I failed to reach 52 this year. It was my first time trying though, so better luck to myself next time!
Main Post
Games 36-40:
36. Spyro 2: Ripto's Rage (Reignited Trilogy) | Dec 13 | 7:08hrs | rating: 2.5/5
Collect new trinkets to save the world and get back home.
- GAMEPLAY: Same as the first game, but this time you gradually get new abilities, such as swimming and climbing ladders. It makes for a bit more variation, but is mostly annoying that you have to backtrack once you've obtained them to 100% the levels. That's a recurring theme in general; most side-missions are back-tracky and tedious this time around, and the mini-games are not fun.
- AUDIOVISUALLY: Same as the previous game; it's amazing how close to CGI they look compared to the originals, and I feel like we're taking the progress for granted. Musically it sounds good, but it's oh, so unmemorable.
- STORY/PRESENTATION: A whole lot more cut-scenes before and after each level, which may be entertaining for kids but a complete time waster for me. Luckily you can skip them. There are only three hub worlds this time, and the sense of progress was better in the first game.
You've got more moves, more varied missions, and an actual reason to collect the gems this time. But it's also more tedious and the additions aren't fun. Also, it's just too similar to the first game, which made me tired of it more quickly.
37. Spyro 3: Year of the Dragon (Reignited Trilogy) | Dec 16 | 6:29hrs | rating: 2/5
This time you collect dragon eggs that a crocodile witch has stolen.
- GAMEPLAY: Same as before, but all too often you play horribly controlled mini-games or as Spyro's shitty friends. I skip way more missions than before. Also more bugs and surprising inconsistencies, like "you can swim in that water, but in this water you insta-die", and invisible walls galore.
- AUDIOVISUALLY: Same, but there are more visual bugs than before, like clipping and one-frame cuts between scenes. I get the sense that they didn't polish this final game as much as the rest of the trilogy remake.
- STORY/PRESENTATION: No more random comedic cut-scenes, and instead they're focusing on advancing a story, with some light character development. Definitely the best plot of the trilogy.
I don't know what the consensus is about these games, but Spyro 1 was enjoyable enough for me to 100%, but this game has way too much crap and I just wanted to do the bare minimum; the stuff that was actually fun, because the core gameplay still is. I wouldn't recommend this one unless you really thirst for more Spyro.
38. The Touryst | Dec 28 | 5:35hrs | rating: 2.5/5
Explore a bunch of squarey tourist islands and solve puzzles.
- GAMEPLAY: Although there's a large variation of side-quests/mini-games, they're all extremely simple and short, and the "dungeons" are only a couple of rooms when they could have been 10 without getting boring. The most meaty part is an optional mine exploring game, which is fine but just nothing special. It's a very light game.
- AUDIOVISUALLY: The pixelated 3D visuals are quite special, but I'm not a huge fan except for the nice lighting. The audio is atmospheric, mostly sound of waves, but it's effective.
- STORY/PRESENTATION: It's a charming presentation and the main mystery is nice but light. My take-away really is that the game has too little of it. Like a Zelda game if you strip away all enemies and 90% of its content.
I did found the game fun enough in a sort of relaxing way. Like, you do some arcade games, you make 35 lift ups, canoe a little. But its core needed to be at least twice as meaty to make a bigger impression on me.
39. Kirby's Dream Course | Dec 29 | 3:37hrs | rating: 3/5
I started this one up randomly in the SNES Switch app, and had no idea it's a Kirby themed golf game, and also, that it's fun!
- GAMEPLAY: You choose between regular shot or chip, aim and go for the correct strength, like any golf game. There is a tutorial in the menu but I didn't see it, so I only gradually learned that you can also bounce to get extra distance, and even steal your opponents' abilities and activate while you're in motion. At first I had fun playing through the courses with bad scores, but upon returning to them, I realized it also works like a puzzle game, using all your abilities to get a hole in one. Depth!
- AUDIOVISUALLY: Standard isometric pixel graphics that do their job. Music is quite nice but nothing special.
- STORY/PRESENTATION: You travel through eight colorful worlds for who knows why.
- MULTIPLAYER: There's a VS mode, but it didn't quite work for us, since you kind of collaborate too in order to kill the enemies. I want to do it by myself! While competing.
I like golf games, and this is a very original take on the genre. As an adventure, it feels way short though, and although 64 courses is a lot as a golf game, it doesn't give me the itch to replay to improve the scores.
40. Shovel Knight: King of Cards | Dec 30 | 6:19hrs | rating: 3/5
Play as the King Knight through a whole bunch of shorter side-scrolling levels and participate in the card game Joustus.
- GAMEPLAY: The mechanics are fresh and clever, as you dash into enemies or walls to create a spin attack you can use on other enemies and objects. The card game is also initially fun, but it lost my interest pretty fast.
- AUDIOVISUALLY: Honestly I hate these brownish pixel visuals. Most of it looks like mud. The music on the other hand is spectacular, some of the best in the medium!
- STORY/PRESENTATION: There's a lot of humoristic dialog, but it's not something that interests me. You've got a world map with levels on them, and to be honest it just feels too formulaic, too "been there done that".
- MULTIPLAYER: Unfortunately you can't play the adventure in co-op like you can in the original campaign, but there is a separate "Showdown" released, which is a Smash Bros light. We tried one round, but it just felt messy. Might as well play Smash.
The original Shovel Knight didn't actually do much for me. It felt too safe, too retro, not surprising enough. I might prefer King of Cards in some ways, as the levels are shorter and it feels more focused, and especially the later levels are quite creative. The visuals and the sameness bring it down for me. Despite the nifty mechanics, it screams "old".
Main Post
Games 36-40:
36. Spyro 2: Ripto's Rage (Reignited Trilogy) | Dec 13 | 7:08hrs | rating: 2.5/5
Collect new trinkets to save the world and get back home.
- GAMEPLAY: Same as the first game, but this time you gradually get new abilities, such as swimming and climbing ladders. It makes for a bit more variation, but is mostly annoying that you have to backtrack once you've obtained them to 100% the levels. That's a recurring theme in general; most side-missions are back-tracky and tedious this time around, and the mini-games are not fun.
- AUDIOVISUALLY: Same as the previous game; it's amazing how close to CGI they look compared to the originals, and I feel like we're taking the progress for granted. Musically it sounds good, but it's oh, so unmemorable.
- STORY/PRESENTATION: A whole lot more cut-scenes before and after each level, which may be entertaining for kids but a complete time waster for me. Luckily you can skip them. There are only three hub worlds this time, and the sense of progress was better in the first game.
You've got more moves, more varied missions, and an actual reason to collect the gems this time. But it's also more tedious and the additions aren't fun. Also, it's just too similar to the first game, which made me tired of it more quickly.
37. Spyro 3: Year of the Dragon (Reignited Trilogy) | Dec 16 | 6:29hrs | rating: 2/5
This time you collect dragon eggs that a crocodile witch has stolen.
- GAMEPLAY: Same as before, but all too often you play horribly controlled mini-games or as Spyro's shitty friends. I skip way more missions than before. Also more bugs and surprising inconsistencies, like "you can swim in that water, but in this water you insta-die", and invisible walls galore.
- AUDIOVISUALLY: Same, but there are more visual bugs than before, like clipping and one-frame cuts between scenes. I get the sense that they didn't polish this final game as much as the rest of the trilogy remake.
- STORY/PRESENTATION: No more random comedic cut-scenes, and instead they're focusing on advancing a story, with some light character development. Definitely the best plot of the trilogy.
I don't know what the consensus is about these games, but Spyro 1 was enjoyable enough for me to 100%, but this game has way too much crap and I just wanted to do the bare minimum; the stuff that was actually fun, because the core gameplay still is. I wouldn't recommend this one unless you really thirst for more Spyro.
38. The Touryst | Dec 28 | 5:35hrs | rating: 2.5/5
Explore a bunch of squarey tourist islands and solve puzzles.
- GAMEPLAY: Although there's a large variation of side-quests/mini-games, they're all extremely simple and short, and the "dungeons" are only a couple of rooms when they could have been 10 without getting boring. The most meaty part is an optional mine exploring game, which is fine but just nothing special. It's a very light game.
- AUDIOVISUALLY: The pixelated 3D visuals are quite special, but I'm not a huge fan except for the nice lighting. The audio is atmospheric, mostly sound of waves, but it's effective.
- STORY/PRESENTATION: It's a charming presentation and the main mystery is nice but light. My take-away really is that the game has too little of it. Like a Zelda game if you strip away all enemies and 90% of its content.
I did found the game fun enough in a sort of relaxing way. Like, you do some arcade games, you make 35 lift ups, canoe a little. But its core needed to be at least twice as meaty to make a bigger impression on me.
39. Kirby's Dream Course | Dec 29 | 3:37hrs | rating: 3/5
I started this one up randomly in the SNES Switch app, and had no idea it's a Kirby themed golf game, and also, that it's fun!
- GAMEPLAY: You choose between regular shot or chip, aim and go for the correct strength, like any golf game. There is a tutorial in the menu but I didn't see it, so I only gradually learned that you can also bounce to get extra distance, and even steal your opponents' abilities and activate while you're in motion. At first I had fun playing through the courses with bad scores, but upon returning to them, I realized it also works like a puzzle game, using all your abilities to get a hole in one. Depth!
- AUDIOVISUALLY: Standard isometric pixel graphics that do their job. Music is quite nice but nothing special.
- STORY/PRESENTATION: You travel through eight colorful worlds for who knows why.
- MULTIPLAYER: There's a VS mode, but it didn't quite work for us, since you kind of collaborate too in order to kill the enemies. I want to do it by myself! While competing.
I like golf games, and this is a very original take on the genre. As an adventure, it feels way short though, and although 64 courses is a lot as a golf game, it doesn't give me the itch to replay to improve the scores.
40. Shovel Knight: King of Cards | Dec 30 | 6:19hrs | rating: 3/5
Play as the King Knight through a whole bunch of shorter side-scrolling levels and participate in the card game Joustus.
- GAMEPLAY: The mechanics are fresh and clever, as you dash into enemies or walls to create a spin attack you can use on other enemies and objects. The card game is also initially fun, but it lost my interest pretty fast.
- AUDIOVISUALLY: Honestly I hate these brownish pixel visuals. Most of it looks like mud. The music on the other hand is spectacular, some of the best in the medium!
- STORY/PRESENTATION: There's a lot of humoristic dialog, but it's not something that interests me. You've got a world map with levels on them, and to be honest it just feels too formulaic, too "been there done that".
- MULTIPLAYER: Unfortunately you can't play the adventure in co-op like you can in the original campaign, but there is a separate "Showdown" released, which is a Smash Bros light. We tried one round, but it just felt messy. Might as well play Smash.
The original Shovel Knight didn't actually do much for me. It felt too safe, too retro, not surprising enough. I might prefer King of Cards in some ways, as the levels are shorter and it feels more focused, and especially the later levels are quite creative. The visuals and the sameness bring it down for me. Despite the nifty mechanics, it screams "old".
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