Forgot how damn great this game is and I basically played through the whole game in one 7 hour sitting yesterday because I couldn't put it down once I started. This is a game I played a lot as a kid and it definitely left a huge impact on me because even 15 years later I still remembered almost every single thing about the game from the level design to the puzzles and story as if I had just played it yesterday.

God of War is a game that wears its influences on its sleeve proudly taking elements and ideas from series like Prince of Persia, Devil May Cry, Onimusha and ICO and God of War was described by David Jaffe himself as not being developed to be innovative or unique. Yet the funny thing is 17 years later and God of War is a game that has become so iconic and influential due to how it masterfully blended all its influences into a whole new breed of action adventure game unlike anything seen before that it spawned an entire generation of games that desperately wanted to be the next God of War.

Like I said, God of War is such an iconic game and franchise that it is so ingrained into gaming culture to where I don't even need to do a super long review on it because you'd be hard pressed to find someone who isn't familiar with the game or Kratos as a protagonist, but I'm still going to do it anyways just because it is a classic and deserves to be talked about in depth.

God of War is a dark and tragic filled modern take on a classic Greek odyssey that follows the story of Kratos, a once great commander in the Spartan army now a very broken and troubled man looking to find peace from the nightmares of his countless unspeakable crimes that haunt his dreams, Kratos is tasked by Athena to kill the God of War Ares and promised to be absolved of his sins if he completes this task.

Right from that very first iconic opening cut-scene of Kratos jumping off the highest cliff in Athens attempting to end it all, the story instantly pulls you in and the plot is slowly revealed with some thoughtful twists and turns as you make your way through the game. This is a simple story compared to many nowadays, but it is also a timeless one that focuses around the themes of vengeance and anger and I think that's exactly what makes it so memorable and effective.

Now I'm not going to say Kratos was the first anti-hero in video games, but I will say he was one of the first to popularize this style of protagonist and back in 2005 there really was no one else like him which definitely helps set the game apart from its contemporaries. Kratos is a brutal, ruthless wrathful man who has killed many in his past, will stop at nothing to achieve his goals and he's not above sacrificing innocents if it benefits him. Everywhere you go characters in the world recognize Kratos and are terrified of him, but even with all that said there's still an air of tragedy to his character, this is a man who lashes out at the world through rage and hate simply because he doesn't know or understand any other way and you can't help but feel sorry for him and wonder if there could've been another way.

Gameplay is primarily divided into two sections. You've got the core combat which is the bulk of the gameplay and while it feels a lot more barebones compared to many games nowadays, it's still a fun and fast system with plenty of weapons, powers and combos to chain together and accommodate different playstyles from Kratos' main weapon the whip-like Blades of Chaos to the AOE spell Poseidon's Wrath or the ranged spell Zeus' Fury there's a little for all occasions. While not in combat there's plenty of well crafted platforming and puzzle sections to make sure the combat never becomes too monotonous.

God of War is a game that is notable for its cinematic presentation. While most other games suffered from immersion-breaking loading screens back in the day, God of War's story mode switches seamlessly from the title screen to FMV sequences, to gameplay, and back, with very little load time. I read that David Jaffe took inspiration from Indiana Jones while making the game and I believe it because God of War is an epic journey like no other, from fictionalized versions of the real-world Aegean Sea and city of Athens to the Desert of Lost Souls, Temple of Pandora and even the Underworld itself, God of War features plenty of grandiose locations to explore. The fixed camera angles and bombastic film score OST really help to enhance the cinematic qualities of every new area Kratos visits while on his adventure as well.

From its fast and fluid combat to its dark and mature story of vengeance and tragedy alongside its sprawling grandiose locations to explore, God of War is truly a timeless classic and even 17 years later it is still one of the greatest action adventure games ever made. This quest to kill a god is one you don't want to miss out on.

Completely spoiler-free review.

"What is the point, then?"
"There IS no point! God has forsaken us!"
-Unsere Mütter, Unsere Väter, 2013 (Mini-Series)


Making a sequel is an unfathomably cautious endeavour. How does one deliver a follow-up that isn't too similar to its predecessor, but also doesn't renew the formula too drastically?

I am fully against the statement "the first one was better". It leaves no room for appreciation for what the installment had to offer. As if the mere association with a classic or well-received title instantly renders the game inferior in all respects.

Yes, it's good to point out flaws, but constantly comparing it to a previous title never does any of the compared parties justice.

Without further ado, here goes my spoilerfree review for The Last of Us part II, with the spoiler-heavy one pending.

The Last of Us part II is deeply emotional.

It is a game that deserves its runtime. The gameplay is difficult but never inconsistent, there is a focus on characters and conflict, and, most notably (for me), the world is filled to the brim with small stories that are worth discovering.

It may be a long ride, but at the end it will, at the very least, have been a memorable experience.

Take the time to sit with this game.

Let this game sit with you.

That is all I will say.

“Press LT to de-escalate civilians”

Actually one of the better Call of Duty campaigns of the last decade, and I mean that seriously.

There’s a surprising amount of gameplay variety in these missions, with a few thrown in that echo and expand upon ideas from past entries. If Modern Warfare (2019) was Call of Duty 4 II this is certainly Modern Warfare 2 II, as much as it is a sequel to MW2019. Did that make sense? No? Moving on.

It ups the ante on the past game without going too far overboard. No James Bond snowmobile chases this time, only a preposterous Gray Man style car chase. Many levels play like spiritual successors to those of that game: a prison break, cliffside jumps, an oil rig raid, missions on US soil. Characters and events follow kinda similar trajectories.

The game looks stunning on Series X. The sound design is impeccable. A ton of work obviously went into the little details and making everything feel fleshed-out. Amsterdam and Mexico were particularly strong looking.

The game doubles down on its predecessor’s uncharacteristic mission variety: You’ve got stealth missions with ghillie sniping, stealth missions via CCTV, underwater stealth missions, stealth missions with rappelling, stealth missions with crafting… jokes aside, there are actually a bunch of wild scenarios that were distinct enough in gameplay and visuals to keep me engaged.

At one point in the AC-130 mission I saw (from my black-and-white thermal God’s eye) a mother running and going back for her stumbling child during the hail of gunfire I was raining down on the cartel. I’m not sure how to feel about that, but it was a powerful little moment that I’m sure was scripted but felt real. Civilian casualties are a constant worry in MWII.

The AI is wonky af and kinda ruins some of the stealth; the cartel evidently have x-ray vision and aim like Deadshot (I played on Hardened). I experienced quite a few glitches, but nothing game-ruining. The story is decent, if predictable, and the characters say edgelord nonsense. Soap looks like Zac Efron. The post-credits stinger was cringe.

But I legitimately enjoyed my time with this campaign. It’s a good game with cool missions and an entertaining movie-esque military/spy narrative. My dad has already played through it twice.


Also I speak Spanish as a second language and found the Mexican spec-ops missions particularly cool, but for some reason there was no option to disable subtitles for English AND Spanish. Even with all disabled, it showed subtitles whenever Spanish was spoken

Bayonetta is a franchise that's always meant a lot to me. The drama surrounding the release of this has been absolutely disheartening. I lost a lot of respect for what I considered to be one of my favorite voice actresses and the way it was handled by Kamiya especially was very awful. This had quickly gone from my most anticipated game of the year (or perhaps ever really) to something I felt sick thinking about it. I wasn't sure what to do. Seeing the way Taylor muddied the waters of an important topic for personal gain, throw the new voice actress under the bus and then for the cherry on top asks people to donate to an anti-choice organization just fucking blew my mind. And then finally the previews and reviews started rolling in. Reading and hearing people talk about the game made me feel like I could finally get excited again. I was able to get it a day early and just the experience of completely ignoring the internet until I finished it was such a relief. The gameplay is refined from what I already thought was perfect for me to basically just the next level perfect. I'm a fan of all the changes and everything they keep the same. The story wasn't necessarily the direction I was anticipating but in the same vein I enjoyed it a lot more than I would of thought. Even if you're not a fan of it the gameplay alone is more than enough to keep you engaged. Genuinely such a blast to play and experience. For a franchise I once thought would be dead forever to get an entire trilogy and shine even through unfortunate controversy is not what obliviously gay thirteen year old me sitting and playing this christmas morning would of ever expected. I'm glad to of gotten to play these each at a pretty pivotol moment in my life. I wholeheartedly loved this and even as I'm writing this review I am starting up a second playthrough to explore the mechanics more thoroughly.

Jennifer Hale is a great Bayonetta.

Played the game for the first time 2 years ago with a fan patch, but since it is now officially out in the west (After 12 long years nonetheless!) I figured I'd post a review here again.

What a ride Trails from Zero was. It started off probably slower than any other Trails game, but when it picks up, it REALLY picks up.

The main story of this game is great and mostly grounded in reality and pretty unique for a J-RPG. You play as Lloyd Bannings, a young detective who's goal is to help improve the image of the Crossbell Police Department in the eyes of the public due to them losing faith in the police and becoming more reliant on a peace keeping, civilian protection agency known as the Bracer Guild, so Lloyd and his team do odd-jobs while also taking on the corruption of Crossbell's shady criminal underground world, which revolves around an Italian mafia like organization, an organization similar to the Chinese triad and the war for power going on between the two organizations plus a grand conspiracy that lurks in the shadows, there's also 2 minor delinquent gangs that you interact with as well. Crossbell basically has a lot of parallels to real world New York or Hong Kong, which is pretty cool. Plus there's some returning characters from the Sky trilogy and getting to see them again and how their story tied into this game has some major payoff if you played the Trails in the Sky trilogy beforehand.

I didn't mind the slower almost 'slice-of-life' parts at all though because it served to flesh out and immerse me into the setting of Crossbell since even the most seemingly pointless side quest or NPC interaction helps give more depth to Crossbell, its citizens and all their interpersonal relationships and this also gave me time to get to know the Special Support Section squad very well. I really came to love the SSS by the end of the game because the 4 main characters and their diverse personalities have such great synergy with one another from the flirty jokester playboy Randy to the sarcastic super genius Tio to the sweet, but serious Elie and Lloyd the hot-blooded and confident leader with a strong sense of justice and the glue that holds the whole team together. Trails from Zero is set in a span of 4 months and the SSS really become like a family by the end of those 4 months, it is really heartwarming

Gameplay is basically the unique turn-based tactical hybrid system of Trails which we have all come to know and love with a couple extra gimmicks (Like Team Rush attacks and Combo Crafts) and QoL improvements thrown in, while the soundtrack was nothing short of a masterwork that you would expect from Falcom JDK Band with plenty guitar driven battle tracks to hype you up alongside beautiful and peaceful themes to help set the atmosphere of all the various locations both in and surrounding Crossbell and the dungeon design was always enjoyable to explore as well.

In short Trails from Zero deserves every bit of praise it gets. From the detailed and immersive setting to the masterful character development and sprawling interconnected narrative that becomes crucial to the story of later entries in the series. This is a game that no J-RPG fan is going to want to miss.

approaches the stage with 73809 page manifesto on xenogears' impact and its troubled dev cycle and why it is both one of the most interesting, rewarding narratives told in gaming history and one of gaming's most incredible dev journeys, from beginning as what was originally ff7 before being repurposed into xenogears and then being cut in half, and how legal battles have prevented it from ever truly being returned to in the manner it deserves
ahem
screams into microphone, tears running down my face
BROKEN MIRROR A MILLION SHAPES OF LIGHT THE OLD ECHO FADES AWAY BUT JUST YOU AND I CAN FIND THE ANSWER AND THEN WE CAN RUN TO THE END OF THE WORLD, RUN TO THE END OF THE WORLD
is dragged offstage while vocalizing the guitar solo

Easily the best graphics and my favorite gameplay of any video game I’ve ever played. I love the original TLOU but damn this one always manages to blow me away with every playthrough.

Seattle Day 3 as Abby is top notch, the Seraphite Island section never fails to leave me in absolute awe at both its horrific and inhumane presentation, but also the drastic difference in setting compared to everything else seen throughout both games. The Ellie portion of TLOU2 is fucking awesome, but damn the Abby days go absolutely insane.

Soul Hackers 2 seems like it’s been the victim of a lot of negative sentiment. People calling it bland, saying it’s missing the heart of something like a Persona game (a criticism also levied against SMT V), and really criticising the hell out of the dungeon design. I can see why people might be dissatisfied with this game, even in those parts specifically, but I certainly don’t get why there’s such vitriol around a game that at worst these people are calling… bland?

For me though, this is anything but bland. It’s not as “loud” as a Persona game in tone or style, but why would it be? Persona games are about 15 year olds. The stories they tell are great and thematically deep, don’t get me wrong, but they’re stories starring children. Soul Hackers 2 stars adults. Adults who’re caught up in something between a gang war and a JRPG plot, who’ve internalized the hate and pain that conflict has brought, and mostly seem built out of coping mechanisms.

For example, you’ve got Arrow, my personal favorite of the main cast. He seems pretty standard for like, a game of this style, an everyman who doesn’t seem off-putting, and I get why that comes across as bland to people, but to me he just seems tired. Tired in a way that he doesn’t complain about, or even acknowledge, because it’s just part of life for him. They’re not drawn, but you can almost feel the bags under his eyes in the way he talks, the words he chooses. And that is infinitely more compelling as a character beat to me than anything from Persona 3-5.

The rest of the cast feels equally mature and understated, even the seemingly loud Saizo, who’s built himself out of noir stereotypes to cover up an unobtainable desire for peace and tranquility, and an idealism to rival any shounen protagonist. Those things don’t fly in the fairly grounded world of Soul Hackers though, lacking the adventuresome nature of Persona and (most of) the philosophical musings of SMT proper. So he builds walls of sarcasm and wittiness to protect himself.

It all feels pretty true to life I think, and the game takes itself rather seriously as well (outside of one joke character in the introduction). There’s a huge focus on not just the philosophical ideal of what it means to “be human”, but on people and the choices they’ve made, the compassion they’ve shown and to whom it was shown to.

Beyond that, I also really loved the dungeon crawling. I don’t think any game since Nocturne has really captured the old school maze-style of classic SMT in full 3D so well, nor has any made it so accessible. The couple of reused themes for dungeons are a little disappointing, but the themes themselves are just as understated-yet-vibey as the rest of the game. If you’ve played Tokyo Mirage Sessions, the dungeon crawling and combat here are heavily based that game, and I think this game is a much more successful use of those mechanics.

That’s pretty much what the whole game is. Just small character moments and dungeon crawling, and if you like the characters and the old-skool-ness of it all, I don’t think you’ll have any issues here at all. Just don’t forget about the side quests if you want the true ending, yeah? Though the non-true ending is really really good regardless, ending on a nice unresolved note (delivered via monologue) like a true noir film would.

I can totally get why this game's divisive for it's budget issues and pretty straight-forward gameplay; it makes it feel more like a modern port of a Vita game than a 2022 release, if anything.

But to me? That's a great thing. Everything else about it - it's cast, worldbuilding, setting and writing - is just so damn good. It takes a little while to really get going, but I had an absolute blast, and I hope people don't let other opinions deter them from trying the game out completely.

It makes up for it's flaws more than well enough - so if you're able to put up with those nearly as well as I am, there's plenty to appreciate here.