wafflesforleah
2019
"A Fire Emblem with really gorgeous art [but please please draw women with at least SLIGHTLY more realistic breasts please god] set in the 19th century" is an incredible pitch aimed like, directly at me, and I was digging it for a little while but then my interest just completely evaporated.
I think if that pitch I described above would hit for you, too, you should give this a shot--it might really hit and then you'll have a lovely game!
I think if that pitch I described above would hit for you, too, you should give this a shot--it might really hit and then you'll have a lovely game!
2002
WELL yet another revisit of a game I played a tooooooon of back in the day. When Dungeon Siege came out I was just enamored of it; I was all over it, I couldn't get enough. Something about how kinetic it was, the Diablo 2-esque loot and constant upgrades and especially the fact that every bit of loot changed the way you looked, too? Gosh, I just adored it
And I more or less felt the same way now, replaying it. I had a blast just clicking on bad guys and watching my party light 'em up. I love how weird and crunchy it is, I love how weirdly generic it feels--I just dig this thing through and through.
And I more or less felt the same way now, replaying it. I had a blast just clicking on bad guys and watching my party light 'em up. I love how weird and crunchy it is, I love how weirdly generic it feels--I just dig this thing through and through.
1994
I came into CRW thinking and hoping it would be like the original X-Com I love so much, but it being a contemporary of UFO defense really shows how much these sorts of things must have just been of a time!
Unfortunately, as much as this game looks more or less like my platonic ideal of a video game (my wife wandered over at one point and said, "this is the most Leah looking game I've ever seen") it feels dreadful to play. I can't help but wonder why on Earth they didn't make it turn based, especially because the second one is.
All in all, it's a game that looks great (no surprise) but is rough to play in 2024
Unfortunately, as much as this game looks more or less like my platonic ideal of a video game (my wife wandered over at one point and said, "this is the most Leah looking game I've ever seen") it feels dreadful to play. I can't help but wonder why on Earth they didn't make it turn based, especially because the second one is.
All in all, it's a game that looks great (no surprise) but is rough to play in 2024
Sometimes my non-games-interested wife will just turn on the Dreamcast or Saturn in our living room and pick something more or less at random and we end up playing it for a while together as it becomes a fun obsession for her for a few days
So in like 5 game sets a bunch of times over the last few days we’ve been playing this little tennis game! It’s fine! It’s like a Dreamcast Wii tennis! Kinda no frills but with cute little fellas you play as
I poked around the “story” mode a bit and it’s got skill points and all that—not too shabby!!
So in like 5 game sets a bunch of times over the last few days we’ve been playing this little tennis game! It’s fine! It’s like a Dreamcast Wii tennis! Kinda no frills but with cute little fellas you play as
I poked around the “story” mode a bit and it’s got skill points and all that—not too shabby!!
2006
[Free play on the Multi-Game cab in the hotel I’m at for 2 weeks]
It’s Metal Slug! What a fun way to kill some time. I didn’t love how you turn into an elephant when you get a power up and then like, your knife is a fork
It’s Metal Slug! What a fun way to kill some time. I didn’t love how you turn into an elephant when you get a power up and then like, your knife is a fork
2022
SO. Songs of Conquest is good! It looks GREAT and it scratches the Heroes of Might and Magic itch.
When I think back on some of the most formative video games on my games taste, Heroes of Might and Magic 2 and 3 are near the very top of the list. In fact, HoMM 2 might have been the first time I ever finished an all-day marathon session and then right away started up another; even 9 year old me was a binge gamer hahaha
I've played and loved every HoMM game since then, and have been gutted that the series hasn't continued in earnest. So I was so happy to see a game that looked this good in the screens and media and so obviously an homage to the games I loved.
But it's just...missing...something. I don't think it's soul, exactly, since this game has character and charm of its own.
I think literally it might be as simple as the big city views. I wonder why they decided to not do those?
On the whole, you should play this, but don't feel alone if you go, "...eh..."
When I think back on some of the most formative video games on my games taste, Heroes of Might and Magic 2 and 3 are near the very top of the list. In fact, HoMM 2 might have been the first time I ever finished an all-day marathon session and then right away started up another; even 9 year old me was a binge gamer hahaha
I've played and loved every HoMM game since then, and have been gutted that the series hasn't continued in earnest. So I was so happy to see a game that looked this good in the screens and media and so obviously an homage to the games I loved.
But it's just...missing...something. I don't think it's soul, exactly, since this game has character and charm of its own.
I think literally it might be as simple as the big city views. I wonder why they decided to not do those?
On the whole, you should play this, but don't feel alone if you go, "...eh..."
2020
WELL I got absolutely absorbed into CK3 several weeks back and, as I have done with more or less every Paradox historical game going way back, I did nothing but think about it every waking minute I wasn't playing, and then at a certain point just arbitrarily lost interest entirely!
Which is to say, I loved it! I continue to love it. I played hundreds of hours of CK2 and this is just as great. I love painting the map just as much as I love the court intrigue and just following one family throughout time.
I will say, the reason it lost half a star in my book is because it seems...aware of itself in a way CK2 wasn't. I think there was part of the content and writing team that were folks who had played a lot of CK2 and leaned into it a bit too hard. I understand the temptation of self-awareness, but that sorta stuff isn't always for me.
Which is to say, I loved it! I continue to love it. I played hundreds of hours of CK2 and this is just as great. I love painting the map just as much as I love the court intrigue and just following one family throughout time.
I will say, the reason it lost half a star in my book is because it seems...aware of itself in a way CK2 wasn't. I think there was part of the content and writing team that were folks who had played a lot of CK2 and leaned into it a bit too hard. I understand the temptation of self-awareness, but that sorta stuff isn't always for me.
2021
A couple summers back during a period where my wife and I were both stuck at home with COVID we marathoned Civ like it was going out of style. I mean absolutely day long marathon sessions and when we were satisfied with one game having played out we would fire up another one.
Humankind came out just before that marathon, and so as we burned ourselves out a bit I thought “oh hey maybe we should give this new one a go”, but we shrugged it off, not wanting to buy two copies.
Well here I am, having finally played it and…I’m glad we didn’t buy it back then, because I don’t really like it. It lacks soul, in a way—it just has some sort of quintessential quality missing.
I really don’t like changing cultures every era—part of the joy of the soul of Civ for me is a bit of roleplay and of keeping that same “identity” and that is more or less out the window here. I don’t love the general art style all that much…I just don’t like it
Also this is such a minor thing but the Leonard Nemoy style Civ Voice they’re copying here’s copy is so snarky and obnoxious, offering commentary on my civic choices—it makes me roll my eyes every time
Humankind came out just before that marathon, and so as we burned ourselves out a bit I thought “oh hey maybe we should give this new one a go”, but we shrugged it off, not wanting to buy two copies.
Well here I am, having finally played it and…I’m glad we didn’t buy it back then, because I don’t really like it. It lacks soul, in a way—it just has some sort of quintessential quality missing.
I really don’t like changing cultures every era—part of the joy of the soul of Civ for me is a bit of roleplay and of keeping that same “identity” and that is more or less out the window here. I don’t love the general art style all that much…I just don’t like it
Also this is such a minor thing but the Leonard Nemoy style Civ Voice they’re copying here’s copy is so snarky and obnoxious, offering commentary on my civic choices—it makes me roll my eyes every time
2023
I am having an absolute blast with this! I’ve adored the previous entries in this series and this one is essentially just a complete and total improvement over the everything that’s come before!
What I love most is the art style: the units and world look so so so cool, with lots of different styles of unit. My civilization has bird people, lizard people and rat people and when you recruit units they’re all represented!
I fully dig this, it’s super duper rad! If you like 4X you absolutely need to give this a shot!
What I love most is the art style: the units and world look so so so cool, with lots of different styles of unit. My civilization has bird people, lizard people and rat people and when you recruit units they’re all represented!
I fully dig this, it’s super duper rad! If you like 4X you absolutely need to give this a shot!
2022
I am a big time lover of these Paradox 4x games for about as long as I can remember, with Vicky 2 probably my all time favorite. So when they announced and were developing 3 I followed it so closely!
And this week I finally played it and it’s good. It’s fine! It’s as addicting as ever, and there were a couple days I just utterly lost because I was sucked in so much!
But 3 compared to 2 is missing a bit of…magic? It’s hard to describe, but I I’m still more pulled to Vicky 2 or EU4
And this week I finally played it and it’s good. It’s fine! It’s as addicting as ever, and there were a couple days I just utterly lost because I was sucked in so much!
But 3 compared to 2 is missing a bit of…magic? It’s hard to describe, but I I’m still more pulled to Vicky 2 or EU4
Wowzers! Had a couple days of a 4x game where you start playing and then look up and whoops literal hours have gone by!
I'm a longtime lover of this series, and this newest one is probably my favorite yet; it's mechanically cleaned up and would be a nice "onboarding" for a new player!
I just finished uniting Tohoku and figured I'd give it a rest before I go on and keep painting the map 🤣
I'm a longtime lover of this series, and this newest one is probably my favorite yet; it's mechanically cleaned up and would be a nice "onboarding" for a new player!
I just finished uniting Tohoku and figured I'd give it a rest before I go on and keep painting the map 🤣
2012
WELL my first even Shin Megami game! A good friend of mine told me this was her favorite game, and I have had several long international flights to play it on my neato little Vita (I gotta say, I love this thing to bits--easily my favorite piece of portable hardware maybe ever).
Anywho, I think in the end, I can say that I liked it. I liked running around the town and the whole like, vibes of all of that. Your main guy's home is really nice and has a cozy energy to it. I like the like, sound of the rain and the sounds in general. And I more or less like the characters! The little TV guy is cute and I like the main cast.
But the meat and potatoes of the game is the like, dungeon crawling and combat and I more or less couldn't be bothered. I cheated in infinite HP and super high EXP gains for everything and all that because I more or less immediately didn't understand what the whole battle system was all about. I just didn't get any of the mechanical stuff, and that part of the game didn't grip me at all.
So, I can say I dig this game's art and energy and vibes and such, but if I didn't have the option of making the combat and exploration trivial I likely wouldn't have come even remotely close to finishing it.
Anywho, I think in the end, I can say that I liked it. I liked running around the town and the whole like, vibes of all of that. Your main guy's home is really nice and has a cozy energy to it. I like the like, sound of the rain and the sounds in general. And I more or less like the characters! The little TV guy is cute and I like the main cast.
But the meat and potatoes of the game is the like, dungeon crawling and combat and I more or less couldn't be bothered. I cheated in infinite HP and super high EXP gains for everything and all that because I more or less immediately didn't understand what the whole battle system was all about. I just didn't get any of the mechanical stuff, and that part of the game didn't grip me at all.
So, I can say I dig this game's art and energy and vibes and such, but if I didn't have the option of making the combat and exploration trivial I likely wouldn't have come even remotely close to finishing it.
2014
My Vita has been the only thing I've played video games on for a huge chunk of the middle of this year and the games I've been playing have been this wonderful little guy and a baseball game!
I only have kudos to give here, and simple ones at that! It's great! It's Puyo and Tetris! It's got cute interstitial screens--what's not to love
I only have kudos to give here, and simple ones at that! It's great! It's Puyo and Tetris! It's got cute interstitial screens--what's not to love
2023
This review contains spoilers
Final Fantasy 13 (and Lightning Returns) is my favorite of the mainline Final Fantasy games, and when I started playing this one, I knew almost right away that I was going to find a lot to love.
Now that I've finished it, I can say that FF 16 is for brothers what FF 13 is for sisters. Joshua and Clive form the emotional core of the narrative just as Lightning and Serah do with 13. More than that though, both games are primarily about family--blood family, yes, but primarily found family.
The world our characters inhabit in this game is a profoundly sad one--much like our own. It's a world beset by systemic bigotry, geopolitical strife and climate change, and one where you could forgive people for not finding much to live for.
And it's that very thing--finding something to live for--that we guide Clive and his family towards. And Clive guides his allies and the whole realm towards that same thing in kind.
This is a beautiful game full of despair, hope, love and a search for meaning. In the end, despite all of the pre-release comparisons to Game Of Thrones, FF 16 is never cynical; bonds are never tested, Clive is never found wanting. Instead, this game does something much more brave: it demonstrates to us that love and hope can and do win. The sun can--and literally does--rise the next morning on a new and better world.
I should mention the gameplay stuff I reckon too! This game has the best difficulty feature I have ever played for an action game: the ability to equip some built-in accessories that cause Clive to automatically dodge attacks as well as for the player to only have to repeatedly press the attack button to put together incredible combos! I absolutely love that part--it's what made the game playable for me. I was unable to progress past the very first boss in the Final Fantasy 7 Remake because of my inability to play action games like that--but because of the accessibility option here I was able to play, and love, this game.
Apart from that, I quite simply loved all of the gameplay elements. The hunts were fun, the side quests were lovely--it was all wonderful.
This game is as good as a modern game can get! You should play it, I think!
Now that I've finished it, I can say that FF 16 is for brothers what FF 13 is for sisters. Joshua and Clive form the emotional core of the narrative just as Lightning and Serah do with 13. More than that though, both games are primarily about family--blood family, yes, but primarily found family.
The world our characters inhabit in this game is a profoundly sad one--much like our own. It's a world beset by systemic bigotry, geopolitical strife and climate change, and one where you could forgive people for not finding much to live for.
And it's that very thing--finding something to live for--that we guide Clive and his family towards. And Clive guides his allies and the whole realm towards that same thing in kind.
This is a beautiful game full of despair, hope, love and a search for meaning. In the end, despite all of the pre-release comparisons to Game Of Thrones, FF 16 is never cynical; bonds are never tested, Clive is never found wanting. Instead, this game does something much more brave: it demonstrates to us that love and hope can and do win. The sun can--and literally does--rise the next morning on a new and better world.
I should mention the gameplay stuff I reckon too! This game has the best difficulty feature I have ever played for an action game: the ability to equip some built-in accessories that cause Clive to automatically dodge attacks as well as for the player to only have to repeatedly press the attack button to put together incredible combos! I absolutely love that part--it's what made the game playable for me. I was unable to progress past the very first boss in the Final Fantasy 7 Remake because of my inability to play action games like that--but because of the accessibility option here I was able to play, and love, this game.
Apart from that, I quite simply loved all of the gameplay elements. The hunts were fun, the side quests were lovely--it was all wonderful.
This game is as good as a modern game can get! You should play it, I think!
Like with any years' sports game titles, I'm not really "finished" with NFS Unbound and will keep playing it whenever I feel like racing, but I've played enough of it now to throw it in the ol' Backloggd.
I absolutely love it! Like with any yearly iteration of a sports game, I knew I would like this going into it; it's racing, it's got dress-up dolls, I like the general vibe of it.
I don't have incredibly complicated thoughts except for that it's fun to dress up your character and car(s) and drive around and race and just have a blast. What more can someone ask for from a racing game? Any racing game that has a customizable dress-up doll racer is gonna be leagues ahead of the others in my book.
I love this game!
I absolutely love it! Like with any yearly iteration of a sports game, I knew I would like this going into it; it's racing, it's got dress-up dolls, I like the general vibe of it.
I don't have incredibly complicated thoughts except for that it's fun to dress up your character and car(s) and drive around and race and just have a blast. What more can someone ask for from a racing game? Any racing game that has a customizable dress-up doll racer is gonna be leagues ahead of the others in my book.
I love this game!