fancyynancyy
2015
I really want to rate this game higher, but I can't just ignore my issues with it. Don't get me wrong, it's good, but I don't think it's the flawless masterpiece people consider it:
-Gameplay system is great. Intense and satisfying. I really prefer Fromsoft doing fewer, but tighter weapons like this. Some people complain about weapon variety, but you practically have two weapons on one with the trick system. Each one feels unique. The left-hand guns are also a great addition since I've never liked using shields in the souls games, and learning to parry bosses with them is so rewarding. I also appreciate this game for establishing the faster paced combat, that would later come to DS3 and ER.
-Ambience is impeccable. They actually pulled off the horror atmosphere pretty well, and I would like to see more games like this from them. I didn't think it would be scary, but it got me a few times, honestly. Specially seeing Brain of Mensis for the first time and Upper Cathedral Ward as a whole.
-Soundtrack is probably their best. So many unforgettable tracks: “The Hunter”, “Cleric Beast”, “Hail the Nightmare”, “The First Hunter”. All amazing. It captures the Victorian horror theme perfectly. Ryan Amon is so underrated, one of their best composers.
-When I started playing I couldn't help but notice that the architectural design of Central Yharnam didn't make that much sense, and it seemed kind of messy, similar to DS3 badly copy-pasted, seemingly rushed architecture. Fortunately, this gets improved on as the game goes along, not really bothersome apart from that first area. Great areas overall.
-The bosses are where I started having problems with the game. They're so easy, it's kind of underwhelming. I was even under leveling on purpose after noticing it. I really dislike huge boss designs, I don't think it's Fromsoft forte. And it wouldn't be an issue if it were just 3 or 4 big bosses… but there are like 12 of them! Most were beatable without even learning their moves, and it's really frustrating how you can't see what the hell they're about to do. Of course, they look visually impressive, but not as much when you fight them up close and only see their calves and feet. Ludwig is the exception because the camera actually pulls back. So many bad gimmicky bosses too (Celestial Emissary, Rom, Witch of Hemwick, etc.). Apart from the DLC bosses, which are great, there were only a handful of good ones in the base game (Hint: The normal-sized ones).
-Rally mechanic felt kind of worthless. On paper sounds nice: you take a hit, play aggressive and get back part of your health. The thing is the amount you get back is not that much, and why risk it when the game gives you, not 10, not 15, but 20(!!!) blood vials. Which are equivalent to a fully upgraded estus basically.
-Performance is preeetty bad. I see people saying they never encountered fps drops, so maybe(?) it varies on your PS4. Idk, but the amount of drops and slowdowns during boss fights were not great, it really takes away from the moment and I even think it got me killed a few times. The loading screens are also painfully slow. That wouldn't be a problem if you only saw one once in a while, but you have to get through two of them to fast travel each time. Which comes the question, why do I need to travel to Hunter's Dream each time to fast travel? This is such a random downgrade from DS and DS2.
-Lastly, the lovecraftie visual design looks stunning, but I'm not a fan of Lovecraft influenced stories personally. It's the “people find creatures beyond our comprehension and try to use them to their benefit and ends up cosmically bad” typical narrative. But now told in the Fromsoft obtuse way without the depth that DeS or DS had to justify it. And usually when I don't relate to a Fromsoft narrative, the charming NPCs are able to carry it, but that's also lacking here. Every NPC is forgettable at best, I don't think any of them are worth mentioning. Even Patches, one of my favorites from other games, it's pretty meh here.
If this game ever gets ported with better performance to PC (HA! Nope), I'll increase the rating, but for now it stays a 6. Really enjoyable, but it's far from perfect.
★★★ – Good ✅
Edit: I nearly forgot, since I don't own a PS4 I played it at my cousin's, and I actually didn't know that you have to pay a PS+ subscription to play games online. WHAT!? What even is that, Sony? You greedy fucks. Why aren't people talking more about that?
-Gameplay system is great. Intense and satisfying. I really prefer Fromsoft doing fewer, but tighter weapons like this. Some people complain about weapon variety, but you practically have two weapons on one with the trick system. Each one feels unique. The left-hand guns are also a great addition since I've never liked using shields in the souls games, and learning to parry bosses with them is so rewarding. I also appreciate this game for establishing the faster paced combat, that would later come to DS3 and ER.
-Ambience is impeccable. They actually pulled off the horror atmosphere pretty well, and I would like to see more games like this from them. I didn't think it would be scary, but it got me a few times, honestly. Specially seeing Brain of Mensis for the first time and Upper Cathedral Ward as a whole.
-Soundtrack is probably their best. So many unforgettable tracks: “The Hunter”, “Cleric Beast”, “Hail the Nightmare”, “The First Hunter”. All amazing. It captures the Victorian horror theme perfectly. Ryan Amon is so underrated, one of their best composers.
-When I started playing I couldn't help but notice that the architectural design of Central Yharnam didn't make that much sense, and it seemed kind of messy, similar to DS3 badly copy-pasted, seemingly rushed architecture. Fortunately, this gets improved on as the game goes along, not really bothersome apart from that first area. Great areas overall.
-The bosses are where I started having problems with the game. They're so easy, it's kind of underwhelming. I was even under leveling on purpose after noticing it. I really dislike huge boss designs, I don't think it's Fromsoft forte. And it wouldn't be an issue if it were just 3 or 4 big bosses… but there are like 12 of them! Most were beatable without even learning their moves, and it's really frustrating how you can't see what the hell they're about to do. Of course, they look visually impressive, but not as much when you fight them up close and only see their calves and feet. Ludwig is the exception because the camera actually pulls back. So many bad gimmicky bosses too (Celestial Emissary, Rom, Witch of Hemwick, etc.). Apart from the DLC bosses, which are great, there were only a handful of good ones in the base game (Hint: The normal-sized ones).
-Rally mechanic felt kind of worthless. On paper sounds nice: you take a hit, play aggressive and get back part of your health. The thing is the amount you get back is not that much, and why risk it when the game gives you, not 10, not 15, but 20(!!!) blood vials. Which are equivalent to a fully upgraded estus basically.
-Performance is preeetty bad. I see people saying they never encountered fps drops, so maybe(?) it varies on your PS4. Idk, but the amount of drops and slowdowns during boss fights were not great, it really takes away from the moment and I even think it got me killed a few times. The loading screens are also painfully slow. That wouldn't be a problem if you only saw one once in a while, but you have to get through two of them to fast travel each time. Which comes the question, why do I need to travel to Hunter's Dream each time to fast travel? This is such a random downgrade from DS and DS2.
-Lastly, the lovecraftie visual design looks stunning, but I'm not a fan of Lovecraft influenced stories personally. It's the “people find creatures beyond our comprehension and try to use them to their benefit and ends up cosmically bad” typical narrative. But now told in the Fromsoft obtuse way without the depth that DeS or DS had to justify it. And usually when I don't relate to a Fromsoft narrative, the charming NPCs are able to carry it, but that's also lacking here. Every NPC is forgettable at best, I don't think any of them are worth mentioning. Even Patches, one of my favorites from other games, it's pretty meh here.
If this game ever gets ported with better performance to PC (HA! Nope), I'll increase the rating, but for now it stays a 6. Really enjoyable, but it's far from perfect.
★★★ – Good ✅
Edit: I nearly forgot, since I don't own a PS4 I played it at my cousin's, and I actually didn't know that you have to pay a PS+ subscription to play games online. WHAT!? What even is that, Sony? You greedy fucks. Why aren't people talking more about that?
I got recommended to play Super before Zero Mission, which I would suggest against. ZM it's pretty much on par, but more accessible, less clunky, and shorter. And in terms of gameplay, I think it's just as fun, even though easier. But what I'm missing is the unique atmosphere of Super and the little moments that added to the story and overall impact of the game (like Crocomire and a certain cute interaction at the end). So overall, I don't have much to say about ZM. It's a decent Metroid, but not as memorable for me.
The best feeling Metroid I've played so far, with also featuring some great bosses (the unique fights). Calling this fangame "impressive" leaves it short, but I'm not rating it as high as Super just by the fact that this is still a Metroid 2 remake. Inherently the story, repeat bosses (even more here actually), and level progression are still untouched from the original, so that brings it down a little. But if you enjoyed Zero Mission, you'll probably like AM2R even more, at least the gameplay side of it.
2019
Is this a relaunch or something? Why does Kids feel like it came out 13 years late? I can imagine this game working if it was from idk 2005, like you're browsing around playing some generic flash games then suddenly you find a random weird artsy game, and you're naturally hooked (something similar as to why Samorost worked in that context). But the thing is Kids came out in 2019, and it has no business being from that year. About the game's message... it's about as deep and subtle as a Steve Cutts short. Nothing to see here.
2014
For a god-like powerful being, the puzzles it throws at you are a really pitiful attempt at stopping you... Something ludonarrative dissonance something something.
I was enjoying the game whenever it let you explore (specially those sections that give you the illusion of an open world), that's where the dev's world design shines (great atmosphere for what is a minimal style), that's accompanied by some interesting moments of subtle world building or quirky interactions. But sadly ruined by mundane puzzles and clunky platforming sections that take away from the experience. Also, what's the point of the breathing mechanic? You use it for like 10% of the game, and it practically only exists to distract and not let you immerse yourself. Maybe the devs should've stuck to the premise of it being an "artistic experience" and not a game, even though it sounds pretentious as hell in the steam description. Anyway, I don't want to rip too much into this game since it's free, and the most offensive thing it does is being amateurish... Overall, a decent short game. Discovered "BLAME!" thanks to it too, so I'll probably go right ahead and read that.
(Oh, if you have a monitor with an energy saving feature that turns it off whenever the screen is black, turn that off before playing because the game's really dark, and lifting the gamma to max on the settings seemingly doesn't help lol.)
I was enjoying the game whenever it let you explore (specially those sections that give you the illusion of an open world), that's where the dev's world design shines (great atmosphere for what is a minimal style), that's accompanied by some interesting moments of subtle world building or quirky interactions. But sadly ruined by mundane puzzles and clunky platforming sections that take away from the experience. Also, what's the point of the breathing mechanic? You use it for like 10% of the game, and it practically only exists to distract and not let you immerse yourself. Maybe the devs should've stuck to the premise of it being an "artistic experience" and not a game, even though it sounds pretentious as hell in the steam description. Anyway, I don't want to rip too much into this game since it's free, and the most offensive thing it does is being amateurish... Overall, a decent short game. Discovered "BLAME!" thanks to it too, so I'll probably go right ahead and read that.
(Oh, if you have a monitor with an energy saving feature that turns it off whenever the screen is black, turn that off before playing because the game's really dark, and lifting the gamma to max on the settings seemingly doesn't help lol.)
2018
Presents in an interesting amorphous way a reflection of what could be a sad, purposely exaggerated and metaphorical, distant reality for at least some of us. Thanks to its world design, and somewhat derivative in places yet still authentic atmosphere, you can't but get engrossed in the game's difficult-to-understand mythos. I haven't watched Eraserhead yet, but from what I've seen if you appreciate that film you'll probably value 0_abyssalSomewhere the same.
The only negative for me apart from the obvious clunkiness given the nature of it, is the ending sequence after the last encounter that I thought was unnecessarily expository of the game's themes. Also the promo for the sequel that came after felt a little out of place. Apart from that I have nothing but praise for this. Give it a try if you don't mind the weird. Don't expect much combat though, this is a walking-sim at its core.
Looking forward to whatever this dev releases for sure.
The only negative for me apart from the obvious clunkiness given the nature of it, is the ending sequence after the last encounter that I thought was unnecessarily expository of the game's themes. Also the promo for the sequel that came after felt a little out of place. Apart from that I have nothing but praise for this. Give it a try if you don't mind the weird. Don't expect much combat though, this is a walking-sim at its core.
Looking forward to whatever this dev releases for sure.
One of the first games I've played as a kid that taught me there's more than just shooters and fighting games. Great unique concept.
★★★★ – Excellent ✅
★★★★ – Excellent ✅
2016
I couldn't get this game out of my head for some reason, and I'm finally done with exams, so I wanted to come back and finish it.
I've already done my review for this, but I've never finished it out of frustration with the Turnip Hill section, plus other stuff like some bugs and college. I think my opinion of the last chapters (8, 9 and 10) not being as good as the rest of the game still stands, even if chapter 10 gets better as it goes, but nevertheless, I LOVE this game. It's really rare to find a game so unique as this, and in a way it's something similar to Shadow of the Colossus, where the uniqueness of it is kind of a negative, at least to me. And I say that because I really loved the game, and I wish to go right ahead and play similar ones, but there just isn't. There's nothing like this, at least that I know of, and I think just by that alone it is worth to give it a higher rating. Like I said on my first review, there are obviously some rough edges like the voice acting or the jumbling progression, but the positives highly outweigh the negatives, so I'm changing the score from a 6 to a 7. In short, fantastic puzzles and "gameplay" loop, with the best compilation of infrastructures I've seen in gaming.
I can't stress enough how great INFRA is if you enjoy atmospheric puzzles games or walking sims, and I immensely recommend that you give it a try. Also, I just found out that their next game is already out on Early Access, hell yes.
★★★½ – Great ✅
I've already done my review for this, but I've never finished it out of frustration with the Turnip Hill section, plus other stuff like some bugs and college. I think my opinion of the last chapters (8, 9 and 10) not being as good as the rest of the game still stands, even if chapter 10 gets better as it goes, but nevertheless, I LOVE this game. It's really rare to find a game so unique as this, and in a way it's something similar to Shadow of the Colossus, where the uniqueness of it is kind of a negative, at least to me. And I say that because I really loved the game, and I wish to go right ahead and play similar ones, but there just isn't. There's nothing like this, at least that I know of, and I think just by that alone it is worth to give it a higher rating. Like I said on my first review, there are obviously some rough edges like the voice acting or the jumbling progression, but the positives highly outweigh the negatives, so I'm changing the score from a 6 to a 7. In short, fantastic puzzles and "gameplay" loop, with the best compilation of infrastructures I've seen in gaming.
I can't stress enough how great INFRA is if you enjoy atmospheric puzzles games or walking sims, and I immensely recommend that you give it a try. Also, I just found out that their next game is already out on Early Access, hell yes.
★★★½ – Great ✅
Citra decided to stop working mid-game, and I honestly can't be bothered to play the whole thing from zero right now. First impressions from what I played so far are not great, though. AM2R is light-years ahead in terms of charm, specially because of the added variety to the different levels that here are just an ugly mess. Easily the worst looking Metroid. Apart from that, I wasn't enjoying the gameplay, but I guess I didn't play enough to be sure. I'll play it again sometime in the future, but that is what I gathered right now.
(Obligatory fuck Nintendo for stopping development of AM2R for this ugly ass game.)
(Obligatory fuck Nintendo for stopping development of AM2R for this ugly ass game.)
1985
Random thoughts:
-Why is he so lubed up?
-Soundtrack still slaps
-Is this fredophobia?
-I don't miss retro water levels
-Why is this Italian plumber guy running through lava dungeons?
-This is literally made to not be beaten legitimately
-I cooka da pizza 🤌
-Oh, I can run!
-Secret? Did I just cheat?
-fugetaboutit 🤌
-Did they purposely put a Power Up next to a pit for you to fall into? ... I respect that
-Fuck 8-4, all my homies hate 8-4
🤌
-Why is he so lubed up?
-Soundtrack still slaps
-Is this fredophobia?
-I don't miss retro water levels
-Why is this Italian plumber guy running through lava dungeons?
-This is literally made to not be beaten legitimately
-I cooka da pizza 🤌
-Oh, I can run!
-Secret? Did I just cheat?
-fugetaboutit 🤌
-Did they purposely put a Power Up next to a pit for you to fall into? ... I respect that
-Fuck 8-4, all my homies hate 8-4
🤌
A tip to enjoy this game:
If you want a challenge, don't use shotguns; if you're having trouble with it, use shotguns.
They're kind of broken rn and I imagine they'll get patched. My arena experience wasn't that memorable thanks to using a dual shotgun setup early on. 🙃
If you want a challenge, don't use shotguns; if you're having trouble with it, use shotguns.
They're kind of broken rn and I imagine they'll get patched. My arena experience wasn't that memorable thanks to using a dual shotgun setup early on. 🙃
2022
Dylan: Uh, what's it called? The one (podcast) that you're listening to right now?
Ryan: Uh. Bizarre Yet Bona Fide.
Dylan: So like, ghosts and stuff?
Ryan: It's like... um, yeah, the weird and the wonderful. Digging up weird mysteries and discussing if they're, well, bona fide.
Dylan: 'Boner' fide. Get it? Boner? Heh.
<sigh> ...Yup.
Impressive on the technical/visual side, not so much in others. Still, an improvement over Dark Pictures Anthology. Recommending it since it doesn't do anything that badly, it's just mediocre.
Oh, motion sickness warning btw. Blur's REALLY heavy, and you can't turn it off. Not even by messing with engine.ini or using UE4 Unlocker.
★★ – Bad, but playable ✅
Ryan: Uh. Bizarre Yet Bona Fide.
Dylan: So like, ghosts and stuff?
Ryan: It's like... um, yeah, the weird and the wonderful. Digging up weird mysteries and discussing if they're, well, bona fide.
Dylan: 'Boner' fide. Get it? Boner? Heh.
<sigh> ...Yup.
Impressive on the technical/visual side, not so much in others. Still, an improvement over Dark Pictures Anthology. Recommending it since it doesn't do anything that badly, it's just mediocre.
Oh, motion sickness warning btw. Blur's REALLY heavy, and you can't turn it off. Not even by messing with engine.ini or using UE4 Unlocker.
★★ – Bad, but playable ✅
"Now, that's zero tolerance!"
Another game I used to play a lot as a kid, glad this didn't leave any influence in my brain. This is Rocksteady's first game, known for their Arkham series, which is oddly fitting that they went from making some serious copaganda to Batman games. And I don't mean "police protagonist = copaganda", this is full on propaganda in a really bold way. I mean there's a line that says "maybe you (the police) were worth my tax dollars after all", lmao. Only reason why I'm not rating this lower is because gameplay-wise is surprisingly competent, kind of. Anyway, it's not really worth expanding on given how rubbish everything else is. Stay away, thank you.
Although I'm giving it a not recommended (❌), if you had or have a Punisher logo as your profile pic this turns into a must-play (✅✅✅).
★★ – Bad, but playable ❌
Ok, I'll admit it, the menu song is SO fucking catchy... Dum dum, dumdum, dum. (Funny how I immediately noticed two Punisher profile pics in the comments of the video, lolol)
Another game I used to play a lot as a kid, glad this didn't leave any influence in my brain. This is Rocksteady's first game, known for their Arkham series, which is oddly fitting that they went from making some serious copaganda to Batman games. And I don't mean "police protagonist = copaganda", this is full on propaganda in a really bold way. I mean there's a line that says "maybe you (the police) were worth my tax dollars after all", lmao. Only reason why I'm not rating this lower is because gameplay-wise is surprisingly competent, kind of. Anyway, it's not really worth expanding on given how rubbish everything else is. Stay away, thank you.
Although I'm giving it a not recommended (❌), if you had or have a Punisher logo as your profile pic this turns into a must-play (✅✅✅).
★★ – Bad, but playable ❌
Ok, I'll admit it, the menu song is SO fucking catchy... Dum dum, dumdum, dum. (Funny how I immediately noticed two Punisher profile pics in the comments of the video, lolol)
2023
Seems to work as a critique of media's intrusiveness and capitalistic work ethics, but the delivery is so convoluted that it's kind of hard for me to appreciate any of it. At some point you wonder if there's any sense to it. Though I love how it takes place in 90s Brazil (more unique settings in horror, please and ty!). And the heavy atmosphere is more than achieved (the game is basically still images, but it manages to be scary without recurring to jumpscares).
2002
I was surprised reading reviews about Fusion (outside of backloggd), because of how polarizing the views on it are, but I can understand it. It's not the most fun Metroid, the bosses are kind of hit or miss, and it requires patience by the slow pacing. But it does everything else so well, that I personally couldn't care less. It's so effective at creating an oppressive atmosphere, that as a 2d game it's pretty impressive. From the context of the mission of you stranded on a spaceship, to the infestation, you being separated from your suit, to being distrustful of the voice guiding you, a copy of yourself that is hunting you down... This might as well be a horror game, lol. And by being more story oriented, it created an emotional impact similar to Super's that I was not expecting at all. I might be wrong, but I can't honestly remember a single old 2d game that was able to make me cry like this one. That alone puts Fusion on top so far.
Overall, I think Fusion is a lot more mature than previous entries, and it should work as a reminder that not everything about a game is its gameplay. Don't expect something similar to previous Metroids, and you'll probably enjoy this.
Overall, I think Fusion is a lot more mature than previous entries, and it should work as a reminder that not everything about a game is its gameplay. Don't expect something similar to previous Metroids, and you'll probably enjoy this.