homefires
Hard to totally explain why this is so great, others have done it much better than I could ever contribute. Despite any shortcomings it has, this will be a game that sticks with you. It might just change the way you think about what games should be. I know it did for me.
2022
This game is secretly surrealist. There's just shit floating all over with no reason for it to exist and you just zoom through it all, endlessly collecting little trinkets. The world is endless metal spaghetti and I'm just a blue 'hog, eatin it all up.
It's pretty fun even if it's a nightmare dreamed up by an industry desperately trying to copy Breath of the Wild. I especially like the levels outside the open world, they are genuinely just good sonic.
Why the fuck did Eggman make his AI take the form of a little girl? I will probably never know because this didn't keep my attention long enough for me to finish it.
It's pretty fun even if it's a nightmare dreamed up by an industry desperately trying to copy Breath of the Wild. I especially like the levels outside the open world, they are genuinely just good sonic.
Why the fuck did Eggman make his AI take the form of a little girl? I will probably never know because this didn't keep my attention long enough for me to finish it.
It looks nice! It sounds nice! I liked the crossdressing bit! But...
Among my friends I have been known for years as the resident BOTW hater. I liked the game and completed it, but I've always had a ton of problems with it and have always been baffled by the uncritical praise it gets. Now that Tears of the Kingdom is out it's funny to see people go "oh wow this is so much better than BOTW!!" Yeah? It's so much better than the game you said was perfect and had no problems?
The difficulty of the game scales poorly, the world is repetitive and lacks significant location variety in most areas, the shrines are very hit or miss, the different powers are mostly boring and inconsequential besides Stasis, and the story and writing suck ass. I genuinely think this game has a great formula, much better than most open world games, and that's why people love it. I just think it's a very flawed execution of that formula. I liked it enough to finish it but was left more frustrated than satisfied in the end.
Anyways, there's nearly no reason to come back to this now. Nintendo proved my point by making the same game again but far better in nearly every way. Also fuck this game for dooming the industry to 10 decades of open world hell. It was already heading that way but I think this was the nail in the coffin.
Among my friends I have been known for years as the resident BOTW hater. I liked the game and completed it, but I've always had a ton of problems with it and have always been baffled by the uncritical praise it gets. Now that Tears of the Kingdom is out it's funny to see people go "oh wow this is so much better than BOTW!!" Yeah? It's so much better than the game you said was perfect and had no problems?
The difficulty of the game scales poorly, the world is repetitive and lacks significant location variety in most areas, the shrines are very hit or miss, the different powers are mostly boring and inconsequential besides Stasis, and the story and writing suck ass. I genuinely think this game has a great formula, much better than most open world games, and that's why people love it. I just think it's a very flawed execution of that formula. I liked it enough to finish it but was left more frustrated than satisfied in the end.
Anyways, there's nearly no reason to come back to this now. Nintendo proved my point by making the same game again but far better in nearly every way. Also fuck this game for dooming the industry to 10 decades of open world hell. It was already heading that way but I think this was the nail in the coffin.
2008
This game kicked my dog and stole my DS
2023
There is still joy in the world despite the capitalist nightmare we live in, and being a weird little fucker is actually okay because your friends will still like you if you're a good person.
Oh, and the game is fantastic.
Oh, and the game is fantastic.
2004
It's hard to write about this game without getting too personal. I think that the type of person that will be drawn to the game's aimless exploration will also resonate with it the most. For the protagonist, the dream world is an escape. Video games can fill the same role. My relationship with my favorite hobby is always changing, but in my worst moments it's hard to treat them as anything other than a place to hide.
As you explore the game, the more that it becomes a physical location in your mind. Dreams connect to dreams, loops lead back to the nexus, and you start to push out deeper and deeper as you become more familiar with the space. I feel like I could chose any specific location in this game and make my way there by memory. I genuinely find more fulfillment here than I do in most open world games.
The different locations you visit are surreal and have no consistent logic, but the real world is constantly seeping through the cracks. No matter where she runs to, Madotsuki can't escape the reality of who she is and what she's experienced. As the player we don't really know anything about her character or what she's been through, but I found a lot of emotional resonance with the world anyways. Just enough detail is left out to force your own imagination to fill in the cracks, which made my lasting connection to the game inevitable. I don't think there's any "correct" interpretation of the story, the emotions and concepts conveyed are enough to create a memorable experience.
I do wonder how it would've turned out if development on it had continued, but I also don't blame the creator for abandoning it. If they had any kind of personal emotional investment in the themes presented in the game, I imagine working on it only became more exhausting over time. I hope they're doing okay.
As you explore the game, the more that it becomes a physical location in your mind. Dreams connect to dreams, loops lead back to the nexus, and you start to push out deeper and deeper as you become more familiar with the space. I feel like I could chose any specific location in this game and make my way there by memory. I genuinely find more fulfillment here than I do in most open world games.
The different locations you visit are surreal and have no consistent logic, but the real world is constantly seeping through the cracks. No matter where she runs to, Madotsuki can't escape the reality of who she is and what she's experienced. As the player we don't really know anything about her character or what she's been through, but I found a lot of emotional resonance with the world anyways. Just enough detail is left out to force your own imagination to fill in the cracks, which made my lasting connection to the game inevitable. I don't think there's any "correct" interpretation of the story, the emotions and concepts conveyed are enough to create a memorable experience.
I do wonder how it would've turned out if development on it had continued, but I also don't blame the creator for abandoning it. If they had any kind of personal emotional investment in the themes presented in the game, I imagine working on it only became more exhausting over time. I hope they're doing okay.
2019
Probably one of the most mechanically perfect games I can think of. At first it might feel like your success is entirely up to fate, but as you improve you realize how much impact every small decision has. Climbing Ascension levels only deepens this level of connection with the mechanics of each character and of the game as a whole.
Probably one of a small handful of games that I could play endlessly, given I was trapped on a deserted island or something.
Probably one of a small handful of games that I could play endlessly, given I was trapped on a deserted island or something.
The more linear levels really do drag this one down. The guns, music, and visuals are still great though.
I first played this game when I was like 6. The back of the box said "Kickin' @$$" and my parents got mad at me when I read it out loud. They let me play it anyways though and I respect them for that.
Anyways I can't really judge this fairly but I still have a blast returning to it. It has my favorite gameplay of the original trilogy but also my least favorite story. It's not as charmingly edgy as the first but it's not as compelling as the third.
Anyways I can't really judge this fairly but I still have a blast returning to it. It has my favorite gameplay of the original trilogy but also my least favorite story. It's not as charmingly edgy as the first but it's not as compelling as the third.
2002
All of the core elements that make this series great were already there in the first installment. Fun and unique weapons, goofy writing, incredible music, atmospheric locations...
It's a bit hard to return to though. The lack of lock-on in particular makes the combat feel very clunky in comparison to later entries. I have a special place in my heart for it though.
It's a bit hard to return to though. The lack of lock-on in particular makes the combat feel very clunky in comparison to later entries. I have a special place in my heart for it though.
The puzzles are really fun and good actually! A solid expansion to what was already one of my favorite co-op experiences. It's not even close to being as memorable to Portal or Portal 2's single player, but it doesn't need to be. Still has some funny writing too.
2007
People act like this one isn't worth returning to just because it doesn't have a funny british eyeball in it. Those people are wrong.
2011
Playing this at an impressionable young age made me permanently more annoying
2019
I'm sick of "roguelikes", when are we going to get "outerwildslikes"? I want to explore another complex solar system and solve civilization spanning mysteries again, but I can't erase the experience of playing this for the first time from my mind.
My favorite game ever, I think.
My favorite game ever, I think.
When people shit on the gameplay of this game I start wondering if I played the same game as them. It's very fun and dynamic! A huge step up from MGS in my opinion.
Also yeah the story of this game made me question my identity and core beliefs when I played it for the first time. Any game that can manage that is something special.
Also yeah the story of this game made me question my identity and core beliefs when I played it for the first time. Any game that can manage that is something special.