chortles
An impeccable game on all fronts, but that soundtrack really is the X factor and a beautiful time capsule for that era of electronic music. Such memorable, atmospheric themes, and the way in which some are expanded upon as the game progresses is just sublime. When Phendrana Drifts Depths hits for the first time...
2021
A truly interesting and unexpected follow up to Hyper Light Drifter that has glimmers of being just as special, if only it didn't manage to get in its own way. This comes through narratively and mechanically, where seemingly every written word further drains the mystique inherent in the stunningly rendered pastel cloudscape Heart Machine have assembled; one that feels so wonderfully smooth to glide through, soaring over its clouds, grinding rails across its aerial landscapes... until it suddenly doesn't, and your momentum breaks at the most jarring of times. Ambitious game for sure, and you can feel that shine through in its best moments, but as a package it falls just short of cohering into something more.
2022
I would have already a mark for this game if it managed only to carry over the stellar writing, music and vibe of In Other Waters, but I wasn't expecting to be so drawn into that gameplay loop! The small risks involved with moment to moment decisions add tension without overwhelming, and really lend a lived-in quality to the experience. Really had me going "is this an all-timer?" for a while, but there is a point where all the urgency that propels you through a smattering of wonderful, well-considered character stories is sapped and the game slows to a crawl. Freeing yourself of the slow dread the game has built is incredibly liberating, at first, but the feeling quickly morphs into one of malaise. It's only a small blemish, all the more noticeable because aside from that.. this thing goes full blast.
2020
Too much of a good thing
2019
Fun little dice-builder (?) with well designed mechanics and a interesting variety of playable characters (gotta give it up to the manic Inventor personally). Its simplicity is a strength, but do I feel it holds it back to some extent — just didn't feel that urge to push deeper once I had a couple tries with each of them. A bit of a shame because I can't help but be charmed by every aspect of its presentation and tone.
2020
Quite simply one of the most well-conceived, elegantly designed games I've ever played. I'm here for more thoughtful scientific musings and logging observations on alien species in games.
Oscillates wildly between being an unbelievably satisfying, beautiful grand finale to the series and a huge pain in the ass. Perfectly encapsulates Dark Souls then I guess.
The Gael fight really elevates this to an absurd degree.
The Gael fight really elevates this to an absurd degree.
2019
Where has my life gone
This review contains spoilers
Floored by this. That the devs were able to create a whole new (enormous) location to explore, a new mythos, new mechanics, and a new air of mysticism while managing to slot it so neatly into the base game's unbelievably tight framework and lore is to be celebrated.. if not expected. This is Mobius after all.
So many gasp worthy moments that hit completely differently than the base game. Finding the ring world. The dam bursting. All those secret passages. The dream world, the slide reels, the vault. The prisoner. But for all those and everything else that feels fresh here, Echoes of the Eye still feels like Outer Wilds at every turn — its essence abstracted, distorted, but fully intact.
A one of a kind experience made even more special. I couldn't have asked for anything more.
So many gasp worthy moments that hit completely differently than the base game. Finding the ring world. The dam bursting. All those secret passages. The dream world, the slide reels, the vault. The prisoner. But for all those and everything else that feels fresh here, Echoes of the Eye still feels like Outer Wilds at every turn — its essence abstracted, distorted, but fully intact.
A one of a kind experience made even more special. I couldn't have asked for anything more.
2015
If the gameplay was as compelling as the story, we'd be sitting on an all-timer here. Even then, this still came pretty close to full marks — I'd be hard pressed to find many interactive narratives as well thought out as this. A lot of games can nail the concept or the execution, few marry both with such ease. That such fascinating, heady ideas about existence and what makes us human are woven into this experience without being overwrought or convoluted is to be celebrated. Downer ending for the ages too.
2010
Jesus Christ.
2020
I love how much I could enjoy this, free from the burden of expectation. Yes, it's weaker than Resident Evil 2 in pretty much every conceivable way. But the core fundamentals are all here, and it's more Resident Evil. I can live with that.
This review contains spoilers
This is a great game until the narrative shifts and you start playing as Abby.
Then it becomes exceptional.
It comes at a point when Ellie’s story began to exhaust me (surely by design), as I watched her fall further and further yet into senseless, depraved acts of vengeance. In contrast, Abby has already commited her own heinous act from the outset, and we’re left to see her try to pick up the pieces. If Ellie’s is a story of losing her humanity, Abby’s is one of trying to regain it.
Naughty Dog is challenging us to hate a character we are supposed to love and love a character we are supposed to hate, and largely succeeds in doing so. Ellie is a hollowed shell of a person, a young woman traumatized by a collection of terrible experiences and even more so by the erosion of her trust in Joel, the one person in the world who had her back through the worst of times. When this sequel was announced, many (myself included) wondered how Naughty Dog would manage to carry on from the pitch perfect ending they had already achieved – from all the emotional complexity created by a lie, all the ambiguity captured in a single look. It’s amazing to see that this a true Part II in the sense that it continues exploring every implication left in the first game’s wake, the ripple effect of which is felt throughout the game and deepened by an ambitious, fractured narrative structure and healthy use of flashback, which gradually fill in our gaps and slowly build the story’s emotional core to an astounding degree.
This is not a perfect game, and even one where I was keenly aware of its flaws as I was playing. The difference is that they became less and less important as I began to see the complex tapestry that Naughty Dog has weaved here, less consequential in the grand scheme of what this game accomplishes. I just think it’s so rare for a AAA game to take such risks with its narrative as this does, and to pull it off at such a level of quality from almost every angle–acting, animation, direction, sound design and so on–is unbelievable.
Never in a thousand years would I have thought this is the sequel we'd get, and I love it for everything it has to offer. Warts and all.
Then it becomes exceptional.
It comes at a point when Ellie’s story began to exhaust me (surely by design), as I watched her fall further and further yet into senseless, depraved acts of vengeance. In contrast, Abby has already commited her own heinous act from the outset, and we’re left to see her try to pick up the pieces. If Ellie’s is a story of losing her humanity, Abby’s is one of trying to regain it.
Naughty Dog is challenging us to hate a character we are supposed to love and love a character we are supposed to hate, and largely succeeds in doing so. Ellie is a hollowed shell of a person, a young woman traumatized by a collection of terrible experiences and even more so by the erosion of her trust in Joel, the one person in the world who had her back through the worst of times. When this sequel was announced, many (myself included) wondered how Naughty Dog would manage to carry on from the pitch perfect ending they had already achieved – from all the emotional complexity created by a lie, all the ambiguity captured in a single look. It’s amazing to see that this a true Part II in the sense that it continues exploring every implication left in the first game’s wake, the ripple effect of which is felt throughout the game and deepened by an ambitious, fractured narrative structure and healthy use of flashback, which gradually fill in our gaps and slowly build the story’s emotional core to an astounding degree.
This is not a perfect game, and even one where I was keenly aware of its flaws as I was playing. The difference is that they became less and less important as I began to see the complex tapestry that Naughty Dog has weaved here, less consequential in the grand scheme of what this game accomplishes. I just think it’s so rare for a AAA game to take such risks with its narrative as this does, and to pull it off at such a level of quality from almost every angle–acting, animation, direction, sound design and so on–is unbelievable.
Never in a thousand years would I have thought this is the sequel we'd get, and I love it for everything it has to offer. Warts and all.
2017
I'm amazed with the flow of this game, the way it seamlessly carries you between competitive rites, character moments and its overarching story, ever cranking along and always adapting to the decisions you make.
With the next gen having arrived this month, there's a lot of talk about the near nonexistent load times, and I found myself really keyed in to the way Pyre hardly ever keeps you waiting, though this is achieved through its design rather than through any technological feats. Dialogue whips by but never leaves you behind, transitions from your group's wagon to the overworld map to group conversations flow effortlessly from one to the next, and the decisions you make are important, but not something to be bogged down with—no matter what you choose, the story will lay a forward path and you will continue to be able to affect it in meaningful ways. All simple things, but it makes it all the easier to be completely enraptured by the world Supergiant has crafted here.
I adored Pyre from start to finish, and found myself consistently amazed by the ambitious leap they made from Bastion and Transistor to get here. Easily my favorite from them so far.. but I'm sure Hades will have a word with me on that soon.
With the next gen having arrived this month, there's a lot of talk about the near nonexistent load times, and I found myself really keyed in to the way Pyre hardly ever keeps you waiting, though this is achieved through its design rather than through any technological feats. Dialogue whips by but never leaves you behind, transitions from your group's wagon to the overworld map to group conversations flow effortlessly from one to the next, and the decisions you make are important, but not something to be bogged down with—no matter what you choose, the story will lay a forward path and you will continue to be able to affect it in meaningful ways. All simple things, but it makes it all the easier to be completely enraptured by the world Supergiant has crafted here.
I adored Pyre from start to finish, and found myself consistently amazed by the ambitious leap they made from Bastion and Transistor to get here. Easily my favorite from them so far.. but I'm sure Hades will have a word with me on that soon.
I've either been spoiled by much better games since playing Shadow of Mordor, or this is genuinely a huge step down. One of the fastest nopes I've ever had.