excellent game to play while something else is running in the background. it's grindy at times, but this is a journey of life across a billion years. what better excuse is there for a grind?

I would think less of E.V.O. if I didn't enjoy the concept of it so much. hopping around and chomping at stuff doesn't actually feel that great, which is accentuated on the boss fights. I was mostly looking forward to seeing how each evolution would change my primordial pal's stats/abilities and more importantly how he looked. can't think of many other games that let me have a horse-bodied, hippo-jawed, antler-having brachiosaurus.

it's about 3 stages deep into P&R when I was second guessing how much I really wanted to keep playing it. I decided I'm too tough of a Gamer to consider giving it up. built differently. perhaps incorrectly.

either way, seeing P&R through to the end was pretty damn cathartic. successfully diving to safety 25% of the time, then into a hazard/wall or entirely off the stage the other 75%. forgetting to deflect while trying to shoot everything before everything kills me. accidentally picking up the wrong power-up and having my weapon reset to level 1 near the end of the stage. manically tapping the d-pad to perfectly position myself to attack before realizing the boss had already started making its move.

after coming down from the high of finishing it, I think I'd actually say it's almost equal parts fun and frustrating. love the presentation. it's cute. I'm a sucker for yokai stuff. that difficulty left me mollywhopped though. good game.

Goemon is a bite-sized game bursting at the seams with charm. Like gushers candy. Who doesn't like gushers? Great music, great visuals, and the gameplay?

It's a blend of solid 2D platforming along with sections that I want to liken to the River City games, even though you could probably just call them beat 'em up levels. The River City comparison mostly comes from the quirkiness and the so-bad-they're-kind-of-funny quips. The rest lies in the gameplay loop while you're in towns: beat goons, collect money, and visit shops (food/upgrades/new skills). There are also a bunch of minigames you can hang out with when you're tired of being assaulted by everything.

Strange hitboxes are a problem in a few places and there are maybe two sections of the game where you have to hit something at the right spot the correct number of times. That said, I blasted through this in one good sitting that clocked in at just over 3 hours. Minimal suffering given the amount of enjoyment I got out of that short time.

Also, shoutout to Goemon for non-traditional weapons. His smoking pipe upgrades into a yo-yo for some reason, but yo-yos own. Your gold can also be used as a projectile. Sick stuff.