It’s probably unfair of me to review this game without engaging with all its systems, yet, I've rolled credits many times and devoted a lot of hours to playing this game (1060 km and 2090 coins), so I think it’s only fair. The game needs no explanation; it's the definitive version of Mario Kart 8 with its DLC and the new DLC from Booster Course Pass. At the time I'm writing this review, the last two tracks aren't available yet. I've spent most of my time engaging with Grand Prix, I fully completed 50 and 100 CC for the base game and DLC and 150 CC for the base game alone. Firstly, I have to preface that this game is a ton of fun, and its sales speak volumes. Every map is meticulously crafted, it's vibrant and captures the Mario and Nintendo as a whole. The character roster is immense, the unlockables are fun, and it is an enjoyable experience. I've only played the single-player component, so there's a lot I can't speak for personally, but I can imagine how great playing with folks like Smash Bros is for my family. I never felt any real problems, but once you start the harder modes, some of the gimmicks become excessive. Mostly the blue shell, everything else feels somewhat fair game. Especially when trying to get gold at 150 cc, it annoyed me so much. I understand why mechanics like that exist, giving everyone an even playing field so the person at last can somehow make a comeback, but yeah, everything is fine because it's avoidable if you are skilled enough, but the blue shells just boggle my mind. So yeah, the deeper you dig, certain flaws feel a lot more apparent. Beyond that, it's a joy of a game, and I will probably play it on and off again if friends come over or something of that nature.

In Conclusion, it’s very good game and a fun casual experience!

I might pick up this game again, but honestly, it's not worth it. I know I'm probably in the minority in this case. There's a great game inside Forza Horizon 5, but as a whole, it isn’t a great game. The cluttered interface, the UI that feels like it’s for 12 years old, EXP for every little thing, annoying dialogue that feels like something a classmate wrote when they were 12 and mediocre music. Plus, so many bloody menus. Look the driving is fun, the feedback is fantastic, and visually it looks incredible and probably well-designed for car enthusiasts but the number of times you are on a menu is beyond my comprehension. The map felt like a mess, it makes Ubisoft maps feel clean, not cluttered and perfect in comparison. It's kinda annoying, as Forza should be great and in concept, it's pretty dope, but certain modern design choices very does baffle me. As there's a lot of good but just some bullshit that holds it back.

Plague Tale 2 is like jumping from Uncharted 1 to Uncharted 2. The latter just improves upon the original to a staggering degree. Of course, the first isn’t rough like Uncharted 1 (Plague Tale 1 is a ton better) but it’s a good comparison because of the style of the game. The cinematic approach to storytelling can be a real hindrance for the medium at times, but here it delivers in spades. I think another good example would be The Last of Us 2 (TLOU2) if it was executed much better. I think that’s an even better comparison just due to the fact of influences and both original titles were games didn’t think needed a sequel until we got it, in TLOU2's case, it wasn’t worth it (in my view), but here it absolutely worth the experience.

Like the original game, it’s about the relationship between Hugo and Amicia. It’s set a year after the original game. The scope is considerably larger in some cases, though narrower in others. It’s a very focused title rather than a meandering mess. This is an AA project that just feels like a passion project throughout. I’ve praised the visual in the original (in my review) it’s the same but even more stunning especially because there’s more scenery and even open places to explore. One aspect I adored about the relationship is how the original game has scarred both Amicia and Hugo. All the actions they take always have that trauma in the back of their minds. Amicia faces some serious cases of PTSD and it’s handled very appropriately. There isn’t too much of a jarring Ludo narrative going on maybe except for Hugo. Even though that is somewhat recontextualised so overall it creates an immersive experience, Amicia kills a lot, and the game doesn’t hide that fact in cutscenes or in gameplay dialogue. The main characters just go through hell and back, if you thought the original was dark this takes it to another level. It’s ballsy, to say the least, this is the direction they took, and it paid off. I adored the story throughout, I felt for the main characters, the side characters and sometimes even random NPCs.

What this game does much better is the marketplace, festivals etc. Seeing more of the common people in the Middle Ages. Those moments of levity are something to cherish and there are just certain mechanics you don’t realise why exist until you finish the game and it’s wonderful. It’s so tailor-made to evoke a certain reaction. The openness of some levels especially later on is very nice stumbling upon certain skippable story beats. Though there’s one major caveat that hurt immersion invisible walls. I’m not blind to why it exists (and it’s understandable most of the time) but it’s more so very few invisible barriers, sometimes there’s a pathway ankle high and you can’t walk on it. It’s kind of silly how restrictive basic movement is even taking Hugo into account, then there’s certain grass you can’t traverse through for no apparent reason. My criticism is not the existence of more so places you can traverse but you must go in a specific walkway and not go down or up on tiny rocks. Besides that, there isn’t much to complain about. Yes, the AI is still brain-dead but it’s the same as the original if not slightly better with new types of enemies.

The crafting is the same but even more streamed line for the better, like basic crafting like flames, tar etc. requires different things than one where you are improving your weapon or whatever. There are a lot more ways to handle combat now, even stealth. Sure, stealth is still somewhat barebone, but the gameplay mechanics have a lot more depth here. The introduction of the crossbow, a mixture of alchemy and our side companions is more useful. So yeah, the game takes everything from the original gameplay loop and made it better.

The writing is even stronger here, I briefly mentioned the relationship, but the amount of depth Amicia and Hugo are given in this one is staggering. Like the small things very do matter in creating the bond, like I said what the original did, in gameplay, the holding hands, helping Hugo when he jumps or him when you jump on a cliff and yeah, they really nailed this game. There isn’t that weird audio editing issue I stumbled upon in the original.

In Conclusion, this is a fantastic AA game and beats out pretty much all the cinematic AAA games that are currently being pumped out. This is a game I didn’t know would justify its existence to being one of the best I have had the pleasure of playing. It’s an emotional rollercoaster ride and I feel bad I played it on Game Pass as this game absolutely deserves your money, if you haven’t played the game, you are doing yourself a disservice.

Note: I should note I only crashed once (randomly), besides that the experience is bug-free though I did notice some stutters. My graphic settings were mostly in ultra-high (1080p) and the performance typically ranged from 70-120fps though sometimes in marketplaces it will go to the low 50s. Then one section of the game went to the 27fps but that was very rare.