right to poor enemy placement and some really annoying enemies in general. It's the first Zelda and boy does it feel like it, paving the way for better games to come. Play it if you don't have anything else to do, otherwise, you're not missing out on much.
Ok but for real, this one hasn't aged quite well and I don't think its a surprise to say this game is not that great. It's impossible to play without a guide due to how unforgiving it can be. Even with max heart containers I was still dying left and right to poor enemy placement and some really annoying enemies in general. It's the first Zelda and boy does it feel like it, paving the way for better games to come. Play it if you don't have anything else to do, otherwise, you're not missing out on much.
2021
I'd say this one is slightly better than Toree3D mainly due to the fact that the levels are just more interesting here this time around, but both are pretty short still no matter what.
2021
For a dollar 3D platformer you're getting what you're paying for. Something very short but a good time waster to kill when you don't want to focus on how large your backlog is.
Man, idk. Everything basically feels like a step up in terms of how BOTW laid out the foundation for this genre but I think its more of the same. So after beating this game what do I think? Well I think I never want to see this style of Zelda game for at least a decade or two. These two games are good enough to act as a duology on their own. We don't need a third one with how well this game ended. Please god don't oversaturate this series with more games like this. Such a weird thing to complain about right, but i'm serious I would hope the next game is a traditional styled Zelda game or a new thing entirely because these games are good on their own. If you didn't enjoy BOTW you probably wont change your mind then
2023
This might be the perfect game in terms of quality, its the year 2023 and can you believe they made a fully complete fighting game. For its price you're getting one of the most fun and easy to get into fighting games of this generation, the dlc is just that, downloadable content and is nothing that really feels like things that should be in at launch like most games tend to do. I'm not a big fighting game guy but this game really got me into it and got me to want to learn how to play and how its mechanics worked. It's one of the most stylistic and visually pleasing games i've played this year and I cannot recommend it enough for those who are curious. Absolutely masterful.
2021
This was a pleasant time, it's one of those games where you boot up and play for a little bit and go about your day. If you want you can put in the time to mastering its levels and become the true champion of the mine but for $5 this is a game that is extremely worth it. And the Switch version added in Anton from Anton Blast so I don't know what to say but go for it!
I find it funny when you beat this game a text prompt shows up saying "You've now unlocked hard mode!" as if this game wasn't already in hard mode. Order of Ecclesia was an amazing time no doubt, solid level design, fun and interesting mechanics for gameplay, the glyph system and the masterful soundtrack all accompanied to make one great metriodvania title. But lets address the elephant in the room, or rather the dominus in the room, this game is too hard. It's definitely a very good game, but lets be real it can be stupidly hard at times. I guess that adds to the charm of it, but I think it was a little too hard for its own good that at times felt like there was a huge difficulty spike for no reason. Now I love a challenge but some of these bosses made me stop playing for a bit, and most of the time I was able to find out the solution through trial and error. Then you have those that NEEDED a guide because no matter what you were not going anywhere. That's the thing that pains me is that I'd like to give it a higher rating but I can't with how this can be a problem with the games overall pacing. I love Order of Ecclesia and Shanoa is definitely a new favorite protag, but I can't deny its flaws. If you're interested in playing this one proceed with caution because its difficulty may be alienating at times but if you push through it you'll find a game worth going through.
I've already played through Skyward Sword on the Wii, but since it wasn't really my copy I wasn't able to fully appreciate the kind of stuff it was trying to do. Years passed and I've experienced a lot more Zelda games since then I can now say this is definitely one of the better Zelda's I've played. I understand this one may not be for everyone but if your biggest issue was the motion controls, this basically circumvents that problem entirely. I think this game deserved the button control scheme it was initially going to have before Miyamoto forced in the motion controls stuff onto it. Mainly because it gives you time to focus how structured this game is rather than what the motion controls add to it. Then only will you see that this game tries to cram in so many ideas and concepts at the player so that it doesn't get stale or boring. I appreciate the ambition here and even if some don't stick the landing like others, I can still commend the effort.
This is the first time in a Zelda game where I actually cared about Link and Zeldas relationship because unlike the other games where its the chosen hero saving the princess, Link and Zelda are just childhood best friends and the romantic subtext is played on so much in this game more than any other. Which makes it more personal when Zelda gets taken away and you as a player want to save her not only because she's a princess but she's your friend too. The story for as predictable and cut and paste as it is, I found to be enjoyable mainly due to this games writing.
The writing in this game is superb, every one of these colorful cast of characters has something to add or say whether it'd be through their sidequests or just generally talking to them in skyloft. Which I gotta say is a great hubworld, not too big and not too empty, just the right size and you're usually in and out which is how I like it. I went out of my way to do everything in this game and I don't think there was a single sidequest I didn't enjoy. Reason being cause the writing kept me engaged and interested in learning more about these characters. I'd say its up with Majoras Mask in terms of charcaters and personalities, maybe not as varied but in a sense that there's so many people in skyloft that are their own beings.
Music was aboslutely masterful these big budget orchestra pieces that play during the boss fights are nothing short of amazing, and the bosses themself these have to be some of the best with how fun they are to figure out. Some are easier than others and some are... the imprisoned. But other than that they were solid.
I used a Switch Voucher for this game, and I don't think I regret it given how much fun I had revisiting Skyward Sword but in the most definitive way to play the game that no emulator could replicate. Pick this one up if you haven't played Skyward Sword and are interested other than that, maybe wait on a price drop because $60 for a Wii game in todays year is asking for too much.
This is the first time in a Zelda game where I actually cared about Link and Zeldas relationship because unlike the other games where its the chosen hero saving the princess, Link and Zelda are just childhood best friends and the romantic subtext is played on so much in this game more than any other. Which makes it more personal when Zelda gets taken away and you as a player want to save her not only because she's a princess but she's your friend too. The story for as predictable and cut and paste as it is, I found to be enjoyable mainly due to this games writing.
The writing in this game is superb, every one of these colorful cast of characters has something to add or say whether it'd be through their sidequests or just generally talking to them in skyloft. Which I gotta say is a great hubworld, not too big and not too empty, just the right size and you're usually in and out which is how I like it. I went out of my way to do everything in this game and I don't think there was a single sidequest I didn't enjoy. Reason being cause the writing kept me engaged and interested in learning more about these characters. I'd say its up with Majoras Mask in terms of charcaters and personalities, maybe not as varied but in a sense that there's so many people in skyloft that are their own beings.
Music was aboslutely masterful these big budget orchestra pieces that play during the boss fights are nothing short of amazing, and the bosses themself these have to be some of the best with how fun they are to figure out. Some are easier than others and some are... the imprisoned. But other than that they were solid.
I used a Switch Voucher for this game, and I don't think I regret it given how much fun I had revisiting Skyward Sword but in the most definitive way to play the game that no emulator could replicate. Pick this one up if you haven't played Skyward Sword and are interested other than that, maybe wait on a price drop because $60 for a Wii game in todays year is asking for too much.
I'm just going to say this now, this is one of the weakest Kirby games in the series. Don't get me wrong, the game is pretty and the music has such a large variety of bangers but what happened here??? Kirby moves slower than the line at the DMV and there's no way to speed it up. The ability combination mechanic is so flawed, there's so much room for error, you could lift up your ability and then either miss the throw or have some random thing offscreen come in and destroy it leaving you to restart (this happened so much I started to just save state at that point) 70 percent of the crystal shards are just guess the ability combination and its not even fun to do. I don't get any gratification from just looking at 2 colors and going "oh ok I need to green one and the orange one" I much prefer the crystal shards that required you to look around and explore instead of this. Speaking of which, collecting the crystal shards was easily the worst thing to come out of this game. Yes I know its optional but they lock the true final boss behind it which is just more content so the game I believe was meant to be played by collecting everything. Speaking of that true final boss, huge letdown. Like the spectacle is there, but all i'm doing is mashing one button and dodging the same attack pattern for 3-4 times till he dies. The least they could've done is idk just given me a new phase or something but it's the same song and dance till he decides enough is enough. It just sucks they made you work for something that doesn't even feel like it worth getting. A Kirby's Dreamland 3 reference. There are other games out there worth your time, this ones really shown its age, I wouldn't recommend unless you REALLY enjoy your Kirby games slow and boring.