mchearn
2020
As much as I miss the QoL upgrades and pacing of Pikmin 4, 3 remains a pretty properly difficult campaign where awkward caves and minor side pieces are barely present and most of these maps are intuitively threaded to be solved with its remixed out-of-sequence Pikmin gathering and its own split-up Dandari-ism. In that and other senses, the least accessible of the series but fun to prove your mettle here.
Not just incredibly lavish level design that's full of original ideas and details that abuse the Quake engine within an inch of its life, also creatively propulsive levels full of understandable paths with secrets and enemy placement that keeps creating new and fun different types of fights. The best of the canon MPs and a top-tier Quake mod.
2003
Probably not better than the SSX series for snowboarding representation but as a relatively straightforward racer with challenge modes is very fun and controls well. Certainly better than the barebones N64 version.
Honestly kind of some fair trades with the original, it's more casual and lets you play with party and "Sparks" customization more instead of grinding or worrying about equipment, but the open world areas and quests add a fun if still simple sense of exploration about it. But above all there's something to the charm of both this and the prior Mario + Rabbids that adds to it more than just being an XCOM clone with sillier mechanics, enough that I ended up springing for all the DLC.
2023
Interesting and compelling in storytelling especially for video games, though in that sense also limited to its gimmicks, with specific mechanics actually underlining its limitations (that you can "upgrade" Alan's abilities when he's actually actively less a gunman in his own sides). I'd rather replay any given Resident Evil or Control but undeniable an experience that could hold merits for games especially those in survival horror.
1991
Fun in a junky arcade manner, but pretty unfortunately rudimentary in level design and combat, and mostly missing the iconic element of SoF2's soundtrack. Was almost the first game I beat on my Mega SG.
2011
As someone who wasn't too much into Crysis' sandbox elements and didn't even think it cohered too much with its ideas, actually pretty good at this ones approach of giving you smaller skirmish areas to plot out in and use immediate skills to navigate. Still pretty linear to the point of CoD-style gameplay and thin in its cinematic elements.
I'd been wanting this for long enough (despite having skipped 4 and 5) that its only upon playing that I realized the limitations of the series as well as its many charms, but thankfully the latter outnumber the former. That is, the customization and weaponry is varied enough to make arena fighting and boss solving a blast, but the level design and general missions are simple enough to be cheesed regardless. Still pretty fun and always had its quality of life to stop it from getting one stuck for too long, and this is the smoothest controls and combat the series has ever had.
Assuredly the best original 2D Mario since SNES, with the level design and Wonder elements taking on acknowledgment to modern game design (sometimes directly indie references) that keeps its levels progressing with fresh new challenges. Only minor complaints are that it's not very difficult for seasoned gamers, and the co-op bends enough to not be annoying like NSMB but misses out on feeling truly collaborative like the Yoshi/Kirby games.
2023
Fun enough party game that makes everyone look very silly and that's some of its appeal in its brief singleplayer mode too. The motion control is better than the Wii one especially since its stances clearly matter more (whereas Smooth Moves you could end up cheesing through by any waggle) though it makes some of its stuff trickier like the Hand Model stance being dependent on a sensor camera. Ultimately even Get It Together was more of a complete game but probably the most accessible multiplayer for non-gamers, and you can live with being the person in your friend group who owns it if you're a big enough fan.
Also pretty funny in its games, lore, and interstitial "Voice" explanations.
Also pretty funny in its games, lore, and interstitial "Voice" explanations.
2006
Plays a little weird through the port but otherwise minorly fun top-down shooter with some tricky AI-buddy scenarios.
2017
Was starting off pretty into its smaller, sci-fi flavored Souls-like take with a pretty dynamic combat system and ingenious customization, but had to admit after some remarkable open-air areas it starts to get more and more confined and the loopy nature of the shortcuts is a lot less clever than how Souls games would approach it. So many vent-corridors. Still cool enough that I played it through and even enjoyed its relatively easy-to-master boss fights, but hoping the sequel fine-tunes this and has more inventive level design.
2022
Basically the DOOM Eternal to GoW (2018)'s DOOM (2016), in that I get the common critiques of the new systems and lesser story, but I'm still having a blast with its expansion on what the prior set-down and having just as much fun. This engine of immediate weapon-based combat is really fluid and fun, and a preferable use of its linear level design to stuff like the mainline Uncharteds turning into cover-based shooting galleries for instance. Its not going to convince anyone who didn't like the previous one, naturally.
Some fun at first but then a lot of save-scum reliant trap laden levels and confined settings lose its luster. Picks up in the last chapter especially well before ending on a very simple final boss.
The dream of the Gamecube originals is dead, this is the unbalanced, hectic nightmare of its wake.