wow!!! really great game. i think its best to go in blind, so i'll be careful with what i say here. i dont know how i avoided spoilers for so long, but i'm really glad i did! i love meta-y stuff and deckbuilders and also roguelikes, so i knew i'd love it but this was more enriching than i expected.
act i was my favorite part, despite having played through everything. the mystery being turned up more in act 2 and the complete gameplay shift was a little sad, but once i found the way to continue my build from act 1, i breezed through it and had a blast finding all the secrets i could. once act 3 hit... i felt so complicated. i liked this version of the gameplay more than act 2, but in the beginning it just made me want act 1 back. exploration and progression felt really slow, and the death/losing mechanics felt unrewarding and bad in a way that the rest of the game had never been. i still agree with this, but that is my only real negative. my spirits lifted and thoughts changed the moments i hit all the bosses in act 3. without giving anything about the fight itself away, golly was my FAVORITE and is probably one of the coolest bosses in any video game i've ever played. the more i experienced the twists in act 3, the less i cared about the things i didnt like and honestly, i got into a real groove with the deck i built and the inherent gameplay required. it became such a fluid and challenging experience at times, that i have a hard time deciding which i liked more. the ending was great, though it left me yearning for more in a way that was... almost unsatisfying? thats not the fault of the writers, i just tend not to like open-ended conclusions. i'd much rather hear what the author intended and decide whether i want to take that in as my own ending, rather than be given nothing or very little and asked to piece it together on my own. its not even really a negative for me, because i think that this and the degradation in gameplay quality is intentional to what the game is trying to say, and the story that is taking place. i like it in concept, but its hard to rate. retrospectively, it makes sense, but in the moment it feels bad to play in a bleak and worse environment and to lose the fun gameplay. regardless, i wont say more, and i dont even think that people who dislike open endings will feel the same, so go in with an open mind!
overall, one of the better gaming experiences i've had. it didn't click with me the first time i played it, so i'm glad i put it down and resolved to come back when it did, because i think pushing through wouldn't have let me enjoy it as i did.
bonus points for the yugioh reference <3
MINOR SPOILER: i saw the duel disk and almost screamed at 2am <- what autism does to a man
act i was my favorite part, despite having played through everything. the mystery being turned up more in act 2 and the complete gameplay shift was a little sad, but once i found the way to continue my build from act 1, i breezed through it and had a blast finding all the secrets i could. once act 3 hit... i felt so complicated. i liked this version of the gameplay more than act 2, but in the beginning it just made me want act 1 back. exploration and progression felt really slow, and the death/losing mechanics felt unrewarding and bad in a way that the rest of the game had never been. i still agree with this, but that is my only real negative. my spirits lifted and thoughts changed the moments i hit all the bosses in act 3. without giving anything about the fight itself away, golly was my FAVORITE and is probably one of the coolest bosses in any video game i've ever played. the more i experienced the twists in act 3, the less i cared about the things i didnt like and honestly, i got into a real groove with the deck i built and the inherent gameplay required. it became such a fluid and challenging experience at times, that i have a hard time deciding which i liked more. the ending was great, though it left me yearning for more in a way that was... almost unsatisfying? thats not the fault of the writers, i just tend not to like open-ended conclusions. i'd much rather hear what the author intended and decide whether i want to take that in as my own ending, rather than be given nothing or very little and asked to piece it together on my own. its not even really a negative for me, because i think that this and the degradation in gameplay quality is intentional to what the game is trying to say, and the story that is taking place. i like it in concept, but its hard to rate. retrospectively, it makes sense, but in the moment it feels bad to play in a bleak and worse environment and to lose the fun gameplay. regardless, i wont say more, and i dont even think that people who dislike open endings will feel the same, so go in with an open mind!
overall, one of the better gaming experiences i've had. it didn't click with me the first time i played it, so i'm glad i put it down and resolved to come back when it did, because i think pushing through wouldn't have let me enjoy it as i did.
bonus points for the yugioh reference <3
MINOR SPOILER: i saw the duel disk and almost screamed at 2am <- what autism does to a man
karamatsu
5 months ago