rookdorf
118 reviews liked by rookdorf
Balatro
2024
I think it's time to not play this as a main game anymore. After reaching my goal with nearly all the decks at blue stakes and one deck finishing gold, I will just start to play it occasionally. The challenges look really fun, so I'm hopeful there will be some updates to get me back in here with more of them too. I really liked doing these in other card games, so I didn't really want to rush through them right now. I'll pray for anyone who even attempts to get all the gold stickers.
Persona 3 Reload
2024
It's everything I ever wanted.
This review contains spoilers
This game is fucking huge.
There are so many minigames and activities, and outside of a couple, they were all great. I especially liked the Johnny quest which made you collect trinkets from all over the world, some from mastering minigames, some from tough challenges, or some from random exploration. The flavour text on a lot of them was really nice too, and it acted as a nice sort of completion list. Another one of my favourite parts was the Protorelics and their overall quest. They are all references to 7/Remake, and I appreciated them bringing back Fort Condor since I thought Queen's Blood wasn't that great. Just like the previous game, the sequel is very easy, even with dynamic (just level scaling?) for most of the time, so I do wish they would just give a harder difficulty from the start...Also, like the remake, the last chapter here kind of gets a little too crazy, and I was equally confused as to how your party members get picked for each phase. It turns out to be set, and it looks like it will be a lot easier when I replay in hard mode. Despite that final chapter, the rest of the game seemed pretty faithful, hitting everything with only a few glaring changes (Gi storyline expanded, Cid introduced & handled differently, Tifa lifestream). The extra postgame challenges and hard mode in general (I assume from Remake) were a nice way to end the game and get rid of the memory of Grasslands (I hate that zone so much now). Though I understand it is much harder to justify for a lot of people with how large this game was (even if they give you more time playing as Sephiroth and Zack).
Did they tease Zack way too much? Yes, but I loved seeing Cissnei and hearing the music in Gongaga.
Could they have deleted grasslands since it is a terrible zone? Yeah, but the later open world zones are much better because you're forced to explore more with your chocobo.
Could they have cut or split another zone like Corel? Yeah probably, Corel being in two different locales at two different times in the story really helped with the pacing.
Could you cut 90% of the things Chadley says? Yes
There are so many minigames and activities, and outside of a couple, they were all great. I especially liked the Johnny quest which made you collect trinkets from all over the world, some from mastering minigames, some from tough challenges, or some from random exploration. The flavour text on a lot of them was really nice too, and it acted as a nice sort of completion list. Another one of my favourite parts was the Protorelics and their overall quest. They are all references to 7/Remake, and I appreciated them bringing back Fort Condor since I thought Queen's Blood wasn't that great. Just like the previous game, the sequel is very easy, even with dynamic (just level scaling?) for most of the time, so I do wish they would just give a harder difficulty from the start...Also, like the remake, the last chapter here kind of gets a little too crazy, and I was equally confused as to how your party members get picked for each phase. It turns out to be set, and it looks like it will be a lot easier when I replay in hard mode. Despite that final chapter, the rest of the game seemed pretty faithful, hitting everything with only a few glaring changes (Gi storyline expanded, Cid introduced & handled differently, Tifa lifestream). The extra postgame challenges and hard mode in general (I assume from Remake) were a nice way to end the game and get rid of the memory of Grasslands (I hate that zone so much now). Though I understand it is much harder to justify for a lot of people with how large this game was (even if they give you more time playing as Sephiroth and Zack).
Did they tease Zack way too much? Yes, but I loved seeing Cissnei and hearing the music in Gongaga.
Could they have deleted grasslands since it is a terrible zone? Yeah, but the later open world zones are much better because you're forced to explore more with your chocobo.
Could they have cut or split another zone like Corel? Yeah probably, Corel being in two different locales at two different times in the story really helped with the pacing.
Could you cut 90% of the things Chadley says? Yes
Balatro
2024
When are we going to get a mahjong roguelite?
It's still pretty early to give a proper opinion, but I really liked this. It's not perfect like I thought it would be with the demo since it seems to lean on a lot from Slay the Spire. The stakes (difficulty system) are really pretty harsh, and it seems very hard to ever come close to consistent wins there. Lots of runs will just die so early if you don't get anything to help you survive. I think doing the highest difficulty really did drain me from how helpless it feels. It also just feels like such an excessive grind for each deck to have its own stake progression. 15 different decks (a good number of them are really interesting though), each with 8 stakes, is kind of insane when I compare it to the two big games I've spent the most time on: Monster Train with 12 (2 dlc) different champions all sharing the same progression up to 25 covenant ranks, or Slay the Spire with 4 (1 new) characters and 20 ascension levels for each. Since these decks need you to unlock stake levels too, it made me feel like I should incentivize 1 deck rather than going for the variety like in MT (rotating every champion to 25).
The unlocks lean more on that too, with some strange out there requirements that pretty much force you to go look up each one if you truly want to get everything and set up your run in a specific way while hoping to get lucky. Not to mention, you can also sticker every joker at every stake level (insane). I ended up winning with every deck at various stakes and got a couple of decks up/at to max (lvl 8), but I didn't really go for insane scores. I can see just playing lower stakes and going for score/variety being a lot more fun. Anyway, this is only after about a week of playing, and I'll definitely get back into it in the future since there are other games I want to play. Maybe I'll go back and joker/voucher hunt the final ones. Maybe it was better to just get every joker before going to stakes. Maybe there will be some new stuff to see, and they will ease up on some of the other things.
It's still pretty early to give a proper opinion, but I really liked this. It's not perfect like I thought it would be with the demo since it seems to lean on a lot from Slay the Spire. The stakes (difficulty system) are really pretty harsh, and it seems very hard to ever come close to consistent wins there. Lots of runs will just die so early if you don't get anything to help you survive. I think doing the highest difficulty really did drain me from how helpless it feels. It also just feels like such an excessive grind for each deck to have its own stake progression. 15 different decks (a good number of them are really interesting though), each with 8 stakes, is kind of insane when I compare it to the two big games I've spent the most time on: Monster Train with 12 (2 dlc) different champions all sharing the same progression up to 25 covenant ranks, or Slay the Spire with 4 (1 new) characters and 20 ascension levels for each. Since these decks need you to unlock stake levels too, it made me feel like I should incentivize 1 deck rather than going for the variety like in MT (rotating every champion to 25).
The unlocks lean more on that too, with some strange out there requirements that pretty much force you to go look up each one if you truly want to get everything and set up your run in a specific way while hoping to get lucky. Not to mention, you can also sticker every joker at every stake level (insane). I ended up winning with every deck at various stakes and got a couple of decks up/at to max (lvl 8), but I didn't really go for insane scores. I can see just playing lower stakes and going for score/variety being a lot more fun. Anyway, this is only after about a week of playing, and I'll definitely get back into it in the future since there are other games I want to play. Maybe I'll go back and joker/voucher hunt the final ones. Maybe it was better to just get every joker before going to stakes. Maybe there will be some new stuff to see, and they will ease up on some of the other things.
Most of my issues with this game are spoiler-related, even some of the gameplay-related ones. In short, this game was a bit of a disappointment for me, especially when compared to 7. It definitely had it’s moments but I preferred 7 for the most part in many areas, other than the combat of course. I’ll do a spoiler-filled review soonish hopefully. No idea when, as I don’t really want to think about this game for ages. It left me feeling very exhausted, and not in a good way.
Combat has been somewhat improved from the first game, but this is still an absolute slog. After heading to Dondoko Island and having a good time turning it into a 5-star resort, I came crashing back down when I returned to Hawaii and realized I still have like 60 hours of this bull shit left.
The wacky substories are fun as ever, but the main plot is legitimately the worst in Yakuza history. It's nothing but a bizarre series of sitcom-like coincidences strung together, with Ichiban already Flanderized in his second starring appearance. Kazuma got cancer because a forklift crashed into some radioactive waste? WHAT the FUCK are you TALKING ABOUT?!?!?
Anyway, I decided to do all the Sujimon stuff instead, and once that was finished, put this thing away so I can play a JRPG from people who know what they're doing.
Marked as "shelved" because I might buy this when it's 10 dollars in about 6 months and try to finish it. Unlikely, though. I am looking forward to either Akiyama Gaiden or Judgment 3: Kaito Goes Coconuts. Please, God, save me from these terrible Yakuza RPGs.
4/10. 1 point is for Dondoko Island, where you can give alcohol to children. Another point is for the Sujimon League, and the final two points are for Chitose's prominent jiggle physics.
The wacky substories are fun as ever, but the main plot is legitimately the worst in Yakuza history. It's nothing but a bizarre series of sitcom-like coincidences strung together, with Ichiban already Flanderized in his second starring appearance. Kazuma got cancer because a forklift crashed into some radioactive waste? WHAT the FUCK are you TALKING ABOUT?!?!?
Anyway, I decided to do all the Sujimon stuff instead, and once that was finished, put this thing away so I can play a JRPG from people who know what they're doing.
Marked as "shelved" because I might buy this when it's 10 dollars in about 6 months and try to finish it. Unlikely, though. I am looking forward to either Akiyama Gaiden or Judgment 3: Kaito Goes Coconuts. Please, God, save me from these terrible Yakuza RPGs.
4/10. 1 point is for Dondoko Island, where you can give alcohol to children. Another point is for the Sujimon League, and the final two points are for Chitose's prominent jiggle physics.
I don’t know where to fit this into the rest of the review, so let me just get this out of the way first: Yamai put this game on his back. One of the best new characters in gaming this decade. This guy is a REAL yearner. He loves dusty old women and wants you to know it.
Infinite Wealth is a prime example of how to use a sequel to make thoughtful improvements to a solid formula. The turn based combat has been retooled to give the player more control over unit positioning and areas of effect. The new job progression means less fussing over stat growth and encourages experimentation. The expanded social link system gives party members ample opportunity to display on-screen chemistry outside of the main story— enabling the player to buy into the game’s characterization of its protagonist as a man with an uncanny ability to unite people.
Speaking of Ichiban Kasuga, I don't think there's any doubt that he takes a backseat to Kiryu in this game. Despite Ichi being the new face of the series and having the torch passed to him in Yakuza 7, Infinite Wealth funnels all of its juicy character development and opportunities for true drama to the ol’ Dragon of Dojima. Who am I to complain, though? I loved every second of it. But it struck me as odd that Ichiban didn't get the same treatment. He has one opportunity to demonstrate true personal growth, and it’s played as a gag that sets him back to square one. He is made out to be a caricature— a cartoonish, idealistic hero. Meanwhile, Kiryu is portrayed more like a real human than ever before-- flaws and all.
With all of the thematic emphasis on closure and solidifying legacies, I’m surprised by how many loose ends Infinite Wealth leaves us with. In some ways, this makes the game feel like the second installment of a trilogy, which is fine. But in other cases, there were plot details simply left out or things that I would have liked to see fleshed out that probably never will be.
My final complaint is minor. There is a trophy for reaching level 70. After finishing all of the content in the game, my party was in the low 50s with few options for grinding. Outside of the achievement list, there is no reason to push the party past level 60. The hardest bosses in the game can be beaten far below that. The game’s most natural path to level 70 is locked behind paid DLC, which grants access to high level end-game dungeons.
I’m ultimately giving this game a slightly lower score than Gaiden. Gaiden didn’t have much to engage with outside of its extremely tight, well-told main story. Infinite Wealth, on the other hand, has engrossing side content that could warrant its own games. I was constantly entertained by a variety of activities. However, the weirdly paced story— despite many highlights— and mishandling of certain characters left me scratching my head at times. To me, no Yakuza game has managed to create the perfect blend of narrative and gameplay quite like Yakuza 0. But these two most recent entries have been thoroughly enjoyable nonetheless.
Infinite Wealth is a prime example of how to use a sequel to make thoughtful improvements to a solid formula. The turn based combat has been retooled to give the player more control over unit positioning and areas of effect. The new job progression means less fussing over stat growth and encourages experimentation. The expanded social link system gives party members ample opportunity to display on-screen chemistry outside of the main story— enabling the player to buy into the game’s characterization of its protagonist as a man with an uncanny ability to unite people.
Speaking of Ichiban Kasuga, I don't think there's any doubt that he takes a backseat to Kiryu in this game. Despite Ichi being the new face of the series and having the torch passed to him in Yakuza 7, Infinite Wealth funnels all of its juicy character development and opportunities for true drama to the ol’ Dragon of Dojima. Who am I to complain, though? I loved every second of it. But it struck me as odd that Ichiban didn't get the same treatment. He has one opportunity to demonstrate true personal growth, and it’s played as a gag that sets him back to square one. He is made out to be a caricature— a cartoonish, idealistic hero. Meanwhile, Kiryu is portrayed more like a real human than ever before-- flaws and all.
With all of the thematic emphasis on closure and solidifying legacies, I’m surprised by how many loose ends Infinite Wealth leaves us with. In some ways, this makes the game feel like the second installment of a trilogy, which is fine. But in other cases, there were plot details simply left out or things that I would have liked to see fleshed out that probably never will be.
My final complaint is minor. There is a trophy for reaching level 70. After finishing all of the content in the game, my party was in the low 50s with few options for grinding. Outside of the achievement list, there is no reason to push the party past level 60. The hardest bosses in the game can be beaten far below that. The game’s most natural path to level 70 is locked behind paid DLC, which grants access to high level end-game dungeons.
I’m ultimately giving this game a slightly lower score than Gaiden. Gaiden didn’t have much to engage with outside of its extremely tight, well-told main story. Infinite Wealth, on the other hand, has engrossing side content that could warrant its own games. I was constantly entertained by a variety of activities. However, the weirdly paced story— despite many highlights— and mishandling of certain characters left me scratching my head at times. To me, no Yakuza game has managed to create the perfect blend of narrative and gameplay quite like Yakuza 0. But these two most recent entries have been thoroughly enjoyable nonetheless.
listen man im used to plotholes in yakuza and i’ve learned to love how messy and chaotic their stories can be. i want to love this so much because the cast is fantastic as usual and there are some very well done emotional beats but holy fuck i can’t get over how bad they botched this story. it’s not even “silly” stupid like rubber bullets or falling from a 20 story building and surviving or getting shot point blank in the head and also surviving. it’s just outright bad here. no loose ends tied, a lot of “so what the fuck was the point of that” moments. this also made all the events in gaiden just feel completely pointless. and it made the new poster boy for LAD games feel like a side character. there’s just so much im not happy with in terms of story and characterization
that being said, it has by far my favorite turn based combat system ever. just a straight up improvement in every way over 7. the substories were great too, especially ‘let it snow’ which is probably my favorite substory ever now. i wasn’t a fan of their dungeon redesign, it just feels copy pasted and claustrophobic and getting through it was more of a chore than anything else.
going around hawaii for the little social link bonds was also really fun. the conversations they have almost always make me laugh or smile and i happily did every last one. i just wish the story didn’t fall flat on its face
yamai is literally my goat btw top 3 with akiyama and majima PLEASE don’t do him dirty in future games
that being said, it has by far my favorite turn based combat system ever. just a straight up improvement in every way over 7. the substories were great too, especially ‘let it snow’ which is probably my favorite substory ever now. i wasn’t a fan of their dungeon redesign, it just feels copy pasted and claustrophobic and getting through it was more of a chore than anything else.
going around hawaii for the little social link bonds was also really fun. the conversations they have almost always make me laugh or smile and i happily did every last one. i just wish the story didn’t fall flat on its face
yamai is literally my goat btw top 3 with akiyama and majima PLEASE don’t do him dirty in future games
This review contains spoilers
Infinite Wealth is a fun game with a lot of ideas that they don't give themselves enough time to explore. Part of that is the time they waste on absolutely nothing in the middle chapters, and part of that is a structural issue.
Personally, I think it would have made more sense for the campaigns to start separate and then come together for the end. Because particularly Kiryu's final boss has a ton of stuff where it'd be nice for Ichiban to be there.
I still love these characters, and there are strong emotional moments throughout. But I can never forgive giving Chitose her character development haircut off-screen, so.
Shout out to Wang Tou's six-year-old son! I assume we saved him? We forgot him for like forty hours, but he's probably fine.
Personally, I think it would have made more sense for the campaigns to start separate and then come together for the end. Because particularly Kiryu's final boss has a ton of stuff where it'd be nice for Ichiban to be there.
I still love these characters, and there are strong emotional moments throughout. But I can never forgive giving Chitose her character development haircut off-screen, so.
Shout out to Wang Tou's six-year-old son! I assume we saved him? We forgot him for like forty hours, but he's probably fine.
Persona 5 Tactica
2023
Persona 5 Tactics is another spin-off game that allows us to control the Phantom Thieves. As the title suggests, it's not a turn-based RPG like Persona 5 and Persona 5 Royal; instead, it's a tactical game similar to XCOM.
I really enjoy tactical games, but I must say that Persona 5 Tactics is the easiest game in this genre. There are almost no consequences for your wrong actions on the field. The main story consists of easy stages, and you only face some challenges when playing the side quests.
Talking about the story is challenging for me. As someone who loves the Persona 5 story, I can say that this spin-off falls far behind in this aspect. However, when compared to other games, it's still interesting. The best part, for sure, is the characters who remain super charismatic. At some point, I felt the game was unnecessarily huge.
To understand the story, you have to play Persona 5 or Persona 5 Royal first. Otherwise, you won't grasp a significant part of the game and won't have the connections with these characters, who are the heart of this franchise.
The art initially made me feel like it took a step back. After a few hours, I started to enjoy it.
Persona 5 Tactics is a game destined for fans of Persona 5 and the Phantom Thieves. I don't recommend it if you've never played the main title before or if you don't want to spend more time with these characters. The gameplay is okay, but there are better tactical games out there.
I really enjoy tactical games, but I must say that Persona 5 Tactics is the easiest game in this genre. There are almost no consequences for your wrong actions on the field. The main story consists of easy stages, and you only face some challenges when playing the side quests.
Talking about the story is challenging for me. As someone who loves the Persona 5 story, I can say that this spin-off falls far behind in this aspect. However, when compared to other games, it's still interesting. The best part, for sure, is the characters who remain super charismatic. At some point, I felt the game was unnecessarily huge.
To understand the story, you have to play Persona 5 or Persona 5 Royal first. Otherwise, you won't grasp a significant part of the game and won't have the connections with these characters, who are the heart of this franchise.
The art initially made me feel like it took a step back. After a few hours, I started to enjoy it.
Persona 5 Tactics is a game destined for fans of Persona 5 and the Phantom Thieves. I don't recommend it if you've never played the main title before or if you don't want to spend more time with these characters. The gameplay is okay, but there are better tactical games out there.
