Same but different.

Miles' superpowers offer some variety to combat, the winter setting is beautiful and the overall story was a lot of fun.

I find these Spider-Man games to just be incredibly average. They're fun, and the stories are gripping. But as soon as I'm finished I will forget literally everything about the experience.

The original Spider-Man on PS4 was lightning in a bottle, but Miles Morales and the eventual full sequel Spider-Man 2 prove that Insomniac seem to lack a compelling vision for this series.

I love games like this that continue to just throw surprise curveballs at you constantly.

Just when you think you know what this game is all about it introduces something new to freshen up the experience.

Gimmicks aside however you're still left with a fantastic hack n slash dungeon crawler, that thanks to it's procedurally generated levels, never ceases to be entertaining.

This game started off so promising to me, but It's premise wears so thin after a few hours and the game does very little to evolve it's formula to the extent where the later stages of the game were just an exercise in tedium and frustration.

I made the grave mistake of buying the truth quest DLC as well which basically just added an extra 4 hours of the exact same thing I had already grown tired of on top of the already stale experience.

I enjoy strange games that take a wacky premise and run with it, so I can't hate this game, I did afterall mostly enjoy my time as well, I just feel like it should have perhaps been half as long and half as expensive.

I think a sequel that refines and innovates on the mechanics could genuinely be a good time.

I don't know if this is perhaps a controversial take, but I believe all LAD games would benefit from having the fat trimmed somewhat. I have felt this way for a while, but playing this "short, side story" has really driven home that notion for me.

I always find myself getting burnt out on the mainline LAD games after around 50 hours, when I'm still only on chapter 6 of 12+ and not to mention side content.

Don't get me wrong this game is VERY short comparatively and I don't think future mainline games need to necessarily all be this short, but a compromise in-between would be perfect. A nice 40 hour long game.

Anyway this game is great as a result of it's brevity. The story avoids the usual pitfall of becoming overly convoluted and difficult to follow like the mainline games. Progression is structured and paced in an incredibly rewarding way.

I love the castle and the arena side quest, I love the Akame network idea. I'd like to see both return in a future game in some way. Not to mention, we can finally customise Kiryu's outfit outside of the premium adventure.

I have had this game collecting dust (digitally) in my library for a couple of years now, I got it as part of a bundle and had no interest in it. I assumed it was another punishingly difficult NES throwback, of which there were far too many already. And while the latter was true in it's painstaking and beautiful recreation of NES era pixel art, I was pleasantly surprised to find that the difficulty was not overly punishing, it was in fact quite contemporary in both it's controls and it's approach to difficulty.

This was a nice revelation for me as I have never personally been a fan of the NES era of gaming, a result I am sure of not being raised with those games outside of the few classics that managed to transcend the console generation they were created for. I simply find the punishing difficulty, and obtuse controls and objectives to not be very fun, additionally, and perhaps controversially, I am not a fan of 8bit pixel art or music. 16bit on the other hand I find absolutely beautiful when done right, but the NES era that The Messenger pays homage to so lovingly, just isn't my jam.

It speaks volumes then to the games ability to thrive on it's own merits, outside of it's initial gimmick of being a throwback indie title, that somebody with as many biases as me can play and still enjoy as much as I did of this game.

Put quite simply, it's just a fantastically controlling game, the platforming is smooth, the combat is fair, the progression is addictive, the secrets are fun to find. The graphics and sound, while not my preference, as previously mentioned, are still undoubtedly fantastic.

The main hurdle for some I suspect may be the (for lack of a better word) cringe dialogue and writing, I have certainly heard negative sentiments towards this aspect of the game. However the story and dialogue of such little consequence to the game overall that I find it easy to overlook.

This game was a treat and pleasant surprise to be sure, I am eager to play this studios follow up game 'Sea of Stars' which is a 16bit homage to SNES era, turn based JRPG's, which is much more my speed. The two games apparently even share a universe which sounds fun.

I find it respectable just how well this game has aged when you place it into the context of the time it was released.

I see a lot of reviews here claiming you need a guide to get anywhere, but not to sound arrogant, that just wasn't my experience, I found it quite simple to understand.

Of course everyone's experience is different and everyone picks up on contextual clues differently. And it the overwhelming experience is modern players seemingly getting lost, then there is something there.

Still this is an interesting game, so much of the MGS DNA is already here in this incredibly early title in the series that most people overlook.

I would not go so far as to say every MGS fan has to finish this game, but I do feel everyone should experience it at least, just to see how the series started.

I am glad this is now more accessible with the recent PC release.

For me it was an enjoyable experience and one I was glad to finally get to try;

At this point in the series Like a dragon NEEDED a shake up, as gripping as the stories are, the gameplay loop just couldn't remain compelling with the games being pumped out at the rate they are.

This game serves perfectly as the shake up the series needed.

I absolutely loved the new setting, the turn based combat and the new cast of characters.

The side games and quests are fantastic as is to be expected at this point.

honestly, and I know this may be a hot take, the only issue I had was with the narrative.

The story starts off incredibly strong but just sort of meanders and gets carried away with tangents to the point I was so confused in the later chapters.

I know it's normal for Yakuza/LAD stories to get silly and convoluted, especially in the later chapters, but this is the only game I have ever found myself getting lost, and having to read plot summaries online.

It did manage to pull it together at the end however and started to grip me again, but for a large portion of this game, I was not interested in the story whatsoever.

Still, to avoid ending on a negative note, I did overall love this game and I am hyped for LAD 8.

I bashed out a quick replay of this one with the new PC release and my god, each time I come back to this game I am just blown away, not only by how compelling and well paced the game is, but just how well it has aged despite it's graphical limitations and it's unconventional control scheme.

The sequels may be more ambitious, influential and fondly remembered but for me there is no topping this. This is one of the greatest games ever made.

I love so much about this that the thought of trying to write down all the reasons is too daunting so I am taking the lazy way out.

It's a masterpiece, just trust me.

What a massive let down.

I am so disappointed in almost every facet of this game.

This is hands down, without any doubt, THE most bland and forgettable universe\lore\set of characters, ever committed to the medium. And coming from Bethesda who in my eyes are the masters of compelling universes and lore, this is doubly upsetting.

The game is not awful, far from it. The combat is fantastic, the set design is some of the best I've ever seen. The sheer size of the game is daunting.

But none of the games positives are enough to redeem the sheer underwhelming numbness you feel playing this.

I imagine this is a game that will become better over time and once the modders get their hands on it. But until then I will just pretend this game never happened.

It took me 4 attempts, but I finally get it.

Granted 3 of those 4 attempts were ended prematurely by corrupt save files, and the 4th attempt I burned myself out trying to beat all of the side gigs before tackling the main story.

I have been quite vocal in my distaste for this game after several failed attempts to get going with it. It just didn't click for me, the world, the lore, the presentation. It was a gorgeous game that felt hollow to me.

But after much struggle I was able to put aside that nagging voice in my head that was telling me to complete every superfluous side-quest before progressing with the main story. This was the best decision I could have made, it was during the quest with Judy where you go to rescue a certain character (I won't spoil it here) that was reminiscent of the criminally underrated Nic Cage movie 8mm, that I finally started to succumb to this games charm.

I think the driving sucks, the gunplay is underwhelming and far too easy, the stealth is half assed... yet still I couldn't stop playing.

The combination of the gorgeous visuals that just transport you to this other world, along with the gripping story and characters was enough for me to overlook the games shortcomings.

This game manages to suck you into it's world quite unlike anything else I have ever played.

I have barely had the time to actually invest in this game, but after a measly 5ish hours I can already tell this is something special.

Perhaps a 5 star rating for a game you have barely even scratched the surface of is a bit premature and presumptuous, but when you know.. you just know.

I intend to give this game my full attention when I can do so, and will come back to expand my thoughts. But for now I just had to get my feelings out there.

Maybe I am just not in the right headspace, and I have every intention of going back later and giving this thing a fair shake, but this just failed to grab me like the first game.

I don't think it has done enough to differentiate itself from the previous games formula, which had already become tired to me by the time I came to play Miles Morales.

It improves on almost every aspect don't get me wrong. This is undoubtedly a bigger and more polished version of Spider-Man 2018, but I was hoping for more of an evolution than a refinement.

I acknowledge I pose an issue without proposing a solution, I don't really know what I would have done different had In been in charge of designing this game, what else can you do with this formula besides go bigger?

The story of course is still incredible and is what I am sure most people will come out of this experience with the fondest feelings towards. Insomniac have truly crafted a special version of the same of Spider-Man universe which I had become so tired of. This may be my favourite version of all of these characters.

Ultimately, this is just my thoughts after a few hours with the game and not my definitive conclusion on the quality overall. Don't let my ramblings influence your decision to play this. I am sure most fans will love this and find it to be exactly what they wanted in a sequel.

Who knows, maybe my tune will change upon my inevitable revisit in the future. It wouldn't be the first time.

I grew up in the tail end of the PS1 era of gaming, so as much as I respect these older RPG's that laid the foundation for the amazing experiences that came after, I often find it difficult to actually go back to them, let along see them through to completion.

So I believe Final Fantasy is a truly special game that even almost 40 years after it's initial release, and with it being one of the first of it's kind, It can still grab a hold of somebody like me.

Playing this game today is truly a unique experience and one that I will cherish.

I really enjoyed this.

I find the gimmick of a crash course in JRPG history, while strong at the start, quickly runs out of steam and what you are left with is sadly a slightly above average indie RPG.

That being said, while the gimmick does last, it is truly a special experience for anyone who grew up on JRPG's, and given the asking price and the fact that the game is often on sale, alongside it's sequel, I would definitely say you should check this out for a quick little nostalgia trip.