Topic: Games You Recently Beat?

Breath of the Wild, actually.

Got it for my son's birthday. Not a huge fan of Zelda myself, but I was pleasantly surprised.

Not my fave game by any stretch, but simply strolling through the lands, discovering new places was pretty cool. If only they made a game more like that, without the silly stuff.

@Daniel36 It never gets old after even four years for me. I've sunk in a good six hundred hours and I'm still finding new things to find, and explore.

What do you mean by silly stuff, do you mean in open-world games in general or in Nintendo's case alone?

I have finished DooM Eternal (the base game). It was excellent. I love the action just like in DooM 2016 but in Eternal the Slayer is even more badass!

They made is so everyone is afraid of him! Also the DooM Fortress is very a nice hub/base of operations!

I have beaten two of the endings in bravely default 2 and had my butt kicked right after it and still unsure I will go for true ending.

Final Fantasy VI (SNES Classic) - This one was definitely a good Final Fantasy to start with. I'm a huge fan of 16-bit graphics/the presentation (Other than aspects of the Mode 7 map; that was a bit hard on the eyes sometimes). The plot was decent with some very memorable scenes (The opera house, Ultros encounters, Terra's origin story, and the Phantom Train particularly stick out in my mind), the playable characters all have unique personalities and (mostly) fun gimmicks, and they're all very customizable using the Espers. The music in the game is very memorable. More tracks to hunt down for work listening, I believe! Relics are also quite fun to experiment around with and certainly provide plenty of utility (or light cheating lol).

The complaints I have are very minor. After playing more modern games lately, going back to random encounters in this game did become a bit wearisome at times; thankfully this is alleviated by a certain item, and encounters weren't completely unwelcome (Gotta get that EXP!). It's just that in some areas without breaks or where the mobs weren't worth your time, it started feeling like needless padding. I'm also not fully sold on the ATB system, but this by far isn't the only JRPG that uses a similar format. I do appreciate it for stirring up how traditional turn-based combat works.

This game is easy to recommend for those who love (and can sit through ~40 hours) JRPGs, a good story, don't mind 16-bit graphics, and having a myriad of characters to select from. This game is DEFINITELY worth anyone's time.

Well, it's basically the same ATB system in IV & V before this, @Tyranexx .... Not quite sure when they adjusted to 'ctb' & came up with other terms for the system in later titles but that's still mostly similar!

Just beat Resident Evil 5. The game is ok but it is NOT a true RE game The only thing that kept me going were the characters. I only wanted to finish the game. Now I have to go and buy Resident Evil 6 and I heard that it is even worse than 5.

Ghost of Tsushima. Extremely emotional ending, that left me extremely satisfied. When I was approaching the final boss, not knowing what would happen, I was thinking to myself, and unknowingly predicted what would happen at the end. Lord Shimura, your adoptive father, came to speak with you but he had been ordered by the shogun to kill you. You ride together, help a peasant, write a final haiku together before your clan is dissolved, and then you fight to the death. You're given a choice to kill or spare Shimura, and I chose to kill him, to give him a warrior's death. It wasn't a very difficult choice ultimately, despite my finger resting on the button.

Finished Ori and the will of the wisps this weekend. And although I was not a fan of the first one I enjoyed this one quite a lot as the combat is way way better and I like the addition of more sidequests and upgrades as the original got stale after a few hours to me

Finished the Japanese cartridge version of Castlevania/Akumajou Dracula on an emulator twice last night, I did enjoy the easy mode as it provided an easier challenge but it was still tough as I found myself dying in some levels.

@BruceCM Duly noted. I don't have V, but I do have the DS IV buried deep in the backlog pile (specifically my "Reserves" category, which means I likely won't get to the small handful of games in it within a year). Looking forward to that one as well as I've heard the story is phenomenal, but that it's also arguably the hardest version of the game. XD

I just beat Bravely Default II. There's some stuff about the story that I wish they did better, but it was still a pretty good game overall.

Megaman 7. Of course as soon as I take a break from it, I beat the final boss on my next try.

I'll be honest, while I like the game, between this and especially 11, I have my doubts on this idea of making the classic Megaman series as anything other than the 8 bit style. Just not what I'm looking for. I'd rather just play the SNES X games or a fully modern Megaman game instead. It's still good but I'd much prefer most of the NES games, and I'll probably prefer 9 and 10 when I get to them. Though I'm interested in playing 8 again. I remember liking it more than 7 but also finding it to be more frustrating.

I do wish I didn't know Megaman's lines at the end already. That is incredibly funny.

Well, we'd be able to help you get the best augments in that, @Tyranexx .... Which do make quite a difference! Along with any other tips needed, of course

@BruceCM Thanks! Looking forward to when I do play it.

Sometime this year, maybe, @Tyranexx ....? Although that's supposedly so 'difficult', it's quite a bit better in many ways than the GBA version, at least In that, it's more about the general random battles being quite tough that makes the bosses seem easier. Until you get to the final boss, who obliterates your party, despite having done the bonus dungeon with everyone before that
So, while some of the bosses in DS version are probably that bit more difficult & there's one in particular that does require a pretty specific strategy, with the difficulties of getting the timings right, by the time you get to the final boss, that shouldn't really pose too much challenge
While it'd be boring if it was all too easy! Most of the time, you shouldn't need to run around just grinding for too long or anything, either. That was one of my 1st few games on a DS, while I didn't have internet at home, so it's quite possible to beat the game without any guides

@BruceCM Don't get me wrong, I like a challenge to a point as long as it seems fair, though that also depends on the genre lol. What drew me to that version was the promise of voice acting, the visuals don't bother me, and overall I know it's one of the better entries.

I highly doubt I'll get to it within the next year however. They need to quit releasing games I wanna buy so I can play catch-up on the ones I do have. XD

Yeah, I'm sure you'll get on fine with it, @Tyranexx .... The voice acting is good for such an old game & it looked pretty good, on the DS, with it's low res screen

Not too long ago I revisited and finished Super Mario 3D Land. All Star Medals acquired and I got the top of the flagpole on all levels. While there were some of those that I missed as Mario, I got them as Luigi during my Luigi playthrough. The assist block never appeared for me, so I have the sparkling stars on my save file.

It's not quite as good as 3D World, but it's still a good Mario game, especially for a handheld. I think the level design is pretty good, I love the return of Tanooki Mario (Boomerang Mario is pretty fun to use, as well!), it makes nice use of the 3DS's 3D screen, and some of the music is good stuff. My favorite tunes from 3D Land are the beach theme, the snow theme, and the jazzy overworld theme. Oh, and I really like the cutscenes you get from finishing worlds! They're quite cute and I also like the pictures that Mario gets from opening those envelopes. Always loved the 2D artwork for Mario and his pals/enemies, too.

All is not perfect though. Firstly, there's only 3 bosses (Bowser, Boom Boom, and Pom Pom), and they all get repeated throughout the game (albeit in different layouts and added hazards). I like the idea of the special worlds after beating Bowser in the last world - we do get some original levels but most of the special levels are just remixed levels from the regular worlds. Also, might be just a nitpick, but I would prefer that the save file stars still sparkle if you just ignore the assist block, even if it appears. Apparently the save file stars lose their sparkles the moment you lose 5 lives and the game saves afterwards.

My biggest issue with the game, however, was how Luigi was implemented. He's unlocked as a playable character at a certain point - that sounds cool in of itself, but he controls almost entirely like Mario. Not only that, but if you want to play the real final level, you need to beat every level again as Luigi. Come on, really? Isn't getting all the Star Medals and gold flags enough for you guys? At least in Super Mario Galaxy, Luigi felt different enough from Mario, with his lower traction and higher jump. Here, it just felt like needless padding.

I still had a good time with 3D Land overall. It's not quite my favorite, as there are definitely some things that I would change, but as a whole it's still a solid Mario game. 3D World basically fixed the issues I had with this game, as well.

This week I finished Yakuza 0, and Castlevania: Circle of the Moon.
Yakuza 0 was incredible, I loved every second of it. Circle of the Moon was a mixed bag. My expectations going in were low so I enjoyed it more than I thought I would. I just don't think it has aged too well, and the drop rates for gear/cards are bs.