So funny enough I picked up this game because a Tik Tok creator that I follow said this would be a rare Switch game...yet every Gamestop I go into has a ton of copies smh. But regardless of that, I have become a recent Dragon Quest fan and wanted to give this game a shot. I mean, a monster collecting game where you play as the antagonist from DQ4?? Sign me up. But honestly the grind and the repetitiveness has gotten so significant for me that I just can't bring myself to play too much more, even if the core gameplay is pretty good.

The story and characters are interesting, especially because your character, Psaro, has such interesting motivations. Different story beats take a left turn due to your character's more evil nature, which makes things super interesting. The combat is also pretty fun, even if it can sometimes feel like you're on autopilot a lot of the time. Synthesizing and fusing monsters is also a lot of fun, though a bit confusing to get the hang of at times.

Its just...damn the grind. Everything about this game tests your patience. The performance is pretty poor, which is baffling as the game is just okay looking and there isn't a lot going on that would normally affect the performance, especially on Switch. The story is so repetitive and honestly uninteresting aside from the left turns it takes occasionally. Go to this circle of Nadiria, solve the problem, rise and repeat. Maybe throw in some colosseum battles here and there too. It just feels like a slog.

Getting good monsters is also a grind. Especially because there will be random difficulty spikes that come out of nowhere. The game does not like giving you good monsters by default, you HAVE to synthesize in order to stand a chance. But then the synthesized monster starts at level 1, which means more grinding is needed in order to get it up to snuff with where you're at in the game. It just frustrates me more than anything, especially these days where my time is more limited.

All-in-all, DQ Monsters The Dark Prince is a solid game at its core, and one that I legit have had fun with. I'm just at the point where the grind and repetitiveness has taken its toll and I need a break. I don't think the game is going to change much in terms of the core mechanics and issues I have with it, so I'm comfortable giving it a final score.

It's been awhile since I've been able to binge a game like I did with Super Mario RPG. I played the original on Virtual Console back in the day. I remembered liking it and thinking that it had this great charm. Because of Square Enix being a developer on the original, I never expected it to get a full on remake. But here we are! And I couldn't put this game down. I'm not sure how hardcore fans of the original feel, but I think that Super Mario RPG Remake is even better than the original.

For starters, the game looks fantastic. It maintains the SNES level design and layout, but modernize it more to where it doesn't just constantly look like you're on floating squares. The cutscenes are a major highlight here as well. Visually they look incredible. Anytime there is a fully rendered cutscene or animation, the game is almost jaw dropping. This game makes me really want Nintendo to finally get with the program and make a 4k capable console already.

The gameplay is largely similar to the original, but with some added goodies. For starters, well timed attacks affect all enemies in a battle. I thought this would be OP, but its balanced out pretty well. They added Triple Moves as well, which are basically these super moves that you can pull off when your meter is filled up to 100%. These moves have great fully rendered scenes to them and are incredibly charming. Which move you perform is based on who you have in your active party during the battle, making team composition all the more important. Although you can just switch out a character during their turn to use the move you want.

The writing and characters hold up pretty well also. I would've liked to have seen a little more added story or lore elements though, since this is one of the most unique Mario universes we've ever seen. The world is just so charming, as are the many unique characters that we've only really seen in this game.

I only have a couple gripes with this game. For one, I did find the experience really, really easy. I only had trouble with the post game bosses, which are designed to be really difficult. The base game is just extremely easy, so much so that I'm shocked that theres a mode to make the game even easier. This could just be because I am very well versed in the RPG genre, and SMRPG is more so targeting RPG newbies, but I think the game could've had a little more of a difficulty curve. My second complaint is that the game could've updated more of the experience. While I loved this remake, it honestly rides the line between remake and remaster. Some of the issues of the SNES version are still here, such as issues with depth perception and the camera angle(s) being a bit off when it comes to some of the platforming challenges that they require you to do. There could've been more of an effort to at least update a little aspects of the game that did not age well.

Even still, I found this to be the definitive way to experience Super Mario RPG. It's extremely fun and addictive. I couldn't believe that I finished the game as quickly as I did. It's been a long time since I have been able to sit down and binge a game like I did this one. And I don't regret it for one second.

While Alan Wake II was on my radar, I didn't expect it to be THIS good. AW2 is a masterwork of surreal survival horror. With some many layers to unpack in its story and presentation, to its tense and engaging combat, AW2 takes you on a wild ride that you won't soon forget.

The shining star here is the story and presentation. Some may find Sam Lake's writing to be a bit pretentious at times, but I found this to be his best work. The game is separated into two stories: the titular character, Alan Wake, is trying to escape The Dark Place after the events of the first game, and the brand new character, Saga Anderson, is attempting to solve a string of murders that are occurring in Bright Falls. The story has so many surprising moments that will keep you on the edge of your seat. Those who enjoy a complex narrative will find themselves wholly engaged with every chapter, especially when playing as Alan.

The gameplay is expanded and more modernized from the previous game. With tons of stuff to collect, weapons to try, and intimidating enemy encounters. There are a few boss fights as well that help increase the tension even more. The general design of the game from both stories are unique and interesting.

AW2 just achieves a vibe that I haven't felt from any franchise since the golden era of Silent Hill. It isn't cheap horror, nor is it meant to be scoffed as some kind of stupid jump-scare fest (tho there is a fair share of those). The metanarrative and deeper themes only sink you more and more into the horror. I won't dare spoil anything, but this is most definitely the best narrative of the year.

In terms of negatives, I do think that the dodge that you're given for combat is a bit finicky, especially when trying to get a perfect dodge against enemies. I also found that exploration can be a bit tiresome. This may just be a me thing, but I don't really like when a survival horror game tries to have open world elements. I like a more linear approach overall, with some little side paths or optional little areas for some extra goodies to collect. Having the game be open world (mostly for Sagas story, but also somewhat present in Alan's) just made me feel like I was getting too drawn away from the main narrative and objective. It was fun sure, but it kind of took me out of the tense experience a lot.

All that being said, Alan Wake II is an absolute banger of a game. Yet another GOTY contender in my eyes. Remedy is continuing to put out some incredible games lately, and is quickly becoming one of the best developers around. This is a must play for any survival horror fan. Though I would recommend either playing through the original Alan Wake or reading up on the events of that game in order to fully enjoy this one.