wotakutrash
2019
I want to give this a four, but I feel like there just wasn't enough here to warrant a four. This was a fantastic little Metroid style game, and I felt so hungry for more. Will definitely re-play this in the near future due to it's rather short length.
2021
Having skipped 1 and 2 and going into this one first, I wasn't totally sure what to expect. I loved the old games back in the day, so I was down for anything that had some solid stealth.
Some levels are significantly better than others which is somewhat disappointing with how many times you end up replaying them, but I cannot get over levels like Dartmoor they are just so simple but fun.
Definitely going to grab the other two to play in this one next.
Some levels are significantly better than others which is somewhat disappointing with how many times you end up replaying them, but I cannot get over levels like Dartmoor they are just so simple but fun.
Definitely going to grab the other two to play in this one next.
2018
Enjoyable time killer with an interesting idea. Loved the art and the music. Worth checking out if you have game pass or feel like supporting an indie dev.
Everything I loved about the Spider-Man comic books that I read as a kid combined with the things I actually enjoy about modern Marvel movies. The collect-a-thon open world really feels fun when you have Spider-Man 2 and 3 style webslinging to fall back on. Few minor gripes are how the story constantly wants to slow you down and how little you actually get to do when playing as MJ. Otherwise, I wish I had more time when this game came out for PS4; but I'm glad I got to break in the PS5 with this.
Everything you love about THPS 3 packaged into THPS 1 and 2.
I don't think it's any secret that the best game in the Tony Hawk series is Pro Skater 3, and this remake brings that feeling of playing 3 to the originals. The thing about 3 is that levels still had the perfect arcade style feeling without being to expansive, and it was incredibly easy to keep your combo going to ridiculous lengths. 1 and 2 on the other hand, these games suffered from being too self contained in their own levels. 1 for example had to compensate for the fact that you couldn't manual while 2 had to deal with the inability to revert. There's other powerful combo extenders from later games included of course like acid drops, but manuals and reverts are the blood of these games that 1 and 2 were sorely missing.
The bulk of this game is learning the meta to reach insane combo scores, and the meta of Tony Hawk will provide you with dozens of hours of endless entertainment and frustration. This version has some issues with game design like the removal of some collectibles or how doing a challenge with one skater does it for every skater, but a lot of the issues with this game just do not in any way detract from what is actually here. This is just solid old school skateboard gaming fun. I just hope they add the maps from 3 and possibly 4 at some point - even with or without the music.
I don't think it's any secret that the best game in the Tony Hawk series is Pro Skater 3, and this remake brings that feeling of playing 3 to the originals. The thing about 3 is that levels still had the perfect arcade style feeling without being to expansive, and it was incredibly easy to keep your combo going to ridiculous lengths. 1 and 2 on the other hand, these games suffered from being too self contained in their own levels. 1 for example had to compensate for the fact that you couldn't manual while 2 had to deal with the inability to revert. There's other powerful combo extenders from later games included of course like acid drops, but manuals and reverts are the blood of these games that 1 and 2 were sorely missing.
The bulk of this game is learning the meta to reach insane combo scores, and the meta of Tony Hawk will provide you with dozens of hours of endless entertainment and frustration. This version has some issues with game design like the removal of some collectibles or how doing a challenge with one skater does it for every skater, but a lot of the issues with this game just do not in any way detract from what is actually here. This is just solid old school skateboard gaming fun. I just hope they add the maps from 3 and possibly 4 at some point - even with or without the music.
1995
I emulated this years ago, so my memory might be a little fuzzy. I remember this being a flawed game with great direction - I was always a fan of the series in general even if critical - that I wanted to see more of. I don't think I would necessarily recommend it to most people as the controls were not good from what I remember, and there wasn't an English fan translation - I honestly have no idea if one has ever sprung up since that time. What I do know is that for anyone who appreciates old school games or survival horror should at least check this out with or without Japanese knowledge - trust me my Japanese is basically non-existent, and my friends who speak it will tell you immediately; but I survived.
Kind of want to check out that WonderSwan port that's being listed on backloggd though since I own more than a few WonderSwans. Will update this when I get my hands on a copy.
Kind of want to check out that WonderSwan port that's being listed on backloggd though since I own more than a few WonderSwans. Will update this when I get my hands on a copy.
2019
I don't know what exactly it was about this game that felt so underwhelming for me. The entire experience just felt off.
I love the concept of what Lab Zero Games was going for here, and I am truly glad I sat down to try what I did. There's a great mix of Metroidvania style map exploration with, what I can best describe as, Paper Mario style combat - maybe there is another RPG out there better for comparison but as the time of writing this I cannot think of it. I really do think this game is worth playing at the very least, but I have my qualms.
The first major issue I have with this game is just how easy it is. I guess it never hyped itself up to be the next Meatboy or Celeste, but I just though it would be tougher to collect the gems in this game that were there. Maybe I am at fault for thinking this is to easy, but I will be honest, this really infuriated me through out my time playing. It might be a bit of a stretch to be mad at a game for something like this, but I just could not get over how easily I was collecting everything without a guide or without multiple attempts.
My other major issue with this game is the story. I just could not give any less of a shit about what was going on in this game or the characters. Granted, this one is totally on me, but at no point in this game did I find anything that was going on on-screen entertaining. Towards the end of my time with the game, I was actually skipping cutscenes just to speed through it.
But is the combat good and is the platforming fun? My answer is eh?
I mean I didn't hate what I was playing but I felt like I got better results by spamming the buttons during combat while the platforming was just simple to begin with.
Everything said, I did honestly enjoy my time with this game. I just don't think I'll ever be re-visiting it. I mean even with my problems, the art is fantastic, the music was solid, and the idea behind the game was totally there. I just personally wasn't the audience for this game, I guess. I want to give this 3 stars, but, for the underwhelment I felt, I think I need to err on the side of pessimistic.
I love the concept of what Lab Zero Games was going for here, and I am truly glad I sat down to try what I did. There's a great mix of Metroidvania style map exploration with, what I can best describe as, Paper Mario style combat - maybe there is another RPG out there better for comparison but as the time of writing this I cannot think of it. I really do think this game is worth playing at the very least, but I have my qualms.
The first major issue I have with this game is just how easy it is. I guess it never hyped itself up to be the next Meatboy or Celeste, but I just though it would be tougher to collect the gems in this game that were there. Maybe I am at fault for thinking this is to easy, but I will be honest, this really infuriated me through out my time playing. It might be a bit of a stretch to be mad at a game for something like this, but I just could not get over how easily I was collecting everything without a guide or without multiple attempts.
My other major issue with this game is the story. I just could not give any less of a shit about what was going on in this game or the characters. Granted, this one is totally on me, but at no point in this game did I find anything that was going on on-screen entertaining. Towards the end of my time with the game, I was actually skipping cutscenes just to speed through it.
But is the combat good and is the platforming fun? My answer is eh?
I mean I didn't hate what I was playing but I felt like I got better results by spamming the buttons during combat while the platforming was just simple to begin with.
Everything said, I did honestly enjoy my time with this game. I just don't think I'll ever be re-visiting it. I mean even with my problems, the art is fantastic, the music was solid, and the idea behind the game was totally there. I just personally wasn't the audience for this game, I guess. I want to give this 3 stars, but, for the underwhelment I felt, I think I need to err on the side of pessimistic.
I don't know what came over me to want to buy this game. In all honesty, I was never a fan of the show; and the games have never looked interesting to me in the slightest. Yet, I saw this game on sale a while back, and I thought maybe it would be worth the sale price. Honestly, it could have been; and that's why I'm so disappointed with this game.
Upon starting the game, I immediately thought, "Oh, this is going to be a great - possibly even slight Windwaker vibes. The art is well done for the style, the world seems large and fun to explore, and the humor doesn't seem to terrible for a kid's game." Unfortunately, however, the game went downhill rather instantly. The load times were terrible, the combat was painfully slow, the enemies seemed to be rather RNG heavy at times, and normal items felt a bit too expensive for what they provide. Frankly, when a game is this disappointing, I kind of just don't even know why I should bother criticizing it. I just didn't enjoy much of this game after the first 30 minutes or so once I realized what I was actually in for. Those first few minutes felt so wonderful, but the rest was just so not fun. I think there's something worth saving here, but as most games of this caliber go, I'm sure they had to rush it out due to the publisher; and I just feel let down and like I wasted my money.
I guess if you really love Adventure Time, this might be worth a play; but I couldn't imagine recommending this to anyone based on my experience. Do not touch this game even with a stick.
Upon starting the game, I immediately thought, "Oh, this is going to be a great - possibly even slight Windwaker vibes. The art is well done for the style, the world seems large and fun to explore, and the humor doesn't seem to terrible for a kid's game." Unfortunately, however, the game went downhill rather instantly. The load times were terrible, the combat was painfully slow, the enemies seemed to be rather RNG heavy at times, and normal items felt a bit too expensive for what they provide. Frankly, when a game is this disappointing, I kind of just don't even know why I should bother criticizing it. I just didn't enjoy much of this game after the first 30 minutes or so once I realized what I was actually in for. Those first few minutes felt so wonderful, but the rest was just so not fun. I think there's something worth saving here, but as most games of this caliber go, I'm sure they had to rush it out due to the publisher; and I just feel let down and like I wasted my money.
I guess if you really love Adventure Time, this might be worth a play; but I couldn't imagine recommending this to anyone based on my experience. Do not touch this game even with a stick.
All the worst parts of Warioware but as a rhythm game.
2019
From a modern perspective this is a good game. As someone who grew up playing PS1 survival horror, I understand why this is a good remake. But honestly, this remake wasn't made with people like me in mind.
I just don't get anything out of these modern touches on classic games. That's why the original remake of the original Resident Evil works so well for me. I liked that formula, and I want more of it. RE2 19 is all of RE2 with none of the clunk or flair or even the charm of what made these games so special to me growing up. This is just another zombie horror game like the rest of them.
I do need to be honest, I am not a huge fan of the original RE2. I never was, and I never will be. I do like this version a whole of a heck of a lot more. This is a solid game through to the end. The pacing, the story beats, the combat, etc. just all feels so bland to me though. It's a classic game steeped in modern design. That's not bad perse, but what always drew me to the old games was the slow churn despite the short run times and the campy nature of a Romero-esque escapade through zombified labyrinths.
I think anyone interested in horror games or Resident Evil should check this out, but I really need to say that maybe the praise for this game, like every game featuring Leon, might be a little overblown. I don't know what it is about Leon, but he seems to just swoon people over with kind of okay games.
I just don't get anything out of these modern touches on classic games. That's why the original remake of the original Resident Evil works so well for me. I liked that formula, and I want more of it. RE2 19 is all of RE2 with none of the clunk or flair or even the charm of what made these games so special to me growing up. This is just another zombie horror game like the rest of them.
I do need to be honest, I am not a huge fan of the original RE2. I never was, and I never will be. I do like this version a whole of a heck of a lot more. This is a solid game through to the end. The pacing, the story beats, the combat, etc. just all feels so bland to me though. It's a classic game steeped in modern design. That's not bad perse, but what always drew me to the old games was the slow churn despite the short run times and the campy nature of a Romero-esque escapade through zombified labyrinths.
I think anyone interested in horror games or Resident Evil should check this out, but I really need to say that maybe the praise for this game, like every game featuring Leon, might be a little overblown. I don't know what it is about Leon, but he seems to just swoon people over with kind of okay games.
Maybe I'm just biased because I played too much Minesweeper as a kid when I was bored, but I think this game has a fantastic sense of what it means to be a game with such a simple interface. I could honestly play Minesweeper for hours on end and still feel engaged.
Writing this review whilst perpetually half way through the Japanese copy. (As of 11/9/20) Figured I could push this out before the English copy comes out for anyone it might help influence to buy the game.
Yakuza 7 really had me worried when I first saw it. I hate change, and boy, did I hate what I saw when the game was first announced. I am glad to say I was being an idiot, and I love what this game did to the Yakuza formula. Everything that I loved about the old Yakuza games is still here. Sure there is no Kiryuu or Majima in the main party, but the new cast is fun and honestly has some charming dialogue, from my limited Japanese of course. The main things that I really love about this game is the class system which works like just about any other JRPG class system, but the classes realistic and breathe life into the tried and true JRPG. The combat itself is a pretty happy marriage between typical turn based hit x to hit enemy and Yakuza brawling. You can do perfect timing blocks, and if you line yourself up you can use your environment. I've seen some people call it brain dead, and I'm not going to sit here and say it is intellectually stimulating combat; but if you actually take advantage of the combat system laid bare before you there are some cool things you can do.
As far as side content, this is Yakuza. You aren't getting anything less than what you have gotten in any other game. The map is massive - Kamurocho feels claustrophobicly small in comparison. I have never spent much time in Yokohama in my travels to Japan, but you can tell the life of the city is clearly present just like Kabukicho is in the other games. Lastly, it has Baka Mitai so... good game.
One day I'll finish it.
Yakuza 7 really had me worried when I first saw it. I hate change, and boy, did I hate what I saw when the game was first announced. I am glad to say I was being an idiot, and I love what this game did to the Yakuza formula. Everything that I loved about the old Yakuza games is still here. Sure there is no Kiryuu or Majima in the main party, but the new cast is fun and honestly has some charming dialogue, from my limited Japanese of course. The main things that I really love about this game is the class system which works like just about any other JRPG class system, but the classes realistic and breathe life into the tried and true JRPG. The combat itself is a pretty happy marriage between typical turn based hit x to hit enemy and Yakuza brawling. You can do perfect timing blocks, and if you line yourself up you can use your environment. I've seen some people call it brain dead, and I'm not going to sit here and say it is intellectually stimulating combat; but if you actually take advantage of the combat system laid bare before you there are some cool things you can do.
As far as side content, this is Yakuza. You aren't getting anything less than what you have gotten in any other game. The map is massive - Kamurocho feels claustrophobicly small in comparison. I have never spent much time in Yokohama in my travels to Japan, but you can tell the life of the city is clearly present just like Kabukicho is in the other games. Lastly, it has Baka Mitai so... good game.
One day I'll finish it.
There's isn't much to say other than this game is just pure and simple fun.
There's nothing special about this game or the underlying mechanics; it just flows well and platforms well. It's everything Kirby games should be, and no stage leaves you mad that it's either too easy or too hard.
There's nothing special about this game or the underlying mechanics; it just flows well and platforms well. It's everything Kirby games should be, and no stage leaves you mad that it's either too easy or too hard.
2020
Possibly my favorite pack in game title for any console. Like Wii Sports or Welcome Park, this game really lets you see what is truly possible with the hardware you are holding in your hand, but it's actually quite fun and engaging. As for the retro Playstation love, I can't even begin on how heartwarming it was to see recognition for how far ahead of the game Sony was at times. If only there were something like this as a free bonus in a Sega game to celebrate the true retro kings.
2008
I could channel my inner-16 year old self and talk about how this game is some philosophical response to Persona 3 and how Nietzche blah blah blah... but as I've gotten older I've come to terms with how cringe as fuck this game actually is; and I don't fucking care.
I like this game. End of discussion.
But honestly, this game does a lot of things that Persona 3 struggled to do. Persona 3 as a whole feels very empty and shallow to me with time padding included just to provide a "realistic" experience while Persona 4 has empty space that feels more natural. All the combat feels better because Atlus realized what the original verison of P3 was lacking - team controls. And the characters just feel more like real people opposed to edgy grim dark plot devices because this is SMT dammit.
Sure all the trappings of escapist JRPG anime bullshit are here, but I was also the prime target for that kind of nonsense when I was a teenager in high school. This game will always take me back to those times, and I will always unapologetically love it for that.
I like this game. End of discussion.
But honestly, this game does a lot of things that Persona 3 struggled to do. Persona 3 as a whole feels very empty and shallow to me with time padding included just to provide a "realistic" experience while Persona 4 has empty space that feels more natural. All the combat feels better because Atlus realized what the original verison of P3 was lacking - team controls. And the characters just feel more like real people opposed to edgy grim dark plot devices because this is SMT dammit.
Sure all the trappings of escapist JRPG anime bullshit are here, but I was also the prime target for that kind of nonsense when I was a teenager in high school. This game will always take me back to those times, and I will always unapologetically love it for that.