Possum Springs is one of the most bittersweet locations I’ve seen in gaming. The industrial small town look and autumn sunset makes for a strangely cozy place. But it’s falling apart, you get the impression that it’s hardly holding itself together. Corporate America is really the only thing that seems to be doing fine.

On paper, Night In The Woods is like a 2/10. You walk and you talk to people. Sometimes there is incredibly basic platforming. And yet the vibe is incredibly immaculate. Visual design, music, and most importantly the interactions with characters. In the vain of games like Firewatch, it's more about 'experiencing' the atmosphere and narrative rather than exciting gameplay. Even with a sort of mystery thriller to create the illusion of a central narrative, I found myself craving the comfort of the daily routine, with every development in the mystery threatening to upheave the nostalgic wandering around town.

While the artstyle is unique and well done, and the music is great, the characters are what far and over make this game. Gregg is perhaps the best hypeman in written history, although I spent most of my time hanging out with Bea because I really wanted to repair the relationship. All the other characters are well done with some pretty realistic conversations, especially with your parents.
As Mae, you are presented with a few dialogue choices that sometimes change what information you get in a conversation, or more impactfully, decide what activity you will be doing. Despite the choices, Mae is really more of a character you control rather than a blank slate for the player. The ending is the same no matter what, however you can find optional side stories with characters around town, and who you hang out with the most gets extra dialogue in the final leg of the game. Threads of her past are teased but you never feel a need to know everything. The most significant thematically is the “shapes” monologue near the end of the game. Less so because of what it tells us about Mae but how it begs us to reflect on the experience of Night In The Woods as a whole. Trying not to spoil it but if you get to the part of the game you’ll probably understand what I mean.

The sad thing about Night In The Woods, is change. As I mentioned earlier, Possum Springs feels on the brink, which ties directly into the narrative in some places, but also serves as thematic backing. Your parents are struggling to pay mortgage. Gregg and Angus are planning to move one day. You don’t have enough time to hang out with everyone equally in a single playthrough. You can almost feel the time slipping away with every day that passes, as you can’t load previous saves. After a while I ended up really taking my time because I knew that the game would just end eventually. Sure I could start another playthrough, but that doesn't really feel like what the game wants me to do. Night In The Woods is really, literally, a slice-of-life, someone else’s life. I interpret the games themes as the fear of change, trying to hold on the what you have, and learning what you need to let go of.

Oh yeah, and there's a Guitar Hero minigame that I suck at

Minecraft Story Mode, where to even begin? While I realize I am not the demographic for a game like this, my friend group found it appropriate to consume more than recommended amounts of alcohol and play through all of this game in one evening.

While the animation, presentation, voice acting and all of that stuff is good, the game is simply uninteresting or cringe. The personal drama between the characters don't feel real, and you always get the feeling everything will be forgotten when the plot finds it convenient for friendship to happen again, which always happens.
This game has some legendary moments, which will stick with you for a lifetime. My personal favorite is when the useless pet pig Reuben sacrifices himself to save the day. They try to create this really emotional moment where your character walks up to the dying Reuben and says their final goodbyes and thank yous before he finally succumbs. However, this is immediately followed by Reuben closing his eyes, poofing into smoke, and leaving behind a floating, rotating piece of pork. Absolutely legendary, I cannot describe the sudden, high pitched laughter and screeching that filled the room as all 8 of my friends who I tortured into joining me for this adventure watched an emotional death scene get turned into comedy gold in an instant.

So. Should you play this game? Probably not. But I can't say it was without good times.

I played some of this while I was sick and, if anything, I enjoyed it more than being sick. So, y'know, that's something.

It's your average jank-ass low-budget DS game, complete with incredibly awkward touch based mini-games, but it's also an rpg involving both Sonic and Bioware, so it's sort of funny that it exists.

Also the soundtrack sounds like farts and Sonic is in full renegade mode, being a complete dick to everyone he meets.

It's bad, but it's also sort of a weird/cool time capsule.