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Topic: Games You Recently Beat?

Posts 1,301 to 1,320 of 3,137

CanisWolfred

Wait. I haven't gotten around to any of the HD versions of the Final Fantasy games yet...but, do you mean to tell me, after all these re-releases...they never added a cutscene skip option? Unbelieveable.

No really, I couldn't believe it, I had to look it up to make sure. It's one of those QoL features you'd think would be expected by default in a re-release...

Edited on by CanisWolfred

I am the Wolf...Red
Backloggery | DeviantArt
Wolfrun?

TommyTendo

I have been infront of Victory Road in Let's Go, Eevee! for like 5 months, so I figured it was time to boot up the game and actually defeat the Elite 4 lol

RR529

Tales of Zestiria (PS4)

Pros:

  • The action based combat is easy to grasp, and despite some tweaks is a familiar setup if you've played past Tales games.
  • I ended up quite liking the fusion mechanic (certain characters can fuse for a huge boost in stats, but it has it's drawbacks, as you're special attack meter replenishes much more slowly while fused, and of course if you die while fused, that takes out both characters).
  • I liked that it actually had largish, to scale, field areas (think XC2 or DQXI) rather than an overworld that looks like you're a giant walking around tiny continents (that more old school JRPGs, including Tales of Abyss & Vesperia used).
  • Not my favorite bunch of characters in a JRPG, or even in a Tales game (personality or design wise), but I liked them enough by game's end.

Cons:

  • The equipment system was a confusing mess, IMO, and I never got deeply into it.
  • It felt mostly quite generic. It had a more standard medieval vibe to it's world (no fantasy/tech mix that Abyss & Vesperia had), so you just had a couple of standard castletowns & villages. Dungeons too weren't very memorable (other than the final dungeon & maybe a couple of the Elemental Trial dungeons), as they didn't seem to have any charm or distinguishing characteristics (like DQ games, Tales games usually hit all the cliches when it comes to dungeon themes, but in a charming way). There were a ton of optional dungeons on offer too, but they were all pallet swaps of the same three forest, cave, and ruin themes (particularly the ruin theme).
  • The game is completely stripped of any of the minigames that Abyss or Vesperia (or other JRPGs) tend to have. No resort/casino town, no races, and not even that waitressing minigame. In fact, most of it's side content revolves around optional "Mutant Hellion" bosses. There's almost always one in every field area, always one at the end of an optional dungeon, and 90% of sidequests involve fighting one. This isn't bad in iteslf (in fact I kept up on these pretty well so I could stay levelled), but it's a tad disappointing that there's very little variety in side content, and due to how many of these bosses there are (and they're all roughly only about 10 levels higher than the rest of the enemies in the area), they're not as exciting as optional bosses tend to be.
  • Not much alternate costume variety. Tales games usually have quite a bit of cool/silly costumes you can unlock (sometimes connected to the absent minigames), but here it's limited to pallet swaps and other outfits they wore at some point during the story. The cooler/sillier costumes are reserved as DLC. This isn't a terrible flaw, but a tad disappointing.

Overall it's a perfectly fine game, but just a bit of a letdown based on series entries I've played before (Abyss & Vesperia).

@CanisWolfred, it's not limited to FFXHD either. The HD release of Onimusha Warlords doesn't let you skip cutscenes either. It's not a huge deal, but it seems like such an obvious omission.

Currently Playing:
Switch - Blade Strangers
PS4 - Kingdom Hearts III, Tetris Effect (VR)

Ralizah

Advance Wars: Days of Ruin

Platform: Nintendo DS

Level of Completion: All stages completed (53 S Ranks; 10 A Ranks; 1 B Rank). 70 hours of total playtime.

Type of Game: Turn-based tactics game. Unlike the developer’s other big tactics series, Fire Emblem, there are no RPG elements to this game, as nothing carries over between missions. You make do with what you’re given at the start of each mission.

Premise: Some time after meteors rain down on the Earth and destroy civilization, the existing order of the world collapses. The main character is a young survivor named Will, who is taken in by a rogue military captain who now uses his squad to try and maintain some semblance of justice in a wasteland where the weak have no protections from the cruelties of the strong. Insane generals, factional/ideological conflicts, and a bizarre disease that makes flower burst from the heads of the infected all factor into the narrative as it progresses.

What I Liked:

  • There’s an actual narrative in this game. It’s nothing deep, but people have actual personalities, and dialogues aren’t merely jokey interludes meant to separate missions like in previous games.
  • The pool of units in this game is easily the most balanced in the entire series, and, more than in previous entries, I often found myself relying on almost the entire set to accomplish my goals. The various buildable units in your unit are designed to complement each others' strengths and weaknesses, and you'll quickly be punished by the CPU for trying to ham with a bunch of OP units that don't properly address stage conditions, enemy positioning, and the available pool of resources the enemy has to call on.
  • Units can now level up and gain EXP in missions, which helps to increase their effectiveness against enemies. This little addition actually adds a lot to the game.
  • The changes to CO powers, unit selection, and map design in this game makes Days of Ruin, by far, the most strategically pure and challenging game in the series. The player is now more consistently rewarded for following through on a strategy to route the enemy as opposed to just zerg rushing the enemy in every map (although this can still be employed at times to often devastating effect). Moreover, while CO powers, properly utilized, can help to turn the edge in a battle, their effects are drastically limited and consistently more difficult to trigger. This helps curb the annoying tendency to over-rely on OP CO powers to help you beat a difficult opponent.
  • While the story itself is fairly serious, there’s a good bit of goody dialogue between characters that helps to lighten the mood. This is most evident in the “war room” dialogues. Ostensibly designed to help you complete a mission by giving you hints, dialogues in the war room are often filled with amusing scenarios and interactions between characters.
  • The OST is pure rock and roll, and, even if the compression of the sound files keeps the tracks from sounding as good as they might have on more powerful hardware, it’s compulsively listenable.
  • The main single-player campaign in DoR is one of the longest and most satisfying in the series.

What I Disliked:

  • There's not quite as much content as in the previous entry, Advance Wars: Dual Strike. Although you could probably make a quantity/quality argument here. And there's still a ton of content here.
  • While it was cool at the time, it undeniably sucks that it's now impossible to access content that was gated behind Days of Ruin's online mode. It's also one less mode to engage with if you didn't play the game before Nintendo shut the DS' online down.
  • While I get the reasons for the change, I feel like the muted color palette of this entry takes away from the series' unique visual identity a bit.
  • This game was undeniably a step forward for the series on the narrative front, yet the modern player shouldn't expect too much. Characters are incredibly tropey. The plot, while interesting, is a bit underdeveloped, and less unique a decade on, when post-apocalyptic stories have been increasingly common (at the time this released, the only game with a similar theme I can recall is Fallout 3). And while, as previously mentioned, the dialogue can be a lot of fun, there are also moments that skate dangerously close to over-localization. The treehouse crew clearly added a lot of humor to the script that wasn't there originally, and it doesn't always land. In general, I'd say this series was still lagging far behind the Fire Emblem franchise on the narrative front.
  • The game never really bothers to reward the player for going out of their way to ace missions. Perhaps this should be its own reward, but I always like when games have a tasty-looking carrot to dangle in front of my face and compel me to persist in my quest for perfection. Earlier AW games were better on this front.

Conclusion: A satisfying and lengthy tactical experience that is easy to learn how to play but only really reveals its full potential when the player takes the time to experiment, strategize, and replay missions for better scores. Attempts at making it more of a coherent narrative experience are admirable. Unfortunately, a lot of emphasis was placed on the new online multiplayer mode, which has been long abandoned, and the presentation is never elaborate enough to really sell you on the new direction IS seemed to be taking the famously gameplay-centric series. Ultimately, while I really liked this game, I did kind of miss the old, cheerier aesthetic of previous games.

Verdict: 7.5/10

Edited on by Ralizah

Currently Playing: Advance Wars 1 + 2: Re- Boot Camp (NS)

Zuljaras

Bloodstained Ritual of the Night 100% on Normal.

It got heights and lows but solid.

I did not event update it. Played it from start to finish from the PS4 installation. Only got 2 crashes.

Ralizah

Knighty_IX wrote:

Nice review! I'd personally give it a higher score, but your assessment is fair.

I've been trying to stick close to the standards in NL's own scoring policy, as otherwise numerical scores don't mean much of anything to me. I do think it helps give a decent ballpark idea of how good I think the game is, though.

Keep in mind that, unlike some professional writers online, I'm intent on using the whole scale, and a 7.5 is very much on the upper end of that.

Knighty_IX wrote:

The narrative was a step in the right direction, and I liked how they balanced the darker tone with some humor. The changes to the CO Powers, the new units, and units gaining levels arguably makes Days of Ruin have the best gameplay in the series.

I agree with all of that. Well said.

I'd like to see them incorporate these changes into the less gritty style of AW game design.

Knighty_IX wrote:

Days of Ruin has some really great soundtracks and it's unfortunate that there's no higher quality renditions except fan-made works. Do you have a particular favorite?

Really like this track, for some reason. I always linger on the file select screen longer than I need to. LOL

Knighty_IX wrote:

I'm not quite sure what you mean by this, can you provide an example please?

You provide the best example of Nintendo's very loose approach to localization in your own post. They added a ton of stuff to the IDS Agent's dialogue that was likely very different in the original. Stuff like that occurs throughout the game. It's this sort of approach that led to NoA altering entire conversations in subsequent IS games like Fire Emblem: Fates (remember when they deleted an entire character relationship-building support convo as a joke?). Dark Conflict might have been more dry, but it was also more faithful. I'm certain there's a healthy balance to be found between translating basically what was being said in the original script while also spicing it up so it doesn't sound too stilted.

Knighty_IX wrote:

Anyways, nice job on completing the game!

Thanks! I've owned it for a decade or so, and never got more than 1/3 of the way through. I was feeling the urge to play one of these games, but didn't exactly think Wargroove would fit the bill perfectly, and then remembered that this game was still sitting around, uncompleted, in my collection. So I thought: "Why not? Let's fire this bad boy up!" I ended up having a great time. I certainly wouldn't have spent 70 hours on it, trying to perfect maps and whatnot otherwise.

@Knighty_IX]

Edited on by Ralizah

Currently Playing: Advance Wars 1 + 2: Re- Boot Camp (NS)

Ralizah

Knighty_IX wrote:

I'm kinda timid on using the entire number scale, and I think I have a stigmatized look on 7/10 scores. They don't make me want to avoid or dislike games with those scores, but I usually categorize 7/10 on the "it's good but okay" level.

7.5 could technically be rounded up to an 8.

I really wish IS had expanded more on the presentation and dialogue. There are some moments here that would have been awesome had there been better narrative build up to them, such as the scene where Lyn realizes she has to save Will from the consequences of his own forgiving nature and coldly ices General Greyfield.

Knighty_IX wrote:

Great choice! I still remember the first time I was greeted with that menu theme song and it got me hooked with its mechanical sounds immediately. Sometimes I linger around the free battle mode just so I can listen to it longer too.

I'm not sure what I expected when I booted the game up for the first time, but aggressive electronic music was definitely not it! It's catchy, though.

Really, though, all of the music in the game is uncharacteristically decent.

Knighty_IX wrote:

Oh boy, the whole debacle surrounding the localization of Fates is something that I don't want to go anywhere near, but I get your point now. I can agree with the idea of balance, but in this case I'd say the looser, creative approach worked in favor of Days of Ruin.

I getcha. I confess I also have games that I feel were improved by more liberal localization policies. You mentioned Lunar, so I'll use Silver Star Story, as that's a great example. When XSEED localized the music for Silver Star Harmony, while they did a good job of trying to appease older fans by bringing by the singer who worked on the original PS1 localization, their lyrics, while accurate... lacked the soul of the older, more heavily altered Working Designs version. Or maybe I'm just nostalgic for the version of a game I played as a tween? You tell me.

(PS1)

(PSP)

The Kaze no Nocturne fares even worse, imo. While the XSEED version is technically more accurate, the character singing it is just... pining for a dude. And pining for a dude is a fine thing, but the original PS1 localization makes it more about the character questioning her identity and destiny. I'm sure her feelings for the dude factor in there somewhere, of course, but it's a much richer song, and, without spoiling anything, kind of foreshadows future plot developments with the character.

(PS1)

(PSP)

So, yeah, I agree there are times that aggressive localization can improve a product. Honestly, I'm so mad XSEED altered the original songs that I can't even play the PSP remake.

(btw, if I've ranted about this to you in the past, I apologize. It's one of those things that I'll be ranting about when I'm an old person, I think!)

Knighty_IX wrote:

Speaking of owning unfinished games... I promised to write up an impression/review on the Lunar games about uhhhhhmm... 3 years ago? I should probably get started on those games... like right now... or later...
I'M SORRY, PLZ DON'T KILL ME!

Ah, don't feel too bad. I bought Final Fantasy Type-0 HD for full price at launch in 2015 and, I kid you not, I've still never so much as booted up that game.

Weeps softly

Edited on by Ralizah

Currently Playing: Advance Wars 1 + 2: Re- Boot Camp (NS)

klingki

I just beat Gris for the 2nd time. When it first came out, I just played through casually, not worrying too much about finding everything. This time I wanted to 100% it. I actually ended up using a guide for some of the challenges/achievements as there is some stuff that's pretty cleverly tucked away. All in all, it was great to revisit this game! It's not long, and the gameplay is not particularly deep, but the art style and music are just fantastic and they pair so well together!

klingki

MsJubilee

I beat Death Mark, and wow! What a disappointment, the game never reaches its full potential with any of the ideas it had, only in chapter 2&3 (3 is the best one out of them all, short and sweet)is where this game reached its peak. After that, the game goes downhill from there. Shame, the backstories and designs of these spirits are actually quite good.

There is nothing worse out there than a disappointing game that had potential to be simply fantastic, which Death Mark is not.
I hope one day i can get a visual novel similar to Junj Ito's work, but i think it's never gonna happen.

The Harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. When the going gets tough, the tough gets going.

I'm currently playing Assassin's Creed: Revelations & Watch Dogs 2

Switch Friend Code: SW-5827-3728-4676 | 3DS Friend Code: 3738-0822-0742

SNES64DD

I recently finished the main story of Valkyria Chronicles 4. Highly recommend the game if people haven't played it already.

SNES64DD

Switch Friend Code: SW-6514-9557-3207 | My Nintendo: SNES64DD | Nintendo Network ID: SNES64DD

DenDen

Finished final fantasy adventures, and almost doen with secret of mana
Secret of mana 2 (trials of mana) is next!

Now playing
Nexomon
Dicey Dungeons
UnderMine
Steamworld Quest

FC - SW 2926-4689-1966

Switch Friend Code: Sw-2926-4689-1966 | My Nintendo: DenDen

Bunkerneath

Completed Iconclasts, it was good little game, and nice storyline (does get a bit too in depth for some people with too much conversation but I like a good storyline)

I AM ERROR

Switch Friend Code: SW-5538-4050-1819 | 3DS Friend Code: 1633-4650-1215 | My Nintendo: Bunkerneath | Nintendo Network ID: Bunkerneat | Twitter:

Daniel36

Dungeon Village - Said it before, will say it again, I really shouldn't like this game as much as I do, but I do. Finished it twice now actually, which isn't that hard, but it encourages you to get a high score, which in this game actually works.

The game is pretty small, looks and feels (and is) a mobile game, but I can't help it, it's fun. First game ever where I wanted to get a better high score.

If you take the plunge, you will find out that the game isn't random in which heroes will visit you. They will always be the same ones from start to finish, but once you have unlocked a class in one save you have it unlocked in the next.

It's not worth the full price, and I would probably give it a 5.5/10, but I still do not regret buying it. It's nice to play for a small bit if you have a little bit of downtime. My sons seem to like it too, so there's that.

There should be more games like this one, preferably with a more serious tone. Now, maybe I should dust off my Wii and play some My Life as a King some more.

Daniel36

Heavyarms55

So I just finished Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization. And I have to say I really enjoyed it! I was laughing all the time throughout the story. And the story did cover some interesting ideas with VR and AI. The humor in the game might not be for everyone, but it clicked for me! The game play itself is solid but in the main story/single player mode, it is entirely possible to become ludicrously over powered. I can't overstate it. At level 53 I defeated a boss enemy that was level 100 and protected by 8 mobs at level 90! It was the kind of enemy that was supposed to be an obstacle to avoid, not fight. But that is entirely because I am the kind of JRPG player that loves to do piles and piles of optional side content and this game throws it all at you, assuming you wont do it all. The Switch version at least also suffers from painful loading times and the A and B buttons are swapped because I assume they kept the Playstation button layout.

Despite the mechanical flaws, unintentional humor and the inherent corniness of Sword Art Online, I had an absolute blast playing the game. The game fixes one of my main issues with the anime in that the side characters and supporting cast are all relevant, unlike the anime which tends to toss aside supporting characters once their story arc is finished. All of them in the game continue on with lots of screen time and I enjoy that a lot. Further, the SAO games do not follow the anime 1 to 1. In fact they are only loosely based around the same general ideas and cast. Which I like, because it means you're playing through a largely original story, not just a carbon copy of the anime where you have to push buttons.

When it comes to game adaptations of anime, they are in abundance. And most are total trash. SAO Hollow Realization however shows us that that doesn't always have to be the case!

I absolutely intend to get the next game when it comes to Switch this fall!

Nintendo Switch FC: 4867-2891-2493
Switch username: Em
Discord: Heavyarms55#1475
Pokemon Go FC: 3838 2595 7596
PSN: Heavyarms55zx

Tyranexx

I've had a small handful of completions in the past week or so.

Pokemon Ultra Sun
Platform: 3DS

I reached the end credits for this but still need to properly tackle the post-game, so I'll refrain from a full write-up for now and just leave some broad impressions.

I enjoyed the game overall, but most of the non-story additions didn’t really seem necessary to me. Some of the new side quests were interesting and unique, but not mind-blowing. I also enjoyed Mantine Surfing; I felt that it was a nice alternative to travel between Alola’s islands. Other extras like the Alola Photo Club or the Pikachu Valley could have been so much more; the photo club especially felt jammed down my throat at times. The more talkative Rotom Dex, while enjoyable at first, got a little annoying after awhile.

Plot-wise, I liked some of the changes, but most of the changes before the main plot’s climax were negligible. The Ultra Recon Squad, while they technically served a purpose, seemed like they were interrupting the game’s flow with unnecessary cutscenes. While I liked the resolution of the plot here for the most part compared to the original game, I also felt that some of the things I liked so much about the plot in Pokemon Sun were sacrificed here as well. They did expand significantly on one character’s personal growth.

My impressions on the game could definitely change after I play through the post-game, but this sequel/follow-up seems a little lacking even when compared to some of the previous “third” versions that weren’t full-on sequels. I feel like we’ve been spoiled by BW2 in this regard. In some ways, it feels like the original Sun/Moon were rushed and that the Ultra games were what we should have received the first time around. They were pretty blatant about the "this area is incomplete" concept this time.


Mega Man X
Platform: SNES Classic

So I apparently HAD played this at some point back in the day as the opening stage caused some flashbacks, but I don't believe kid me ever got past it. XD It might've been because I didn't realize you could jump out of that first pit....

Positives

  • The music. Oh sweet Nirvana, the music! The Mega Man series still contains some of my favorite video game tunes to this day, and this game was no exception.
  • The platforming was, on the whole, very enjoyable. Overall, I found it solid and tight. There were a couple of stages like the tower in B. Kuwanger's stage and a certain infamous section of Sigma Stage 1 that overstayed their welcome though.
  • Most of the stages themselves looked wonderful in the 16-bit aesthetic and were quite engaging. Yep, I'm a sucker for the graphics of this time period. XD

Neutral

  • The difficulty seems kind of all over the place here. I ran into a sub-boss early on (the bubble dude in Spark Mandrill's stage) that I had a HECK of a time beating and almost caused me to put down the game permanently. The more upgrades and weapons you collect, the easier (in general) that the game becomes, which is fine. Still, some stages seemed to have sudden difficulty spikes that didn't always sit well with me.
  • Look, I know Sigma is the end boss, that he's supposed to be hard. But still, his pattern is almost TOO random most of the time. I took advantage of his final form's hands when I could, but I was still sometimes knocked off.

Negatives

  • This is admittedly a nitpick, but why can enemy projectiles go through platforms, barriers, etc., but your weapon shots cannot? This is a sticking point with me in a lot of games like this that allow it.
  • Another nitpick: some of the physics seem a bit wonky, but this was something I didn't notice much.

Overall, I enjoyed this game, but I had to be in the right mood to play it. I typically play games to relax, not have an aneurysm. I was considering picking up the Mega Man X Legacy Collection, but I think I'll hold off for now. This wasn't as hard as my limited experiences with the earlier Mega Man games, but it also was more difficult than I thought it'd be.


Kirby Super Star
Platform: SNES Classic

This was my first ever proper Kirby game. Guess what? The series has earned itself a new fan. I think it was the perfect platformer to play when I didn't want to deal with the above. Not that it was never difficult at all, but the game was easier to relax with.

Positives

  • This game is excellent at instructing series beginners on what to do. The explanations are nice and concise.
  • Pop Star, Dreamland, et all are beautiful. The environments, enemy designs, object designs, etc. have all aged well. I think I mentioned that I like 16-bit graphics....
  • Most of the main game settings were fun and engaging. Spring Breeze was admittedly a little barebones (apparently it's a remake of the original Kirby's Dream Land), but it also served as a perfect intro game. By far my favorite main game settings/stages were Revenge of Meta Knight and Dyna Blade.
  • Copy abilities are amazing and fun to mess around with, as is creating helpers.
  • The two sub-games, while there isn't much to them, were also enjoyable.
  • Many of the bosses, while easy for the most part, were quite fun to fight. My favorite was the Computer Virus boss as the fight is set up almost like a traditional RPG with its own twist.

Neutral

  • The music was pleasant enough, but none of the tracks really stood out to me either.
  • While I liked the exploration in The Great Cave Offensive, I started getting a little bored with it after awhile. Some of the treasures were unique and were neat throwbacks to other Nintendo properties, but overall I felt that this mode was a bit long in the tooth.
  • Gourmet Race was a unique take on the racing genre, but I still didn't enjoy it very much. There's nothing particularly wrong with it; I'm just not really into racing games. This didn't hold my attention for long at all.

Negatives

  • This isn't a true negative, more of a nitpick. Some later modes seemed to reuse some assets and made a few of the environments feel like retreads.

I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this one. I'm now actively looking at picking up what some say are the better games in the series.

Currently playing: Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr's Journey, Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana (Switch)

"Love your neighbor as yourself." Mark 12:31

CanisWolfred

@Tyranexx The first Mega Man X game did notoriously get easier as you progressed, since it just gives you so much that a lot of challenges quickly become trivialized, even late in the game. That's part of what I like about the MMX games - they're hard, but they also give you the tools to make things easier if you explore. You mentioned how you play games to relax. I play games to explore. On that note, MMX is easily my favorite in the franchise.

I was also thinking of starting up Ultra Sun (are maybe Ultra Moon, I have more time to play at night). I'll try to keep your criticisms in mind. I went into Sun/Moon with sky-high expectations, only to be quickly left disappointed and never finished them.

I am the Wolf...Red
Backloggery | DeviantArt
Wolfrun?

Tyranexx

@CanisWolfred I really think some of my problem was the order in which I went through the Maverick stages. I loosely followed a guide and collected a lot of the needed extras, but I still think it was a mistake to tackle Spark Mandrill's stage at its suggestion right after Chill Penguin's, or my first stage; I think I should've opted for another and returned later.

The sub-boss I'm referring to is this pain in the [insert word of choice here]:
Untitled

After that, the going wasn't too bad overall until the Sigma stages, but I expected those to be difficult.

I really enjoyed Pokemon Sun when I played it and could easily overlook most of the problems that really turned others off the game (barring the handholding early on which, no, hasn't really been fixed), but I don't feel that this game really addressed some of those issues other than the plot changes that I mentioned (which were also a mixed bag here). In fact, it seems to add a few problems, but that's counterbalanced with some new things I did like. Even so, the only extras I really spent any significant time with were Poke Pelago and (at first) Festival Plaza. Those at least have uses; things like the Alola Photo Club are purely cosmetic and could've had more potential.

One of my other complaints about the original Sun/Moon was the lack of a significant post-game, but I've heard it's been expanded in these. We'll see, I suppose.

I'd still encourage you to play one of the two Ultra games if you're a series fan, but I wouldn't buy it at full price. Thankfully, my copy was a gift.

Edited on by Tyranexx

Currently playing: Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr's Journey, Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana (Switch)

"Love your neighbor as yourself." Mark 12:31

CurryPowderKeg79

I just beat Resident Evil Remake and loved it. The graphics are amazing in my opinion and if you download it to the Switchs' internal memory the load times aren't to bad. If you like Resident Evil games or have never played one i highly recommend this game.

(CURRENTLY PLAYING)
ASPHALT 9: LEGENDS

Switch Friend Code: SW-3830-1045-2921

RR529

Arca's Path (PS4/VR) - A "Marble Maze" (like Monkey Ball or Marble it Up I believe, though I've played neither) style game from Rebellion, the developers more famous for the Sniper Elite series, made specifically for VR.

Pros:

  • Gameplay sees you moving the ball solely via headtracking (the ball follows a cursor in the middle of your FOV, the further you look away from it the faster it'll go in that direction, and you can completely bring it to a halt by putting the cursor directly over the ball), and not only does this work really well, but it's also a kind of control scheme that really only works in VR, giving you a new way to play.
  • I't has a nice mix of platforming style obstacles (jumps to make, moving plaforms to board, etc.) & light puzzle solving (switches to hit, blocks to push, etc.), and introduces new elements often enough to keep from getting stale.
  • Content wise the story consists of 25 levels (framed with the ocassional comic book style cutscene), that contain a number of optional crystals to collect (some are along the way, while others will require you to take a more dangerous path to obtain), and then there is also a time trial version of every stage if you're really up for a challenge.
  • It has a simple graphical style that really holds up (none of the blurry scenery in the distance that more graphically intense VR games can have, at least on a base PS4), and it cleverly works pop-in into the aesthetic (in the context of the game you're supposed to be exploring digital space, so things have a very purposeful computery polygonal look, and they work elements that pop up as you get close to them into this). There are a few places with some cool looking verticality.

Cons:

  • There's not much chance to look around as you need to be focused on the ball (although you can press the touch pad on the controller, the DS4's only use here, to pause the action to look around).
  • All levels look similar aesthetically (mostly just pallet swapped colors, with things mostly getting more bleak the further in you get).
  • The music. It has more of an ambiet vibe with not much sound, and when it does come into play there is some pleasant sounds early on, but later on there's a lot of mechanical whirring & clanking, and the screeches of a dial-up modem being murdered.

Not a must play game, but overall I thought it was a pretty good for the price ($20 full price), and a nice experience seeing a genre not usually associated with VR working well with it. Ultimately worth bringing out the headset for.

Currently Playing:
Switch - Blade Strangers
PS4 - Kingdom Hearts III, Tetris Effect (VR)

CanisWolfred

@Tyranexx I already bought UltraSun and UltraMoon when they originally launched, but I wanted to finish Sun/Moon first...which never happened. I think I'll skip to the Ultra variants. While I liked Black/White's story and pacing, Pokemon has always been more about going on an adventure to me, so I'm usually making up my own story as I go along. I didn't get very far in Sun, but the hand-holding didn't really bother me - if the game's gonna treat me like I'm an idiot, I'll just take that idea and run with it. Tends to lead to some fun scenarios. I think my problem was that it just felt...stale? What little changes they made to the traditional Pokemon formula kneecapped the pacing. Oh, and there were too many cutscenes. I don't mind them setting up characters and introducing us to the world and/or gameplay mechanics slowly in games, but I didn't feel like much was ever really going on in the early cutscenes in spite of the fact that I have to sit there and watch them before I could do anything. Granted, I had similar issues with Pokemon X and Black 2, but Sun was the worst I'd seen in terms of the length of the scenes themselves vs. the amount of information I was actually able to gleam from them.

Edited on by CanisWolfred

I am the Wolf...Red
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Wolfrun?

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