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52 games. 1 Year. 2016.
- Thread starter VisceralBowl
- Start date
- Status
Archive Post
Game 26 - ABZU [PC] ★★★★
There isn't a lot to talk about with this, really. It looks gorgeous, has some amazing aquatic life tech on display, and has a beautiful score to boot. It apes Journey pretty much from start to finish, only without that key multiplayer feature that made it so special. It plays great, and has probably the finest swimming controls in any game, but all too often it feels like the game is nudging you and saying "hey, remember this bit from Journey? now it's underwater!". It's also super brief. It clocked in at 72 minutes for me, and I can't imagine there's much left to see outside of what I encountered, so it's a tough purchase to recommend. But these criticisms aside, it is a marvelous piece of technology, with great artistic merit, that feels utterly liberating to play.
Game 26 - ABZU [PC] ★★★★
There isn't a lot to talk about with this, really. It looks gorgeous, has some amazing aquatic life tech on display, and has a beautiful score to boot. It apes Journey pretty much from start to finish, only without that key multiplayer feature that made it so special. It plays great, and has probably the finest swimming controls in any game, but all too often it feels like the game is nudging you and saying "hey, remember this bit from Journey? now it's underwater!". It's also super brief. It clocked in at 72 minutes for me, and I can't imagine there's much left to see outside of what I encountered, so it's a tough purchase to recommend. But these criticisms aside, it is a marvelous piece of technology, with great artistic merit, that feels utterly liberating to play.
RampagingSoul
Member
Original Post
Game 24: Psychonauts (PS2/PS4/PC/XBox) - 17 Hrs 26 Mins (8/2/2016)
# Man, great game. Absolutely liked the concept of the game. Felt shorter than I thought it was, but I enjoyed it a lot. Great platformer with an amazing concept and entertaining script. Can't wait to see Psychonauts 2!
Game 25: Bully (PS2/PS3/PS4/PC/X360/Wii) - 17 Hrs 51 Mins (8/8/2016)
# My first Rockstar game and it was pretty fun. The plot was typical of what I thought a GTA-style, out-of-control academy setting would have. Characters were pretty good for the most part. Missions were good and had enough to keep me interested. Side activities were good, too, as I did most of them before beating them. Definitely a great game in all. Might check out some other Rockstar games eventually.
Game 26: Gunman Clive (3DS/iOS/WiiU) - 50 Mins 20 Secs (9/1/2016)
#Had already beaten this on 3DS, but I went ahead and beat it on Wii U as well. A really awesome game for the price you can get it for. A great action-platformer with a good style. A short but sweet experience for sure.
Game 27: Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards (N64/Wii/WiiU) - About 8 Hrs (9/10/2016)
#Beat the game 100% and it was an enjoyable game, going back to it from childhood and finally, completely beating it. Definitely not up there as far as Kirby games I've beaten as the pace is just too slow for me, but the double powers and the various combinations were a great addition to me and one of the things I'll always remember Kirby 64 fondly for. Overall, it'd say it's a pretty alright platformer in an era where there were many better.
Game 28: Spyro the Dragon (PS1) - 5 Hrs 38 Mins (9/10/2016)
#Finally beat this game since I had it as a kid once. Definitely a fun, easy-going platformer. It was really easy, but that didn't mean I didn't enjoy the game for what it was. Shows its age a bit compared to later platformers, but I still think it's a platformer that has aged well from this era.
Game 29: Spyro 2: Ripto's Rage! (PS1) - 7 Hrs 9 Mins (9'/12/2016)
#Another game I finally beat! I liked it better than the first one, definitely. It's really close between this and Year of the Dragon. This trilogy is definitely one of my favorite game trilogies. The presentation, gameplay and music are all just amazing. Glad I was able to finally beat this.
Game 30: Gunman Clive 2 (3DS/WiiU/PC) - 3 Hrs 44 Mins (9/17/2016)
#Finally got to this and beat it. More variety than the first game along with being more of a challenge. Definitely a retro-style, cheap game that gives you replay-ability with the Duck Mode (like the first game) and being able to select past stages you want to play. It definitely is worth the price as a fun, short game that you can just pick up and play. .
Game 24: Psychonauts (PS2/PS4/PC/XBox) - 17 Hrs 26 Mins (8/2/2016)
# Man, great game. Absolutely liked the concept of the game. Felt shorter than I thought it was, but I enjoyed it a lot. Great platformer with an amazing concept and entertaining script. Can't wait to see Psychonauts 2!
Game 25: Bully (PS2/PS3/PS4/PC/X360/Wii) - 17 Hrs 51 Mins (8/8/2016)
# My first Rockstar game and it was pretty fun. The plot was typical of what I thought a GTA-style, out-of-control academy setting would have. Characters were pretty good for the most part. Missions were good and had enough to keep me interested. Side activities were good, too, as I did most of them before beating them. Definitely a great game in all. Might check out some other Rockstar games eventually.
Game 26: Gunman Clive (3DS/iOS/WiiU) - 50 Mins 20 Secs (9/1/2016)
#Had already beaten this on 3DS, but I went ahead and beat it on Wii U as well. A really awesome game for the price you can get it for. A great action-platformer with a good style. A short but sweet experience for sure.
Game 27: Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards (N64/Wii/WiiU) - About 8 Hrs (9/10/2016)
#Beat the game 100% and it was an enjoyable game, going back to it from childhood and finally, completely beating it. Definitely not up there as far as Kirby games I've beaten as the pace is just too slow for me, but the double powers and the various combinations were a great addition to me and one of the things I'll always remember Kirby 64 fondly for. Overall, it'd say it's a pretty alright platformer in an era where there were many better.
Game 28: Spyro the Dragon (PS1) - 5 Hrs 38 Mins (9/10/2016)
#Finally beat this game since I had it as a kid once. Definitely a fun, easy-going platformer. It was really easy, but that didn't mean I didn't enjoy the game for what it was. Shows its age a bit compared to later platformers, but I still think it's a platformer that has aged well from this era.
Game 29: Spyro 2: Ripto's Rage! (PS1) - 7 Hrs 9 Mins (9'/12/2016)
#Another game I finally beat! I liked it better than the first one, definitely. It's really close between this and Year of the Dragon. This trilogy is definitely one of my favorite game trilogies. The presentation, gameplay and music are all just amazing. Glad I was able to finally beat this.
Game 30: Gunman Clive 2 (3DS/WiiU/PC) - 3 Hrs 44 Mins (9/17/2016)
#Finally got to this and beat it. More variety than the first game along with being more of a challenge. Definitely a retro-style, cheap game that gives you replay-ability with the Duck Mode (like the first game) and being able to select past stages you want to play. It definitely is worth the price as a fun, short game that you can just pick up and play. .
Original Post - Part 1
Original Post - Part 2
#27: The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX: 16.7 hours
Something else that's really interesting about this game is how it's structured. There are quite a few items that I thought were side-quests until it suddenly turned out that they were mandatory for progression. There's a bow in the shop in the starting village that you have to buy at some point but it necessary to have for hours and hours. The trading side-quest is also mandatory but you won't realise until you start running into one of the times in the game that it intersects with the main quest.
Overall it was great playing this weirdly fleshed out Zelda game I'd never experienced before.WARNING: I'm going to launch into spoilers for a bit
Okay so was Koholint Island located in the real world? The evidence seems to suggest that it only exists within the Wind Fish's mind but I feel like that's a huge misstep. For the second half of the game the enemies are desperately pleading with you not to wake the Wind Fish because all of the inhabitants of the island will cease to exist. But as far as I'm concerned that's meaningless if the Wind Fish's dream doesn't physically manifest.
Preview: I'm playing Monkey Island 2 on PC at the moment
Original Post - Part 2
#27: The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX: 16.7 hours
Game Boy development is obviously starting to find its feet at this point (look at those cutscenes!). Link's Awakening is undeniably Zelda, even though it does still have a little bit of weirdness. 2D side-scrolling sections? They're interesting but ultimately a little out of place. Mario enemies everywhere? Random powerups? Yeah okay we'll roll with it.
Something else that's really interesting about this game is how it's structured. There are quite a few items that I thought were side-quests until it suddenly turned out that they were mandatory for progression. There's a bow in the shop in the starting village that you have to buy at some point but it necessary to have for hours and hours. The trading side-quest is also mandatory but you won't realise until you start running into one of the times in the game that it intersects with the main quest.
Overall it was great playing this weirdly fleshed out Zelda game I'd never experienced before.WARNING: I'm going to launch into spoilers for a bit
Okay so was Koholint Island located in the real world? The evidence seems to suggest that it only exists within the Wind Fish's mind but I feel like that's a huge misstep. For the second half of the game the enemies are desperately pleading with you not to wake the Wind Fish because all of the inhabitants of the island will cease to exist. But as far as I'm concerned that's meaningless if the Wind Fish's dream doesn't physically manifest.
Preview: I'm playing Monkey Island 2 on PC at the moment
Realplumpbox85
Member
OT
I had a bit of NES Mario itch this past weekend so I played Super Mario Bros. I cleared it 2 times. Once with zero cheats and did all levels and world. The second I used the hidden warp pipes. Always fun to go back to play this classic.
Coming off on the first Mario I decided to go back and FINALLY beat Mario 3 (yes, I feel ashamed I never beat this before.) Just like the previous game it still rocks, still lots of fun, and still my favorite (2D) Mario game.
I had a bit of NES Mario itch this past weekend so I played Super Mario Bros. I cleared it 2 times. Once with zero cheats and did all levels and world. The second I used the hidden warp pipes. Always fun to go back to play this classic.
Coming off on the first Mario I decided to go back and FINALLY beat Mario 3 (yes, I feel ashamed I never beat this before.) Just like the previous game it still rocks, still lots of fun, and still my favorite (2D) Mario game.
Main Post
Game #14: The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask 3D (3DS).
Time Played: 30:08 hours.
Completion Reached: Cleared the game with all sidequests done.
.
Oh, Majora's Mask... This title, originally released as the sequel to Ocarina of Time back in 2000 for the N64 has become a cult classic, mainly thanks to its very unique setting and use of time travelling as a gameplay mechanic.
Gameplay in Majora's Mask is very similar to the one introduced in Ocarina of Time. It's still a 3rd person game, you still battle with a sword, use a bow, hookshot and other classic weapons. In fact, there are no new weapons introduced in Majora's Mask! Furthermore, practically all the NPCs in MM use models from OoT! Even a lot of the music is recycled! So.... what exactly is new/unique in Majora's Mask? Well, the setting mainly. The game takes place in Termina, a mysterious land that is suffering from many perils thanks to the evil Skull Kid. The most notable of these perils is the moon, which is on course to fall from the sky and destroy the land. In fact, the moon will crash just 3 (in-game) days after Link first arrives to Clock Town, Termina's main town, which actually puts a limit to the time the player has to beat the game... or does it? Well, here's where time travelling comes into play. If Link plays the Song of Time he'll return to his first moments in Termina, giving him 3 days to save the day once again. However, doing this effectively resets anything he did before playing the song so all your actions (well, most of them) will be undone. This is a very interesting mechanic and is used greatly in Majora's Mask. Since the game only takes place in a 3 day period, NPC have fixed schedules for their activities which lets the game build very interesting sidequests. Also, you can fail events and actually see the repercussions your failures have. This wouldn't happen in any normal game since developers tend to avoid bad endings for quests since they can be frustrating. However, any failure here can be resetted, so sidequests can have bad endings if you fail them.
.
Now, the "apocalypse" setting isn't only used for the time travel mechanic. It also sets the whole mood of the game. Villagers in Clock Town are fully aware of the falling moon and the dialogue reflects that. Some characters like the guards, postman and sword master have very interesting reactions to it. Outside of Clock Town the moon isn't discussed much but each area is also dealing with hardships, most of them quite dark. The game often touches topics related with death and loss which gives it a quite serious tone that many other games wish they had.
.
Presentation-wise the game is great. Graphics are similar to Ocarina of Time 3D but I think they are slightly better. Compared to the original N64 title, MM3D features better lightning, some touched up models and much sharper textures. It looks quite good IMO. The soundtrack is also notable, with most tracks perfectly fitting the sad tone of the game.
Overall, this game is incredible. Definitely one of my favourites. The setting is one of the best in all of gaming IMO and the gameplay is classic Zelda which is also great. Majora's Mask only features 4 dungeons but they are pretty big and very interesting. Finally, the 3DS version made quite a lot of changes from the original N64 game, most of them geared at making the game easier to grasp, giving more clues for the sidequests for example. There are 2 changes I disliked though, related to the swimming controls and the Ice Arrows. Still, the port is really good and I think it's better than the original game.
Game #14: The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask 3D (3DS).
Time Played: 30:08 hours.
Completion Reached: Cleared the game with all sidequests done.
All heart pieces, bottles and masks
Oh, Majora's Mask... This title, originally released as the sequel to Ocarina of Time back in 2000 for the N64 has become a cult classic, mainly thanks to its very unique setting and use of time travelling as a gameplay mechanic.
Gameplay in Majora's Mask is very similar to the one introduced in Ocarina of Time. It's still a 3rd person game, you still battle with a sword, use a bow, hookshot and other classic weapons. In fact, there are no new weapons introduced in Majora's Mask! Furthermore, practically all the NPCs in MM use models from OoT! Even a lot of the music is recycled! So.... what exactly is new/unique in Majora's Mask? Well, the setting mainly. The game takes place in Termina, a mysterious land that is suffering from many perils thanks to the evil Skull Kid. The most notable of these perils is the moon, which is on course to fall from the sky and destroy the land. In fact, the moon will crash just 3 (in-game) days after Link first arrives to Clock Town, Termina's main town, which actually puts a limit to the time the player has to beat the game... or does it? Well, here's where time travelling comes into play. If Link plays the Song of Time he'll return to his first moments in Termina, giving him 3 days to save the day once again. However, doing this effectively resets anything he did before playing the song so all your actions (well, most of them) will be undone. This is a very interesting mechanic and is used greatly in Majora's Mask. Since the game only takes place in a 3 day period, NPC have fixed schedules for their activities which lets the game build very interesting sidequests. Also, you can fail events and actually see the repercussions your failures have. This wouldn't happen in any normal game since developers tend to avoid bad endings for quests since they can be frustrating. However, any failure here can be resetted, so sidequests can have bad endings if you fail them.
For example, failing the aliens sidequest is quite amusing
Now, the "apocalypse" setting isn't only used for the time travel mechanic. It also sets the whole mood of the game. Villagers in Clock Town are fully aware of the falling moon and the dialogue reflects that. Some characters like the guards, postman and sword master have very interesting reactions to it. Outside of Clock Town the moon isn't discussed much but each area is also dealing with hardships, most of them quite dark. The game often touches topics related with death and loss which gives it a quite serious tone that many other games wish they had.
Mikau's death is a particularly dark scene in my opinion. I also love the entire Ikana storyline. A kingdom ruined by war and now inhabitated by souls that can't let go is a really cool setting
Presentation-wise the game is great. Graphics are similar to Ocarina of Time 3D but I think they are slightly better. Compared to the original N64 title, MM3D features better lightning, some touched up models and much sharper textures. It looks quite good IMO. The soundtrack is also notable, with most tracks perfectly fitting the sad tone of the game.
Overall, this game is incredible. Definitely one of my favourites. The setting is one of the best in all of gaming IMO and the gameplay is classic Zelda which is also great. Majora's Mask only features 4 dungeons but they are pretty big and very interesting. Finally, the 3DS version made quite a lot of changes from the original N64 game, most of them geared at making the game easier to grasp, giving more clues for the sidequests for example. There are 2 changes I disliked though, related to the swimming controls and the Ice Arrows. Still, the port is really good and I think it's better than the original game.
July update.
Realplumpbox85
Member
OT
I went back and finished Chibi-Robo: Zip Lash. I am not sure whats up with this game. The platforming was fun and so are the mechanics but the vehicle style levels? Just bad, no checkpoints in them so you have to do it in one go. Also you can pay (in game $) to pass a level if it is to hard. Not that any ARE hard. Also the "Destination Wheel" at the end of the level is 100% pointless. Just go to the nest level, I don't want to spin a stupid wheel to see if i am relaying a level or not. Anyway, the game is good for the platforming and charm and that's about it. Oh and a whole world, not level but world is locked behind Amiibo use which is a real shitty tactic.
I went back and finished Chibi-Robo: Zip Lash. I am not sure whats up with this game. The platforming was fun and so are the mechanics but the vehicle style levels? Just bad, no checkpoints in them so you have to do it in one go. Also you can pay (in game $) to pass a level if it is to hard. Not that any ARE hard. Also the "Destination Wheel" at the end of the level is 100% pointless. Just go to the nest level, I don't want to spin a stupid wheel to see if i am relaying a level or not. Anyway, the game is good for the platforming and charm and that's about it. Oh and a whole world, not level but world is locked behind Amiibo use which is a real shitty tactic.
I'm gonna resign from this challenge. Whilst I've enjoyed sharing my thoughts and reading others, I think this challenge has been unhealthy for my hobby. I haven't spent enough time with games I actually care about and want to explore more of because of my need to move on to other games. On the other end of the spectrum, I've spent money on games I wouldn't have necessarily bought and didn't actually need to play just to add them to the list. I never had a backlog before and funnily enough I've only found one since starting this challenge.
Good luck to everyone else!
Everybody's Gone To The Rapture - Pretty game, though plodding in speed. Quite believable English country village and very good VA work. Quite emotional at times.
Vanishing of Ethan Carter - Solid but short game. Neat puzzles especially the portal house. Pretty lacklustre story.
Steamworld Heist - Haven't finished it yet but just as ingenious as Dig but with more customisation. Very fun to play.
Hyper Light Drifter - Cool, sleek, great gameplay and beautiful pixel and colour work. One of the best games I've played this year!
Good luck to everyone else!
Everybody's Gone To The Rapture - Pretty game, though plodding in speed. Quite believable English country village and very good VA work. Quite emotional at times.
Vanishing of Ethan Carter - Solid but short game. Neat puzzles especially the portal house. Pretty lacklustre story.
Steamworld Heist - Haven't finished it yet but just as ingenious as Dig but with more customisation. Very fun to play.
Hyper Light Drifter - Cool, sleek, great gameplay and beautiful pixel and colour work. One of the best games I've played this year!
Jack Videogames
Member
35:49h. Did around 40 Substories, including Saejima's Dojo, Nair's Kumite and Akiyama's Hostess Club. Around 22% (! This game is a behemoth) of the game completed.
While I was playing, I was thinking to myself that this is probably the best Yakuza game so far. Having four POV characters, very different from one another and with different personalities, motivations and combat styles, worked really well to "freshen" up the Yakuzaverse and keep players engaged - I was actually expecting the moment the four of them met somewhat anxiously.
But the plot, while clever on its own way (what with the connection to the Yakuza 1 incident!) was so overwhelmingly campy on its execution that it made me cringe a couple times. I have never seen so many double-crossing and unnecesary betrayals in a single piece of fiction. When two characters were having a heartfelt talk, I knew I had to expect one of them to be dramatically shot from behind. And I was usually not wrong.
But the 4th or 5th time this happened I realized that I was actually having fun, and the game was having fun with me. Yakuza 4 relishes its campiness, being like a parody of Yakuza movies sometimes. It has taken me 4 games to realize that Yakuza is not to be taken TOO seriously: once you realize this, Yakuza games are probably the best at what they do.
Updated OP
Jack Videogames
Member
11h-ish. Completed Story mode, restored all city locations I found and tried all Challenges available at least once.
This is a strange animal. On one hand, it's sleek, slick and charismatic - Kat is a sweetheart, Hekseville is a place with a ton of personality and room for development, and I will purchase Gravity Rush 2 just to see what's going on with this world. I want to see what's next for Kat, Raven and maybe even Yunica.
On the other hand, Kat controls like a rabid, rampaging rhyno that just decided that gravity is for chumps. Let me rephrase it: controlling Kat is like controlling Iron Man in Lego Super Heroes, if he was drunk, blind and had a serious inner ear infection. The gyro controls and the regular stick controls seem to fight each other, and the player, for supremacy.
Yes, you do get used to it, and yes, once you spend some gems improving Kat's abilities, it gets better. But the first impression is enough to put a lot of players off the game. I'm glad I decided to give the game a chance - but I understand that not everyone will.
Updated OP
Index
33. Sonic the Hedgehog / Sega Classics (Steam, 2016/07/24, 2 hours)
Still not in love with this classic, but enjoyed the revisit nevertheless. Level design, music, animation and sprite work are holding up insanely well. Gameplay is still a mixed bag for me: platforming is super fun, fast sections too until you get bogged down by unforeseeable perils. The rings do help and allow for some recklessness. Props for Sega's emu efforts, it's super solid. They even included the rom(s) for use with 3rd party emulators.
34. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 / Sega Classics (Steam, 2016/07/31, 1.8 hours)
Now we're talking, such a step up from its predecessor: nicer level design, way better flow and pacing. They also improved the animation and sprite work a lot. The level introduction screens are so 90s, it's beautiful. Just a joy to look at and to play.
35. Sonic the Hedgehog 3 & Knuckles / Sega Classics (Steam, 2016/08/04, 3.8 hours)
Nice refined follow up to Sonic 2, new gameplay elements and power ups. I ran a couple of times into the 10 minutes limit, seems like the stages were extended too. Props for the technical feats in this game, so many amazing effects and so much eye candy. The devs were probably at the limit of what's possible with the given hardware. One negative point: in hindsight it's pretty telling how anti-climatic the final boss fight was, like something was held back for a later release. Not to start any console wars, but while Super Mario World is the better game, Sonic is just cooler. Lock-on Update:* The "& Knuckles" lock-on definitely elevated Sonic 3 from the previous games, more stages, more story, more fun. The combo of these two is the ultimate 16bit Sonic experience. *(See what I did there? Lock-on update? HA! My edgy 90s attitude made this happen, so rad, dude!)
36. Koi-Koi Japan [Hanafuda playing cards] (Steam, 2016/08/05, 4.3 hours)
I'm a big fan of the anime movie "Summer Wars", the big climax of the movie is a card game of Hanafuda. Never played said game and then I saw Koi-Koi Japan [Hanafuda playing cards] on Steam. Instant pick up! It's awesome! Super beginner friendly with a quick and easy tutorial. I've managed to learn the basics in like 10 minutes. The card counting would require more memorization in real life, but the game handles the counting and makes things very accessible. Really lovely presentation of traditional Japanese music and art with small anime accents. It all looks cute and cuddly, but runs way deep: lots of strategy, baiting, risk and reward. Hanafuda feels like a wild mix of mahjong, poker, baseball and nuclear warfare. Crushing your opponents is very satisfying. Great little time waster, relaxing and each game lasts only like 15 minutes.
33. Sonic the Hedgehog / Sega Classics (Steam, 2016/07/24, 2 hours)
Still not in love with this classic, but enjoyed the revisit nevertheless. Level design, music, animation and sprite work are holding up insanely well. Gameplay is still a mixed bag for me: platforming is super fun, fast sections too until you get bogged down by unforeseeable perils. The rings do help and allow for some recklessness. Props for Sega's emu efforts, it's super solid. They even included the rom(s) for use with 3rd party emulators.
34. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 / Sega Classics (Steam, 2016/07/31, 1.8 hours)
Now we're talking, such a step up from its predecessor: nicer level design, way better flow and pacing. They also improved the animation and sprite work a lot. The level introduction screens are so 90s, it's beautiful. Just a joy to look at and to play.
35. Sonic the Hedgehog 3 & Knuckles / Sega Classics (Steam, 2016/08/04, 3.8 hours)
Nice refined follow up to Sonic 2, new gameplay elements and power ups. I ran a couple of times into the 10 minutes limit, seems like the stages were extended too. Props for the technical feats in this game, so many amazing effects and so much eye candy. The devs were probably at the limit of what's possible with the given hardware. One negative point: in hindsight it's pretty telling how anti-climatic the final boss fight was, like something was held back for a later release. Not to start any console wars, but while Super Mario World is the better game, Sonic is just cooler. Lock-on Update:* The "& Knuckles" lock-on definitely elevated Sonic 3 from the previous games, more stages, more story, more fun. The combo of these two is the ultimate 16bit Sonic experience. *(See what I did there? Lock-on update? HA! My edgy 90s attitude made this happen, so rad, dude!)
36. Koi-Koi Japan [Hanafuda playing cards] (Steam, 2016/08/05, 4.3 hours)
I'm a big fan of the anime movie "Summer Wars", the big climax of the movie is a card game of Hanafuda. Never played said game and then I saw Koi-Koi Japan [Hanafuda playing cards] on Steam. Instant pick up! It's awesome! Super beginner friendly with a quick and easy tutorial. I've managed to learn the basics in like 10 minutes. The card counting would require more memorization in real life, but the game handles the counting and makes things very accessible. Really lovely presentation of traditional Japanese music and art with small anime accents. It all looks cute and cuddly, but runs way deep: lots of strategy, baiting, risk and reward. Hanafuda feels like a wild mix of mahjong, poker, baseball and nuclear warfare. Crushing your opponents is very satisfying. Great little time waster, relaxing and each game lasts only like 15 minutes.
Jack Videogames
Member
13h-ish. Completed Story mode in Normal difficulty.
Whew. This was more of an experience than a game for me, a rollercoaster of emotions so big that I feel the need to do five reviews at once, one for each "part" of the game. Warning: giant spoilers abound.
Intro - Wow, Columbia is really pretty. It feels very Bioshock-esque, though in a different way - perhaps like Rapture before everything went to hell. I do want to know more about this thing.
Early Game - Alright, I get it, Columbia is beautiful and mysterious and alien but I'm getting bored, can we move on? Shooting gendarmes is not really THAT alluring.
Mid-game - Finally this game is up to its potential. The weapons are nice, the gunplay is varied and the Vigours give it that touch of strategy I loved in Bioshock 1 and 2. Also the story is really interesting, though I'm not sure of the strange references to quantum theory. I foresee shenanigans.
Finale. Man, this was great! The final showdown with the Vox and the remainders of Comstock's loyalists was dope, and controlling the Songbird was a nice touch. I'm even a bit sad to see it end...
Ending - ...
...
... ಠ_ಠ WHAT!?
Seriously, what was that? It was the videogame equivalent to the original Evangelion series. Generally speaking, I loved the game, but as I've said previously, the ending makes half of the feelings of a player towards a game, and I simply don't know how to feel about Bioshock Infinite's. Confused? Sad? Pissed? Yeah, I think I'll go with "Pissed".
Updated OP
Velcro Fly
Member
Original Post
For the month of July I completed two games.
My current progress for this challenge is 43/52
1. Zero Escape: Zero Time Dilemma Finished on July 7 23 hours, 28 minutes
Game is great. It could have been greater. All I'll say because anything else will spoil things.
2. Super Smash Bros for 3DS Finished on July 10 168+ hours
Finally finished the last challenge and got the last few trophies. This game is still a joy to play and a marvel that it plays so well on a 3DS. I've been grinding out the 50 hours of smash mode challenge for a while now and with EVO coming up soon decided to just keep playing since I knew I was close. There are just so many fun characters to play as and playing as them makes me want to play their games again.
For the month of July I completed two games.
My current progress for this challenge is 43/52
1. Zero Escape: Zero Time Dilemma Finished on July 7 23 hours, 28 minutes
Game is great. It could have been greater. All I'll say because anything else will spoil things.
2. Super Smash Bros for 3DS Finished on July 10 168+ hours
Finally finished the last challenge and got the last few trophies. This game is still a joy to play and a marvel that it plays so well on a 3DS. I've been grinding out the 50 hours of smash mode challenge for a while now and with EVO coming up soon decided to just keep playing since I knew I was close. There are just so many fun characters to play as and playing as them makes me want to play their games again.
Benzychenz
Member
Game 20: Zero Escape: Zero Time Dilemma
PSV - 21 hours - Beaten 02/08/16 - ★★★☆☆
Well this game disappointed. Story was dumb and lacked a great twist that the previous two set expectations for, the returning characters were lacking, puzzles were easy, all the standout music was just returning tracks from previous entries. Such a shame.
I was actually enjoying it around the middle, I felt like everything was leading somewhere and all the pieces were being put in place for a big reveal, and then just nothing.
Game 21: Ape Escape 2
PS4 - 16 hours - Beaten 06/08/16 - ★★★★★
First time playing this since I was a kid and it was glorious. Such a charming platformer littered with wacky humour and a ton of references. Gadgets were fun, levels were entertaining, boss fights were great. Really happy I revisited this, and super excited for 3 to hit PS4 as I've never played it.
OP
marcincz
Member
Game #31: Devil May Cry 3 (PS3) - 14:19 h - 03/08/2016
Not as masterpiece as I expected (it was my first playthrough), but still very good game. I don't like backtracking moments in any game - same here. Besides camera was sometimes very frustrating. However boss fights was brillant especially with Vergil - real challenging.
Game #32: Portal (X360) - 04:37 h - 04/08/2016
Very nice short game. Some levels almost blew up my mind.
And this final song. Wonderful.
Original Post
Not as masterpiece as I expected (it was my first playthrough), but still very good game. I don't like backtracking moments in any game - same here. Besides camera was sometimes very frustrating. However boss fights was brillant especially with Vergil - real challenging.
Game #32: Portal (X360) - 04:37 h - 04/08/2016
Very nice short game. Some levels almost blew up my mind.
And this final song. Wonderful.
Original Post
Falchion
Member
Original Post
40) Red Dead Redemption - 11 hours - 8/6
I decided to replay this when it was released on Xbox backwards compatibility a few weeks ago and it holds up very well. The most impressive aspect of the game is the sense of place and atmosphere created by the amazing world and it was still so much fun to go from the desert around Armadillo to the barren landscape of Mexico to the snowy foothills of tall trees.
40) Red Dead Redemption - 11 hours - 8/6
I decided to replay this when it was released on Xbox backwards compatibility a few weeks ago and it holds up very well. The most impressive aspect of the game is the sense of place and atmosphere created by the amazing world and it was still so much fun to go from the desert around Armadillo to the barren landscape of Mexico to the snowy foothills of tall trees.
UcchedavÄda
Member
You just make a post that you want to be your "master" post, and then go back and edit it every time you make another post that you've beaten a game, so that the master post contains an up-to-date list of all the games you've beaten. It's entirely done by hand, and you could for example just start using the post with your question as your master post.
rottendevice
Member
Just Castlevania! Which is a huge game to me.
Congrats on finishing, A Link to the Past!!
rottendevice
Member
Main Post 1
Main Post 2
Game 50: Sonic Advance 2 (5 hours)
Not sure what I can say about this that I didn't say about the first game. This is more about holding down right and watching the game play itself. Boss battles are satisfying. Not as good as the first one but still enjoyable.
4/5
Game 51: Sonic CD (2 hours)
When I started playing this game, I waa getting sick of Sonic games. When I reached the end, I was certain I'd played the best Sonic game of my life. From the music to the Future / Past concept, this game takes the existing Sonic formula, and adds style and grace to it all. Levels are designed tightly, and boss battles are rewarding. Play this game if you play no other Sonic game.
5/5
Game 52: Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow
This is probably the best of all the GBA Castlevania games. For one thing, the art is better than any other one. Also the music is better. The game isn't necessarily *easier* but it's more evenly paced. I think my favorite all time Castlevania is Portrait of Ruin, but again, this is the best you're going to do on GBA.
5/5
--------
Wow, that's going to do it for the 52 games in one year challenge. I'd like to thank my parents for supporting me. This has been a really great experience. Not sure if I'll do it again next year, but I had some great times playing games this year. May the gaming continue!
Main Post 2
Game 50: Sonic Advance 2 (5 hours)
Not sure what I can say about this that I didn't say about the first game. This is more about holding down right and watching the game play itself. Boss battles are satisfying. Not as good as the first one but still enjoyable.
4/5
Game 51: Sonic CD (2 hours)
When I started playing this game, I waa getting sick of Sonic games. When I reached the end, I was certain I'd played the best Sonic game of my life. From the music to the Future / Past concept, this game takes the existing Sonic formula, and adds style and grace to it all. Levels are designed tightly, and boss battles are rewarding. Play this game if you play no other Sonic game.
5/5
Game 52: Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow
This is probably the best of all the GBA Castlevania games. For one thing, the art is better than any other one. Also the music is better. The game isn't necessarily *easier* but it's more evenly paced. I think my favorite all time Castlevania is Portrait of Ruin, but again, this is the best you're going to do on GBA.
5/5
--------
Wow, that's going to do it for the 52 games in one year challenge. I'd like to thank my parents for supporting me. This has been a really great experience. Not sure if I'll do it again next year, but I had some great times playing games this year. May the gaming continue!
A Link to the Past
Banned
Thanks for the congrats! And no need to stop now; you can always keep going beyond 52 games!
Glad to hear that you beat the challenge with a game you liked quite a bit, though!
Pellegri Testament
Member
Original post
Game #29 - Akiba's Trip - 8/7/16 (17 hours)
This was a bit rougher than I would have hoped for in the framerate department (on Vita). I ended up getting used to it halfway in, but the gameplay was extremely hampered by the low framerate when more than a handful of people were on the screen beyond your 2 characters (which happened very frequently). It wasn't that bad for just dumb fun, but it had few redeeming factors to it as even the characters didn't have all that much to them.
Game #30 - Metroid AM2R - 8/9/16 (5 hours)
This was better than anything "Metroid" Nintendo has brought out in years. It honestly felt like a professional quality remake of Metroid 2, which desperately needed to be done considering how badly it's aged. The music was great and the job the developer did on the world was something else. The only real issue I had with the game was the hitboxes on the 3rd and 4th Metroid forms, which made the Omega version especially terrible. Increased invincibility frames also wouldn't have hurt as there were some rooms where you could get trapped in a corner and just get attack chained without being able to move. Ended up finishing it at 87% on normal.
Game #31 - Trails of Cold Steel - 9/6/16 (35 hours)
Decided to do a another run through of the first before the 2nd came out. After playing Persona 4 several months before I could really tell just how much this had used Persona as a base when it came to it's school setting. Still holds together after playing it again so soon, unlike other games I have done it with. Wanted to finish off the platinum and ended up missing a single enemy for the final trophy....
Game #32 - Trails of Cold Steel 2 - 9/28/16 (59 hours)
Even my most hyped release of the year could not escape barely being played in the first week due to WoW. I think it's safe to say that this game, especially due to the final chapter/epilogue, has dethroned most of my top games. The music ended up being even better than the 1st and I enjoyed the story far more outside of a few hiccups. My only real complaint is some of the character jobbing that went on near the end, outside of that it was great. It's sad though that they leave the game wide open for a sequel, yet it will be another 2 years "minimum" before we even have a chance of getting it.
Game #33 - MeiQ: Labyrinth of Death - 10/14/16 (22 hours)
Best word I can think of to describe this is "ehh". The customization system isn't that bad once the game starts forcing it on you midway through if you want to continue progressing, but once you really get into it, battles are little more than chain a combo together and win in 5secs. Like you can see where certain things will start to matter more on higher difficulties (there are 4 of them), but normal mode is really far too easy to ever test you. I'll likely continue on at some point in the future so I can see if things start getting more mechanically complex, but my first playthrough just really did not leave a strong impression on me at all.
Game #34 - Yomawari - 10/29/16 (8 hours)
Even though it wasn't nearly as scary as it was made out to be, it definitely fit the horror bill. I liked what they did with the town and all the hidden events you could find, I just wish they had given some kind of backstory to the town itself and why it is how it is. This also had one of the most shocking openings I've seen in a game, which you don't expect it due to it being the rather brief tutorial.
Game #35 - Valkyrie Drive - 11/20/16 (36 hours)
Other than not really liking a character or 2, I liked this far more than Senran Kagura. The gameplay feels like a step up, mainly thanks to a dedicated dodge button, although they could still work on some of the more "heavy" characters. The story also felt like it had a real goal, unlike Estival Versus where it was all over the place and rarely felt like there was a purpose other than the fanservice.
Game #36 - SuperDimension Neptune Vs Sega Hard Girls - 12/17/16 (27 hours)
I feel like this would have been much better had they spent more time on the Sega girls, because it felt like they were just kinda there most of the time. I liked how the story was clearly inspired by other time travel games, but it desperately needed more reason to care about some of the characters. I ended up platinuming this and it made me really wish for an easier way to do grind trophies in these games.
Game #29 - Akiba's Trip - 8/7/16 (17 hours)
This was a bit rougher than I would have hoped for in the framerate department (on Vita). I ended up getting used to it halfway in, but the gameplay was extremely hampered by the low framerate when more than a handful of people were on the screen beyond your 2 characters (which happened very frequently). It wasn't that bad for just dumb fun, but it had few redeeming factors to it as even the characters didn't have all that much to them.
Game #30 - Metroid AM2R - 8/9/16 (5 hours)
This was better than anything "Metroid" Nintendo has brought out in years. It honestly felt like a professional quality remake of Metroid 2, which desperately needed to be done considering how badly it's aged. The music was great and the job the developer did on the world was something else. The only real issue I had with the game was the hitboxes on the 3rd and 4th Metroid forms, which made the Omega version especially terrible. Increased invincibility frames also wouldn't have hurt as there were some rooms where you could get trapped in a corner and just get attack chained without being able to move. Ended up finishing it at 87% on normal.
Game #31 - Trails of Cold Steel - 9/6/16 (35 hours)
Decided to do a another run through of the first before the 2nd came out. After playing Persona 4 several months before I could really tell just how much this had used Persona as a base when it came to it's school setting. Still holds together after playing it again so soon, unlike other games I have done it with. Wanted to finish off the platinum and ended up missing a single enemy for the final trophy....
Game #32 - Trails of Cold Steel 2 - 9/28/16 (59 hours)
Even my most hyped release of the year could not escape barely being played in the first week due to WoW. I think it's safe to say that this game, especially due to the final chapter/epilogue, has dethroned most of my top games. The music ended up being even better than the 1st and I enjoyed the story far more outside of a few hiccups. My only real complaint is some of the character jobbing that went on near the end, outside of that it was great. It's sad though that they leave the game wide open for a sequel, yet it will be another 2 years "minimum" before we even have a chance of getting it.
Game #33 - MeiQ: Labyrinth of Death - 10/14/16 (22 hours)
Best word I can think of to describe this is "ehh". The customization system isn't that bad once the game starts forcing it on you midway through if you want to continue progressing, but once you really get into it, battles are little more than chain a combo together and win in 5secs. Like you can see where certain things will start to matter more on higher difficulties (there are 4 of them), but normal mode is really far too easy to ever test you. I'll likely continue on at some point in the future so I can see if things start getting more mechanically complex, but my first playthrough just really did not leave a strong impression on me at all.
Game #34 - Yomawari - 10/29/16 (8 hours)
Even though it wasn't nearly as scary as it was made out to be, it definitely fit the horror bill. I liked what they did with the town and all the hidden events you could find, I just wish they had given some kind of backstory to the town itself and why it is how it is. This also had one of the most shocking openings I've seen in a game, which you don't expect it due to it being the rather brief tutorial.
Game #35 - Valkyrie Drive - 11/20/16 (36 hours)
Other than not really liking a character or 2, I liked this far more than Senran Kagura. The gameplay feels like a step up, mainly thanks to a dedicated dodge button, although they could still work on some of the more "heavy" characters. The story also felt like it had a real goal, unlike Estival Versus where it was all over the place and rarely felt like there was a purpose other than the fanservice.
Game #36 - SuperDimension Neptune Vs Sega Hard Girls - 12/17/16 (27 hours)
I feel like this would have been much better had they spent more time on the Sega girls, because it felt like they were just kinda there most of the time. I liked how the story was clearly inspired by other time travel games, but it desperately needed more reason to care about some of the characters. I ended up platinuming this and it made me really wish for an easier way to do grind trophies in these games.
Archive Post
Game 27 - Borderlands 2 [PC] ★★★
I made a start of Borderlands 2 as the alternative to continuing Destiny's endgame. And there was a lot to like in that transition. A proper open-world structure, enemies that were much less bullet-spongey, and an absolute smattering of quests made it feel like the first person loot 'n' shoot that Bungie's game should have been. But that feeling couldn't hold to the end of the campaign. The tryhard wackiness was the first to grate. The dialogue swaggers in and drops gags with utterly misplaced confidence, and every character was loud, brash and completely annoying. Every single one. The gunplay initially seemed fine, if lacking a little punch, but by the end of the game you realise the increased damage of your stronger weapons needed to be offset by exaggerated unsteadiness or excruciating reload times to keep the appeal of new loot alive. In the last 2 hours of play, gunfights felt more like I was wrestling with my own weaponry than taking on enemies, and that sucked. Furthermore, although there are a lot of sidequests, it's quickly apparent that they're all forgettable and, well... bad. I had to grind a few to get to the level needed to beat the game and I was just screaming for the damn thing to be over. All in all, Borderlands 2 is a fantastically structured, competent game, filled to the brim with terrible ideas. I had a decent amount of fun, but I certainly wouldn't have made it through it if it wasn't for co-op.
Game 27 - Borderlands 2 [PC] ★★★
I made a start of Borderlands 2 as the alternative to continuing Destiny's endgame. And there was a lot to like in that transition. A proper open-world structure, enemies that were much less bullet-spongey, and an absolute smattering of quests made it feel like the first person loot 'n' shoot that Bungie's game should have been. But that feeling couldn't hold to the end of the campaign. The tryhard wackiness was the first to grate. The dialogue swaggers in and drops gags with utterly misplaced confidence, and every character was loud, brash and completely annoying. Every single one. The gunplay initially seemed fine, if lacking a little punch, but by the end of the game you realise the increased damage of your stronger weapons needed to be offset by exaggerated unsteadiness or excruciating reload times to keep the appeal of new loot alive. In the last 2 hours of play, gunfights felt more like I was wrestling with my own weaponry than taking on enemies, and that sucked. Furthermore, although there are a lot of sidequests, it's quickly apparent that they're all forgettable and, well... bad. I had to grind a few to get to the level needed to beat the game and I was just screaming for the damn thing to be over. All in all, Borderlands 2 is a fantastically structured, competent game, filled to the brim with terrible ideas. I had a decent amount of fun, but I certainly wouldn't have made it through it if it wasn't for co-op.
Bumbletron
Member
Original Post - http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=191017473&postcount=324
I finally hit 52 today with the completion of Limbo. Total time comes out to 687 hours played, or 28 days. I sacrificed my tv time to do so, so I don't feel that bad for it honestly. If I wasn't working or hanging out with friends, I didn't have much else to do.
Stopped posting reviews for every game because they were getting tiredsome, but I'm pretty happy with knocking out part of my backlog.
I finally hit 52 today with the completion of Limbo. Total time comes out to 687 hours played, or 28 days. I sacrificed my tv time to do so, so I don't feel that bad for it honestly. If I wasn't working or hanging out with friends, I didn't have much else to do.
Stopped posting reviews for every game because they were getting tiredsome, but I'm pretty happy with knocking out part of my backlog.
rottendevice
Member
Congrats MattZ! Doing anything to celebrate?
TheDarkKnight774
Member
Full List
Did a big update to finally catch up. I'm now up to 37! This is my fourth year tracking game completion numbers and that's been the most i've done in a year. And we still have about 5 months left. I think 52 could be achievable. And i'm glad to say almost all are games being completed for the first time.
Most recent:
Game 36 - Abzu
This game was what I expected it to be and was kind of hoping for. Yes it is pretty safe, and also not at the level of Thatgamecompany who this project shares a couple similar names. But its still a fun ride that is an audio and visual showcase for the 2 hours or so it takes to go through it. And like Journey its a game that should be played in one sitting
Game 37 - Dishonored
Like Virtue's Last Reward and Deus Ex Human Revolution, Dishonored is a game on my backlog that rose to the top because a sequel is coming. I went through the game with a no death run. Its a good game but not a great game. Its a stealth game (at least how i played it) but its not near the polish of other stealth games I played. The dynamics of choice were interesting but not taking it as far as other games i've seen. All in all it was a solid game. And though its not one that completely blew me away it held my attention enough for me to stay interested in knocking out the 15 hours of gametime in two days. And that's not something i do these days with a lot of games
Did a big update to finally catch up. I'm now up to 37! This is my fourth year tracking game completion numbers and that's been the most i've done in a year. And we still have about 5 months left. I think 52 could be achievable. And i'm glad to say almost all are games being completed for the first time.
Most recent:
Game 36 - Abzu
This game was what I expected it to be and was kind of hoping for. Yes it is pretty safe, and also not at the level of Thatgamecompany who this project shares a couple similar names. But its still a fun ride that is an audio and visual showcase for the 2 hours or so it takes to go through it. And like Journey its a game that should be played in one sitting
Game 37 - Dishonored
Like Virtue's Last Reward and Deus Ex Human Revolution, Dishonored is a game on my backlog that rose to the top because a sequel is coming. I went through the game with a no death run. Its a good game but not a great game. Its a stealth game (at least how i played it) but its not near the polish of other stealth games I played. The dynamics of choice were interesting but not taking it as far as other games i've seen. All in all it was a solid game. And though its not one that completely blew me away it held my attention enough for me to stay interested in knocking out the 15 hours of gametime in two days. And that's not something i do these days with a lot of games
chrominance
Member
Original post
43. VA-11 Hall-A (PC, 2016) - 8:10
Mixed drinks. Changed lives. Made rent. Found the Dorothinquisition.
The motto "Waifu Bartending" and early references to the "White Knights" as an oppressive security force might give you a certain idea about where VA-11 Hall-A's sociopolitical and aesthetic allegiances lie. But it turns out to be the first of many pieces of misdirection. A recurring motif in this visual novel/bartending simulator is the adaptation of hoary Japanese fanservice tropes in service of a slice-of-life cyberpunk story notable for its genuine empathy and warmth.
As one of the bartenders of VA-11 Hall-A, or Valhalla for short, you get to know a cast of characters that come to you to take a load off and forget their troubles. Some of them seem like easy cliches (hello "sexy" woman who looks like a 12-year-old), but slowly evolve into multi-dimensional characters with detailed backstories and interesting perspectives. There's not a ton that actually happens in the story, and most of the world-changing events that drive the plot happen offscreen. The focus here is on how the regulars at Valhalla change as time passes, and how your relationships with each of them evolve. As the game progresses, your regular cast of misfits start to feel like an extended family. And even though the actual act of mixing drinks isn't all that involving or difficult, the way you get to know everyone's preferences and catch snippets of their life stories is what makes the "bartender simulator" label feel legitimate.
It's hard to say more without spoiling parts of the story, and to be honest I've only played through the game once so it feels like there's still a lot I don't know myself. But VA-11 Hall-A is basically two fistfuls of interesting bar conversations stuffed into a visual novel with a great soundtrack and a unique game mechanic to drive it. If the words "cyberpunk bartender action" evoke the same heady ideas to you as they did to me, know that VA-11 Hall-A does not disappoint.
43. VA-11 Hall-A (PC, 2016) - 8:10
Mixed drinks. Changed lives. Made rent. Found the Dorothinquisition.
The motto "Waifu Bartending" and early references to the "White Knights" as an oppressive security force might give you a certain idea about where VA-11 Hall-A's sociopolitical and aesthetic allegiances lie. But it turns out to be the first of many pieces of misdirection. A recurring motif in this visual novel/bartending simulator is the adaptation of hoary Japanese fanservice tropes in service of a slice-of-life cyberpunk story notable for its genuine empathy and warmth.
As one of the bartenders of VA-11 Hall-A, or Valhalla for short, you get to know a cast of characters that come to you to take a load off and forget their troubles. Some of them seem like easy cliches (hello "sexy" woman who looks like a 12-year-old), but slowly evolve into multi-dimensional characters with detailed backstories and interesting perspectives. There's not a ton that actually happens in the story, and most of the world-changing events that drive the plot happen offscreen. The focus here is on how the regulars at Valhalla change as time passes, and how your relationships with each of them evolve. As the game progresses, your regular cast of misfits start to feel like an extended family. And even though the actual act of mixing drinks isn't all that involving or difficult, the way you get to know everyone's preferences and catch snippets of their life stories is what makes the "bartender simulator" label feel legitimate.
It's hard to say more without spoiling parts of the story, and to be honest I've only played through the game once so it feels like there's still a lot I don't know myself. But VA-11 Hall-A is basically two fistfuls of interesting bar conversations stuffed into a visual novel with a great soundtrack and a unique game mechanic to drive it. If the words "cyberpunk bartender action" evoke the same heady ideas to you as they did to me, know that VA-11 Hall-A does not disappoint.
Hikami
Member
main post
I just checked last year's thread to compare my progress.. I had 58 games done at this point last year lol. These MMOs and other multiplayer games are such huge timesinks.
--
Game 19: Pokemon GO | ?? hours | July
It was fun while it lasted I guess. This game got me to go outside, explore my neighborhood, go to nearby parks I didn't even know existed.. for a total of like 2 weeks. Then the tracking bug got annoying, living in the suburbs means no new pokemon/pokestops for miles, etc. It did at least get me into Pokemon again. Catching up on the XY anime now, played AS, and hyped for Sun and Moon. Also my stamina seems to have gone way up due to my runs at the park. The track is like a mile long and I could barely run 1/5th of it before getting exhausted. Now I can run the whole thing.
--
Game 20: Moirai | 10 minutes | July
A very short but very interesting game. Found it thanks to a thread on GAF. The less you know, the better your experience. It's a free game.
--
Game 21: Pokemon Alpha Sapphire | 45 hours | August
I had skipped this back when it released due to some weird decisions they were taking with the game. No trainer customization, no battle frontier, etc. I picked it up anyways due to Pokemon GO and Sun and Moon hype.
The main game was pretty disappointing. They took almost nothing from Emerald, the best version of Hoenn, and made the game really easy. The DexNav was a great addition at least and the music is great as always.
The Delta Episode post game was great, maybe even the best part of the game. Shame it was so short though. Was going to try and complete the Pokedex for once but with Sun and Moon so close, I'll just do it in that game if possible so I won't burn out on Pokemon before it's even out.
I just checked last year's thread to compare my progress.. I had 58 games done at this point last year lol. These MMOs and other multiplayer games are such huge timesinks.
--
Game 19: Pokemon GO | ?? hours | July
It was fun while it lasted I guess. This game got me to go outside, explore my neighborhood, go to nearby parks I didn't even know existed.. for a total of like 2 weeks. Then the tracking bug got annoying, living in the suburbs means no new pokemon/pokestops for miles, etc. It did at least get me into Pokemon again. Catching up on the XY anime now, played AS, and hyped for Sun and Moon. Also my stamina seems to have gone way up due to my runs at the park. The track is like a mile long and I could barely run 1/5th of it before getting exhausted. Now I can run the whole thing.
--
Game 20: Moirai | 10 minutes | July
A very short but very interesting game. Found it thanks to a thread on GAF. The less you know, the better your experience. It's a free game.
--
Game 21: Pokemon Alpha Sapphire | 45 hours | August
I had skipped this back when it released due to some weird decisions they were taking with the game. No trainer customization, no battle frontier, etc. I picked it up anyways due to Pokemon GO and Sun and Moon hype.
The main game was pretty disappointing. They took almost nothing from Emerald, the best version of Hoenn, and made the game really easy. The DexNav was a great addition at least and the music is great as always.
The Delta Episode post game was great, maybe even the best part of the game. Shame it was so short though. Was going to try and complete the Pokedex for once but with Sun and Moon so close, I'll just do it in that game if possible so I won't burn out on Pokemon before it's even out.
Game #1. Beat Ori and the Blind Forest - 8/10
-I love me some Metroid (in case you didn't know), and where Axiom Verge lost me in 5 seconds, where Strider made me question why the fuck is it even Metroid, and where Guacamelee was just bad at that stuff, Ori is the shit. Ori gets the type of stuff I want other Metroid-like games to get.
Game #2. Beat Super Mario Bros. - 9/10
-Is it a little slippery? Sure, but fuck you it's Mario Bros., it's a classic, it's fucking great.
Game #3. Beat That Dragon, Cancer - 7/10
-I went in with the idea that I want personal stories like this in games, I want something that reflects the events another human being went through I guess, I like the idea of something being powerful enough to resonate with me on an emotional, and I stand by all that stuff, but I full on cried. I didn't just choke up, it wasn't man tears, there were a lot of scenes in that game that were rough to sit through, and I did the choke up and man tear during those moments, because God damn is it depressing. Then there was this big scene that comes up, and I realized what was happening, and I broke. I cried full stop, at a video game.
Game #4. Beat Undertale - 6/10
-All in all I dug it, it was legitimately surprising, reasonably funny, and I liked a lot of the characters. Papyrus and Sans were going to be a given, but Undying was a show stealer, and Mettaton was dope as fuck. I buy most of the plot points, and the True Labs, wow, was not expecting it to get all grim in that way, but okay. I don't care for the playing it part.
Game #5. Beat Cibele - 4/10
- I didn't really get anything meaningful out of the plot, other than yeah some people are awkward, have anxiety, self esteem issues, all that jazz, I get that. I don't know, I think it's the only twine game I've ever played and beaten, but I don't actually know what twine game even means other than Austin Walker calling this game a Twine Game.
Game #6. Beat X-Com Enemy Within - 8/10
- Love my team, Idris Elba, Sarah Conner, and Sabrina The Teenage Witch repping my mec army of destruction, Usain Hardcore Bolt, what a beast. Truest of my MVPs. Kim Checkmate Possible clutch on the sniper. Even got decent help from Aljosa The Demon (I didn't give him the nickname I let the game take care of that lol) Klujik who infiltrated the exalt bases for me it was rad.I like the additions Enemy Within added over Enemy Unknown, Meld adds a sense of urgency to combat that isn't there
Game #7. Beat Bully Scholarship Edition - 6/10
-I like the novelty of Bully as it is so different from what I would have associated with a Rockstar game, and the more modest production of Bully (not in comparison to stuff that came after alone, even GTA games of that era were more robust) gives Bully a bit of a different vibe, even if the gameplay is very much Rockstar.
Game #8. Beat Firewatch - 6/10
-So Firewatch is a new one of these walk n talk adventure games in the mold of a gone home or everyone's gone to rapture or whatever, and for a 3.5-4 hour game I dug a lot of it, right up until the ending let me down. The banter between Henry and Delilah is great, it feels natural, the only time I cringe is during their flirting and even that works a bit for me, the ambiance is there, if you turn the map marker off you end up using the map and compass like an actual map and compass in a setting where it can feel like you can be lost for a sec. I hate the ending.
Game #9. Beat Grim Fandango - 8/10
-A genuine classic, Chapter 2 is one for the ages, Manny is a G, and the finale is certainly memorable.
Game #10. Beat Crimson Dragon - 3/10
-So I remember having a blast with Panzer Dragoon Orta, and from my understanding the dude behind that franchise was the one directing this game. Now I know the metascore for the game was trash, but it was one of the GWG games, and fuck it, how bad could it really be? Really bad apparently, it's atrocious.
Game #11. Beat Broforce - 7/10
-The first half of this game I really dug, it brings me back to the glory days of Contra and Metal Slug, and I kind of wish I played broop, playing it solo probably does the game a disservice. But it's a lot better than just run forward and blow shit up, a lot of the bros have cool abilities that go nicely, when the game is coming up with fun boss sequences it's an absolute delight, and fuck it if I don't like going from Robocop to Blade to fucking Commando lol. That and the whole you can shoot and dig your way out of levels is really clever, as some of the rougher stretches actually required me to instead of deal with the enemies head on, use my environment to my advantage.I bet that shit is great on the higher difficulties.But that 2nd half is where I just got annoyed,
Game #12. Beat Superhot - 7/10
-It's the most innovative shooter I've played in years.
Game #13. Beat The Moon Silver - 1/10
-It's a short story video game, it sucks.
Game #14. Beat Super Metroid - 10/10
-I love you Super Metroid. You are the greatest game ever made.
Game #15. Beat Out There Somewhere - 5/10
-Overall it's aight, on paper it seems like my kind of game. It's an indie game, it's a side scroller with multiple paths at times, there is puzzle platforming, there is a teleporting gun, the final boss is a shmup level. Ultimately none of it really challenged me as far as the puzzles were concerned, it doesn't quite stump me the way a Braid did, or stop me in my tracks or have think outside the box like the better levels in Portal or Antichamber, and in general a lot of these obstacle types I've seen before, included the color coded beam of light that stops me from doing thing, acts like this one other thing, and enhances my thing.
Game #16. Beat Pokemon Yellow - 5/10
-I powered through the game and basically just rekt the elite 4 with Charizard, Zapdos and Articuno.
Game #17. Beat Dark Souls 2: Scholar of the First Sin - 6/10
-Heat of the moment gut reaction, I'd still consider it Metroid Prime 3 of as an good game, but way the fuck beneath the other games in its franchise, because Demon's, Dark Souls 1, and Bloodborne are great games, masterpiece in the case of Demon's Souls, but fuck Dark Souls 2 at times.
Game #18. Beat Dark Souls 3 - 8/10
-Another Souls game down, another string of me dying, and another group of boss fights down n out for the count. All in all much better game than Dark Souls 2, as well for one none of the shitty things about Dark Souls 2 (adapt stat, the broken hit detection, soul memory, the bland and uninspired boss fights, the fugly world design, the incoherent world design, the mob based nature of the combat in dark souls 2, the general shittyness of its story stuff), about the only thing it might screw up on is that some of the areas in Dark Souls 3 can come off a bit cheap at times, and yeah some of these runbacks are total Dark Souls 2 tier at times, but it wasn't nearly as offensive as Dark Souls 2 at its worst in that department.
Game #19. Beat Jamestown - 7/10
-Doesn't quite entertain me the way games like Icaruga, Sin and Punishment or that Velocity 2x game did. But, whatevs. Icaruga was also anger inducing -_-
Game #20. Beat Resident Evil Remake - 9/10
-Phew, well that got dicey, I got lost at one point, the fucking fuel explodey shit, and I never had the assault shotgun because I got what's his face killed. But, fuck man this type of game is still fantastic. Love it. Resident Evil 4 is still my favorite of the series, but to Mikami and Capcom's credit this series has two games in my opinion worthy of Mustardpiece status.
Game #21. Beat Vanquish - 8/10
-Mikami is a beast, I still don't like parts of the 2nd half, the fight with your boy is lacking as fuck, but those challenge missions? So fucking good. It's mechanically the finest third person shooter.
Game #22. Beat Star Fox Zero - 3/10
-The controls are lousy and ruin the core mechanical experience, and creatively speaking it's a lesser version of the game they made on the 64. With less organic branching paths and not as many bosses. Game sucks.
Game #23. Beat The Bridge - 5/10
-That last two puzzles were neato, and I'll admit to the hand-drawn art growing on me as far as the game went, but it doesn't quite deliver a satisfying puzzle game. With the biggest issue being that the puzzles are either pretty fucking easy (in terms of solving), but really become tedious or infuriating for how finnicky and precise the games execution can be.
Game #24. Beat Gravity Rush Remastered - 4/10
-Game completely wastes such an imaginative concept. The sequel needs major improvements.
Game #25. Beat Ultimate Doom - 9/10
-Okay so talking OG Doom, the game is fucking divine. Very much like a lot of the classics of that era, where there is an elegance to all its simplicity, and the overall polish of the experience makes it a consistent pure gameplay experience. The shotgun to this day is just actively enjoyable to shoot, the plasma rifle is awesome, and the BFG? I mean it's the BFG.
Game #26. Beat Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows - 2/10
-Yeah, it's shit.
Game #27. Beat Battleborn - 5/10
-The broop campaign is far too rubbish, should have just stuck to messing with the multiplayer. That is at least decent.
Game #28. Beat Destiny: The Taken King - 5/10
- The House of Wolves/The Dark Below is still boring for the exact same reasons OG Destiny is a piece of shit game, but Taken King finally takes some strides forward. For starters the missions mix it up more, the new area is enjoyable to play in, and there is actually something resembling a story. It's still underwhelming on other fronts, but it's the first real sign that Bungie can turn this hot mess around.
Game #29. Beat Doom II: Hell on Earth - 8/10
-The Super Shotgun is godly, and it's still fucking doom. The only thing that hurts it in comparison to its predecessor is that the level design isn't nearly as fair at times as Doom 1 is.
Game #30. Beat Beyond Good & Evil - 5/10
-I like the characters and the setting, and I do miss this style of game in the modern era. But, it's so mechanically underwhelming if not straight lousy for large stretches. The combat is limp, the stealth is basic, and I hate driving that boat. But I love me some Jade and Payje.
Game #31. Beat Marlow Briggs: And The Mask of Death - 4/10
-I like that it's a really dumb and silly, but the mechanics are super unsatisfying and the boss fights suck.
Game #32. Beat Limbo - 7/10
-The experience is great for the first half, but the second half becomes less compelling. Without the narrative thread of the first half, the game becomes a fairly unimpressive puzzle platformer. But damn that first half is amazing.
Game #33. Beat The Division - 4/10
-Maybe it's just not meant to be for a loot shooter to actually be enjoyable or fun?
Game #34. Beat Inside - 7/10
-I still don't like the way the ending is executed. I'd much rather have the secret ending proper, but it is what it is. There are so many great story telling achievements in the game that I still really like the game a lot, but the way the game ends abruptly on a note that doesn't really work without the secret ending bothers me.
Game #35. Beat Snakebird - 7/10
-Fundamentally a cool twist on snakes, and some fiendishly well thought out puzzles. The major knock I would say is that the actual figuring it out process is far too rigid and as a result grating at times. The game almost demands a very specific set of moves to be made, and placements to be made which is really difficult to sort of plan out, at least I struggled with planning that shit out in a lot of puzzles.
Game #36. Beat Bullestorm - 6/10
-The Echoes mode makes up for what is an otherwise a bit disappointing campaign. There just isn't enough room to experiment with the skill shots to really show off, if anything the game is a bit too tame and rigid for its own good.
Game #37. Beat One Finger Death Punch - 7/10
-Unadulterated flow, and it's badass for it.
Game #38. Beat Saints Row: Gat out of Hell - 2/10
-I love Johnny Gat, I like Kinzie, and the songs are dope. But the missions is just a lazy pack of side mission bullshit, and the story isn't nearly developed enough to hit all the high notes Saints Row 3 and 4 do. It's such a shame given the concept is killer.
Game #39. Beat Blackwell Legacy - 6/10
-I like the story enough, as I like the pairing of Rosa Blackwell and Joey the ghost. It's more or less Rosa has adopted the family business. Saving people, hunting ghosts, no impala though. A lot of the adventure game "puzzle" solving is fairly simple and makes a level of sense, albeit maybe a cleaner inventory system would be more to my liking. Some of the sequence specific linearity is irritating, because I would have liked to get certain things early, especially if I already know what to do.
Game #40. Beat Deus Ex: Human Revolution Director's Cut - 7/10
-All in all I dig it, there are some clear obvious improvements over the original game, and in other cases it's not nearly as strong as the best qualities of OG Deus Ex. Although it maintains the first games stupid way of doing an ending, all tied up in an ending tron 5000. The story is also equally stupid, but the first game at least had some fun with it and was dumb. This takes itself more seriously, and I don't fucking know why, it basically does nothing with its setting all the transhuman bullshit.
Game #41. Beat Blackwell Unbound - 6/10
-There are some neat little improvements in this game, and just all around neater use of adventure game logic. I like the cycling between Joey and Lauren, I like that Lauren is a bit more sassy than Rosa, who is a bit too introvert, and in general there is a better sense of direction in these cases so long as you are moving that mouse around to search everything.It's more so I don't really care for the central cases, especially after playing Legacy. Legacy's central case kept getting more intriguing, where as Unbound's old lady routine ends a bit on a whimper.Either way it's another aight point and click and Joey is still rad.
Game #42. Beat Abzu - 5/10
-Pretty, but shallow. Both in terms of play and thematically.
Game #43. Beat Journey - 7/10
-Nope, it's still pretty rad. Abzu just doesn't work for me, I'd say the lynch pin that makes it all go is that coop stuff in Journey. It helps drive stuff home better, and it makes the game more thematically consistent. Abzu in comparison is just some of Journey's story beats, but not its high points. Journey through its systems earns what the narrative is trying to convey.
Game #44. Beat Blackwell Conception - 6/10Game
-It's the same as the first two games, cleaner UI, maybe with a bit better flow, and Rosa isn't as mopey as she was in Legacy. It's fine, but it be nice if this series actually improved something over time.
Game#45. Beat Blackwell Deception - 6/10
-Same as the last game, albeit some neater story direction and a bitchin finale. Rosa is legit starting to impress going forward, and Joey is my dude.
Game #46. Beat The Shivah - 3/10
-Far too silly as it undermines a pretty cool narrative concept for a video game. The final boss is kind of cute though, but it's a point and click so without the story the gameplay just isn't good enough to carry it.
Game #47. Beat Aces Wild - 7/10
-So yeah I love this game in a hurt me more sort of way lol. The combat engine is incredibly satisfying, nice juicy sound effects, the screen shake effect, and all those numbers can be so cathartic when you get a clean powerful hit in, especially on a boss. The tying the health recharge and wild meter together is a cool addition, and I really like its systems overall. It just feels really good to take down that final boss you know. Probably the best 2d beat-em up I've played outside of Streets of Rage.
Game #48. Beat Stories: The Path of Destinies - 4/10
-The story gimmick and the story itself is pretty cool, the playing it part is a major fucking problem.
Game #49. Beat Blackwell Epiphany - 7/10
-FUCK what a great ending, Gilbert fucking nailed such a strong plot and finish to the series for his final outing with this series, and just as so because Rosangela Blackwell is one of the better video game protags ever. Love me some Joey Mallone. I wish the gameplay focused more on the combining notes as aspect, as opposed to the vanilla stuff, but this has always been a story driven series for me, and I'm fine with that. Because Blackwell Epiphany was one of gaming's best.
Game #50. Beat Quantum Break - 3/10
-I can not stand this game. I'm a little shocked at how a studio went from a game as good as the original Max Payne to the subterranean lows of this game. First and foremost, egad that TV show. Beyond obviously being a budget show that would be beneath the CW or a Scifi channel show, it doesn't help that the acting is really not that good, and the characters are paper freakin thin. I'm really disappointed in just how much of a waste of Lance Reddick and Carcetti that aspect of the game is.
Game #51: Beat Shadow Warrior - 4/10
-It's mechanically unsatisfying as the game feel is way off, the boss fights are dreadful, the devs had no idea why key hunts work well in doom, the difficulty balance on insane is lazy, and the game just overstays its welcome as it would benefit from more than half the games run time being cut.
Game #52: Beat Metroid Prime - 9/10
-A true masterpiece of game design. Retro Studios expertly translated Super Metroid into 3D, the soundtrack is stellar, the atmosphere is sensational, and the boss fights are still a blast to play. What little nit picks I might have for the game are ultimately inconsequential because all things considered this is still one of my favorite games of all time.
Game #53: Beat Mega Man X - 9/10
-I will probably never be good enough to buster only this game, and the boss rushes in the Sigma stages give me a ton of problems. But this is a stone cold classic in every sense of the word. The core mechanics are tight the way you would expect from Mega Man, the level design is ace, the bosses are a blast, and the new powers are fun to use. The wall jump n dash move make for significant improvements over what could be done with the Mega Man formula. Having beaten the game last year and this year, it's made a convincing argument that if I ever fill out a top 10 all time list, Mega Man X needs some serious consideration.
Game #54: Ratchet & Clank 2016 - 7/10
-It's a pretty good game, because the core of this series was strong since day 1. So naturally a more refined version with a greatest hits collection of weapons would be a blast. I love the Groovitron and Mr Zurkon as always, the Pixelizer is a bitchin shotgun, the controls are smooth, and the level design is nice and varied. It's disappointing that the series is creatively stale and the game runs at 30 frames when its predecessors run at 60, but it is what it is. All in all good fucking game.
Game #55: Uncharted 2: Among Thieves - 7/10
-Wasn't as strong as I remembered because the mechanics are a lot weaker than I remember, there are some noteworthy boring stretches, and Shambala itself is when the game runs out of steam. That said most of the game is very well paced, and some of those combat encounters and set pieces are an absolute delight. Plus I love the characterizations in this series, for all its tropy stuff, it's a lot of fun.
Game #56: Uncharted 4: A Thief's End - 7/10
-Significant improvements in major areas like the ballistics being top notch, to the more vertical nature of combat encounters being thrilling as hell, to a story line more centered around the characters and less a sequence of globe trotting events make Uncharted 4 a game with really strong highs. But I'm one of those people that isn't fond of how much downtime this game has where you do what is glorified nothing.
Game #57: Until Dawn - 6/10
-As a game there isn't much to it, beyond choose your own shit and watch a myriad of ending possibilities. And yeah there is a lot of tropes, and cheese, and little holes in the narrative, because it's basically 80's slasher flick stuff, and those movies were never really good outside of major exceptions, as much as they were reasonably suspenseful, but more fun. And that's how I felt about Until Dawn, it is fun in a shlocky way, but it's not much of a game, and having so much invested in shlock narrative isn't that impressive.
Game #58: Invisible Inc. - 7/10
-Dope gameplay and bitchin soundtrack, hated that ending. My type of rogue-lite though as it's one of the cooler turn based strategy games.
-I love me some Metroid (in case you didn't know), and where Axiom Verge lost me in 5 seconds, where Strider made me question why the fuck is it even Metroid, and where Guacamelee was just bad at that stuff, Ori is the shit. Ori gets the type of stuff I want other Metroid-like games to get.
Game #2. Beat Super Mario Bros. - 9/10
-Is it a little slippery? Sure, but fuck you it's Mario Bros., it's a classic, it's fucking great.
Game #3. Beat That Dragon, Cancer - 7/10
-I went in with the idea that I want personal stories like this in games, I want something that reflects the events another human being went through I guess, I like the idea of something being powerful enough to resonate with me on an emotional, and I stand by all that stuff, but I full on cried. I didn't just choke up, it wasn't man tears, there were a lot of scenes in that game that were rough to sit through, and I did the choke up and man tear during those moments, because God damn is it depressing. Then there was this big scene that comes up, and I realized what was happening, and I broke. I cried full stop, at a video game.
Game #4. Beat Undertale - 6/10
-All in all I dug it, it was legitimately surprising, reasonably funny, and I liked a lot of the characters. Papyrus and Sans were going to be a given, but Undying was a show stealer, and Mettaton was dope as fuck. I buy most of the plot points, and the True Labs, wow, was not expecting it to get all grim in that way, but okay. I don't care for the playing it part.
Game #5. Beat Cibele - 4/10
- I didn't really get anything meaningful out of the plot, other than yeah some people are awkward, have anxiety, self esteem issues, all that jazz, I get that. I don't know, I think it's the only twine game I've ever played and beaten, but I don't actually know what twine game even means other than Austin Walker calling this game a Twine Game.
Game #6. Beat X-Com Enemy Within - 8/10
- Love my team, Idris Elba, Sarah Conner, and Sabrina The Teenage Witch repping my mec army of destruction, Usain Hardcore Bolt, what a beast. Truest of my MVPs. Kim Checkmate Possible clutch on the sniper. Even got decent help from Aljosa The Demon (I didn't give him the nickname I let the game take care of that lol) Klujik who infiltrated the exalt bases for me it was rad.I like the additions Enemy Within added over Enemy Unknown, Meld adds a sense of urgency to combat that isn't there
Game #7. Beat Bully Scholarship Edition - 6/10
-I like the novelty of Bully as it is so different from what I would have associated with a Rockstar game, and the more modest production of Bully (not in comparison to stuff that came after alone, even GTA games of that era were more robust) gives Bully a bit of a different vibe, even if the gameplay is very much Rockstar.
Game #8. Beat Firewatch - 6/10
-So Firewatch is a new one of these walk n talk adventure games in the mold of a gone home or everyone's gone to rapture or whatever, and for a 3.5-4 hour game I dug a lot of it, right up until the ending let me down. The banter between Henry and Delilah is great, it feels natural, the only time I cringe is during their flirting and even that works a bit for me, the ambiance is there, if you turn the map marker off you end up using the map and compass like an actual map and compass in a setting where it can feel like you can be lost for a sec. I hate the ending.
Game #9. Beat Grim Fandango - 8/10
-A genuine classic, Chapter 2 is one for the ages, Manny is a G, and the finale is certainly memorable.
Game #10. Beat Crimson Dragon - 3/10
-So I remember having a blast with Panzer Dragoon Orta, and from my understanding the dude behind that franchise was the one directing this game. Now I know the metascore for the game was trash, but it was one of the GWG games, and fuck it, how bad could it really be? Really bad apparently, it's atrocious.
Game #11. Beat Broforce - 7/10
-The first half of this game I really dug, it brings me back to the glory days of Contra and Metal Slug, and I kind of wish I played broop, playing it solo probably does the game a disservice. But it's a lot better than just run forward and blow shit up, a lot of the bros have cool abilities that go nicely, when the game is coming up with fun boss sequences it's an absolute delight, and fuck it if I don't like going from Robocop to Blade to fucking Commando lol. That and the whole you can shoot and dig your way out of levels is really clever, as some of the rougher stretches actually required me to instead of deal with the enemies head on, use my environment to my advantage.I bet that shit is great on the higher difficulties.But that 2nd half is where I just got annoyed,
Game #12. Beat Superhot - 7/10
-It's the most innovative shooter I've played in years.
Game #13. Beat The Moon Silver - 1/10
-It's a short story video game, it sucks.
Game #14. Beat Super Metroid - 10/10
-I love you Super Metroid. You are the greatest game ever made.
Game #15. Beat Out There Somewhere - 5/10
-Overall it's aight, on paper it seems like my kind of game. It's an indie game, it's a side scroller with multiple paths at times, there is puzzle platforming, there is a teleporting gun, the final boss is a shmup level. Ultimately none of it really challenged me as far as the puzzles were concerned, it doesn't quite stump me the way a Braid did, or stop me in my tracks or have think outside the box like the better levels in Portal or Antichamber, and in general a lot of these obstacle types I've seen before, included the color coded beam of light that stops me from doing thing, acts like this one other thing, and enhances my thing.
Game #16. Beat Pokemon Yellow - 5/10
-I powered through the game and basically just rekt the elite 4 with Charizard, Zapdos and Articuno.
Game #17. Beat Dark Souls 2: Scholar of the First Sin - 6/10
-Heat of the moment gut reaction, I'd still consider it Metroid Prime 3 of as an good game, but way the fuck beneath the other games in its franchise, because Demon's, Dark Souls 1, and Bloodborne are great games, masterpiece in the case of Demon's Souls, but fuck Dark Souls 2 at times.
Game #18. Beat Dark Souls 3 - 8/10
-Another Souls game down, another string of me dying, and another group of boss fights down n out for the count. All in all much better game than Dark Souls 2, as well for one none of the shitty things about Dark Souls 2 (adapt stat, the broken hit detection, soul memory, the bland and uninspired boss fights, the fugly world design, the incoherent world design, the mob based nature of the combat in dark souls 2, the general shittyness of its story stuff), about the only thing it might screw up on is that some of the areas in Dark Souls 3 can come off a bit cheap at times, and yeah some of these runbacks are total Dark Souls 2 tier at times, but it wasn't nearly as offensive as Dark Souls 2 at its worst in that department.
Game #19. Beat Jamestown - 7/10
-Doesn't quite entertain me the way games like Icaruga, Sin and Punishment or that Velocity 2x game did. But, whatevs. Icaruga was also anger inducing -_-
Game #20. Beat Resident Evil Remake - 9/10
-Phew, well that got dicey, I got lost at one point, the fucking fuel explodey shit, and I never had the assault shotgun because I got what's his face killed. But, fuck man this type of game is still fantastic. Love it. Resident Evil 4 is still my favorite of the series, but to Mikami and Capcom's credit this series has two games in my opinion worthy of Mustardpiece status.
Game #21. Beat Vanquish - 8/10
-Mikami is a beast, I still don't like parts of the 2nd half, the fight with your boy is lacking as fuck, but those challenge missions? So fucking good. It's mechanically the finest third person shooter.
Game #22. Beat Star Fox Zero - 3/10
-The controls are lousy and ruin the core mechanical experience, and creatively speaking it's a lesser version of the game they made on the 64. With less organic branching paths and not as many bosses. Game sucks.
Game #23. Beat The Bridge - 5/10
-That last two puzzles were neato, and I'll admit to the hand-drawn art growing on me as far as the game went, but it doesn't quite deliver a satisfying puzzle game. With the biggest issue being that the puzzles are either pretty fucking easy (in terms of solving), but really become tedious or infuriating for how finnicky and precise the games execution can be.
Game #24. Beat Gravity Rush Remastered - 4/10
-Game completely wastes such an imaginative concept. The sequel needs major improvements.
Game #25. Beat Ultimate Doom - 9/10
-Okay so talking OG Doom, the game is fucking divine. Very much like a lot of the classics of that era, where there is an elegance to all its simplicity, and the overall polish of the experience makes it a consistent pure gameplay experience. The shotgun to this day is just actively enjoyable to shoot, the plasma rifle is awesome, and the BFG? I mean it's the BFG.
Game #26. Beat Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows - 2/10
-Yeah, it's shit.
Game #27. Beat Battleborn - 5/10
-The broop campaign is far too rubbish, should have just stuck to messing with the multiplayer. That is at least decent.
Game #28. Beat Destiny: The Taken King - 5/10
- The House of Wolves/The Dark Below is still boring for the exact same reasons OG Destiny is a piece of shit game, but Taken King finally takes some strides forward. For starters the missions mix it up more, the new area is enjoyable to play in, and there is actually something resembling a story. It's still underwhelming on other fronts, but it's the first real sign that Bungie can turn this hot mess around.
Game #29. Beat Doom II: Hell on Earth - 8/10
-The Super Shotgun is godly, and it's still fucking doom. The only thing that hurts it in comparison to its predecessor is that the level design isn't nearly as fair at times as Doom 1 is.
Game #30. Beat Beyond Good & Evil - 5/10
-I like the characters and the setting, and I do miss this style of game in the modern era. But, it's so mechanically underwhelming if not straight lousy for large stretches. The combat is limp, the stealth is basic, and I hate driving that boat. But I love me some Jade and Payje.
Game #31. Beat Marlow Briggs: And The Mask of Death - 4/10
-I like that it's a really dumb and silly, but the mechanics are super unsatisfying and the boss fights suck.
Game #32. Beat Limbo - 7/10
-The experience is great for the first half, but the second half becomes less compelling. Without the narrative thread of the first half, the game becomes a fairly unimpressive puzzle platformer. But damn that first half is amazing.
Game #33. Beat The Division - 4/10
-Maybe it's just not meant to be for a loot shooter to actually be enjoyable or fun?
Game #34. Beat Inside - 7/10
-I still don't like the way the ending is executed. I'd much rather have the secret ending proper, but it is what it is. There are so many great story telling achievements in the game that I still really like the game a lot, but the way the game ends abruptly on a note that doesn't really work without the secret ending bothers me.
Game #35. Beat Snakebird - 7/10
-Fundamentally a cool twist on snakes, and some fiendishly well thought out puzzles. The major knock I would say is that the actual figuring it out process is far too rigid and as a result grating at times. The game almost demands a very specific set of moves to be made, and placements to be made which is really difficult to sort of plan out, at least I struggled with planning that shit out in a lot of puzzles.
Game #36. Beat Bullestorm - 6/10
-The Echoes mode makes up for what is an otherwise a bit disappointing campaign. There just isn't enough room to experiment with the skill shots to really show off, if anything the game is a bit too tame and rigid for its own good.
Game #37. Beat One Finger Death Punch - 7/10
-Unadulterated flow, and it's badass for it.
Game #38. Beat Saints Row: Gat out of Hell - 2/10
-I love Johnny Gat, I like Kinzie, and the songs are dope. But the missions is just a lazy pack of side mission bullshit, and the story isn't nearly developed enough to hit all the high notes Saints Row 3 and 4 do. It's such a shame given the concept is killer.
Game #39. Beat Blackwell Legacy - 6/10
-I like the story enough, as I like the pairing of Rosa Blackwell and Joey the ghost. It's more or less Rosa has adopted the family business. Saving people, hunting ghosts, no impala though. A lot of the adventure game "puzzle" solving is fairly simple and makes a level of sense, albeit maybe a cleaner inventory system would be more to my liking. Some of the sequence specific linearity is irritating, because I would have liked to get certain things early, especially if I already know what to do.
Game #40. Beat Deus Ex: Human Revolution Director's Cut - 7/10
-All in all I dig it, there are some clear obvious improvements over the original game, and in other cases it's not nearly as strong as the best qualities of OG Deus Ex. Although it maintains the first games stupid way of doing an ending, all tied up in an ending tron 5000. The story is also equally stupid, but the first game at least had some fun with it and was dumb. This takes itself more seriously, and I don't fucking know why, it basically does nothing with its setting all the transhuman bullshit.
Game #41. Beat Blackwell Unbound - 6/10
-There are some neat little improvements in this game, and just all around neater use of adventure game logic. I like the cycling between Joey and Lauren, I like that Lauren is a bit more sassy than Rosa, who is a bit too introvert, and in general there is a better sense of direction in these cases so long as you are moving that mouse around to search everything.It's more so I don't really care for the central cases, especially after playing Legacy. Legacy's central case kept getting more intriguing, where as Unbound's old lady routine ends a bit on a whimper.Either way it's another aight point and click and Joey is still rad.
Game #42. Beat Abzu - 5/10
-Pretty, but shallow. Both in terms of play and thematically.
Game #43. Beat Journey - 7/10
-Nope, it's still pretty rad. Abzu just doesn't work for me, I'd say the lynch pin that makes it all go is that coop stuff in Journey. It helps drive stuff home better, and it makes the game more thematically consistent. Abzu in comparison is just some of Journey's story beats, but not its high points. Journey through its systems earns what the narrative is trying to convey.
Game #44. Beat Blackwell Conception - 6/10Game
-It's the same as the first two games, cleaner UI, maybe with a bit better flow, and Rosa isn't as mopey as she was in Legacy. It's fine, but it be nice if this series actually improved something over time.
Game#45. Beat Blackwell Deception - 6/10
-Same as the last game, albeit some neater story direction and a bitchin finale. Rosa is legit starting to impress going forward, and Joey is my dude.
Game #46. Beat The Shivah - 3/10
-Far too silly as it undermines a pretty cool narrative concept for a video game. The final boss is kind of cute though, but it's a point and click so without the story the gameplay just isn't good enough to carry it.
Game #47. Beat Aces Wild - 7/10
-So yeah I love this game in a hurt me more sort of way lol. The combat engine is incredibly satisfying, nice juicy sound effects, the screen shake effect, and all those numbers can be so cathartic when you get a clean powerful hit in, especially on a boss. The tying the health recharge and wild meter together is a cool addition, and I really like its systems overall. It just feels really good to take down that final boss you know. Probably the best 2d beat-em up I've played outside of Streets of Rage.
Game #48. Beat Stories: The Path of Destinies - 4/10
-The story gimmick and the story itself is pretty cool, the playing it part is a major fucking problem.
Game #49. Beat Blackwell Epiphany - 7/10
-FUCK what a great ending, Gilbert fucking nailed such a strong plot and finish to the series for his final outing with this series, and just as so because Rosangela Blackwell is one of the better video game protags ever. Love me some Joey Mallone. I wish the gameplay focused more on the combining notes as aspect, as opposed to the vanilla stuff, but this has always been a story driven series for me, and I'm fine with that. Because Blackwell Epiphany was one of gaming's best.
Game #50. Beat Quantum Break - 3/10
-I can not stand this game. I'm a little shocked at how a studio went from a game as good as the original Max Payne to the subterranean lows of this game. First and foremost, egad that TV show. Beyond obviously being a budget show that would be beneath the CW or a Scifi channel show, it doesn't help that the acting is really not that good, and the characters are paper freakin thin. I'm really disappointed in just how much of a waste of Lance Reddick and Carcetti that aspect of the game is.
Game #51: Beat Shadow Warrior - 4/10
-It's mechanically unsatisfying as the game feel is way off, the boss fights are dreadful, the devs had no idea why key hunts work well in doom, the difficulty balance on insane is lazy, and the game just overstays its welcome as it would benefit from more than half the games run time being cut.
Game #52: Beat Metroid Prime - 9/10
-A true masterpiece of game design. Retro Studios expertly translated Super Metroid into 3D, the soundtrack is stellar, the atmosphere is sensational, and the boss fights are still a blast to play. What little nit picks I might have for the game are ultimately inconsequential because all things considered this is still one of my favorite games of all time.
Game #53: Beat Mega Man X - 9/10
-I will probably never be good enough to buster only this game, and the boss rushes in the Sigma stages give me a ton of problems. But this is a stone cold classic in every sense of the word. The core mechanics are tight the way you would expect from Mega Man, the level design is ace, the bosses are a blast, and the new powers are fun to use. The wall jump n dash move make for significant improvements over what could be done with the Mega Man formula. Having beaten the game last year and this year, it's made a convincing argument that if I ever fill out a top 10 all time list, Mega Man X needs some serious consideration.
Game #54: Ratchet & Clank 2016 - 7/10
-It's a pretty good game, because the core of this series was strong since day 1. So naturally a more refined version with a greatest hits collection of weapons would be a blast. I love the Groovitron and Mr Zurkon as always, the Pixelizer is a bitchin shotgun, the controls are smooth, and the level design is nice and varied. It's disappointing that the series is creatively stale and the game runs at 30 frames when its predecessors run at 60, but it is what it is. All in all good fucking game.
Game #55: Uncharted 2: Among Thieves - 7/10
-Wasn't as strong as I remembered because the mechanics are a lot weaker than I remember, there are some noteworthy boring stretches, and Shambala itself is when the game runs out of steam. That said most of the game is very well paced, and some of those combat encounters and set pieces are an absolute delight. Plus I love the characterizations in this series, for all its tropy stuff, it's a lot of fun.
Game #56: Uncharted 4: A Thief's End - 7/10
-Significant improvements in major areas like the ballistics being top notch, to the more vertical nature of combat encounters being thrilling as hell, to a story line more centered around the characters and less a sequence of globe trotting events make Uncharted 4 a game with really strong highs. But I'm one of those people that isn't fond of how much downtime this game has where you do what is glorified nothing.
Game #57: Until Dawn - 6/10
-As a game there isn't much to it, beyond choose your own shit and watch a myriad of ending possibilities. And yeah there is a lot of tropes, and cheese, and little holes in the narrative, because it's basically 80's slasher flick stuff, and those movies were never really good outside of major exceptions, as much as they were reasonably suspenseful, but more fun. And that's how I felt about Until Dawn, it is fun in a shlocky way, but it's not much of a game, and having so much invested in shlock narrative isn't that impressive.
Game #58: Invisible Inc. - 7/10
-Dope gameplay and bitchin soundtrack, hated that ending. My type of rogue-lite though as it's one of the cooler turn based strategy games.
Updated Main Post
38. Journey - PS4 (Replay)
Completed Main Story: 8/3/16
Time: 2 hours
Rating: 4/5
Replayed this to get myself in the mood to play ABZU. Even on a replay still a great experience and beautiful game........
39. ABZU - PS4
Completed Main Story: 8/5/16
Time: 2-3 hours
Rating: 4/5
Expected a good game given the lineage, and it was received. Beautiful, beautiful game. The style is perfect for the setting. I thought a lot of things were done better in it than Journey (setting, gameplay of note), but the story of Journey was more impactful. Not that ABZU story was bad, just not the same impact.
40. Gravity Rush Remastered - PS4
Completed Main Story: 8/8/16
Time: ?? Maybe 8-10 hours? Not for sure
Rating: 4/5
Never would have even considered the game if it wasn't for the word of mouth here on GAF. Glad I listened. Really fun game. Can be a little disorienting at times, but I think that is intended as part of the "experience." From a gameplay perspective, the combat was borderline 'meh.' but the rest of the game was nails. Will play the sequel, but don't know if I would pay a full $60 for it.
Down to the final dozen games with a little over 4 months to go.
38. Journey - PS4 (Replay)
Completed Main Story: 8/3/16
Time: 2 hours
Rating: 4/5
Replayed this to get myself in the mood to play ABZU. Even on a replay still a great experience and beautiful game........
39. ABZU - PS4
Completed Main Story: 8/5/16
Time: 2-3 hours
Rating: 4/5
Expected a good game given the lineage, and it was received. Beautiful, beautiful game. The style is perfect for the setting. I thought a lot of things were done better in it than Journey (setting, gameplay of note), but the story of Journey was more impactful. Not that ABZU story was bad, just not the same impact.
40. Gravity Rush Remastered - PS4
Completed Main Story: 8/8/16
Time: ?? Maybe 8-10 hours? Not for sure
Rating: 4/5
Never would have even considered the game if it wasn't for the word of mouth here on GAF. Glad I listened. Really fun game. Can be a little disorienting at times, but I think that is intended as part of the "experience." From a gameplay perspective, the combat was borderline 'meh.' but the rest of the game was nails. Will play the sequel, but don't know if I would pay a full $60 for it.
Down to the final dozen games with a little over 4 months to go.
Spieler Eins
Member
original post
Game 38: Binary Domain (PC) - 12 hours
How does only Japan know how to make great boss fights? Arguably, this cover-based shooter doesn't do all that much to make a splash in the genre, yet particularly the boss battles are amazing and make this very much stand out compared to western equivalents. Other than that, the action setpieces are still fun in their own right and gunning down robots to pieces at least gives generic encounters a slightly unique touch. Several encounters go on for slightly too long though. However, the only major complaint I have is the generic art direction, which had me hesitating to try the game even after getting it in a free bundle. Despite a couple of decent locales, this might be one of the most boring interpretations of a Neo-Tokyo I've ever seen. Monotone hallways and lots of grey. With a colourful art direction like Akira (or even the developer's own Yakuza series) it could have been a truly outstanding package.
Game 38: Binary Domain (PC) - 12 hours
How does only Japan know how to make great boss fights? Arguably, this cover-based shooter doesn't do all that much to make a splash in the genre, yet particularly the boss battles are amazing and make this very much stand out compared to western equivalents. Other than that, the action setpieces are still fun in their own right and gunning down robots to pieces at least gives generic encounters a slightly unique touch. Several encounters go on for slightly too long though. However, the only major complaint I have is the generic art direction, which had me hesitating to try the game even after getting it in a free bundle. Despite a couple of decent locales, this might be one of the most boring interpretations of a Neo-Tokyo I've ever seen. Monotone hallways and lots of grey. With a colourful art direction like Akira (or even the developer's own Yakuza series) it could have been a truly outstanding package.
orthodoxy1095
Banned
Master Post
Game 39: The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt - Blood and Wine - 19 hours, 33 minutes - August 8, 2016
Again, like with HoS, I came into Blood and Wine having heard the expansion talked up to high heaven. And once again, CDPR delivered in spades. A whole new setting to explore, a new cast of characters, a new host of enemies to fight, everything you could want is here. This expansion veered a bit more towards the "large" scale of the base game, but overall it managed to keep it close enough to the "Witcher" scale that I felt satisfied. The sidequests were, for the most part, quite entertaining, even though I didn't finish a few. I'll admit that by the end of this expansion I decided to skip a new sidequests because I was feeling mechanical fatigue after 70+ hours in the game (plus however many 100+ I spent last spring). HoS had one small issue I forgot to mention which was that I thought the Runewright was a complete and total waste of my time and money. B&W remedies that by introducing mastercrafted equipment and various mutagen mechanics, all of which do increase the novelty of the experience. To be honest, I don't know if they could have possibly come up with a better ending and sendoff for Geralt. Masterfully done all around.
Should I play Blood and Wine? Along with everything else in TW3, yes, please do.
Game 39: The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt - Blood and Wine - 19 hours, 33 minutes - August 8, 2016
Again, like with HoS, I came into Blood and Wine having heard the expansion talked up to high heaven. And once again, CDPR delivered in spades. A whole new setting to explore, a new cast of characters, a new host of enemies to fight, everything you could want is here. This expansion veered a bit more towards the "large" scale of the base game, but overall it managed to keep it close enough to the "Witcher" scale that I felt satisfied. The sidequests were, for the most part, quite entertaining, even though I didn't finish a few. I'll admit that by the end of this expansion I decided to skip a new sidequests because I was feeling mechanical fatigue after 70+ hours in the game (plus however many 100+ I spent last spring). HoS had one small issue I forgot to mention which was that I thought the Runewright was a complete and total waste of my time and money. B&W remedies that by introducing mastercrafted equipment and various mutagen mechanics, all of which do increase the novelty of the experience. To be honest, I don't know if they could have possibly come up with a better ending and sendoff for Geralt. Masterfully done all around.
Should I play Blood and Wine? Along with everything else in TW3, yes, please do.
Original Post - Part 1
Original Post - Part 2
#28: Monkey Island 2 Special Edition: LeChuck's Revenge : 6.5 hours
Preview: I'm playing Attack the Light on iOS and I guess I'll give Super Laser Racer another go on PC.
Original Post - Part 2
#28: Monkey Island 2 Special Edition: LeChuck's Revenge : 6.5 hours
It's Monkey Island, but another one. I dunno I have a hard time getting into old school point-and-clicks nowadays. I used hints a lot, a guide a few times, not really patient enough for all the wandering back and forth rubbing things together. It's still an enjoyable game though, there's a bunch of different locations to explore, and the ending is insane.
Preview: I'm playing Attack the Light on iOS and I guess I'll give Super Laser Racer another go on PC.
Realplumpbox85
Member
OT
I just finished up 10000000. It was a very very solid match 3 time killer. Not much else to say except time to play You Must Build a Boat.
Oh and I am having a HUGE blast with this. I am clearing out so much of my backlog. Although I have put larger games to the side (looking at you Witcher 3) I will maybe save that for the last one. Anyway I may keep this log running all year and see how many I can beat.
I just finished up 10000000. It was a very very solid match 3 time killer. Not much else to say except time to play You Must Build a Boat.
Oh and I am having a HUGE blast with this. I am clearing out so much of my backlog. Although I have put larger games to the side (looking at you Witcher 3) I will maybe save that for the last one. Anyway I may keep this log running all year and see how many I can beat.
Hikami
Member
Main post
Game 22: Ys: The Oath in Felghana | 18 hours | August
It only took ~2 years. (rage quit a few times due to not being able to beat some bosses)
This game was pretty damn hard, and I only played it on Normal. I'm sure I died more times here than in Dark Souls, but I loved it. Great soundtrack, great gameplay, kinda meh story and characters but a great game overall. Now I can finally play Ys Origin. Been having that in my backlog for years as well.
Game 22: Ys: The Oath in Felghana | 18 hours | August
It only took ~2 years. (rage quit a few times due to not being able to beat some bosses)
This game was pretty damn hard, and I only played it on Normal. I'm sure I died more times here than in Dark Souls, but I loved it. Great soundtrack, great gameplay, kinda meh story and characters but a great game overall. Now I can finally play Ys Origin. Been having that in my backlog for years as well.
Master post.
August
Game 23 - Halo 3 ODST (MCC port)
Not a ton to say about this really, since it was a replay. I really really enjoy ODST. It's probably my favourite Halo campaign. I do enjoy the grand story of mainline games but the smaller, more personal story in ODST just really hit all the right notes for me. The lonely feeling while you're wandering around as The Rookie, collecting the audio logs and exploring the aftermath of most of the events, is fantastic. The music is great, the missions are great, I liked the characters...just a great game all round. Pity they didn't include firefight in the MCC port though. I had tons of fun with that with friends back on 360. Also, it's great to play it at 60fps. Always improves shooters.
That said: they didn't take the chance to add rain! That would have made it perfect. Add real rain to the hub world like Bungie originally wanted to.
Man, I've made myself wanna go play it again already, haha.
Game 24 - Furi
Man. This is a weird one. I got the credits, so I finished the game. I enjoyed it but....eh, rest in spoilers I guess.
So, yeah, it's a really good game for the most part. Nothing wrong with it if you enjoy bullet hell shooters and face paced melee combat. I'm a weirdo.
August
Game 23 - Halo 3 ODST (MCC port)
Not a ton to say about this really, since it was a replay. I really really enjoy ODST. It's probably my favourite Halo campaign. I do enjoy the grand story of mainline games but the smaller, more personal story in ODST just really hit all the right notes for me. The lonely feeling while you're wandering around as The Rookie, collecting the audio logs and exploring the aftermath of most of the events, is fantastic. The music is great, the missions are great, I liked the characters...just a great game all round. Pity they didn't include firefight in the MCC port though. I had tons of fun with that with friends back on 360. Also, it's great to play it at 60fps. Always improves shooters.
That said: they didn't take the chance to add rain! That would have made it perfect. Add real rain to the hub world like Bungie originally wanted to.
Man, I've made myself wanna go play it again already, haha.
Game 24 - Furi
Man. This is a weird one. I got the credits, so I finished the game. I enjoyed it but....eh, rest in spoilers I guess.
Thing is, I really don't like bullet hell shooters. Furi has bullet hell sections, but it also had super satisfying melee combat. Then the post credits boss happened. Stripped away melee capabilities and turned it into a full blown shooter. Needless to say, I did not react well to this. My motivation to fully finish the game nosedived faster than I've ever seen it nosedive before. It didn't make me hate the game or anything, just...yeah. All of a sudden I felt satisfied with just seeing the credits.
So, yeah, it's a really good game for the most part. Nothing wrong with it if you enjoy bullet hell shooters and face paced melee combat. I'm a weirdo.
And yes a little bit salty.
Wow, I got behind with the updating.
16. The Stanley Parable (PC; 9.5/10) Mar 2
Endpoint: All endings
Time: 3.5 hours
Comments: Great game. Had a blast exploring and looking for all the different endings.
17. Framed (iPad; 7.5/10) Mar 3
Endpoint: 100%
Time: 1.5 hours
Comments: Good game that didnt overstay its welcome.
18. Snoopys Grand Adventure (PS4; 6/10) Mar 7
Endpoint: 100%/Platinum
Time: 10 hours
Comments: Not the best game in the world, but it was fun playing as Snoopy as a lifelong Peanuts fan. Pretty annoying collectibles, which ended up taking me too long to find all the stupid jelly beans. The game also had performance issues in several places on the PS4. Im normally not too bothered by framerate, but this was very noticeable and affected performance. The controls were a little janky in general.
19. Mousecraft (Vita; 5/10) Mar 8
Endpoint: Abandoned game
Time: 2 hours
Comments: I just wasnt having fun with this game. It wasnt terrible but there were other games I wanted to try more.
20. A Dark Room (iPhone; 7/10) Mar 15
Endpoint: 100%
Time: 5.5 hours
Comments: : Really interesting concept and stylish game. It was enjoyable, but I felt the puzzles were more trial and error than actually figuring something out. At least it didnt overstay its welcome.
21. Valiant Hearts: The Great War (PS4; 8/10) Mar 19
Endpoint: Main story/80% Trophies
Time: About 8 hours
Comments: Good game, some great characters including the dog. While it was good, I thought I would like it a little more based on the hype Id seen.
22. Tearaway (Vita; 8.5/10) Mar 25
Endpoint: Main story
Time: About 8 hours
Comments: Had a blast with the main story. Ultimately planned to go back and platinum it by why waste time and potentially sully the experience?
23. Hitman GO (Vita; 8.5/10) Mar 30
Endpoint: 100%/Platinum
Time: About 6 hours
Comments: Fun puzzle game.
24. Norn9: Var Commons (Vita; 4/10) Apr 1
Endpoint: 100%/Platinum
Time: 8 hours
Comments: Thought Id try a visual novel, which I couldnt get into at all. The production values seemed high, but the story and characters were really done. After going through a couple paths, I just followed a guide to finish the game.
25. Taco Master (Vita; 3/10) Apr 2
Endpoint: Abandoned game
Time: 1.5 hours
Comments: Started this based on recommendations, but I didnt like it. I wouldnt play this kind of game on my iPhone, so why should I play it on vita? I also thought the controls were frustrating, but maybe thats a problem with my vitas screen.
26. Lifeline: Silent Night (iPhone; 5/10) Apr 4
Endpoint: Got a few endings
Time: About 2.5 hours I think
Comments: Ive had enough of these, and this was definitely the worst of the three.
27. Progress to 100 (iPhone; 7/10) Apr 11
Endpoint: Finished game
Time: 1.5 hours
Comments: Pretty good, kind of creepy, didnt overstay its welcome.
28. Swapperoo (iPhone; 9/10) Apr 18
Endpoint: Finished some challenges
Time: 6 hours
Comments: I liked this quite a bit. Interesting take on a match 3 game. A lot of fun until I got tired of it.
29. Wonderbook: Book of Spells (PS3; 5/10) Apr 29
Endpoint: 100%/Platinum
Time: 4 hours
Comments: Im a big Harry Potter fan. I thought it would be fun to do this with my 3 year old and 2 year old. The 3 year old thought it was fun for like 10 seconds, then they tried to beat each other with the move controllers. Maybe well try something like this when theyre a little older. This game could have been a lot better.
30. Until Dawn (PS4; 10/10) May 6
Endpoint: 100%/Platinum
Time: Around 22 hours
Comments: Really great game. One of my favorites so far on PS4. Had a lot of fun going back and trying new choices to see what would happen.
31. Rocket League (PS4; 9.5/10) May 7
Endpoint: Played more games
Time: 2 hours
Comments: I had a lot of fun with Rocket League when it first came out and ended up getting the platinum trophy. I always intended to go back and get into it again, but it just didnt click as well with me for whatever reason. I played some online with my BIL but ultimately decided to try some different things.
32. Just Dance 2015 (PS4; 7/10) May 11
Endpoint: Got Just Dance 2016
Time: Around 5 hours
Comments: This is the family dance game. Its pretty fun to watch the little kids run around like crazy people. Its also fun to score higher than my wife (who really is a much much better dancer than me).
33. Playstation Move Fitness (PS3; 8/10) May 19
Endpoint: 100%/Platinum
Time: Just under 8 hours logged of exercise, total playtime longer due to breaks and other downtime
Comments: So this was the start of my effort to combine fitness with games (which Im still doing). I built a fantastic basement gym that was getting very lightly used, so my plan was to do older PS3 Move games that I never got around to playing (or to go back to like the Sports Champions games). I also committed to playing games while on the stationary bike, so I thought it would be good to start with some easy games to get me going. That was a mixed bag because some of the easy games I selected for my sweating to the platinums plan were so bad that I didnt want to get on the bike. Anyway, back to this game, I liked it more than I thought I would. Some of the minigames were better than others but overall I thought it was a really nice game.
34. Megamind (PS3; 3/10) May 28
Endpoint: 100%/Platinum
Time: Probably around 4 hours
Comments: Just terrible. Made me want to get off the stationary bike. Poor performance, repetitive, really not much to like.
35. You Have to Burn the Rope (browser; 7/10) Jun 8
Endpoint: 100%
Time: Few minutes
Comments: I did it
36. Dont Shit Your Pants (browser; 5/10) Jun 8
Endpoint: 100%
Time: 20 minutes
Comments: Not that amusing
37. There is No Game (browser; 8/10) Jun 8
Endpoint: 100%
Time: 30 minutes
Comments: OK, this was the best of these browser games
38. The Plan (PC; 8/10) Jun 8
Endpoint: 100%
Time: 5 minutes
Comments: I was just padding my numbers on this day apparently
39. Magus (PS3; 2/10) Jun 12
Endpoint: 100%/Platinum
Time: Probably around 5.5 hours, seemed way longer
Comments: This was the next easy game for the stationary bike. People werent exaggerating with how bad it is. Made me reconsider my plan and just started playing regular games while on the bike.
40. Trivial Pursuit (PS3; 6/10) Jun 13
Endpoint: 100%/Platinum
Time: 5 hours
Comments: I like trivia games, and this was just an ok game with old questions.
41. Hexcells (PC; 9/10) Jun 28
Endpoint: 100%
Time: About 5 hours
Comments: Really good puzzle game. Working on Hexcells Plus now.
42. Danganronpa 2 (Vita; 8/10) Jul 4
Endpoint: 100%/Platinum
Time: Around 60 hours
Comments: This one was tough. I got the platinum for Danganronpa 1 which was definitely grindy but I guess I thought that since I did it for the first one, I should just go ahead and do it for the 2nd. What a mistake. I breezed through the main game in April, which isnt perfect but just makes you want to keep playing. Then I wasted tons of time on the extra crap, and I couldnt turn back because I was in too deep. It didnt help that my save data got corrupted a couple times which probably cost me 10 hours.
43. Open Bar! (iPhone; 9.5/10) Jul 8
Endpoint: well over 100 levels
Time: About 3 hours
Comments: Great minimalist puzzle game for the iPhone.
44. Build Your Palace (iPhone; 7/10) Jul 10
Endpoint:
Time: 1 hour
Comments: Simple memory game. I think I got up to 15 correct.
45. DominoDrop (iPhone; 6/10) Jul 14
Endpoint: Abandoned game
Time: 1 hour
Comments: This game didnt grab me. Sort of in timewaster territory so I abandoned it pretty quickly.
46. twofold inc. (iPhone; 8/10) Jul 17
Endpoint:
Time: About 2 hours
Comments: Fun minimalist strategy game
47. Abzorb (iPhone; 6/10) Jul 20
Endpoint: Abandoned game
Time: 30 min
Comments: Interesting idea, but I didnt like the mechanics on iPhone.
48. klocki (iPhone; 9.5/10) Jul 21
Endpoint: 100%
Time: About 2 hours
Comments: Another great minimalist puzzle game. Would recommend to anyone.
49. Steppy Pants (iPhone; 6/10) Jul 25
Endpoint: Abandoned game
Time: 30 min
Comments: Amusing at first and then quickly lost interest.
50. RYB (iPhone; 7.5/10) Jul 29
Endpoint: 100%
Time: About 2.5 hours
Comments: Another minimalist puzzle game, though I didnt like it as well as some of the others. Probably would have been getter on my iPad Pro rather than my iPhone 5s as it was hard to select the correct space on some of the puzzles. Im playing a lot of these games thanks to the free apps from Starbucks. I guess they go well with coffee.
51. The Walking Dead Season 2 (PS4; 8/10) Aug 1
Endpoint: 100%
Time: 10 hours
Comments: I liked it. Not as good as Season 1, Tales from the Borderlands, or Wolf Among Us, but it was definitely better than Game of Thrones.
52. The Walking Dead: Michonne (PS4; 7/10) Aug 7
Endpoint: 100%
Time: 4 hours
Comments: It was pretty good, but maybe Im getting Walking Dead fatigue playing this right after Season 2 and also while Im catching up on the show on netflix.
Games 1-8
Games 9-15
16. The Stanley Parable (PC; 9.5/10) Mar 2
Endpoint: All endings
Time: 3.5 hours
Comments: Great game. Had a blast exploring and looking for all the different endings.
17. Framed (iPad; 7.5/10) Mar 3
Endpoint: 100%
Time: 1.5 hours
Comments: Good game that didnt overstay its welcome.
18. Snoopys Grand Adventure (PS4; 6/10) Mar 7
Endpoint: 100%/Platinum
Time: 10 hours
Comments: Not the best game in the world, but it was fun playing as Snoopy as a lifelong Peanuts fan. Pretty annoying collectibles, which ended up taking me too long to find all the stupid jelly beans. The game also had performance issues in several places on the PS4. Im normally not too bothered by framerate, but this was very noticeable and affected performance. The controls were a little janky in general.
19. Mousecraft (Vita; 5/10) Mar 8
Endpoint: Abandoned game
Time: 2 hours
Comments: I just wasnt having fun with this game. It wasnt terrible but there were other games I wanted to try more.
20. A Dark Room (iPhone; 7/10) Mar 15
Endpoint: 100%
Time: 5.5 hours
Comments: : Really interesting concept and stylish game. It was enjoyable, but I felt the puzzles were more trial and error than actually figuring something out. At least it didnt overstay its welcome.
21. Valiant Hearts: The Great War (PS4; 8/10) Mar 19
Endpoint: Main story/80% Trophies
Time: About 8 hours
Comments: Good game, some great characters including the dog. While it was good, I thought I would like it a little more based on the hype Id seen.
22. Tearaway (Vita; 8.5/10) Mar 25
Endpoint: Main story
Time: About 8 hours
Comments: Had a blast with the main story. Ultimately planned to go back and platinum it by why waste time and potentially sully the experience?
23. Hitman GO (Vita; 8.5/10) Mar 30
Endpoint: 100%/Platinum
Time: About 6 hours
Comments: Fun puzzle game.
24. Norn9: Var Commons (Vita; 4/10) Apr 1
Endpoint: 100%/Platinum
Time: 8 hours
Comments: Thought Id try a visual novel, which I couldnt get into at all. The production values seemed high, but the story and characters were really done. After going through a couple paths, I just followed a guide to finish the game.
25. Taco Master (Vita; 3/10) Apr 2
Endpoint: Abandoned game
Time: 1.5 hours
Comments: Started this based on recommendations, but I didnt like it. I wouldnt play this kind of game on my iPhone, so why should I play it on vita? I also thought the controls were frustrating, but maybe thats a problem with my vitas screen.
26. Lifeline: Silent Night (iPhone; 5/10) Apr 4
Endpoint: Got a few endings
Time: About 2.5 hours I think
Comments: Ive had enough of these, and this was definitely the worst of the three.
27. Progress to 100 (iPhone; 7/10) Apr 11
Endpoint: Finished game
Time: 1.5 hours
Comments: Pretty good, kind of creepy, didnt overstay its welcome.
28. Swapperoo (iPhone; 9/10) Apr 18
Endpoint: Finished some challenges
Time: 6 hours
Comments: I liked this quite a bit. Interesting take on a match 3 game. A lot of fun until I got tired of it.
29. Wonderbook: Book of Spells (PS3; 5/10) Apr 29
Endpoint: 100%/Platinum
Time: 4 hours
Comments: Im a big Harry Potter fan. I thought it would be fun to do this with my 3 year old and 2 year old. The 3 year old thought it was fun for like 10 seconds, then they tried to beat each other with the move controllers. Maybe well try something like this when theyre a little older. This game could have been a lot better.
30. Until Dawn (PS4; 10/10) May 6
Endpoint: 100%/Platinum
Time: Around 22 hours
Comments: Really great game. One of my favorites so far on PS4. Had a lot of fun going back and trying new choices to see what would happen.
31. Rocket League (PS4; 9.5/10) May 7
Endpoint: Played more games
Time: 2 hours
Comments: I had a lot of fun with Rocket League when it first came out and ended up getting the platinum trophy. I always intended to go back and get into it again, but it just didnt click as well with me for whatever reason. I played some online with my BIL but ultimately decided to try some different things.
32. Just Dance 2015 (PS4; 7/10) May 11
Endpoint: Got Just Dance 2016
Time: Around 5 hours
Comments: This is the family dance game. Its pretty fun to watch the little kids run around like crazy people. Its also fun to score higher than my wife (who really is a much much better dancer than me).
33. Playstation Move Fitness (PS3; 8/10) May 19
Endpoint: 100%/Platinum
Time: Just under 8 hours logged of exercise, total playtime longer due to breaks and other downtime
Comments: So this was the start of my effort to combine fitness with games (which Im still doing). I built a fantastic basement gym that was getting very lightly used, so my plan was to do older PS3 Move games that I never got around to playing (or to go back to like the Sports Champions games). I also committed to playing games while on the stationary bike, so I thought it would be good to start with some easy games to get me going. That was a mixed bag because some of the easy games I selected for my sweating to the platinums plan were so bad that I didnt want to get on the bike. Anyway, back to this game, I liked it more than I thought I would. Some of the minigames were better than others but overall I thought it was a really nice game.
34. Megamind (PS3; 3/10) May 28
Endpoint: 100%/Platinum
Time: Probably around 4 hours
Comments: Just terrible. Made me want to get off the stationary bike. Poor performance, repetitive, really not much to like.
35. You Have to Burn the Rope (browser; 7/10) Jun 8
Endpoint: 100%
Time: Few minutes
Comments: I did it
36. Dont Shit Your Pants (browser; 5/10) Jun 8
Endpoint: 100%
Time: 20 minutes
Comments: Not that amusing
37. There is No Game (browser; 8/10) Jun 8
Endpoint: 100%
Time: 30 minutes
Comments: OK, this was the best of these browser games
38. The Plan (PC; 8/10) Jun 8
Endpoint: 100%
Time: 5 minutes
Comments: I was just padding my numbers on this day apparently
39. Magus (PS3; 2/10) Jun 12
Endpoint: 100%/Platinum
Time: Probably around 5.5 hours, seemed way longer
Comments: This was the next easy game for the stationary bike. People werent exaggerating with how bad it is. Made me reconsider my plan and just started playing regular games while on the bike.
40. Trivial Pursuit (PS3; 6/10) Jun 13
Endpoint: 100%/Platinum
Time: 5 hours
Comments: I like trivia games, and this was just an ok game with old questions.
41. Hexcells (PC; 9/10) Jun 28
Endpoint: 100%
Time: About 5 hours
Comments: Really good puzzle game. Working on Hexcells Plus now.
42. Danganronpa 2 (Vita; 8/10) Jul 4
Endpoint: 100%/Platinum
Time: Around 60 hours
Comments: This one was tough. I got the platinum for Danganronpa 1 which was definitely grindy but I guess I thought that since I did it for the first one, I should just go ahead and do it for the 2nd. What a mistake. I breezed through the main game in April, which isnt perfect but just makes you want to keep playing. Then I wasted tons of time on the extra crap, and I couldnt turn back because I was in too deep. It didnt help that my save data got corrupted a couple times which probably cost me 10 hours.
43. Open Bar! (iPhone; 9.5/10) Jul 8
Endpoint: well over 100 levels
Time: About 3 hours
Comments: Great minimalist puzzle game for the iPhone.
44. Build Your Palace (iPhone; 7/10) Jul 10
Endpoint:
Time: 1 hour
Comments: Simple memory game. I think I got up to 15 correct.
45. DominoDrop (iPhone; 6/10) Jul 14
Endpoint: Abandoned game
Time: 1 hour
Comments: This game didnt grab me. Sort of in timewaster territory so I abandoned it pretty quickly.
46. twofold inc. (iPhone; 8/10) Jul 17
Endpoint:
Time: About 2 hours
Comments: Fun minimalist strategy game
47. Abzorb (iPhone; 6/10) Jul 20
Endpoint: Abandoned game
Time: 30 min
Comments: Interesting idea, but I didnt like the mechanics on iPhone.
48. klocki (iPhone; 9.5/10) Jul 21
Endpoint: 100%
Time: About 2 hours
Comments: Another great minimalist puzzle game. Would recommend to anyone.
49. Steppy Pants (iPhone; 6/10) Jul 25
Endpoint: Abandoned game
Time: 30 min
Comments: Amusing at first and then quickly lost interest.
50. RYB (iPhone; 7.5/10) Jul 29
Endpoint: 100%
Time: About 2.5 hours
Comments: Another minimalist puzzle game, though I didnt like it as well as some of the others. Probably would have been getter on my iPad Pro rather than my iPhone 5s as it was hard to select the correct space on some of the puzzles. Im playing a lot of these games thanks to the free apps from Starbucks. I guess they go well with coffee.
51. The Walking Dead Season 2 (PS4; 8/10) Aug 1
Endpoint: 100%
Time: 10 hours
Comments: I liked it. Not as good as Season 1, Tales from the Borderlands, or Wolf Among Us, but it was definitely better than Game of Thrones.
52. The Walking Dead: Michonne (PS4; 7/10) Aug 7
Endpoint: 100%
Time: 4 hours
Comments: It was pretty good, but maybe Im getting Walking Dead fatigue playing this right after Season 2 and also while Im catching up on the show on netflix.
Games 1-8
Games 9-15
Main Post
Because I'm way, way behind on update posts, here's my April (lol) games I played
Game 13:
Broforce 09/04
A sidescrolling shooter with a twist, The central character switching mechanic of Broforce that the game is built around is brilliant. Each death means that you respawn as a new action hero with widely different weapons and abilities, meaning you must be constantly adapting to new situations. Its really fun, and adds tonnes of variety to a genre thats often a little samey. The rest of the game is less interesting. The level design is fine, with completely destructible environments that add a layer of mayhem to the proceedings but sometimes feels like its hiding how boring the levels are really designed. The whole bro aesthetic of the game is a bit obnoxious, and its parody has about the same level of social commentary as a Green Day album and is maybe less funny somehow? Add to this some atrocious performance issues on PS4 and it really drags down a game that should be amazing. The core gameplay is so tight and so much fun, I wish everything around it was a little better. 3/5
Game 14:
Dark Souls 3 23/04
Darks Souls 3 is the definition of more of the same. The game doesnt even try to hide it with its constant, tiring references to previous games in the series. By virtue of this being a Dark Souls game, that means its really quite good, but the series has hit peak diminishing returns. The joy of surprise has been completely lost, and every high feels like a hill compared to the mountains of Dark Souls 1 or 2. The thing I will compliment it on is its consistency, with it having no none of the glaring faults that its predecessors have and generally never hitting the lows of any other Souls games (No Lost Izilith areas are present here!). Its really pretty too. I enjoyed this game but I think Im done with Souls for a good few years.4/5
Game 15:
Ratchet and Clank (PS4) 26/04
A totally unremarkable entry in the Ratchet and Clank series. It follows the same sort of formula as the 8 or so other mainline Ratchet games but it does it worse in many ways. The story is badly stitched together from movie clips, and the game fails to expand on its core gameplay in any meaningful way with its few deviations (like the racing or clank puzzles) being the worst parts of the game. Still, much like Dark Souls 3, a regular Ratchet and Clank game is still pretty damn fun, and Id be lying if I said I didnt enjoy having Ratchet and Clank back. Even if it doesnt add much to the formula, its visuals are strikingly new, looking like an interactive Pixar movie. 3/5
Because I'm way, way behind on update posts, here's my April (lol) games I played
Game 13:
Broforce 09/04
A sidescrolling shooter with a twist, The central character switching mechanic of Broforce that the game is built around is brilliant. Each death means that you respawn as a new action hero with widely different weapons and abilities, meaning you must be constantly adapting to new situations. Its really fun, and adds tonnes of variety to a genre thats often a little samey. The rest of the game is less interesting. The level design is fine, with completely destructible environments that add a layer of mayhem to the proceedings but sometimes feels like its hiding how boring the levels are really designed. The whole bro aesthetic of the game is a bit obnoxious, and its parody has about the same level of social commentary as a Green Day album and is maybe less funny somehow? Add to this some atrocious performance issues on PS4 and it really drags down a game that should be amazing. The core gameplay is so tight and so much fun, I wish everything around it was a little better. 3/5
Game 14:
Dark Souls 3 23/04
Darks Souls 3 is the definition of more of the same. The game doesnt even try to hide it with its constant, tiring references to previous games in the series. By virtue of this being a Dark Souls game, that means its really quite good, but the series has hit peak diminishing returns. The joy of surprise has been completely lost, and every high feels like a hill compared to the mountains of Dark Souls 1 or 2. The thing I will compliment it on is its consistency, with it having no none of the glaring faults that its predecessors have and generally never hitting the lows of any other Souls games (No Lost Izilith areas are present here!). Its really pretty too. I enjoyed this game but I think Im done with Souls for a good few years.4/5
Game 15:
Ratchet and Clank (PS4) 26/04
A totally unremarkable entry in the Ratchet and Clank series. It follows the same sort of formula as the 8 or so other mainline Ratchet games but it does it worse in many ways. The story is badly stitched together from movie clips, and the game fails to expand on its core gameplay in any meaningful way with its few deviations (like the racing or clank puzzles) being the worst parts of the game. Still, much like Dark Souls 3, a regular Ratchet and Clank game is still pretty damn fun, and Id be lying if I said I didnt enjoy having Ratchet and Clank back. Even if it doesnt add much to the formula, its visuals are strikingly new, looking like an interactive Pixar movie. 3/5
Hikami
Member
Main post
Game 23: Ys Origin | 10 hours | August
Much easier than The Oath in Felghana. Characters and story were much better as well since your character actually talks! (Unlike Adol the mute).
Everything else was same as always, great gameplay and soundtrack because it's an Ys game.
I beat the game as Yunica on Normal. Will try the other characters when I feel like replaying it.
Game 23: Ys Origin | 10 hours | August
Much easier than The Oath in Felghana. Characters and story were much better as well since your character actually talks! (Unlike Adol the mute).
Everything else was same as always, great gameplay and soundtrack because it's an Ys game.
I beat the game as Yunica on Normal. Will try the other characters when I feel like replaying it.
Original Post - Part 1
Original Post - Part 2
#29: Attack the Light: Steven Universe: ~8 hours
The controls aren't always perfect (for my giant fingers anyway) but it's never really a problem. Everything is adapted and streamlined to a touch device well. Traversal is basically just swiping to move from screen to screen, where a combat encounter will start or there will be a door/chest for you to tap.
Combat is like Paper Mario with lots of timed hits/other minigames for attacks. You generate 5 action points a turn and have a limit of 9, all the abilities have different costs. There's a nice variety of buffing and debuffing abilities and you can use one item from your inventory per turn (I'm partial to the ones that give you more action points). A few side-quests but there's nothing stopping you from blasting through it. There's also collectable badges that give you passive buffs and stuff.
But yeah, good experience especially for show watchers. Can recommend.
Preview: I'm currently playing Zoombinis on PC and I haven't decided what to do on handheld/mobile yet. I might go back to Nano Assault
Original Post - Part 2
#29: Attack the Light: Steven Universe: ~8 hours
Great little mobile RPG. For a game that comes down to punching monsters for 8 hours it manages to be pretty faithful to the show, considering that's often about peaceful conflict resolution.
The controls aren't always perfect (for my giant fingers anyway) but it's never really a problem. Everything is adapted and streamlined to a touch device well. Traversal is basically just swiping to move from screen to screen, where a combat encounter will start or there will be a door/chest for you to tap.
Combat is like Paper Mario with lots of timed hits/other minigames for attacks. You generate 5 action points a turn and have a limit of 9, all the abilities have different costs. There's a nice variety of buffing and debuffing abilities and you can use one item from your inventory per turn (I'm partial to the ones that give you more action points). A few side-quests but there's nothing stopping you from blasting through it. There's also collectable badges that give you passive buffs and stuff.
But yeah, good experience especially for show watchers. Can recommend.
Preview: I'm currently playing Zoombinis on PC and I haven't decided what to do on handheld/mobile yet. I might go back to Nano Assault
VisceralBowl
Member
Benzychenz
Member
Game 22: Dark Cloud
PS4 - 26 hours - Beaten 15/08/16 - ★★★☆☆
I loved this game at times, but at others it just frustrated the hell out of me. Extremely janky. The camera is terrible, the combat is annoying, the thirst and weapon durability makes it very tedious, enemies annoyingly block attacks (which can take off massive amounts of durability, sometimes causing your weapon to break and having to reset).
But yeah other than that, it was a cool game with nice ideas, and I really loved the town building. Listening to all the townspeoples requests and moving everything around to accomodate was nice, and it had enough freedom that you can still design a nice looking area for yourself. Really excited to try out the sequel later, hopefully it's polished up some of the gameplay.
Beat that just in time, now going to Europe for 5 weeks. I'll try and beat something on the 20 hour plane ride! Planning Muramasa Rebirth on the way up and A Link Between Worlds coming back, but we'll see how I go.
I've pretty much given up on hitting 52 but it's still fun chronicling what I play.
Ceallach
Smells like fresh rosebuds
Game 46
X-Men
Game Gear, 1ish hours
Picked up the three game gear xmen games. This was the first. It was pretty easy, but a lot of fun, though really there is no point in playing as anyone but Cyclops or Iceman
Game 47
Snatcher
Sega CD, about 7 hours
Man, I paid a lot for this game, but it was soooo worth it. Absolutely amazing experience. So much so I ordered the Saturn version to replay it again in more detail. Seriously, the art, the world, everything about it is just so good. It really lives up to the hype.
Game 48
Space Adventure Cobra: The Legendary Bandit
Sega CD, about 7 hours
Not as expensive as Snatcher, but still pricey. It plays a lot like Snatcher and is really fantastic as well. Lots of nudity too, surprisingly. Like seriously LOTS. Especially for a game released in 1993. The game is marred by a couple of weird issues though. First, the audio mix is terrible. It's hard to hear the dialog over the music moat of the time. Second, the game is absolutely unfailable until the last bit of it. It introduces combat at the very end and it is soooo frustrating, as enemies just pile on you during a puzzle area. But still, a great experience.
X-Men
Game Gear, 1ish hours
Picked up the three game gear xmen games. This was the first. It was pretty easy, but a lot of fun, though really there is no point in playing as anyone but Cyclops or Iceman
Game 47
Snatcher
Sega CD, about 7 hours
Man, I paid a lot for this game, but it was soooo worth it. Absolutely amazing experience. So much so I ordered the Saturn version to replay it again in more detail. Seriously, the art, the world, everything about it is just so good. It really lives up to the hype.
Game 48
Space Adventure Cobra: The Legendary Bandit
Sega CD, about 7 hours
Not as expensive as Snatcher, but still pricey. It plays a lot like Snatcher and is really fantastic as well. Lots of nudity too, surprisingly. Like seriously LOTS. Especially for a game released in 1993. The game is marred by a couple of weird issues though. First, the audio mix is terrible. It's hard to hear the dialog over the music moat of the time. Second, the game is absolutely unfailable until the last bit of it. It introduces combat at the very end and it is soooo frustrating, as enemies just pile on you during a puzzle area. But still, a great experience.
Hikami
Member
Main post
Game 24: Ys VI: The Ark of Napishtim | 15 hours | August
Yet another Ys game finished. I'm running out now, only have one left that I haven't played. (of the ones localized and on PC or Vita). Story was better than the games Adol is usually in, same with the characters. Still wish Adol would stop being mute. Gameplay was kinda weak but that's to be expected since this is one of the older Ys games.
Also has the best opening track in the series. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OlB9npWtEr4
Game 24: Ys VI: The Ark of Napishtim | 15 hours | August
Yet another Ys game finished. I'm running out now, only have one left that I haven't played. (of the ones localized and on PC or Vita). Story was better than the games Adol is usually in, same with the characters. Still wish Adol would stop being mute. Gameplay was kinda weak but that's to be expected since this is one of the older Ys games.
Also has the best opening track in the series. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OlB9npWtEr4
Master Post
woah hey here it is I had plans for the update but well uh oopsie doodles
Game 50: Abzû (PS4) | ~5 hours | 08/03/2016 | 4.5/5
Abzu is a great time. It's essentially underwater Journey, with a few give and takes. Abzu doesn't reach the emotional highs of Journey, lacking the whole silent multiplayer gimmick, but personally I didn't think Journey changed my life so it's not too big of a con for me. Abzu has got a hell of a lot more cool shit, though. Swimming and meditating in the different areas is real cool, between riding the jetstreams and hitching a ride on dolphins and sunfish. Later locales are phenomenal and the large amount of underwater life they put into the game is top notch. Overall, it was fantastic and lived up to my personal expectations.
This was gonna be Ori and The Blind Forest: Definitive Edition, but I glitched into the floor and saved in a literal unwinnable situation so I'll revisit that later, but for now I played this game and it's fun. Sliming through the multiple areas, saving your slime friends and gaining resources is fun; and all this leads to the tank battles, which are both fun and flawed. Essentially it's about outspamming your opponent, which gets hard when there are four people on the opposite team throwing shit. So the key is sending yourself through your own cannon and existing only to destroy their ammo reservers and gatekeeping their cannon room by ramming into your enemies. Can't do that against the final boss though, so there you just wait until your HP reaches 0 so he stops throwing shit and you can kill them. Good game.
This was gonna be another 100% run but achievements didn't pop so oops gotta revisit this again later. The original release was my GOTY in 2013 and the STCE only improves the game. The added mechanics and new area are a lot of fun. Beyond that, this is a game I've beaten time and time again and will continue to do so. It's good and I'm glad I made this my challenge completing game, despite not completely fulfilling what I want oops.
Challenge is done but the year is still young and there's still so many games to play. Hooray videogaems.
woah hey here it is I had plans for the update but well uh oopsie doodles
Game 50: Abzû (PS4) | ~5 hours | 08/03/2016 | 4.5/5
Abzu is a great time. It's essentially underwater Journey, with a few give and takes. Abzu doesn't reach the emotional highs of Journey, lacking the whole silent multiplayer gimmick, but personally I didn't think Journey changed my life so it's not too big of a con for me. Abzu has got a hell of a lot more cool shit, though. Swimming and meditating in the different areas is real cool, between riding the jetstreams and hitching a ride on dolphins and sunfish. Later locales are phenomenal and the large amount of underwater life they put into the game is top notch. Overall, it was fantastic and lived up to my personal expectations.
Game 51: Dragon Quest: Rocket Slime (DS) | 11 hours | 08/08/2016 | 4/5
This was gonna be Ori and The Blind Forest: Definitive Edition, but I glitched into the floor and saved in a literal unwinnable situation so I'll revisit that later, but for now I played this game and it's fun. Sliming through the multiple areas, saving your slime friends and gaining resources is fun; and all this leads to the tank battles, which are both fun and flawed. Essentially it's about outspamming your opponent, which gets hard when there are four people on the opposite team throwing shit. So the key is sending yourself through your own cannon and existing only to destroy their ammo reservers and gatekeeping their cannon room by ramming into your enemies. Can't do that against the final boss though, so there you just wait until your HP reaches 0 so he stops throwing shit and you can kill them. Good game.
Game 52: [Replay] Guacamelee: Super Turbo Championship Edition (PC) | 6 hours | 08/09/2016 | 5/5
This was gonna be another 100% run but achievements didn't pop so oops gotta revisit this again later. The original release was my GOTY in 2013 and the STCE only improves the game. The added mechanics and new area are a lot of fun. Beyond that, this is a game I've beaten time and time again and will continue to do so. It's good and I'm glad I made this my challenge completing game, despite not completely fulfilling what I want oops.
Challenge is done but the year is still young and there's still so many games to play. Hooray videogaems.
VisceralBowl
Member
- Status