solandecabras
This game is actually really good when you don't have a bitch in your ear telling you it sucks.
Seriously though, this masterpiece in storytelling is one of the best games I have ever played. It is possibly my second favorite numbered Xenoblade game (over 1 and under 3), and that says a lot. Honestly I don't have the energy to write a full review defending this game, just be aware that it really is not the absolutely horrible shit people will say it is. Many reasons to love this game, and playing it to the end at least once will make you understand why.
Seriously though, this masterpiece in storytelling is one of the best games I have ever played. It is possibly my second favorite numbered Xenoblade game (over 1 and under 3), and that says a lot. Honestly I don't have the energy to write a full review defending this game, just be aware that it really is not the absolutely horrible shit people will say it is. Many reasons to love this game, and playing it to the end at least once will make you understand why.
This review contains spoilers
A very solid and entertaining title that falls just a bit short of perfect.
The day after I picked up this game, I spent almost thirty-six hours straight playing it. It was so much fun! The gameplay loop is addicting, completing the Pokédex was FUN! Then I almost passed out so I went to bed and kept on playing the next day, haha.
This game has many great things, for example, the Pokémon roster, while not as expansive as recent games, feels somehow just perfect enough for this type of game. The characters are all incredibly charming, even if we know them from past titles (please let Ingo go back home??). The method of capturing Pokémon is so much fun and there are SO many ways for it to go wrong...!
It has a good story, even if it does feel a bit too... colonialist at times. It's quite solid and filled with a sort of quiet existential dread that feels even religious at times. The post-game, with Volo's entire quest, exacerbates this even more if possible,
The only problem I have with this game is that some areas do feel a bit too empty, and once you've explored most of the areas it all feels kind of small and samey. Other than that, this game is a BLAST to play and an absolute recommendation for anyone who likes Pokémon but is tired of the original formula!
The day after I picked up this game, I spent almost thirty-six hours straight playing it. It was so much fun! The gameplay loop is addicting, completing the Pokédex was FUN! Then I almost passed out so I went to bed and kept on playing the next day, haha.
This game has many great things, for example, the Pokémon roster, while not as expansive as recent games, feels somehow just perfect enough for this type of game. The characters are all incredibly charming, even if we know them from past titles (please let Ingo go back home??). The method of capturing Pokémon is so much fun and there are SO many ways for it to go wrong...!
It has a good story, even if it does feel a bit too... colonialist at times. It's quite solid and filled with a sort of quiet existential dread that feels even religious at times. The post-game, with Volo's entire quest, exacerbates this even more if possible,
The only problem I have with this game is that some areas do feel a bit too empty, and once you've explored most of the areas it all feels kind of small and samey. Other than that, this game is a BLAST to play and an absolute recommendation for anyone who likes Pokémon but is tired of the original formula!
2019
This review contains spoilers
Look, this game is really not as horrible as people make it to be. While it does have flaws, it also has its upsides!
The Wild Area is a bit empty, and it does start to feel small once you get around it once or twice, but the variety of Pokémon does make it feel like a real habitat and not some random place with Pokémon in it.
Some routes and cities have AMAZING design, and the atmosphere is really good, while some others are a bit more lackluster. It does manage to create a distinct identity, though.
The story is a weak point, and it feels a bit strangely rushed at times (kinda reminiscent of XY in that regard), but the characters make up for it. All of them feel unique, even if Hop does seem a bit too mediocre at times, and they're fun to battle!
Speaking of battle, the game's difficulty is not too high I'd say. The real challenges are not in the main campaign, but in the DLCs (the beginning of Game Freak's greedy era was here!) and the 5-star dens. This is a relaxed game with potential to be challenging, which is how most games should be.
The Pokémon roster is great, giving you a lot of possible options very early on, even if some of the new evolution methods are quite... unorthodox.
If I'm totally honest I can't remember much of the pre-DLC pre-postgame story because they invaded my mind once they came out, and most fo what I remember is from there.
The Isle of Armor is OK? I liked the Isle itself, enjoyed exploring it and completing the Pokédex, and Kubfu's storyline was fine I think. The battles against Mustard and Honey were very fun, and the way you could keep upgrading the Dojo was also very cool! The Cram-O-Matic was an addition for gamblers and the Alola forms were a fun throwback!
The Crown Tundra was a great scavenger hunt! Apart from the whole Calyrex storyline, the Swords of Justice were interesting to try and find and the Dynamax Adventures are a very fun way to shiny hunt or just get many different Pokémon! The three birds were also a quirky addition, and Keldeo's conditions for its appearance are certainly strange to find out!
Overall, this game is a fine game with solid DLCs that should have just been for free. Not as horrible as people say but not very good either - just fine!
The Wild Area is a bit empty, and it does start to feel small once you get around it once or twice, but the variety of Pokémon does make it feel like a real habitat and not some random place with Pokémon in it.
Some routes and cities have AMAZING design, and the atmosphere is really good, while some others are a bit more lackluster. It does manage to create a distinct identity, though.
The story is a weak point, and it feels a bit strangely rushed at times (kinda reminiscent of XY in that regard), but the characters make up for it. All of them feel unique, even if Hop does seem a bit too mediocre at times, and they're fun to battle!
Speaking of battle, the game's difficulty is not too high I'd say. The real challenges are not in the main campaign, but in the DLCs (the beginning of Game Freak's greedy era was here!) and the 5-star dens. This is a relaxed game with potential to be challenging, which is how most games should be.
The Pokémon roster is great, giving you a lot of possible options very early on, even if some of the new evolution methods are quite... unorthodox.
If I'm totally honest I can't remember much of the pre-DLC pre-postgame story because they invaded my mind once they came out, and most fo what I remember is from there.
The Isle of Armor is OK? I liked the Isle itself, enjoyed exploring it and completing the Pokédex, and Kubfu's storyline was fine I think. The battles against Mustard and Honey were very fun, and the way you could keep upgrading the Dojo was also very cool! The Cram-O-Matic was an addition for gamblers and the Alola forms were a fun throwback!
The Crown Tundra was a great scavenger hunt! Apart from the whole Calyrex storyline, the Swords of Justice were interesting to try and find and the Dynamax Adventures are a very fun way to shiny hunt or just get many different Pokémon! The three birds were also a quirky addition, and Keldeo's conditions for its appearance are certainly strange to find out!
Overall, this game is a fine game with solid DLCs that should have just been for free. Not as horrible as people say but not very good either - just fine!
2017
This review contains spoilers
The better version of Pokémon Sun&Moon... and probably what they should have been from the start.
USUM add many needed improvements to the base SM games, including but not limited to:
- A wider pool of Pokémon (Up to 400!) and a better encounter distribution.
- A different collectable hunt that feels rewarding (Totem Stickers)
- An enjoyable minigame that doubles as an easier way to obtain BP (Mantine Surf)
- Speaking of BP, new move tutors and the possibility to buy all Mega Stones in the Battle Tree
- The Alola Photo Club, where you can take cute pictures with your Pokémon and decorate them!
- Different trainer teams and different Trials (for example, the Grass trial or the Electric trial).
- A whole new host of side quests and cutscenes to make this game truly feel like an RPG. I did not realize how badly this region needed these; it now feels more full and lived in!
- A better endgame gameplay loop in Ultra Ride, which brings a lot of Legendaries, Ultra Beasts and non-Alola Pokémon with it. You can even shiny hunt in there!
- Story changes. Some of them were okay-ish, like the Ultra Recon Squad, some of them were downright awful, like Lusamine and Lillie's whole storyline, but changes nonetheless.
- An increase in difficulty. Apart from the infamous Ultra Necrozma fight (which I had to cheese with a level 6 Zorua), the game in general increases the levels of enemies and improves their movesets. Also, Molayne takes Kaudan's place in the Elite 4. Nice.
- Necrozma: no longer a strange one-off, the cover legendary now appears not only at the climax of the story but also during you ascent through an improved Mount Lanakila. It has a catch rate of 255, which means you can catch it with quite possibly any ball!
- UI redesign. Much nicer than whatever SM's UI had going on.
- Rainbow Rocket: The postgame includes this amazing callback to previous games, and the teams all change depending on the version you're playing! A nice, old-fashioned nostalgia trip à la PWT in the form of a gauntlet of battles.
There's so much about this game that's an improvement over the original it's insane. My only gripe, apart from the Lusamine storyline, is the fact that this should have been Sun and Moon from the very beginning instead of whatever undercooked game they gave us. These deserved to be the introduction to Alola, even if with the original storyline, and maybe a third version would've gone better if they had made this the base game. Given some of Alola's most commonly-criticized problems have not yet been solved in this version (long cutscenes, hand-holding, etc.), it really is the true gen 7 experience.
All in all, the only Alola experience I recommend because of how simply good it is, even with its few flaws.
USUM add many needed improvements to the base SM games, including but not limited to:
- A wider pool of Pokémon (Up to 400!) and a better encounter distribution.
- A different collectable hunt that feels rewarding (Totem Stickers)
- An enjoyable minigame that doubles as an easier way to obtain BP (Mantine Surf)
- Speaking of BP, new move tutors and the possibility to buy all Mega Stones in the Battle Tree
- The Alola Photo Club, where you can take cute pictures with your Pokémon and decorate them!
- Different trainer teams and different Trials (for example, the Grass trial or the Electric trial).
- A whole new host of side quests and cutscenes to make this game truly feel like an RPG. I did not realize how badly this region needed these; it now feels more full and lived in!
- A better endgame gameplay loop in Ultra Ride, which brings a lot of Legendaries, Ultra Beasts and non-Alola Pokémon with it. You can even shiny hunt in there!
- Story changes. Some of them were okay-ish, like the Ultra Recon Squad, some of them were downright awful, like Lusamine and Lillie's whole storyline, but changes nonetheless.
- An increase in difficulty. Apart from the infamous Ultra Necrozma fight (which I had to cheese with a level 6 Zorua), the game in general increases the levels of enemies and improves their movesets. Also, Molayne takes Kaudan's place in the Elite 4. Nice.
- Necrozma: no longer a strange one-off, the cover legendary now appears not only at the climax of the story but also during you ascent through an improved Mount Lanakila. It has a catch rate of 255, which means you can catch it with quite possibly any ball!
- UI redesign. Much nicer than whatever SM's UI had going on.
- Rainbow Rocket: The postgame includes this amazing callback to previous games, and the teams all change depending on the version you're playing! A nice, old-fashioned nostalgia trip à la PWT in the form of a gauntlet of battles.
There's so much about this game that's an improvement over the original it's insane. My only gripe, apart from the Lusamine storyline, is the fact that this should have been Sun and Moon from the very beginning instead of whatever undercooked game they gave us. These deserved to be the introduction to Alola, even if with the original storyline, and maybe a third version would've gone better if they had made this the base game. Given some of Alola's most commonly-criticized problems have not yet been solved in this version (long cutscenes, hand-holding, etc.), it really is the true gen 7 experience.
All in all, the only Alola experience I recommend because of how simply good it is, even with its few flaws.
2016
Look, I do like the Sun&Moon games. They have many cool features and fun things to do! It's just that they felt a bit... incomplete?
For starters, the Pokémon variety feels a bit... lackluster. Coming from Pokémon XY and ORAS, two of the games with the widest array of Pokémon ever, the 300-mon Pokédex (With over 25 being "special", fossils included) felt a bit shallow when quite a few of those encounters are either not available in the wild or only available through SOS call RNG - a tedious process that sometimes was just mind-numbing.
Many people complain about the hand-holding at the beginning of the game and all the cutscenes - and it's true! The tutorial stage lasts basically until you exit Hau'oli City, and even then, there's some things that are still left to be explained like Trials or Z-Moves.
Given the kind of railroad-y feeling the game has, the islands don't feel as big as they should (specifically Mele Mele and Ula Ula). The presence of optional areas is great, but some of those feel too empty or too tiny.
The story itself is actually great! Lusamine is a horrible person and an even more horrible mother, and the climax where Lillie finally confronts her is one of the best storytelling moments in Pokémon. It is emotional and the ending isn't perfect, but it's as good as it can get.
Character-wise, most of them are really charming! From Kukui to the Trial Captains to Guzma and Plumeria, everyone has a distinct personality and a great design. Hau might be the only exception, as his personality seems to be a bit more shallow and less developed than the rest, but a single slight is not bad in this regard. The cameos from previous generations are also great!
The difficulty is OK, I didn't have any difficulty with any of the Trials or the Elite 4, and the Looker and Anabelle (!!) quest at the end is also relatively interesting - though USUM did a slightly better job at handling the UBs. The new gimmick, Z-moves, is relatively fine, and given Mega-evolution makes a return in the post-game then it's OK!
The Zygarde cells are a fun collectable with a good reward, but it does feel like a recycled idea that didn't make it to XY.
Overall, this game is fine by itself, but if you want to experience Alola then you're much better off playing the USUM games and watching the SM story somewhere else - these games feel like a rushed, unpolished version of what USUM eventually came to be.
For starters, the Pokémon variety feels a bit... lackluster. Coming from Pokémon XY and ORAS, two of the games with the widest array of Pokémon ever, the 300-mon Pokédex (With over 25 being "special", fossils included) felt a bit shallow when quite a few of those encounters are either not available in the wild or only available through SOS call RNG - a tedious process that sometimes was just mind-numbing.
Many people complain about the hand-holding at the beginning of the game and all the cutscenes - and it's true! The tutorial stage lasts basically until you exit Hau'oli City, and even then, there's some things that are still left to be explained like Trials or Z-Moves.
Given the kind of railroad-y feeling the game has, the islands don't feel as big as they should (specifically Mele Mele and Ula Ula). The presence of optional areas is great, but some of those feel too empty or too tiny.
The story itself is actually great! Lusamine is a horrible person and an even more horrible mother, and the climax where Lillie finally confronts her is one of the best storytelling moments in Pokémon. It is emotional and the ending isn't perfect, but it's as good as it can get.
Character-wise, most of them are really charming! From Kukui to the Trial Captains to Guzma and Plumeria, everyone has a distinct personality and a great design. Hau might be the only exception, as his personality seems to be a bit more shallow and less developed than the rest, but a single slight is not bad in this regard. The cameos from previous generations are also great!
The difficulty is OK, I didn't have any difficulty with any of the Trials or the Elite 4, and the Looker and Anabelle (!!) quest at the end is also relatively interesting - though USUM did a slightly better job at handling the UBs. The new gimmick, Z-moves, is relatively fine, and given Mega-evolution makes a return in the post-game then it's OK!
The Zygarde cells are a fun collectable with a good reward, but it does feel like a recycled idea that didn't make it to XY.
Overall, this game is fine by itself, but if you want to experience Alola then you're much better off playing the USUM games and watching the SM story somewhere else - these games feel like a rushed, unpolished version of what USUM eventually came to be.
A worthy sequel to Pokémon Black & White, it adds old Pokémon to the roster this time around, which helps make it feel distinct from its predecessor if the new areas and characters wasn't enough already. The story feels a bit more forced than the previous game, and while it does have GREAT moments, it also hits some decent lows. There were some strange decisions, like locking breeding until after the postgame, but otherwise a pretty solid entry in the series!
Amazing game. The choice to keep only new Pokémon until the postgame really helped this game feel unique, the story was good, the graphics were great... Many things to praise about this game.
My only gripes would be the EXP point system and the sudden level spike you get in the postgame areas, but it truly is a refreshing take that Pokémon desperately needed. Player communication could also be improved a bit, but sadly nowadays that hardly matters, does it?
My only gripes would be the EXP point system and the sudden level spike you get in the postgame areas, but it truly is a refreshing take that Pokémon desperately needed. Player communication could also be improved a bit, but sadly nowadays that hardly matters, does it?
2017
Look I'm not going to pretend I related to any of these characters except for maybe Angus. However this is still an amazing game, with so much to find out and discover, with many slice-of-life moments that elevated the main story and made it almost immaculate.
Being a teenager becoming a young adult is one of the most confusing parts fo life, and Mae exemplifies it perfectly. Many other characters are mirrors held up to either her or you, the player, and I think that's so hard to do properly but so well done in here it's incredible.
Not much else to say, just go play it if you have the chance!
Being a teenager becoming a young adult is one of the most confusing parts fo life, and Mae exemplifies it perfectly. Many other characters are mirrors held up to either her or you, the player, and I think that's so hard to do properly but so well done in here it's incredible.
Not much else to say, just go play it if you have the chance!
This review contains spoilers
An amazing point-and-click game in which you're a jaded detective trying to solve cases you know are strange. A great story for fans of the cyber-noir-esoteric genre mismash, with very satisfying puzzles and an open ending that leaves you craving more. Hopefully a sequel is eventually made!!
On the character side, every single character is interesting at worst and incredibly compelling at best. Rex, our rugged and disgraced detective, is a masterpiece of a noir homage and his story is one of the best parts of this entire game. His cat - who you also play as!! - is quite funny too!
The environments are impossibly beautiful - neon landscapes juxtaposed with the wastes of an industrial society close to ruin, with so many details and quirks you'll be staring at your screen absorbing everything - or trying to.
Overall, an extremely enjoyable experience!
On the character side, every single character is interesting at worst and incredibly compelling at best. Rex, our rugged and disgraced detective, is a masterpiece of a noir homage and his story is one of the best parts of this entire game. His cat - who you also play as!! - is quite funny too!
The environments are impossibly beautiful - neon landscapes juxtaposed with the wastes of an industrial society close to ruin, with so many details and quirks you'll be staring at your screen absorbing everything - or trying to.
Overall, an extremely enjoyable experience!
The best Zelda experience I've ever had. Expansive world, interesting characters, amazing storyline, YOU CAN BECOME A WOLF!! Even now I still feel that childlike wonder every time i boot it up.
Sinnoh is a good region, and thankfully Platinum makes sure we know it. This game solves quite a few problems Diamond and Pearl endured, like the horrible Pokémon distribution or the overall slowness. The story is also improved, and in general it just feels so much better to play. There are still some of the general Sinnoh nuisances to deal with, like the fog weather, the honey trees or the slow leveling up, but it's quite more playable than its predecessors. Recommended if you can get your hands on a real cartridge (doubtful) or an emulator (actually viable).
Look this game is great, really, but it's a horrible slog to go through. Apart from the famed slowness, it does suffer from terrible Pokémon distribution and a somewhat lackluster story. It did introduce great things to the franchise, like the Physical/Special split and easier ways to see all the Pokémon in the regional dex! But it's not the definitive gen 4 experience.
2002
Still play it to this day. Hoenn is just an amazing region, and sadly this game does have some shortcomings (battery life, contests, secret bases, etc.). Thankfully they got solved in the remakes, and the original games can remain as good as they ever were! I did not enjoy the feebas hunting but I did get a shiny Carvanha while doing it so bonus points for that.
Everyone say thank you Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire for introducing abilities to the games.
Everyone say thank you Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire for introducing abilities to the games.
2012
I know all the choreographies by heart. I have 5-star on literally every single song except Umbrella for some reason. This videogame has been with me through thick and thin. The song selection is superb, and it's still so much fun to just boot it up and play soem random shuffle songs!! JD4 they could never make me hate you <3
2013
This is like the NSMBU experience but if it was a thousand times more fun. The time limit makes everything feel so much more frantic, and the level design is simply superb! I loved it so much I even 100%ed it!!