Another Bethesda Game Studios game that I had a tremendous amount of fun with. I think quality-wise, it's easily the best of BGS since Skyrim (even though the competition is only really only Fallout 4 and 76), and I think it might have the best main quest in a BGS game also. I think that the games biggest aspect of failure (if you can call it that) is that it was marketed as a game of the generation, but there are certain either design choices or limitations that hold the game back from being the perfect spacefaring game that gamers were set up to expect. It isn't a space simulator, and it was unfair of Bethesda to market it like that but also unfair of gamers to truly expect something like that from BGS. It has all the typical quirkiness of a Bethesda game, but with a fair bit more polish than usual. It also has an interesting New Game+ system that I have yet to delve into but seems enticing. There are so many different systems to this game to get into, and I found myself only scratching the surface of most of them. It feels very grand in scale in some aspects, but quite shallow in others. A lot of the charm of exploration in previous BGS titles was sacrificed for a broad range of planets and biomes, to complement a large resource management system that plays into research and base-building. My hope would be that Bethesda continues to support this game as they have FO76, which has definitely made major steps in the right direction over time. As for Starfield, the launch product is far superior to FO76, and FO4, and I think proper DLC support and perhaps live service content could make this game a continual Game Pass seller.

A really great game, one that shows off some of the greatest spectacle ever seen in the medium, but struggles with consistency across most aspects.

Firstly, the immersive aspects, such as visuals, music, and atmosphere are all top-notch, which we've come to expect from FF (especially the music). The spectacle is often times unbelievable, and it is a gorgeous game with brilliant setpieces.

The gameplay is pretty good, and it makes you feel powerful and feels fun, though it isn't overly deep or complex. It also rides the line of maybe being a little too easy for the first playthrough. I am not great at games, I've never been able to get anywhere in a Souls game, but this game offered fairly mild resistance on its highest base difficulty, which just felt strange. A minor thing.

The content in the game varies drastically. Some of the quests are completely boring and feel so cookie-cutter, and some are great filled with important character moments and strong writing, but this inconsistency is not just in side quests, but even in main quests. Sometimes, the main quest will just to be talk to a bunch of nameless NPCs to learn details about something so that you can help someone else, and it just totally drags. Some of the side quests were fantastic, and others gave great loot and exclusive items, but so many of them were just general fetch quests or clear-this-area quests, and I had no way of knowing which I was walking into.

The inconsistency of content also leads into the main story, where I thought there were some spectacular moments and characters, and some more boring and formulaic ones. I thought that most of the interesting characters were limited in their screentimes for one reason or another (I won't say which, because of spoilers), and I would've liked to see more of them. This veers slightly into spoiler territory anyway, but the final act of the game just totally wore down for me because of it. The humanity was stripped from the game's world and characters in favor of a single conflict. I think the main villain was totally dry, honestly, as they are an obvious allegory to a real life entity, but they're just an incredibly boring character that lacks the flair, and the drama of some characters encountered earlier on. The first two acts are honestly excellent in a vacuum, but I also think some of the decisions made in the writing lead to eventual domino effects that resulted in an often lifeless third act, in my opinion.

I think that the spectacle is great, the music is great, many of the characters are great, the gameplay is great, but it just struggles a little bit under its ambitions, and isn't quite a perfect product.

The best Yakuza had been in terms of storytelling, with pretty unique combat, though I think that this game would've been better off with Majima as the only playable character. I don't say that out of disdain for Kiryu, who I love, but his role in the story doesn't feel as critical and it felt like the developers just wanted to include him because it's cool to see our protagonist in his prime. Majima's combat and story are really the reason to play this game. Probably the best of the brawler Yakuza games, with only Like a Dragon 7 ahead in my mind.

An interesting entry in the franchise, as it can feel quite detached from the first five (and 0) in some ways, but then I believe its central focus is exactly what the Yakuza series has been, a story of family. It is definitely the most emotional game in the series, and a lot of family connections examined, broken, and formed. The gameplay falls somewhere in the middle for the series, as it upgrades the interactivity thanks to a new console generation, but lacks the diversity in moves and abilities that say, Yakuza 4 or 5 had. Overall, probably the best the franchise has been in terms of its overall story, with a solid gameplay loop, and a more interactive world to explore.

Once again, as with Yakuza 4, it improved upon its predecessor's biggest failings, but also managed to exacerbate some of them. It is grand in scale, allowing you to truly get invested in 5 (not so) separate storylines, and 5 unique gameplay styles. The villains are fairly standard, but the individual character arcs are great, and it easily has the most variety in its combat thus far. It does drag on often, and you find yourself spending hours on activities you thought you'd never see in Yakuza, such as hunting, dancing, or fishing, but some of its charm is in that, though it does feel like a massive game. I think Kiwami 2 is still my favorite, but having not played the original Yakuza 2, I imagine playing through these games upon release would have me putting this game easily in first of the Kiryu saga.

A really nice shake-up to the formula after Yakuza 3, which felt a bit stale/dated in its combat and game design. I love Kiryu, but broadening the world and characters and seeing other perspectives was quite fun, and introduced some great characters, like Taiga Saejima. The four protagonists helped keep the gameplay fresh with different movesets, though it did make sometimes make for a fairly convoluted plot. Some bosses again were frustrating, like in 3. Overall though, I really enjoyed the new stories and the final collaboration, which was sick.

A more intimate and emotional game than either Kiwami or Kiwami 2, but also probably in large part due to the lack of a remake, many aspects can feel quite dated in comparison to those games. The story has the most heart yet and there is some really great character stuff that happens here, but gameplay is a large step back from kiwami 2 in every way, from combat, to exploration, to quest design. And who designed the chase sequences? They really are annoying and out of place, idk. Still an absolutely critical piece of Kiryu's story, I loved the new characters and Kiryu's emerging softer side (which has always been there). It's hard to compare this game directly to the Kiwami remakes, but it does feel dated when coming from those games.

A really damn good video game. Pretty much a straight improvement for me in every way over Yakuza Kiwami, which I loved, except I will say that the combat felt simpler and less deep (though it was much more fun here). The story is really good, I loved Ryuji Goda as the villain and Kaoru Sayama is such a standout character. The combat can actually be a ton of fun which I didn't find with Kiwami 1. The sidequests and overall world are improved, especially with the Dragon engine. Not many faults, although I guess with the fairly shallow combat I didn't find it hard when playing on the same difficulty as Kiwami 1, but I could've rectified that I guess. The Majima Saga is a nice cherry on top for a wonderful game.

I ended up beating this in basically two weeks, one back near release, and this past one. It was totally in a rough technical shape back then, but IIRC it didn't really play a factor in me dropping the game, I just got busy. It certainly doesn't have much in the way of technical issues today, but it did run poorly then, which I think may have slightly soured my overall experience. But, overall, I think this is my favorite direction that Pokemon has gone in the Switch era, taking some of the things that worked about Legends: Arceus and applying it to a more mainstream Pokemon game design with a great sense of freedom and the interesting Terastyles. I wish it worked better at launch and I don't know if this is just my opinion due to lack of imagination but given the diverse and interest characters we got to know, I think that it's time for Pokemon to implement some voice acting, at least in the main story or cutscenes. Just a minor gripe but it shows how much some of the characters caught on with me.

Great game. Strongest elements were its story, its main core of characters, and the feeling of the world. Lots of stuff to do in the world, and the fun Majima Everywhere system to bring some challenge and a few laughs. I think the combat can be quite fun in a lot of battles, especially with smaller groups and less weapons for the enemies, but the combat system definitely falls apart in many of the boss fights, which is a shame. Highlights are Kiryu himself, Haruka, and Majima's chaotic presence. Lowlights I guess would be poor boss battles and mostly mediocre side missions.

I would've never thought that a Switch game would top Breath of the Wild, but here we are. Tears of the Kingdom is now the defining achievement of the console. It's an upgrade in nearly every single way from BOTW, which was previously the Switch's defining game. There is so much more to do, and infinitely more ways to do it, but it manages to avoid being boring. The mechanics in this game will likely see attempts at replication in the near future, but I doubt any game will maintain the overall quality. The less you know about this game going in, the better. The potential for creativity and the overall scope are both immense. I imagine this game will be a GOTY lock for me, with only Starfield being even a possible threat I could ever see happening.