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52 Games. 1 Year. 2018.
- Thread starter Wozzer
- Start date
You do. It has about three games of content for fifteen bucks.
I own it. Twice.
Now i need to play it, which apparently is the hard part lol. It looks daunting.
Man, this thread looks and sounds like a lot of fun, so let me join in :)
January
1. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
After being sceptical since this game moves away from what I love Zelda for it totally blew me away. Totally fell in love with this game. Completed all shrines in order to get the typical outfit. Totally worth it!
Rating: 9.5 out of 10
2. Mario + Rabidds: Kingdom Battle
Did not expect much since I hate the rabbids. However, I found myself having a blast. The gameplay is superb and it is nice to see how both worlds are connected with each other.
Rating: 8.5 out of 10
3. Shadow of the Colossus (The PS3 remaster, not the PS4 remake)
I ended up playing this since the PS4 remake was almost due and everyone is always like 'This game is epic', 'One of the best games ever'. So is decided to play the PS3 version instead of the Remake cause I wanted to stick as close to the original one as possible. Overall, I really enjoyed this game and I totally see why it was THAT groundbreaking back then. Nevertheless, I really has some flaws like the controlls and the camera.
Rating: 8 out of 10
February
4. The Legend of Zelda - The Minish Cap
One of the single entries I hadnt played up to that point. Turned out I didnt miss much. Minish Cap was mediocre and I didnt really enjoy this. (I played Breat of the Wild before this one, so what did I expect? :D)
Rating: 5 out of 10
5. Bayonetta
Played this a long time again on Xbox 360° and remembered it being alright. I am glad I came back to this one on Switch. Loved it this same. Fighting against all these crazy enemies is pure joy!
Rating: 8.5 out of 10
March
6. Metroid: Samus Returns
I already bought the game on its release day but I gave it to a friend two days after that cause he went on a holiday and did not know what to do lying on the beach (turned out he played the game for 2 hours, duh). Got it finally back in March, and what should I say? Metroid is one of my favourite series of all time, so I loved this entry. Fun fact: I defeated Ridley 10.000 feet above the ground on an airplane flying from Vienna to Amsterdam :)
Rating: 9 out of 10
April:
7. Far Cry 5
Oh well, where do I start? This is rather complicated. I ended up playing this probably because I was interested in this cult and religion stuff. Guess what? I ended up being disappointed but I should have known better, Far Cry 4 was mediocre imho. Anyway, I ended up racing through this game within one week and got platinum in the end.
Rating: 5.5 out of 10
8. Superhot
I really loved this one. Ever since Superhot was announced I was looking forward to playing this cause the concept felt right from the beginning like something unique. In April it was available in Games with Gold so I finally had the opportunity to play this game. And man, I really loved it. I had really had a blast playing this. PLUS the chatlogs within the game are hilarious, I spend a lot of time reading through these have a good laugh.
9 out of 10
9. God of War
Probably one of the contenders for GOTY. The developers really steped up from what they did in God of War 1 to 3. Now the game is more story-driven from which it really benefits. Travelling through the northern mythic world with Kratos and Atreus is pure fun. The only thing I did not like is that there are too few bossfights, imho.
9 out of 10
10. Minit
Once again, I really liked the idea of only having one minute before you did and you have to start over again. Ended up getting platinum in this one since I kind of enjoyed playing with this limitation. You should give it a try!
7 out of 10
May
11. Beyond: Two Souls
I still regret that I invsted time in this game. I am going to keep it short: It is a mess. Gameplay. Story. Everything.
Rating: 3 out of 10
12. Prey
Had a rough start cause I was kind of overwhelmed by all the possibilities and the game is rather difficult in the beginning. But as I came through I started enjoying this a lot. It is a valid sci-fi setting and a nice shooter. However, I never found the ability to morph into objects so I might go back some day.
Rating: 7.5 out of 10
13. Titan Quest
Oh boy, I was so wrong about this game. I expected Diablo 3 (which I love very much) in an ancient Greek setting and what I got was nothing but boredom. Nevertheless, I managed to pull through due to two friends of mine with whom I kept playing this game. If you will ever read this: Thanks guys! :)
Rating: 4 out 10
June
14. Dark Souls: Remastered
Well, I loved Dark Souls on PS3 so it is obvious that I enjoyed the same game with constant 60fps. However, this time I convinced one of my aforementioned Titan Quest friends to play Dark Souls with me since he gave up on the PS3 version in Blighttown. We both a had blast playing this.
Rating 9 out 10
July
15. Mario Tennis Aces
In July I only finished Mario Tennis Aces' storymode since my wife and I travelled through the US for one month. Gladly I was able to bring along my Switch which led to me finishing Mario Tennis Aces. I really like the gameplay mechanics and it is a shame that the multiplayer is kind of weird. Maybe I will get back into the multiplayer at some point.
Rating: 7 out of 10
August
16. Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze
Loved it! Music? Great! Gameplay? Great! Difficulty in the extra stages? Great!
Rating: 8.5 out of 10
September
17. Superhot VR
After selling my PSVR headset two year ago after having it for only 2 weeks, I decided to jump back into the VR action. As I loved Superhot (see April :) ), I decided to get Superhot VR. And man, this game is awesome! One of the most unique experiences I had with games so far (I wonder how great it is with Oculus and Vive!!). If you have a VR headset - go get Superhot VR!
Rating: 10 out of 10
18. DoomVFR
The VR experience continues. Enjoyed this somehow. Nothing special but worth the 10 bucks I paid for it. Fun Fact: I defeated the final boss 1.5hrs before my wedding ceremony :D
Rating: 7 out of 10
19. Metroid Zero Mission
Said it once, I say it again: I just love Metroid games! This one is not quiet good as the others but totally worth your time!
Rating: 8.5 out of 10
20. Super Metroid
Super Metroid is just perfection of the genre.
Rating: 11 out of 10
21. Metroid Fusion
A step down from Super Metroid but still a good game, even though the other games were more enjoyable.
Rating: 8 out of 10
22. Shadow of the Tomb Raider
Phew, after Tomb Raider, which I really liked, and Rise of the Tomb Raider, which annoyed the closer I got to the end, Shadow of the Tomb Raider hits rock bottom for me. It is just more of the same and Lara becomes more and more unlikeable for me.
Rating: 5 out of 10
23. Shadow Tactics
Oh my god! Bought this a long time ago but never really got into it. But my time came and once I pulled through I fell in love with this game. It is challeging at times but it is just SO satisfying when you pull off a plan and everything works out. Cannot wait for Desperados 3 which is developed by the same studio.
Rating: 9 out of 10
24. The Evil Within 2
After a mediocre first part, this one ist just the same. Did not really like the story. But the worst part is that the camera is WAY TOO CLOSE to Sebastian. It freaked me out at some point. Gladly there is a first-person option with which I completed almost the whole game. Would not recommend this game.
Rating: 4 out of 10
October
25. Marvel's Spider-Man (the hyphen is important :D)
Quiet enjoyed this. Story was compelling, New York as a world seems consistent and swinging around with Spidey is just amazing. I really enjoyed the game up to the point where I decided to go for platinum and I had to do the same tasks over and over again (I'm looking at you crimes and camps!). The good things is that they improve for a sequel which I will buy for sure!
Rating: 8 out of 10
26. Farpoint
Did not really care for the story, the shootings mechanics were great though, thanks to the aim controller. If you have PSVR and want some shooting fun you should get this (and Firewall Zero Hour!).
Rating: 6.5 out of 10
27. Astro Bot
Said it in the Astro Bot thread and I will say it again. This is a VR masterpiece. If you have PSVR, GO AND GET ASTRO BOT!
Rating: 10 out of 10
28. Uncharted 2 Among Thieves Remastered
Decided to get my 7th Uncharted platinum trophy. Game is still fun. Only Uncharted 3 Remastered and Lost Legacy Platinum are left for every Uncharted Platinum trophy. Sooner or later this will happen :)
Rating: 7.5 out of 10
29. Metroid Prime
Masterpiece. One of my favourite games of all time. Thank you RetroStudios and Nintendo. Already looking forward to playing Metroid Prime 2.
Rating: 11 out of 10
30. Mario + Rabbids - Donkey Kong Adventure
As you can read above, I loved Mario + Rabbids, so I decided to buy the DLC (which I seldom do, I am not a DLC guy). Really enjoyed the DLC. Donkey is a great addition to the roster. Hope he will be a regular in M+R2.
Rating: 8.5 out of 10
November
30. Hollow Knight
One of the best Metroidvanias I have played so far. The worldwide beautifully designed, the OST hits the game's mood and the combat is on point. Enjoyed this a lot, totally worth the 20 hours I invested.
Rating: 10 out of 10
31. Undertale
Expected an unusual game but what I got was far beyond what I expected.
I love the characters, the jokes, the story, the way fights work and especially the music. That's an easy one.
Rating: 10 out of 10
32. Pokemon Let's Go Pikachu
This game fixed everything that was wrong with Pokemon in the last generations. Luckily random encounters are a thing of the past and the npcs are no longer a pain in the neck. I'm really into the new catching mechanics. GameFreak really stepped up their game if you ask me. Simply one of the best Pokemon experiences for me.
Rating: 8.5 out of 10
December
33. Captain Toad Treasure Tracker (Switch)
Already beat the Wii U Version back then, however I really enjoyed it and was able to buy it for like 20€. Still love this game and the idea (plus that Nintendo had the guts to make a whole game out of a mini game). The Mario Odyssey bonus levels are great as well. It's just the right game if you don't want to have a complex story to follow or complex gameplay.
Rating: 8 out of 10
34. Super Smash Bros Ultimate
Unlocked all the characters today. There is more to come since I'll play online a lot but since every character has been unlocked, this part of the game is finished. The game is pure joy.
Rating: 9.5 out of 10
35. Mega Man 11
A very decent Mega Man game. Enjoyed it quite a bit. I like the the new graphic style and the gear system. However, the music is not as memorable as it used to be.
Rating: 7 out of 10
36. Fortnite
Due to not having a lot of time lately, I kind of started playing Fortnite because it is easy to put in a session because of its length. Ended up playing approx. 20hrs before I reached my goal, a victory royale. Now that this is out of the way, I no longer have the urge to play the game and I moved on.
Rating: 6 out of 10
37. Rez Infinite (VR)
Bought this cause it was on sale. What I really like about the game, is how you can get lost in it if you give in to the music. You totally forget your surroundings. This was a lot of fun.
Rating: 8 out of 10
To be continued... (I feel like I won't make it..:D)
January
1. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
After being sceptical since this game moves away from what I love Zelda for it totally blew me away. Totally fell in love with this game. Completed all shrines in order to get the typical outfit. Totally worth it!
Rating: 9.5 out of 10
2. Mario + Rabidds: Kingdom Battle
Did not expect much since I hate the rabbids. However, I found myself having a blast. The gameplay is superb and it is nice to see how both worlds are connected with each other.
Rating: 8.5 out of 10
3. Shadow of the Colossus (The PS3 remaster, not the PS4 remake)
I ended up playing this since the PS4 remake was almost due and everyone is always like 'This game is epic', 'One of the best games ever'. So is decided to play the PS3 version instead of the Remake cause I wanted to stick as close to the original one as possible. Overall, I really enjoyed this game and I totally see why it was THAT groundbreaking back then. Nevertheless, I really has some flaws like the controlls and the camera.
Rating: 8 out of 10
February
4. The Legend of Zelda - The Minish Cap
One of the single entries I hadnt played up to that point. Turned out I didnt miss much. Minish Cap was mediocre and I didnt really enjoy this. (I played Breat of the Wild before this one, so what did I expect? :D)
Rating: 5 out of 10
5. Bayonetta
Played this a long time again on Xbox 360° and remembered it being alright. I am glad I came back to this one on Switch. Loved it this same. Fighting against all these crazy enemies is pure joy!
Rating: 8.5 out of 10
March
6. Metroid: Samus Returns
I already bought the game on its release day but I gave it to a friend two days after that cause he went on a holiday and did not know what to do lying on the beach (turned out he played the game for 2 hours, duh). Got it finally back in March, and what should I say? Metroid is one of my favourite series of all time, so I loved this entry. Fun fact: I defeated Ridley 10.000 feet above the ground on an airplane flying from Vienna to Amsterdam :)
Rating: 9 out of 10
April:
7. Far Cry 5
Oh well, where do I start? This is rather complicated. I ended up playing this probably because I was interested in this cult and religion stuff. Guess what? I ended up being disappointed but I should have known better, Far Cry 4 was mediocre imho. Anyway, I ended up racing through this game within one week and got platinum in the end.
Rating: 5.5 out of 10
8. Superhot
I really loved this one. Ever since Superhot was announced I was looking forward to playing this cause the concept felt right from the beginning like something unique. In April it was available in Games with Gold so I finally had the opportunity to play this game. And man, I really loved it. I had really had a blast playing this. PLUS the chatlogs within the game are hilarious, I spend a lot of time reading through these have a good laugh.
9 out of 10
9. God of War
Probably one of the contenders for GOTY. The developers really steped up from what they did in God of War 1 to 3. Now the game is more story-driven from which it really benefits. Travelling through the northern mythic world with Kratos and Atreus is pure fun. The only thing I did not like is that there are too few bossfights, imho.
9 out of 10
10. Minit
Once again, I really liked the idea of only having one minute before you did and you have to start over again. Ended up getting platinum in this one since I kind of enjoyed playing with this limitation. You should give it a try!
7 out of 10
May
11. Beyond: Two Souls
I still regret that I invsted time in this game. I am going to keep it short: It is a mess. Gameplay. Story. Everything.
Rating: 3 out of 10
12. Prey
Had a rough start cause I was kind of overwhelmed by all the possibilities and the game is rather difficult in the beginning. But as I came through I started enjoying this a lot. It is a valid sci-fi setting and a nice shooter. However, I never found the ability to morph into objects so I might go back some day.
Rating: 7.5 out of 10
13. Titan Quest
Oh boy, I was so wrong about this game. I expected Diablo 3 (which I love very much) in an ancient Greek setting and what I got was nothing but boredom. Nevertheless, I managed to pull through due to two friends of mine with whom I kept playing this game. If you will ever read this: Thanks guys! :)
Rating: 4 out 10
June
14. Dark Souls: Remastered
Well, I loved Dark Souls on PS3 so it is obvious that I enjoyed the same game with constant 60fps. However, this time I convinced one of my aforementioned Titan Quest friends to play Dark Souls with me since he gave up on the PS3 version in Blighttown. We both a had blast playing this.
Rating 9 out 10
July
15. Mario Tennis Aces
In July I only finished Mario Tennis Aces' storymode since my wife and I travelled through the US for one month. Gladly I was able to bring along my Switch which led to me finishing Mario Tennis Aces. I really like the gameplay mechanics and it is a shame that the multiplayer is kind of weird. Maybe I will get back into the multiplayer at some point.
Rating: 7 out of 10
August
16. Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze
Loved it! Music? Great! Gameplay? Great! Difficulty in the extra stages? Great!
Rating: 8.5 out of 10
September
17. Superhot VR
After selling my PSVR headset two year ago after having it for only 2 weeks, I decided to jump back into the VR action. As I loved Superhot (see April :) ), I decided to get Superhot VR. And man, this game is awesome! One of the most unique experiences I had with games so far (I wonder how great it is with Oculus and Vive!!). If you have a VR headset - go get Superhot VR!
Rating: 10 out of 10
18. DoomVFR
The VR experience continues. Enjoyed this somehow. Nothing special but worth the 10 bucks I paid for it. Fun Fact: I defeated the final boss 1.5hrs before my wedding ceremony :D
Rating: 7 out of 10
19. Metroid Zero Mission
Said it once, I say it again: I just love Metroid games! This one is not quiet good as the others but totally worth your time!
Rating: 8.5 out of 10
20. Super Metroid
Super Metroid is just perfection of the genre.
Rating: 11 out of 10
21. Metroid Fusion
A step down from Super Metroid but still a good game, even though the other games were more enjoyable.
Rating: 8 out of 10
22. Shadow of the Tomb Raider
Phew, after Tomb Raider, which I really liked, and Rise of the Tomb Raider, which annoyed the closer I got to the end, Shadow of the Tomb Raider hits rock bottom for me. It is just more of the same and Lara becomes more and more unlikeable for me.
Rating: 5 out of 10
23. Shadow Tactics
Oh my god! Bought this a long time ago but never really got into it. But my time came and once I pulled through I fell in love with this game. It is challeging at times but it is just SO satisfying when you pull off a plan and everything works out. Cannot wait for Desperados 3 which is developed by the same studio.
Rating: 9 out of 10
24. The Evil Within 2
After a mediocre first part, this one ist just the same. Did not really like the story. But the worst part is that the camera is WAY TOO CLOSE to Sebastian. It freaked me out at some point. Gladly there is a first-person option with which I completed almost the whole game. Would not recommend this game.
Rating: 4 out of 10
October
25. Marvel's Spider-Man (the hyphen is important :D)
Quiet enjoyed this. Story was compelling, New York as a world seems consistent and swinging around with Spidey is just amazing. I really enjoyed the game up to the point where I decided to go for platinum and I had to do the same tasks over and over again (I'm looking at you crimes and camps!). The good things is that they improve for a sequel which I will buy for sure!
Rating: 8 out of 10
26. Farpoint
Did not really care for the story, the shootings mechanics were great though, thanks to the aim controller. If you have PSVR and want some shooting fun you should get this (and Firewall Zero Hour!).
Rating: 6.5 out of 10
27. Astro Bot
Said it in the Astro Bot thread and I will say it again. This is a VR masterpiece. If you have PSVR, GO AND GET ASTRO BOT!
Rating: 10 out of 10
28. Uncharted 2 Among Thieves Remastered
Decided to get my 7th Uncharted platinum trophy. Game is still fun. Only Uncharted 3 Remastered and Lost Legacy Platinum are left for every Uncharted Platinum trophy. Sooner or later this will happen :)
Rating: 7.5 out of 10
29. Metroid Prime
Masterpiece. One of my favourite games of all time. Thank you RetroStudios and Nintendo. Already looking forward to playing Metroid Prime 2.
Rating: 11 out of 10
30. Mario + Rabbids - Donkey Kong Adventure
As you can read above, I loved Mario + Rabbids, so I decided to buy the DLC (which I seldom do, I am not a DLC guy). Really enjoyed the DLC. Donkey is a great addition to the roster. Hope he will be a regular in M+R2.
Rating: 8.5 out of 10
November
30. Hollow Knight
One of the best Metroidvanias I have played so far. The worldwide beautifully designed, the OST hits the game's mood and the combat is on point. Enjoyed this a lot, totally worth the 20 hours I invested.
Rating: 10 out of 10
31. Undertale
Expected an unusual game but what I got was far beyond what I expected.
I love the characters, the jokes, the story, the way fights work and especially the music. That's an easy one.
Rating: 10 out of 10
32. Pokemon Let's Go Pikachu
This game fixed everything that was wrong with Pokemon in the last generations. Luckily random encounters are a thing of the past and the npcs are no longer a pain in the neck. I'm really into the new catching mechanics. GameFreak really stepped up their game if you ask me. Simply one of the best Pokemon experiences for me.
Rating: 8.5 out of 10
December
33. Captain Toad Treasure Tracker (Switch)
Already beat the Wii U Version back then, however I really enjoyed it and was able to buy it for like 20€. Still love this game and the idea (plus that Nintendo had the guts to make a whole game out of a mini game). The Mario Odyssey bonus levels are great as well. It's just the right game if you don't want to have a complex story to follow or complex gameplay.
Rating: 8 out of 10
34. Super Smash Bros Ultimate
Unlocked all the characters today. There is more to come since I'll play online a lot but since every character has been unlocked, this part of the game is finished. The game is pure joy.
Rating: 9.5 out of 10
35. Mega Man 11
A very decent Mega Man game. Enjoyed it quite a bit. I like the the new graphic style and the gear system. However, the music is not as memorable as it used to be.
Rating: 7 out of 10
36. Fortnite
Due to not having a lot of time lately, I kind of started playing Fortnite because it is easy to put in a session because of its length. Ended up playing approx. 20hrs before I reached my goal, a victory royale. Now that this is out of the way, I no longer have the urge to play the game and I moved on.
Rating: 6 out of 10
37. Rez Infinite (VR)
Bought this cause it was on sale. What I really like about the game, is how you can get lost in it if you give in to the music. You totally forget your surroundings. This was a lot of fun.
Rating: 8 out of 10
To be continued... (I feel like I won't make it..:D)
Last edited:
19. Final Fight (55 minutes)
It doesn't seem to be a terribly complex game, and that's what makes it fun. Just running through this game with infinite continues and wailing on massive crowds of enemies is quite cathartic.
Full list to date
It doesn't seem to be a terribly complex game, and that's what makes it fun. Just running through this game with infinite continues and wailing on massive crowds of enemies is quite cathartic.
Full list to date
Main Post
51. Sam & Max: Hit the Road -PC
Completed 10/11/18
Score - 9/10
Have wanted to replay this for years. Finally decided to go for it. I remembered a lot of the quirky things to do but complete forgot about one thing at the end that took me way longer than it should have. I still love this game. It all makes sense in their universe. It's still funny, fun and I think looks pretty good for how old it is. I beat it as a kid and it's always been special to me, glad it held up. After I complete the challenge I might go play through some more point/click games. Now on to the final game of the challenge!
51. Sam & Max: Hit the Road -PC
Completed 10/11/18
Score - 9/10
Have wanted to replay this for years. Finally decided to go for it. I remembered a lot of the quirky things to do but complete forgot about one thing at the end that took me way longer than it should have. I still love this game. It all makes sense in their universe. It's still funny, fun and I think looks pretty good for how old it is. I beat it as a kid and it's always been special to me, glad it held up. After I complete the challenge I might go play through some more point/click games. Now on to the final game of the challenge!
dID YOU play this using SCUMMVM?Main Post
51. Sam & Max: Hit the Road -PC
Completed 10/11/18
Score - 9/10
Have wanted to replay this for years. Finally decided to go for it. I remembered a lot of the quirky things to do but complete forgot about one thing at the end that took me way longer than it should have. I still love this game. It all makes sense in their universe. It's still funny, fun and I think looks pretty good for how old it is. I beat it as a kid and it's always been special to me, glad it held up. After I complete the challenge I might go play through some more point/click games. Now on to the final game of the challenge!
Technically, I think so. It's the GOG version. I remember snagging it for an insanely low price on a sale.
Ah then it was scummvm
U can get scummvm 2.0 from the scummvm website and it hss some neat additional features that may not be in gog's provided ver of scummvm
Heh you remind me of my brother; long as these ports of beat'em-ups give you inf. continues, it's just fun to wail at enemies and beat stuff up.
Helps that such beat'em-ups are short so they don't become too stale or dull :P
MAIN THREAD 1
MAIN THREAD 2
#53: Headmaster (10-11-2018) | 7/10 | PSVR | ~ 5 Hours | Recommend: Y
# Overall - 7 | When the tracking is on point you can have some great silly fun
Gameplay - 8 | Heading the ball to a variety of objects is more fun than it sounds.
Sound - 7 | Commentary is funny but every other sound is very flat
Story/Online - 7| Its a limited story but it can be quite charming and funny at times
Asking Price- 7 | Good amount of content that raises the bar in challenge nicely throughout the game
MAIN THREAD 2
#53: Headmaster (10-11-2018) | 7/10 | PSVR | ~ 5 Hours | Recommend: Y
# Overall - 7 | When the tracking is on point you can have some great silly fun
Gameplay - 8 | Heading the ball to a variety of objects is more fun than it sounds.
Sound - 7 | Commentary is funny but every other sound is very flat
Story/Online - 7| Its a limited story but it can be quite charming and funny at times
Asking Price- 7 | Good amount of content that raises the bar in challenge nicely throughout the game
20. The King of Dragons (52 minutes)
You can really see the DNA of what would become the Mystara series in this one. The quick pace of the levels feels odd at first, but you get used to it quickly.
Full list to date
You can really see the DNA of what would become the Mystara series in this one. The quick pace of the levels feels odd at first, but you get used to it quickly.
Full list to date
Main post 1: https://www.resetera.com/posts/2784229/
Main post 2: https://www.resetera.com/posts/5234679/
Main post 3: https://www.resetera.com/posts/12272007/
72. Metro 2033 Redux / 12h20 - completed 04.10.18
Redux really brings the quality from under the grime of last gen's version. After playing the original a few years back, this was a much better experience. Smoother and more streamlined, it feels almost like a whole new game. The fundamentals are still there though, and those are what made Metro 2033 a great game to begin with. It's one of the most creepy and atmospheric shooters i've played. Its sense of place and the world it depicts feel fully realized and the characters are credibly weary. The story is truly not all that interesting but the dialogue and worlbuilding give it some weight.
The gunplay feels much better than i remember, though the game does feel overly easy in Spartan mode. I think Survival might be a better option for literally anyone who's used to play shooters. The enemy AI is not brilliant either. The level design, though mostly linear, has some interesting diversions, mainly from an environmental storytelling perspective. There's a lot of little vignettes told Bethesda style hidden away, and i love the game for it.
73. The Division / 32h10 - completed 11.10.18
The Division has hands down the best representation of a city that i've witnessed. It's obviously not a 'living' city, but when it comes to scale, world design, the sheer amount of details and just 'stuff' lying around, it's truly magnificent what Massive pulled here. Plenty of times i just had to stop and marvel. It's not any old game that does this to me. On top of that, The Division layered a very competent game that sports some of the best feeling shooting i experienced in quite some time. The weapons feel just right, despite the RPG trappings.
There are some interesting missions but it does get somewhat repetitive the further you go. And as a mostly solo player, there is a wall that starts curtailing progression. Especially if you venture into the Dark Zone, which seems to be an almost exclusively coop/competitive area of the game.
The story is hum-ho and the implications of what you're doing gameplay wise has been discussed to death. It's a very reprehensible game in that regard. The characters are hit and miss and mostly feel like procedural tv stand-ins.
Playing this definitely made me more interested in the next game, which means that its gamepass inclusion has done its job.
74. Bioshock / 16h30 - completed 12.10.18
Bioshock is the game that keeps on giving. I always get new gameplay and meaning out of each subsequent playthrough. A true masterpiece, it climbed its way to be my favorite FPS throughout the years. To Valve's loss. Every single thing in this game has its well defined place. The narrative and characters are only half the story. The rest of it is told through Rapture, its trappings and every half-living thing in it.
All the mechanics, systems and economy reinforce Andrew Ryan's utopia gone wrong. Their failings only reflect the failings of his selfish and self-absorbed ideology. The failings of Rapture are the failings of Randian thinking and also, in a way, the failings of capitalism. The market has spoken, and in doing so, it deemed Andrew Ryan disposable and Rapture unsustainable.
The game within Bioshock can be exhilarating at times, but it suffers from a lack of challenge and varied enemies and situations. There's a rich buffet of options but no need to ever use them. The variety i got out of gun and bee play was out of my own volition. Exploration is very rewarding though. There is always something worthwhile finding, from a cool upgrade to a helpful locked door code, to a heartbreaking story of dreams gone wrong.
I believe Bioshock will be truly timeless.
Main post 2: https://www.resetera.com/posts/5234679/
Main post 3: https://www.resetera.com/posts/12272007/
72. Metro 2033 Redux / 12h20 - completed 04.10.18
Redux really brings the quality from under the grime of last gen's version. After playing the original a few years back, this was a much better experience. Smoother and more streamlined, it feels almost like a whole new game. The fundamentals are still there though, and those are what made Metro 2033 a great game to begin with. It's one of the most creepy and atmospheric shooters i've played. Its sense of place and the world it depicts feel fully realized and the characters are credibly weary. The story is truly not all that interesting but the dialogue and worlbuilding give it some weight.
The gunplay feels much better than i remember, though the game does feel overly easy in Spartan mode. I think Survival might be a better option for literally anyone who's used to play shooters. The enemy AI is not brilliant either. The level design, though mostly linear, has some interesting diversions, mainly from an environmental storytelling perspective. There's a lot of little vignettes told Bethesda style hidden away, and i love the game for it.
73. The Division / 32h10 - completed 11.10.18
The Division has hands down the best representation of a city that i've witnessed. It's obviously not a 'living' city, but when it comes to scale, world design, the sheer amount of details and just 'stuff' lying around, it's truly magnificent what Massive pulled here. Plenty of times i just had to stop and marvel. It's not any old game that does this to me. On top of that, The Division layered a very competent game that sports some of the best feeling shooting i experienced in quite some time. The weapons feel just right, despite the RPG trappings.
There are some interesting missions but it does get somewhat repetitive the further you go. And as a mostly solo player, there is a wall that starts curtailing progression. Especially if you venture into the Dark Zone, which seems to be an almost exclusively coop/competitive area of the game.
The story is hum-ho and the implications of what you're doing gameplay wise has been discussed to death. It's a very reprehensible game in that regard. The characters are hit and miss and mostly feel like procedural tv stand-ins.
Playing this definitely made me more interested in the next game, which means that its gamepass inclusion has done its job.
74. Bioshock / 16h30 - completed 12.10.18
Bioshock is the game that keeps on giving. I always get new gameplay and meaning out of each subsequent playthrough. A true masterpiece, it climbed its way to be my favorite FPS throughout the years. To Valve's loss. Every single thing in this game has its well defined place. The narrative and characters are only half the story. The rest of it is told through Rapture, its trappings and every half-living thing in it.
All the mechanics, systems and economy reinforce Andrew Ryan's utopia gone wrong. Their failings only reflect the failings of his selfish and self-absorbed ideology. The failings of Rapture are the failings of Randian thinking and also, in a way, the failings of capitalism. The market has spoken, and in doing so, it deemed Andrew Ryan disposable and Rapture unsustainable.
The game within Bioshock can be exhilarating at times, but it suffers from a lack of challenge and varied enemies and situations. There's a rich buffet of options but no need to ever use them. The variety i got out of gun and bee play was out of my own volition. Exploration is very rewarding though. There is always something worthwhile finding, from a cool upgrade to a helpful locked door code, to a heartbreaking story of dreams gone wrong.
I believe Bioshock will be truly timeless.
21. Captain Commando (<1 hour)
This is basically Final Fight with cooler weapons. Plus, how many games let you play as a mummy wearing a baseball cap backwards? Not very many.
Full list to date
This is basically Final Fight with cooler weapons. Plus, how many games let you play as a mummy wearing a baseball cap backwards? Not very many.
Full list to date
#59 Oxenfree 5 PC - Oct 14th - 3.30 hours
I know I'm in the minority on this one but I did not like this game. I found the characters unlikable and annoying, walking is very slow and boring and that's all you do, the story is not worth the gameplay, the dialogue system is almost good but flawed in the sense that you can't tell whether your sentence will queue up or interrupt someone else talking, which leads to moments where 2 people are talking about completely different things at once. It felt forced like the interruptions where supposed to mimic natural dialogue but end up doing the opposite.
To say something positive the voice acting is good and so is the background art
I know I'm in the minority on this one but I did not like this game. I found the characters unlikable and annoying, walking is very slow and boring and that's all you do, the story is not worth the gameplay, the dialogue system is almost good but flawed in the sense that you can't tell whether your sentence will queue up or interrupt someone else talking, which leads to moments where 2 people are talking about completely different things at once. It felt forced like the interruptions where supposed to mimic natural dialogue but end up doing the opposite.
To say something positive the voice acting is good and so is the background art
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108. Loom
Short and nice little PnC Adventure game. The music and visuals are quite good but I was surprised as to how short the game is. It is a shame it never got a sequel, though the fact that much of the game's lore is in its manual and audio drama really reminds me of how back in the day not everything could be fit into a game.
Short and nice little PnC Adventure game. The music and visuals are quite good but I was surprised as to how short the game is. It is a shame it never got a sequel, though the fact that much of the game's lore is in its manual and audio drama really reminds me of how back in the day not everything could be fit into a game.
Hoo boy, looks like I have an update to post!
#41 Muv Luv Extra – Completed 8/21/18
#42 The Messenger – Completed 9/2/18
#43 Labyrinth of Refrain: Coven of Dusk – Completed 9/17/18
#44 Forza Horizon 4 – Completed 10/6/18
#45 Forza Horizon 3 – Completed 10/8/18
#46 Destiny 2: Forsaken – Completed 10/14/18
Muv Luv Extra - I still need to finish Unlimited, I know, classes got me busy and then when I got Coven in for review that just set off a chain reaction of other games I had to play over reading more Muv Luv. I'll try and finish Muv Luv Unlimited before my next review game. Here's hoping! I enjoyed it for what it was, that being a light-hearted comedy VN setting up the rest of the series. Not much to say, since I haven't truly finished Muv Luv yet, even if this is technically the first part of the trilogy.
The Messenger - This was a charming platformer/metroidvania. Like others said, great game, but it drags on a bit in the latter half.
Labyrinth of Refrain: Coven of Dusk - Not much to say, I reviewed it for RPG Site so you'll find my thoughts on it there. Great DRPG.
Forza Horizon 4 - I'm a sucker for Forza Horizon since playing FH3 back in 2016, and although I don't use my XB1 much since getting W10 it was what made me grab one back in the day. It's Forza Horizon, but this time with seasons! Progression still hasn't fully hooked me, I'd say, but I'm enjoying it.
Forza Horizon 3 - Playing 4 reminded me I never actually did unlock + finish that final showcase in 3. I rectified that.
Destiny 2: Forsaken - I played + reviewed the game on PS4 last year for RPG Site, and although I had enjoyed it at the time, I like many others fell off the Destiny train pretty hard after a few weeks. I kept hearing great things about Forsaken and a friend picked it up a few weeks after launch, so I made the plunge - this time on PC. Took me a while to get to it, but I eventually got to the raid and managed to clear it, and I definitely think I won't fall off the Destiny train nearly as hard this time around. I'm nearing max LL, but it feels like a more natural progression, and I can see myself continuing to come back in-between games once I do.
#41 Muv Luv Extra – Completed 8/21/18
#42 The Messenger – Completed 9/2/18
#43 Labyrinth of Refrain: Coven of Dusk – Completed 9/17/18
#44 Forza Horizon 4 – Completed 10/6/18
#45 Forza Horizon 3 – Completed 10/8/18
#46 Destiny 2: Forsaken – Completed 10/14/18
Muv Luv Extra - I still need to finish Unlimited, I know, classes got me busy and then when I got Coven in for review that just set off a chain reaction of other games I had to play over reading more Muv Luv. I'll try and finish Muv Luv Unlimited before my next review game. Here's hoping! I enjoyed it for what it was, that being a light-hearted comedy VN setting up the rest of the series. Not much to say, since I haven't truly finished Muv Luv yet, even if this is technically the first part of the trilogy.
The Messenger - This was a charming platformer/metroidvania. Like others said, great game, but it drags on a bit in the latter half.
Labyrinth of Refrain: Coven of Dusk - Not much to say, I reviewed it for RPG Site so you'll find my thoughts on it there. Great DRPG.
Forza Horizon 4 - I'm a sucker for Forza Horizon since playing FH3 back in 2016, and although I don't use my XB1 much since getting W10 it was what made me grab one back in the day. It's Forza Horizon, but this time with seasons! Progression still hasn't fully hooked me, I'd say, but I'm enjoying it.
Forza Horizon 3 - Playing 4 reminded me I never actually did unlock + finish that final showcase in 3. I rectified that.
Destiny 2: Forsaken - I played + reviewed the game on PS4 last year for RPG Site, and although I had enjoyed it at the time, I like many others fell off the Destiny train pretty hard after a few weeks. I kept hearing great things about Forsaken and a friend picked it up a few weeks after launch, so I made the plunge - this time on PC. Took me a while to get to it, but I eventually got to the raid and managed to clear it, and I definitely think I won't fall off the Destiny train nearly as hard this time around. I'm nearing max LL, but it feels like a more natural progression, and I can see myself continuing to come back in-between games once I do.
Your post and positive vibes inspired me to go for the same, although I'm not confident I can make it to 52 given I adore RPGs. Here we go :)
January
1.) Little Nightmares (Playstaton 4, 4 January)
A little plattformer that really serves up some crazy nightmares on its short journey. Great visual and audio design. Some control issues.
7,5/10
2.) Horizon: Zero Dawn (Playstation 4, 11 January)
I was sceptical Guerilla Games could pull of a game as good as this, but boy I was so wrong. One of the best games of the generation, especially thanks to its visual design, gameplay mechanics and a GREAT story on top. The way ancient high-tech civilizations long forgotten are tied to cool, dangerous robots and the society Aloy is living in is just very well done. Still have to play The Frozen Wilds at some point this year.
9/10
3.) What Remains of Edith Finch (Playstation 4, 13 January)
Whoever enjoyed Gone Home, Everybody's Gone to the Rapture, Dear Esther (see below) or similair games will love this game, too. So many little stories in this game and house.
8/10
4.) KAMIKO (Nintendo Switch, 14 January)
Cheap, little game that does it all right where it counts most: Game mechanics. It feels like a super-short Zelda with small puzzles. Great game.
8/10
5.) Oxenfree (Nintendo Switch, 21 January)
One of these games you haven't played before. It's as much about friendship as it is a thriller. You should check it out.
8/10
February
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March
6.) Thimbleweed Park (Nintendo Switch, 3 March)
Such a throwback old-style point-and-click adventure. It's about solving murder in an American Twin Peaks-like setting. You gotta think hard and draw your clues, puzzle-solving and experimenting a lot on the way. Great NPCs in this town, too. Pick this up, great to see games like that still developed.
8,5/10
7.) Red Dead Redemption (Xbox One X, 24 March)
I was years late to the party, and completed the game just before the 4k patch came out, too bad. I never felt like playing a last gen game anyways. America's Wild West has been underused in games, and Rockstar again shows why it they are considered the open world king.
9,5/10
April
8.) Song of the Deep (Xbox One X, 2 April)
An underappreciated smaller title of this generation, this game is a classic Metroidvania with a beautiful setting and soundtrack. It's not the most memorable game you will have played, and not everyone likes underwater levels, but it's still an underused setting.
7/10
9.) Quantum Break (Xbox One X, 8 April)
Quantum Break is in my top 3 favourite exclusive games of Xbox One. The game tried a new approach with the live action series. It wasn't liked by everyone, but I personally support experimental game design. Playing around with all those time mechanics in battle was really cool, although it probably looked better than it played. Final boss was a chore though. Everyone should play this title!
8,5/10
10.) Super Lucky's Tale (Xbox One X, 18 April)
Xbox One has more plattformers than you might think. While not on Nintendo's masterclass of Super Mario Odyssey, Ori, Lucky and Recore (see below) have been more than fine exclusives. Super Lucky's Tale gave me good vibes all around. It's decently well made and better than Yooka-Laylee (see below). I'd like to see Lucky again in a bigger 3D game.
7/10
11.)-13.) Life is Strange: Before the Storm (Xbox One X, 3 episodes, 18 April)
While never coming close to Season 1 of LiS, some open questions in the past of Chloe, Rachel and Max do get solved with this prequel. I never played the bonus episode because you cannot get it seperately after having beaten the base game, which is a shame.
8/10
May
14.) God of War (Playstation 4, 1 May)
A lot has been said of this masterpiece in other places. I was sceptical about the concept of this game. Kratos, the bad-ass slayer of all gods.... has a son sidekick? Yep, and it's done so brilliantly within this game that I should never have doubted. The gameplay is also quite different from the original games, only to feel familair again very far in the game, but no spoilers here! The nordic mystic setting is released beautifully, facial animations are great as well. I'm also a big fan of the decision to use a single, unbroken shot for the whole game. No cutscenes needed, immersion was always right on top! Quite possibly my favourite game of the year, certainly for new 2018 titles.
10/10
15.) Owlboy (Nintendo Switch, 5 May)
One of the bigger disappointing released of the year for me. Visually a compelling game, game mechanics, controls and even story never convinced me. Owlboy was in development a long time, too bad.
6,5/10
16.) ReCore (Xbox One X, 5 May)
Too bad ReCore never got the required time to get polished before release as much as the title deserves. Heard the loading times were crazy as hell before, thankfully I never experienced such a problem. I played the Definitive Version of ReCore and enjoyed it a lot! Fun combat, challenging jump puzzles, some cool robots are all in it!
8/10
17.) Pillars of Eternity (Xbox One X, 13 May)
This is a tough one. I've started and never finished Baldur's Gate a couple times, it was just too much, too long, too old for me at this point in 2018. I played enough to know why they were such gaming milestones though. Although I like Pillars of Eternity, Obsidian's first self-developed universe, I also have a lot to criticize on the game. I liked the world, lore, RPG mechanics and the different approaches to many quests. I never enjoyed the writing though, and found myself skipping a lot of texts by the end. Will still play PoE 2 some time in the future though.
7,5/10
June
18.) Kingdom Hearts II (Playstation 4, 3 June)
In quite similair fashion to Red Dead Redemption (see above) and Metro (see above), about a year ago I decided to finally play all Kingdom Hearts games in anticipation of Kingdom Hearts 3 releasing next January. Since its debut one a half decades ago a lot has happended in games design, and Kingdom Hearts 2 has aged quite a bit. The visited Disney worlds feel small and unpopulated. Even the story is a lot weaker than in part 1, because technically most things that happen in the worlds don't really matter much for the overall story. On the other hand, revisiting your Disney childhood worlds and characters in a game still feels so good! And the gameplay of Kingdom Hearts 2 is still rock solid and challenging.
7,5/10
19.) Golf Story (Nintendo Switch, 16 June)
Reminding me of Everybody's Golf and Tennis a couple years ago, Golf Story sure surprised a lot of people, including me. Some of the game's challenges were quite hard, but I enjoyed my time! One of these games you can always go back to for an hour or two as well. I'm happy this title has also sold rather well.
8/10
July
20.) Metro 2033: Redux (Xbox One X, 8 July)
I finally played through the Metro Series this year and do not know why I didn't earlier. SUCH. GOOD. GAMES. You are immersed into post-nuclear Moscow's Metro stations, their people and their fate right away. Little actions that are not openly communicated to the player very much matter in how your story plays out. Passages of the game are very scary and feel almost claustrophobic. Librarians might the be single most scary enemy I ever faced in a video game. The shooting was sometimes chaotic, but fun enough.
9,5/10
21.) Octopath Traveler (Nintendo Switch, 24 July)
Whoever loves retro SNES JRPGs and wants to know how it could look like with modern technic will have a thrilling time in Octopath Traveler. The artstyle cannot be praised enough for its blend of old and new. I will only say sunlight and water! The turn-based battle system also has to be one of THE best in gaming history alongside Final Fantasy X. Yes, it's that good, and enemies will never stop challenging you. While the individual storylines were also interesting, the 8 party members sadly never interacted much with each other. I still wonder whether Square-Enix should have made it compulsory to play all of them, but it would have made the game longer, too. Best Switch exclusive in 2018 for sure, and a surprising confirmation Square-Enix still has it's mojo somewhere.
9,5/10
August
22.) Prey: Mooncrash (Xbox One X, 3 August)
Prey was my GOTY in 2017, a game that should have sold so much more. Then I heard about Mooncrash. Roguelike?! WTF?! In the end, all my scepticism was vanished away. Mooncrash is the ideal DLC, feeling familair enough to the base game (especially abilities) while turning some game mechanics on it's head. Finding the escape route for the five passengers in one go required skill and careful planning. I can now see what can make Roguelike games so good, and might try more of them in the future.
9,5/10
23.) Metro: Last Light Redux (Xbox One X, 5 August)
*quotes Metro 2033 section minus librarians plus spiders; eagerly waits for the new Metro game in 2018, day-one, only is worried it will not have that Metro tunnel and station atmosphere anymore*
9,5/10
24.) Braid (Xbox 360 on One X, 5 August)
I will probably draw a lot of criticism for this opinion, but I never got into Braid. It's very easy to rush to the finish line in the levels, while solving every puzzle requires much more time and thinking. While I've enjoyed many puzzle games over the years, Braid never quite got me hooked. Sorry.
5/10
25.) Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep (Playstation 4, 11 August)
Haven't I read many people praise Birth by Sleep over the years? Well, it's very justified indeed! Also, it's super important to play it to make sense of what will happen in 2.8 and KH3. Having three heroes that play so differently in Terra, Ventus and Aqua is great. They each follow separate story-lines that intersect at certain points of the story. Without any spoilers the endings also kept me thinking a lot about the three of them. I'm glad I played this game, it doesn't feel nearly as dates as KH2 as well.
8,5/10
26.) Kingdom Hearts Re:coded (Playstation 4, 12 August)
Well, only an interactive film on the Kingdom Hearts collections, but I will still list it here. It was nice enough to see the alternate digital world that had to become bug-free, also to discover why Jimmy's journal was changed and empty... But I'm not exactly sure this would have been fascinating me enough for a 40 hour JRPG.
6/10
27.) Old Man's Journey (Nintendo Switch, 21 August)
The game's overall topic of ageing , thinking back of the fun experiences in the past is great. Being 31 now I often also start to think about these topics. The game mechanics itself never let me jumpf out of my seat.
5/10
September
28.) NieR: Automata (Xbox One X, 2 September)
NieR: Automata finished like second on ERA's top JRPG list of all time, so I had to play it quickly after the release on Xbox One X. While unsure whether I'd place it that highly, the game is quite probably one of the best games this generation has seen. The game tackles question such as: What makes humans human? Why the hell are androids fighting a war for humans that you never see? How can androids and robots be so different? You are constantly surprised by the game, it is philosophical and satisfying, also makes you care about the androids you play as so much. Each of the three playthroughs adds new things to the story. While the second playthrough did not offer a whole lot of different stuff, the third playthrough will be what I call a mindfuck. It's that good.
9,5/10
29.) Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (Xbox 360 on Xbox One X, 4 September)
A 20-year old game that mechanics have inspired generations of game developers. Metroidvania are some of my most liked games to play. This one is a true classic that still plays so well in 2018. Must-have!
9/10
30.) Dear Esther (Xbox One X, 10 September)
Another groundbreaking game that has basically started a genre, the so-called Walking Simulator (I don't like this name). Play it yourself first, then listen to the excellent audio commenary that is on the Landmark Edition of the game. Dear Esther only gets to be understood when you replay it multiple times, which is perfectly possible because it's so short. You do need excellent English to understand it though.
8,5/10
31.) Xenoblade Chronicles 2: Torna (Nintendo Switch, 23 September)
My favourite JRPG of the generation alongside Persona 5 has honestly enjoyed one of the best post-launch supports of ANY game. The Torna DLC expansion similarily to Life is Strange: Before the Storm (see above) answers many unaswered questions depicted at in the main game. Also, battle mechanics are changed up just enough to feel familair yet fresh and new, much like in Prey: Mooncrash (see above). I didn't like the way developers forced you to play a lot of sidequests to progress to the final bits of the main story, but it really is the game's only fault. You gotta play this, and I rarely see this about expansions!
9,5/10
32.) Bastion (Xbox 360 on Xbox One X, 26 September)
One of the first indie games that caught a lot of attention was Bastion, released exclusively on Xbox 360 back in the day. It's a visually stunning RPG with solid mechanics and choice of weapons that sets itself apart by the narrator that comments on your actions, decisions and progress through the game. The developer's first game has apparently been surpassed by Furi, Transistor, but I wanted to play their first game first, with the others to follow some time soon.
7,5/10
33.) Shadow of the Tomb Raider (Xbox One X, 26 September)
Hasn't the Tomb Raider reboot trilogy been some of the recent big games with the most diverted fan base? Some liked the 2013 reboot best, other's praise the new Shadow for it's focus on stealthy approaches, more exploration and tombs. I personally liked the 2018 entry the most, rather not surprised by the game mechanics given Eidos has been mostly doing stealthy games as of late. Shadow still has its flaws though, especially in storytelling and sidekicks.
8/10
October
34.) Deus Ex: Human Revolution (Xbox 360 on Xbox One X, 2 October)
Alongside Metro this has been the biggest positive surprise of the year to me. I've always enjoyed stealthy games, but didn't expect the world of Deus Ex: HR to thrill me as much as it did. I even started a LTTP on here, my first thread ever! The Deus Ex cyberpunk future is one I could see humanity go to in all honesty, maybe to a lesser extent. Augmentations and expensive medical treatments for everyone or just for the rich? How would they be treated by normal human beings? Furthermore, this game gives you tons of options to complete levels. It has one of the best realized Asian/Chinese settings ever in a game. Go play it if you haven't!
10/10
35.) Valkyria Chronicles 4 (Xbox One X, 13 October)
An alternative Europa goes to war in Valkyria Chronicles, and you get to play the soldiers and squads that want to end the war for the Federation against the Imperials -- but Japanese-style! The world is colourful, the great war with its tactical and challenging battles are mixed with character-focused story sequences that range from brilliant to atrocious to probably sexist. The story is also not black and white and surprises along the way. With very solid mechanics, tactical battles are a treat once you get the hang of using different unit classes strategically. I found it a tad too long though.
8/10
36.) Yooka-Laylee (Playstation 4, 16 October)
I have backed two games in my life, Kingdom Come: Deliverance that I still need to finish sometime this year (coming up) and Yooka-Laylee. Ex-Rare developers going for a new IP reminisicent of Banjo-Kazooie? Wow! The shipped product unfortunately never comes close to its spiritual ancestor though. For a 3D plattformer, controls are not accurate enough and often feel off. The five game worlds vary in their quality, but tend to get worse and less creative as the game goes on. It jusn't doesn't have the magic also I liked it enough to finish the game. I wish Rare one day does Banjo-Threeie, but if they do, they should study carefully what went eright and wrong with Yooka-Laylee.
6,5/10
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Whew, that was a lot of work! Happy to join in, let's hope I can make it. Thankfully there are some other genres besides long RPGs in my backlog, too :D Happy about any comments, too.
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Game #57 - Assassin's Creed Odyssey
Time: 113 hours
Building on Origin's RPG mechanics to build what actually feels like an actual action rpg this time, Odyssey completely grabbed me from begining to end. The choice of playable character (is it really a choice tho, let's be honest, Kassandra is too good) is a great addition to the series, and as stated, Kassandra is a fantastic character and easily one of my favorite in any game in years. Great story all around and fantastic, meaningful sidequests that made me want to comb every zone to see mroe of the game, combined with gorgeous visuals (that draw distance is ridiculous) and a new and improved talent system with actual rpg-like skills to unlock and use, making vastly different specs possible, make this not only my favorite Assassin's Creed game ever, but one of my favorite games in years. I won't touch on the dreaded "grinding / microtransaction" issue except to say this: in my day (i'm old damn it!) "grinding" was walking around a field in a jrpg doing random battles for hours to gain levels, doing full fledged zones with fully fledged sidequests, with some of the ebst content in the game isnt grinding, it's "playing the game", so no, the "issue" never affected me. That being said, it IS a giant game, and even for a crazy person like me that did everything, I felt there was too much. Still, when "there's too much of it" is your biggest gripe, that's not necessarely the end of the world. If you liked Origins, it's a complete no brainer. Very high contender for my GOTY, and as a sidenote, Rush Assassination (a skill you can get) probably ruined every other stealth based game for me, certainly every other Assassin's Creed game, I can't imagine not playing with it now :(
Main Post
#60 Doom 3 6 PC - Oct 19th - 9 hours
Not bad but felt like it was missing something. The weapons don't feel very powerful and a lot of the encounters play out identical, in identical looking areas. Later on the pace improves and you get some new locations. Enjoyable but not quite as good as it could have been.
#61 Van Helsing 6 Xbox - Oct 20th - 4 hours
As far as licensed DMC clones go..this ain't bad. It's very short and easy and has framerate problems but has fun if shallow combat, some nice looking levels, decent bosses and a handful of unlockables. It's certainly more DMC2 than DMC1 but I enjoyed it more than the former. Speaking of DMC2 the game does rely on ranged weapons more than melee, there's like 6 guns and only 2 melee weapons, though it feels a bit more intended than DMC2. I played through normal in 3 hours then did a quick NG+ in hard which took less than an hour lol
Not bad but felt like it was missing something. The weapons don't feel very powerful and a lot of the encounters play out identical, in identical looking areas. Later on the pace improves and you get some new locations. Enjoyable but not quite as good as it could have been.
#61 Van Helsing 6 Xbox - Oct 20th - 4 hours
As far as licensed DMC clones go..this ain't bad. It's very short and easy and has framerate problems but has fun if shallow combat, some nice looking levels, decent bosses and a handful of unlockables. It's certainly more DMC2 than DMC1 but I enjoyed it more than the former. Speaking of DMC2 the game does rely on ranged weapons more than melee, there's like 6 guns and only 2 melee weapons, though it feels a bit more intended than DMC2. I played through normal in 3 hours then did a quick NG+ in hard which took less than an hour lol
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Main post 1: https://www.resetera.com/posts/2784229/
Main post 2: https://www.resetera.com/posts/5234679/
Main post 3: https://www.resetera.com/posts/12272007/
75. Professor Layton and Pandora's Box / 14h20 - completed 20.10.18
Not as strong as the first one, Pandora's Box is still a very enjoyable adventure. The town of Folsense and its inhabitants maintain the charm of the series, and the narrative, though predictable, kept my interest all the way through. If i had to pick the best thing about Level-5 as a whole, the answer would be immediate: their music. And the Layton series is maybe the best example of this, for me at least. I love the music in this series to death.
The puzzling suffers near the end, as a lot of puzzle types start repeating in a short amount of time. I don't think the larger amount of puzzles does the sequel any favors, as the first game felt tighter, more cohesive. I strived to finish every single thing in the first game, but here i was sated before exhausting all 153 puzzles available.
Main post 2: https://www.resetera.com/posts/5234679/
Main post 3: https://www.resetera.com/posts/12272007/
75. Professor Layton and Pandora's Box / 14h20 - completed 20.10.18
Not as strong as the first one, Pandora's Box is still a very enjoyable adventure. The town of Folsense and its inhabitants maintain the charm of the series, and the narrative, though predictable, kept my interest all the way through. If i had to pick the best thing about Level-5 as a whole, the answer would be immediate: their music. And the Layton series is maybe the best example of this, for me at least. I love the music in this series to death.
The puzzling suffers near the end, as a lot of puzzle types start repeating in a short amount of time. I don't think the larger amount of puzzles does the sequel any favors, as the first game felt tighter, more cohesive. I strived to finish every single thing in the first game, but here i was sated before exhausting all 153 puzzles available.
Nice writeup, I agree completely. Are you gonna play the third game? I loved that one a lot.Main post 1: https://www.resetera.com/posts/2784229/
Main post 2: https://www.resetera.com/posts/5234679/
Main post 3: https://www.resetera.com/posts/12272007/
75. Professor Layton and Pandora's Box / 14h20 - completed 20.10.18
Not as strong as the first one, Pandora's Box is still a very enjoyable adventure. The town of Folsense and its inhabitants maintain the charm of the series, and the narrative, though predictable, kept my interest all the way through. If i had to pick the best thing about Level-5 as a whole, the answer would be immediate: their music. And the Layton series is maybe the best example of this, for me at least. I love the music in this series to death.
The puzzling suffers near the end, as a lot of puzzle types start repeating in a short amount of time. I don't think the larger amount of puzzles does the sequel any favors, as the first game felt tighter, more cohesive. I strived to finish every single thing in the first game, but here i was sated before exhausting all 153 puzzles available.
I just started it today :)
I have the fourth ready to go afterwards and just bought the fifth yesterday lol
I love this series.
This'll be Main Post 3. I'm not sure I'll make it to 52 this year given how much time WoW sucked up.
Main Post 1
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September
34: The Evil Within 1 - 15 hours
Inconsistent, unfocused, and brilliant. There were quite a few rough moments in Evil Within 1, and the "instability" of the setting got old really fast, but I couldn't help myself from loving it all the same. This game contained some of the craziest shit and set pieces I've ever witnessed in a game. I had a lot of false starts with this one, picking up at launch on PC and starting it 3 times over the years without getting very far due to irritating performance issues and a personal weakness for finding reasons not to actually play survival horror games I own. The 4th time on a new computer was a charm though, and the visuals in the game hold up shockingly well given the age of the title. I definitely wish the whole thing felt more focused, and I've heard the sequel may deliver on that, but I'm really glad I finally took the time to play through this weird gem.
8/10
October
35: World of Warcraft: Battle for Azeroth - 300+ hours
This sucked up ~3 months of gaming for me and will probably be the reason I don't make it to 52 games this year. It's hard to say you've "beaten" an MMO that is mostly designed to never be finished, but I got 3 characters to the level cap, finished all the dungeons on Mythic, the raids on Heroic, and unlocked the 3 currently available Allied races for Alliance, so that feels close enough for me. I've been playing since vanilla so I'm used to the excitement of an expansion fading after you start to do end-game content, but BfA feels a bit worse than normal. Characters more than ever feel like they get much weaker as they reach level cap. Instead being rewarded with a new ability, talent row, or cool features the reward at 120 for BfA is… Azerite gear. Gear you earn that takes a ton of grinding to unlock very boring passive effects on. This lukewarm system is a replacement for Class Tier sets, Legendaries, a new talent row, and new abilities: it needed to be really exciting and it is a total dud instead. Most of the "classic" end-game activities exhaust themselves quickly once you reach 120. Professions aren't worth working on because Alchemy & Herbalism remain the only good and consistently useful professions in the game. Heroic and Mythic dungeons become poor sources for gear almost immediately, as boring content like World Quests and Warfronts grant far better gear. This basically leaves you with Mythic+ dungeons and raiding as your activities at 120, which are mostly unchanged and alright. I personally don't love the way Mythic+ dungeons push every dungeon to be speed runs, the dungeon experience where you have a laid back run with friends and hopefully get an upgrade doesn't exist anymore because the only worthwhile dungeons to do are on a timer and incentivize not taking your time. The 2 new features are either boring (Warfronts) or unrewarding (Island Expeditions). The third new feature, Allied races, forces you to grind reputations, most of them from the last expansion (!), to exalted for the privilege of starting a new character at level 20 and then grinding out 100 levels to reach the cap again. Oh, and the races are just reskins of existing races. Yep.
The game just doesn't feel rewarding to play anymore, and BfA is the fastest I've seen an active raid guild roster turn into a ghost town.
6/10
36: The Evil Within 1 Season Pass - 8 hours
I was prepared to not like this. The stealth sections were not my favorite part of Evil Within, it's largely just a bunch of re-used environments, etc. I loved it though. It felt like a very different take on all the environments from the base game and added some much-needed information to understand the story of it. The stealth sections all felt reasonable and didn't wear out their welcome. I liked how Kidman's chapters felt a bit more consistent than Sebastion's in the original game, and I liked how The Executioner totally switched up the gameplay to that of a first person melee brawler. After 20+ hours of survival, it was nice to feel empowered and learn some details about the bosses in the game at the same time. All-in-all, very worthwhile and sufficiently different from the main game in a way you don't normally see with DLC.
8/10
37: Kero Blaster - 3 hours
A fun little megaman style game. Very much on the short side, but I like how they managed to put 4 interesting weapons and several upgrades for you to earn into such a small experience. The controls don't always feel great though, and I wish there was more content.
7/10
38: Detention - 3.5 hours
Detention is a very interesting survival horror game, set in 1960s Taiwan during marshal law when anti-communist hysteria was common. Mechanically it plays like an adventure game, but the story and setting elevate it above the point and click adventure genre which I don't usually like. It gave me Silent Hill 2 vibes, in terms of the story it was trying to tell and the idea of a horror environment being a reflection of inner turmoil.
8/10
39: Super Mario Run - 2 hours
As far as auto-runners go, this is the best-made one that I've played. I never felt frustrated by how it controlled, which is a strong endorsement for any touch-based game with movement. It's a great compromise between controls that make sense for phones and what makes 2D Mario games fun. Dragging it down for me a bit is that it's definitely on the short side, though there is a generous amount of repeatable bonus content and challenges. Worst, and almost a deal-breaker for me, was the online requirement. The only times I ever wanted to play the game were times when I didn't have an internet connection. It's the reason why this very short game that I bought on launch day took me almost 2 years to finish.
7/10
November
40: The Evil Within 2 - 18 hours
TEW2 2 felt like it traded some of the eccentric brilliance of TEW1 for a much more competently made game and a significantly more coherent story. I ended up really liking the open world pieces despite my reservations, and this felt like a very worthy current-gen follow-up to the original. The gunplay is still fun, the setting is still tense, but it feels much more polished overall both in concept and execution. It's not as interesting as TEW1, but it's much more fun IMO. I loved it, and I really hope we get to see TEW3.
9/10
41: The Lost Winds - 3 hours
I played this on PC, but it's originally a Wiiware game that embraced motion controls in a smart and non-frustrating way. Pointer movement can be used to push and pull the character around, with regular controls for basic movement. The whole thing is pretty forgiving of inexact pointer gestures, which meant it was a great fit on Wii. On PC and with a mouse the precision trivializes the game a bit. Overall it felt short and a little shallow, a reminder that even the games that managed to compromise well enough to make motion control serviceable last gen were mostly fun in spite of it rather than because of it.
7/10
42: Astro-Bot: Rescue Mission - 6 hours
I had been looking forward to this since the original Astro Bot PSVR Playroom mini-game and the full-fledged game did not disappoint. It never stopped surprising me or giving me experiences that felt 100% new which I didn't think were possible after gaming for so many years. I think the thing I liked most about it was how it demonstrated how powerful You being the camera was: the game rewarding your ability to peak around corners by physically moving in a way that felt totally natural or intuitive, the effect of water rising over your head and how that made you feel, etc. Despite how much I enjoyed it I couldn't get over the VR nausea with this one, and there are really no config options that will help you mitigate it. I got through it by playing 1-2 levels at a time and stopping when I started to feel nauseous, but I definitely can't say the experience was 100% pleasant throughout. Astro Bot really demonstrates the massive heights that VR is capable of bringing gaming to, as well as how the current technology just isn't there yet.
9/10
43: Starcraft 2: Legacy of the Void - 14 hours
After enjoying the mission design of Heart of the Swarm last year I was hoping the LOTV might feel like a better product overall with the same mission quality but with less campy or cringy writing given that it was focusing on characters besides Kerigan and Reynor. No such luck. For me, the mission design in this felt much less interesting, with most missions being very similar and the same "build a deathball and roll over the enemies" strategy prevailing in all of them. I didn't feel like I had missions this time around that didn't focus on base building: they all followed the same mold. As for the story, the less said the better. What an incredibly dumb way to end a trilogy that was already full of disappointing writing. There are still great production values in the campaign and the product as a whole, but on the single player side they aren't enough to rescue LOTV from boring mission design and terrible writing.
6/10
44: For Honor - 6 hours single player/20+ hours multiplayer
I finished the single player campaign in this for the challenge but it mostly felt like an afterthought. It isn't really interesting or varied enough to stand on its own, and the tutorial-esque moments of it that could have been nice to prepare you for multiplayer are too shallow to accomplish that goal. Multiplayer, on the other hand, is great. The combat is system is brilliant and it feels simultaneously very intense and deep while still being accessible. You can be an asset to your team and help with objectives even if you're learning the ropes on a new character. It's also worth mentioning that the game performance and visuals are unbelievable: liquid smooth and super optimized, I was able to play with maxed settings on PC and see gorgeous visuals without a ridiculous computer or any tweeking. The single player is a bit soft and the meta-game Faction War system is mostly confusing and doesn't feel particularly rewarding, but it's a great multiplayer game.
8/10
45: Gorogoa - 3 hours
I wasn't wild about Gorogoa. The puzzles were often clever and had beautiful art, but too often felt like they devolved into process of elimination by tapping randomly to find what could be interacted with in each picture. The game makes some minor effort to tell a visual story, but I didn't find it very coherent. Between the short play time, disappointing puzzles, and barely existent storyline I wouldn't recommend this to others.
5/10
46: Pokémon Let's Go: Pikachu Edition - 22 hours
This is the first Pokémon game I've finished since the original Blue, despite having purchased almost every Pokémon game since. I loved the emphasis on gameplay and exploration instead of tutorials and cinematics. If I'm being perfectly honest I think combat in Pokemon is pretty stale and random battles have been a tired concept for over 20 years by now. Because of that, the new catching mechanic was a welcome change from mandatory battles, but the ball throwing felt very inconsistent. I got the hang of it by the end of the game but it was never intuitive – I was flicking the Joycon at a 90 degree angle towards my wall in order to succeed, rather than at the point on the screen where the Pokémon was as you'd expect. The lack of hand-holding and toning down the frequency of combat were enough to let me enjoy the game to the end though, and I'm hopeful that they make more Pokémon games like this in the future. Like with Monster Hunter World, this makes enough quality of life improvements that I don't think I can go back to the old style of Pokémon games.
8/10
47: DOOM 2016 - 10 hours
In a lot of ways DOOM 2016 is a throw-back to older game design. Very little set-up in the story before you're thrown into the action, extremely fast combat, and map/level design that seems intent on proving that this style of game still has a place in the modern era. I haven't played a game that felt this frantic in ages, and the combat & glory kills feel better than any FPS in recent memory. The performance of the game was also liquid smooth and well-optimized even on my old PC. On the downside, the combat scenarios do get a bit boring by the end, and while the focus on combat and level design was a nice throw-back, it does wear out its welcome eventually. Even with combat as fun as this is, I wish the game did more to switch up enemy variety and tactics. Instead, it feels like a never-ending gauntlet of neigh-identical murder box arenas. Which is still pretty great, but it could have been better.
8/10
December
48: Spiderman - 20 hours
Swinging around a believable version of Manhattan is one of my favorite moments in gaming this year, and it was shocking how well the mechanic works. I really enjoyed the story in this too, which felt well-done and relatable instead of just feeling like another Spiderman story. On the negative side, I didn't like the combat much, and there is *way* too much of it. The amount of side content that boiled down to defeating groups or waves of enemies was already overwhelming before being doubled at a point later in the game. I think it's telling that my favorite side content in the game was the "Capture the Pigeons" tasks. When I originally got the Mission I was having GTA4 flash-backs of awful collectathons for achievements, but web-swinging around the city in a race to follow and capture birds was the game leaning into the best and most fun mechanics in it. In most ways Spiderman feels like an exceptionally well-made Open World game, but is a style of that game that I feel like I've moved past.
8/10
49: Lost Winds 2: Winter of the Melodias - 3 hours
This didn't feel like a big improvement over the original which I played earlier this year. It's a bit briefer and the mechanics they add don't feel like they work out as well as the gestures and abilities from the first game. The addition of the cold weather and the few sections in the game where you have to worry about staying warm and not venturing too far from heat sources are also not fun.
6/10
50: Mega Man 11 - 6 hours
I've been playing Megman games since the original back on NES and this is one of the few I've actually finished. Normally I just get to Wily's gauntlet and get tired of having to redo early stages to work on the final ones. Megaman 11 has a lot of smart accessibility options that make this sort of scenario a non-issue, including several expanded difficulty modes and an item-shop that lets you give yourself boosts (like extra lives or an auto-charging blaster) if you want a leg-up. I preferred the retro visuals of 9 & 10 at first, but I will say that all the weapons in 11 look and feel great. They all have a unique identify, have big colorful & powerful looking effects, and are all useful even in regular missions which I feel like is not the case for most weapons in the older games. The new double-gear system is smart in that it lets you slow down time to better learn or avoid attacks, or just boost your attack damage, from a shared recharging resource pool. It feels like it is both opening the game up to a more expanded audience and allowing them to learn while also adding some depth for the crowd who is already used to and skilled at Megaman games. I'm glad that they're still making Megaman games and still trying new things.
8/10
51: Professor Layton and the Curious Village HD - 8 hours
This is technically a replay since I played the original DS version 10 years ago. My memory of the game was that it had a much greater emphasis on puzzles than side-activities compared to subsequent Layton games, and that the puzzles were more genuine. Fewer trick questions and misleading puzzles, basically. My theory was always that they burned through most of the classic historical puzzles in Curious village and that subsequent games had to struggle to pad out the puzzle numbers and add more side activities. I think that ended up still feeling true here, but there were more trick questions and straight-faced math problems than I remembered. The HD mobile remake does a great job retaining the visual style of the original game and everything looks much better & sharper than before, especially on a big iPad. I'm happy to saw that the game still holds up really well and that this still feels like the best game in the series.
8/10
52: Valkyria Chronicles 4 - 34 hours
I loved Valkyria Chronicles 1 when it came out 10 years ago and it was one of my favorite games that year despite all the other huge classic games that released alongside it. It had beautiful and unique stylized visuals, simple but fun combat, and a big emphasis on stories and characters. I was sad when the sequels were relegated to portable platforms and abandoned a lot of the story and visual elements that made me a fan of the original. Valkyria Chronicles 4 is finally a true sequel to the original but it doesn't feel like the game has moved forward much in the 10 years that have passed, and it definitely feels dated in a lot of ways. The combat feels clunky and unresponsive, with your characters frequently being interrupted as you try to go into aim-mode and taking return-fire that doesn't feel earned. The turning on tanks works poorly and you end up wasting a lot of AP (stamina) just trying to get them to turn or move in the right direction. The addition of the Grenadier class feels like a negative overall, as they are annoying to fight against, cause a lot of camera issues when you are using them, and lead to a lot of situations where your character is rag-dolled by a mortar shot while you are running, interrupting you yet again. The visuals do look pretty great, but the northern setting with ice & snow that the game quickly moves to is much less interesting and fun to look at than the colorful country-sides and cities of the original. I liked the story and the characters overall, though the Villians are written really poorly and the way the story is told, small series of cut-scenes that dump you out to a menu in-between each, is another way that the game feels dated. I'm really glad I got to play another Valkyria Chronicles game but after playing 4 I'm not sure that this is a series that needs to continue.
7/10
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September
34: The Evil Within 1 - 15 hours
Inconsistent, unfocused, and brilliant. There were quite a few rough moments in Evil Within 1, and the "instability" of the setting got old really fast, but I couldn't help myself from loving it all the same. This game contained some of the craziest shit and set pieces I've ever witnessed in a game. I had a lot of false starts with this one, picking up at launch on PC and starting it 3 times over the years without getting very far due to irritating performance issues and a personal weakness for finding reasons not to actually play survival horror games I own. The 4th time on a new computer was a charm though, and the visuals in the game hold up shockingly well given the age of the title. I definitely wish the whole thing felt more focused, and I've heard the sequel may deliver on that, but I'm really glad I finally took the time to play through this weird gem.
8/10
October
35: World of Warcraft: Battle for Azeroth - 300+ hours
This sucked up ~3 months of gaming for me and will probably be the reason I don't make it to 52 games this year. It's hard to say you've "beaten" an MMO that is mostly designed to never be finished, but I got 3 characters to the level cap, finished all the dungeons on Mythic, the raids on Heroic, and unlocked the 3 currently available Allied races for Alliance, so that feels close enough for me. I've been playing since vanilla so I'm used to the excitement of an expansion fading after you start to do end-game content, but BfA feels a bit worse than normal. Characters more than ever feel like they get much weaker as they reach level cap. Instead being rewarded with a new ability, talent row, or cool features the reward at 120 for BfA is… Azerite gear. Gear you earn that takes a ton of grinding to unlock very boring passive effects on. This lukewarm system is a replacement for Class Tier sets, Legendaries, a new talent row, and new abilities: it needed to be really exciting and it is a total dud instead. Most of the "classic" end-game activities exhaust themselves quickly once you reach 120. Professions aren't worth working on because Alchemy & Herbalism remain the only good and consistently useful professions in the game. Heroic and Mythic dungeons become poor sources for gear almost immediately, as boring content like World Quests and Warfronts grant far better gear. This basically leaves you with Mythic+ dungeons and raiding as your activities at 120, which are mostly unchanged and alright. I personally don't love the way Mythic+ dungeons push every dungeon to be speed runs, the dungeon experience where you have a laid back run with friends and hopefully get an upgrade doesn't exist anymore because the only worthwhile dungeons to do are on a timer and incentivize not taking your time. The 2 new features are either boring (Warfronts) or unrewarding (Island Expeditions). The third new feature, Allied races, forces you to grind reputations, most of them from the last expansion (!), to exalted for the privilege of starting a new character at level 20 and then grinding out 100 levels to reach the cap again. Oh, and the races are just reskins of existing races. Yep.
The game just doesn't feel rewarding to play anymore, and BfA is the fastest I've seen an active raid guild roster turn into a ghost town.
6/10
36: The Evil Within 1 Season Pass - 8 hours
I was prepared to not like this. The stealth sections were not my favorite part of Evil Within, it's largely just a bunch of re-used environments, etc. I loved it though. It felt like a very different take on all the environments from the base game and added some much-needed information to understand the story of it. The stealth sections all felt reasonable and didn't wear out their welcome. I liked how Kidman's chapters felt a bit more consistent than Sebastion's in the original game, and I liked how The Executioner totally switched up the gameplay to that of a first person melee brawler. After 20+ hours of survival, it was nice to feel empowered and learn some details about the bosses in the game at the same time. All-in-all, very worthwhile and sufficiently different from the main game in a way you don't normally see with DLC.
8/10
37: Kero Blaster - 3 hours
A fun little megaman style game. Very much on the short side, but I like how they managed to put 4 interesting weapons and several upgrades for you to earn into such a small experience. The controls don't always feel great though, and I wish there was more content.
7/10
38: Detention - 3.5 hours
Detention is a very interesting survival horror game, set in 1960s Taiwan during marshal law when anti-communist hysteria was common. Mechanically it plays like an adventure game, but the story and setting elevate it above the point and click adventure genre which I don't usually like. It gave me Silent Hill 2 vibes, in terms of the story it was trying to tell and the idea of a horror environment being a reflection of inner turmoil.
8/10
39: Super Mario Run - 2 hours
As far as auto-runners go, this is the best-made one that I've played. I never felt frustrated by how it controlled, which is a strong endorsement for any touch-based game with movement. It's a great compromise between controls that make sense for phones and what makes 2D Mario games fun. Dragging it down for me a bit is that it's definitely on the short side, though there is a generous amount of repeatable bonus content and challenges. Worst, and almost a deal-breaker for me, was the online requirement. The only times I ever wanted to play the game were times when I didn't have an internet connection. It's the reason why this very short game that I bought on launch day took me almost 2 years to finish.
7/10
November
40: The Evil Within 2 - 18 hours
TEW2 2 felt like it traded some of the eccentric brilliance of TEW1 for a much more competently made game and a significantly more coherent story. I ended up really liking the open world pieces despite my reservations, and this felt like a very worthy current-gen follow-up to the original. The gunplay is still fun, the setting is still tense, but it feels much more polished overall both in concept and execution. It's not as interesting as TEW1, but it's much more fun IMO. I loved it, and I really hope we get to see TEW3.
9/10
41: The Lost Winds - 3 hours
I played this on PC, but it's originally a Wiiware game that embraced motion controls in a smart and non-frustrating way. Pointer movement can be used to push and pull the character around, with regular controls for basic movement. The whole thing is pretty forgiving of inexact pointer gestures, which meant it was a great fit on Wii. On PC and with a mouse the precision trivializes the game a bit. Overall it felt short and a little shallow, a reminder that even the games that managed to compromise well enough to make motion control serviceable last gen were mostly fun in spite of it rather than because of it.
7/10
42: Astro-Bot: Rescue Mission - 6 hours
I had been looking forward to this since the original Astro Bot PSVR Playroom mini-game and the full-fledged game did not disappoint. It never stopped surprising me or giving me experiences that felt 100% new which I didn't think were possible after gaming for so many years. I think the thing I liked most about it was how it demonstrated how powerful You being the camera was: the game rewarding your ability to peak around corners by physically moving in a way that felt totally natural or intuitive, the effect of water rising over your head and how that made you feel, etc. Despite how much I enjoyed it I couldn't get over the VR nausea with this one, and there are really no config options that will help you mitigate it. I got through it by playing 1-2 levels at a time and stopping when I started to feel nauseous, but I definitely can't say the experience was 100% pleasant throughout. Astro Bot really demonstrates the massive heights that VR is capable of bringing gaming to, as well as how the current technology just isn't there yet.
9/10
43: Starcraft 2: Legacy of the Void - 14 hours
After enjoying the mission design of Heart of the Swarm last year I was hoping the LOTV might feel like a better product overall with the same mission quality but with less campy or cringy writing given that it was focusing on characters besides Kerigan and Reynor. No such luck. For me, the mission design in this felt much less interesting, with most missions being very similar and the same "build a deathball and roll over the enemies" strategy prevailing in all of them. I didn't feel like I had missions this time around that didn't focus on base building: they all followed the same mold. As for the story, the less said the better. What an incredibly dumb way to end a trilogy that was already full of disappointing writing. There are still great production values in the campaign and the product as a whole, but on the single player side they aren't enough to rescue LOTV from boring mission design and terrible writing.
6/10
44: For Honor - 6 hours single player/20+ hours multiplayer
I finished the single player campaign in this for the challenge but it mostly felt like an afterthought. It isn't really interesting or varied enough to stand on its own, and the tutorial-esque moments of it that could have been nice to prepare you for multiplayer are too shallow to accomplish that goal. Multiplayer, on the other hand, is great. The combat is system is brilliant and it feels simultaneously very intense and deep while still being accessible. You can be an asset to your team and help with objectives even if you're learning the ropes on a new character. It's also worth mentioning that the game performance and visuals are unbelievable: liquid smooth and super optimized, I was able to play with maxed settings on PC and see gorgeous visuals without a ridiculous computer or any tweeking. The single player is a bit soft and the meta-game Faction War system is mostly confusing and doesn't feel particularly rewarding, but it's a great multiplayer game.
8/10
45: Gorogoa - 3 hours
I wasn't wild about Gorogoa. The puzzles were often clever and had beautiful art, but too often felt like they devolved into process of elimination by tapping randomly to find what could be interacted with in each picture. The game makes some minor effort to tell a visual story, but I didn't find it very coherent. Between the short play time, disappointing puzzles, and barely existent storyline I wouldn't recommend this to others.
5/10
46: Pokémon Let's Go: Pikachu Edition - 22 hours
This is the first Pokémon game I've finished since the original Blue, despite having purchased almost every Pokémon game since. I loved the emphasis on gameplay and exploration instead of tutorials and cinematics. If I'm being perfectly honest I think combat in Pokemon is pretty stale and random battles have been a tired concept for over 20 years by now. Because of that, the new catching mechanic was a welcome change from mandatory battles, but the ball throwing felt very inconsistent. I got the hang of it by the end of the game but it was never intuitive – I was flicking the Joycon at a 90 degree angle towards my wall in order to succeed, rather than at the point on the screen where the Pokémon was as you'd expect. The lack of hand-holding and toning down the frequency of combat were enough to let me enjoy the game to the end though, and I'm hopeful that they make more Pokémon games like this in the future. Like with Monster Hunter World, this makes enough quality of life improvements that I don't think I can go back to the old style of Pokémon games.
8/10
47: DOOM 2016 - 10 hours
In a lot of ways DOOM 2016 is a throw-back to older game design. Very little set-up in the story before you're thrown into the action, extremely fast combat, and map/level design that seems intent on proving that this style of game still has a place in the modern era. I haven't played a game that felt this frantic in ages, and the combat & glory kills feel better than any FPS in recent memory. The performance of the game was also liquid smooth and well-optimized even on my old PC. On the downside, the combat scenarios do get a bit boring by the end, and while the focus on combat and level design was a nice throw-back, it does wear out its welcome eventually. Even with combat as fun as this is, I wish the game did more to switch up enemy variety and tactics. Instead, it feels like a never-ending gauntlet of neigh-identical murder box arenas. Which is still pretty great, but it could have been better.
8/10
December
48: Spiderman - 20 hours
Swinging around a believable version of Manhattan is one of my favorite moments in gaming this year, and it was shocking how well the mechanic works. I really enjoyed the story in this too, which felt well-done and relatable instead of just feeling like another Spiderman story. On the negative side, I didn't like the combat much, and there is *way* too much of it. The amount of side content that boiled down to defeating groups or waves of enemies was already overwhelming before being doubled at a point later in the game. I think it's telling that my favorite side content in the game was the "Capture the Pigeons" tasks. When I originally got the Mission I was having GTA4 flash-backs of awful collectathons for achievements, but web-swinging around the city in a race to follow and capture birds was the game leaning into the best and most fun mechanics in it. In most ways Spiderman feels like an exceptionally well-made Open World game, but is a style of that game that I feel like I've moved past.
8/10
49: Lost Winds 2: Winter of the Melodias - 3 hours
This didn't feel like a big improvement over the original which I played earlier this year. It's a bit briefer and the mechanics they add don't feel like they work out as well as the gestures and abilities from the first game. The addition of the cold weather and the few sections in the game where you have to worry about staying warm and not venturing too far from heat sources are also not fun.
6/10
50: Mega Man 11 - 6 hours
I've been playing Megman games since the original back on NES and this is one of the few I've actually finished. Normally I just get to Wily's gauntlet and get tired of having to redo early stages to work on the final ones. Megaman 11 has a lot of smart accessibility options that make this sort of scenario a non-issue, including several expanded difficulty modes and an item-shop that lets you give yourself boosts (like extra lives or an auto-charging blaster) if you want a leg-up. I preferred the retro visuals of 9 & 10 at first, but I will say that all the weapons in 11 look and feel great. They all have a unique identify, have big colorful & powerful looking effects, and are all useful even in regular missions which I feel like is not the case for most weapons in the older games. The new double-gear system is smart in that it lets you slow down time to better learn or avoid attacks, or just boost your attack damage, from a shared recharging resource pool. It feels like it is both opening the game up to a more expanded audience and allowing them to learn while also adding some depth for the crowd who is already used to and skilled at Megaman games. I'm glad that they're still making Megaman games and still trying new things.
8/10
51: Professor Layton and the Curious Village HD - 8 hours
This is technically a replay since I played the original DS version 10 years ago. My memory of the game was that it had a much greater emphasis on puzzles than side-activities compared to subsequent Layton games, and that the puzzles were more genuine. Fewer trick questions and misleading puzzles, basically. My theory was always that they burned through most of the classic historical puzzles in Curious village and that subsequent games had to struggle to pad out the puzzle numbers and add more side activities. I think that ended up still feeling true here, but there were more trick questions and straight-faced math problems than I remembered. The HD mobile remake does a great job retaining the visual style of the original game and everything looks much better & sharper than before, especially on a big iPad. I'm happy to saw that the game still holds up really well and that this still feels like the best game in the series.
8/10
52: Valkyria Chronicles 4 - 34 hours
I loved Valkyria Chronicles 1 when it came out 10 years ago and it was one of my favorite games that year despite all the other huge classic games that released alongside it. It had beautiful and unique stylized visuals, simple but fun combat, and a big emphasis on stories and characters. I was sad when the sequels were relegated to portable platforms and abandoned a lot of the story and visual elements that made me a fan of the original. Valkyria Chronicles 4 is finally a true sequel to the original but it doesn't feel like the game has moved forward much in the 10 years that have passed, and it definitely feels dated in a lot of ways. The combat feels clunky and unresponsive, with your characters frequently being interrupted as you try to go into aim-mode and taking return-fire that doesn't feel earned. The turning on tanks works poorly and you end up wasting a lot of AP (stamina) just trying to get them to turn or move in the right direction. The addition of the Grenadier class feels like a negative overall, as they are annoying to fight against, cause a lot of camera issues when you are using them, and lead to a lot of situations where your character is rag-dolled by a mortar shot while you are running, interrupting you yet again. The visuals do look pretty great, but the northern setting with ice & snow that the game quickly moves to is much less interesting and fun to look at than the colorful country-sides and cities of the original. I liked the story and the characters overall, though the Villians are written really poorly and the way the story is told, small series of cut-scenes that dump you out to a menu in-between each, is another way that the game feels dated. I'm really glad I got to play another Valkyria Chronicles game but after playing 4 I'm not sure that this is a series that needs to continue.
7/10
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Master Post:
https://www.resetera.com/posts/3243362
71. Assassins Creed Odyssey - PS4 - 10/22 - 130 hours: Great game hurt by a poor ending. I was considering it for top 3 in my personal GotY, but the family ending hurt an otherwise great game. I loved exploring every nook out in the world and it had some of the best side quests since The Witcher 3.
72. Marvel's Spider-Man: The Heist - PS4 - 10/23 - 3 hours: Started off slow, but by the end I didn't want it to end. Can't wait for the 2nd episode next month.
73. Resistance 2 - PS3 - 10/25 - 8 hours: Enjoyed my replay of it more then the 1st Resistance. The radio broadcasts do a great job of painting the bleakness of the world. Did miss the weapon wheel, but not a big deal and Sgt/Lt Hale is not the great character I remember, but overall still love the game and hopefully we get another entry in the series someday.
https://www.resetera.com/posts/3243362
71. Assassins Creed Odyssey - PS4 - 10/22 - 130 hours: Great game hurt by a poor ending. I was considering it for top 3 in my personal GotY, but the family ending hurt an otherwise great game. I loved exploring every nook out in the world and it had some of the best side quests since The Witcher 3.
72. Marvel's Spider-Man: The Heist - PS4 - 10/23 - 3 hours: Started off slow, but by the end I didn't want it to end. Can't wait for the 2nd episode next month.
73. Resistance 2 - PS3 - 10/25 - 8 hours: Enjoyed my replay of it more then the 1st Resistance. The radio broadcasts do a great job of painting the bleakness of the world. Did miss the weapon wheel, but not a big deal and Sgt/Lt Hale is not the great character I remember, but overall still love the game and hopefully we get another entry in the series someday.
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MAIN THREAD 1
MAIN THREAD 2
#54: New Super Mario Bros (10-21-2018) | 7/10 | System | ~ 7 Hours | Recommend: M
# Overall - 7 | An enjoyable game that never really escalated to top tier of Mario games
Gameplay - 7.8 | Tight controls, some interesting levels. Never felt it did anything unique
Sound - 7 | Your typical Mario jingle. Jolly experience through the game
Story/Online - NA | Not really a story, about gameplay.
Asking Price- 7 | 8 worlds, levels are a decent length each.
#55: Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow (10-23-2018) | 8/10 | GBA | ~ 7 Hours | Recommend: Y
# Overall - 8 | Aggregate of 4 components below. Decimal rounded up or down by personal bias.
Gameplay - 8 | Cool weapons, layout and enemies. Soul system was limited but interesting
Sound - 8 | Some great tunes, especially considering it was on a GBA cartridge
Story/Online - 7 | Game started with interesting story and characters that falls flat
Asking Price- 7.33 | Good Castlevainia game, but don't feel the need to revisit like SOTN
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71. Art of Murder - FBI Confidential - 4 hours
Very mediocre point'n'click adventure game from 2008. It's... Fine to play it once if you're into the genre, I guess. I can't say I hated it, it was okay to play it to take a break from huge AAA titles, but I can't recommend it for everyone. Story is kinda dumb, sometimes it's not clear what player is supposed to do, the engine is an outdated piece of crap that supports only 1024x768 resolution and somehow manages to run like shit on modern hardware. At least there's an option to highlight all points of interest on the screen and the game is not overstaying its welcome. If you'll be able to get it dirt cheap and love this genre then you can give it a try if you really want, but honestly, it's easily skippable and you won't lose much.
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71. Art of Murder - FBI Confidential - 4 hours
Very mediocre point'n'click adventure game from 2008. It's... Fine to play it once if you're into the genre, I guess. I can't say I hated it, it was okay to play it to take a break from huge AAA titles, but I can't recommend it for everyone. Story is kinda dumb, sometimes it's not clear what player is supposed to do, the engine is an outdated piece of crap that supports only 1024x768 resolution and somehow manages to run like shit on modern hardware. At least there's an option to highlight all points of interest on the screen and the game is not overstaying its welcome. If you'll be able to get it dirt cheap and love this genre then you can give it a try if you really want, but honestly, it's easily skippable and you won't lose much.
Original post
53) Fatal Frame 3: The Tormented (PS2, 17 hours)
Somewhat disappointing after the second game, but I'd still put it above the first game.
Currently playing
Titanfall 2
Pixel Puzzle Collection
Pixel Puzzles 2: Space
Spirit Camera: The Cursed Memoir
53) Fatal Frame 3: The Tormented (PS2, 17 hours)
Somewhat disappointing after the second game, but I'd still put it above the first game.
Currently playing
Titanfall 2
Pixel Puzzle Collection
Pixel Puzzles 2: Space
Spirit Camera: The Cursed Memoir
80) StarLink: Battle For Atlas - No, I did not need to spend $90 on this game but here we are. Pretty much only used the Arwing and Fox McCloud, but I suppose it's nice that the options to use all the other pilots and ships and so forth existed. This is a great game to pick up and play so I am fairly confident I will return to it from time to time to get 100% completion, but I am satisfied for now with the week and a half I spent with it. StarLink is a fun and competent game that looks great on Switch and for once made me excited that Star Fox may have a future. Enjoyed this game a good deal but there are few I would recommend it to. Strong 7 out of 10.
Main Post
My first post-52 game update!
53: Castlevania I
A classic that started a new franchise. Still holds up pretty well, but I prefer its remake for the SNES.
54: Ninja Gaiden I
Another classic. They really tried to make a cinematic game with this one. I'm speaking of the NES version, if that wasn't clear. (Although I do like the revival.)
55: Mega Man 11
Capcom actually pulled it off and released a damn good Mega Man game in 2018!
56: Ninja Gaiden II: The Dark Sword of Chaos
Actually holds up as a pretty solid follow-up to the original.
57: Ninja Gaiden III: The Ancient Ship of Doom
Fuck, they made this game even harder by removing unlimited continues, and you lose so much progress when you die. I will admit that I save scummed to get past this one.
58: Castlevania II: Simon's Quest
You could see what they were trying to do, but... Yikes...
59: Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble
The real problem with this one is it was clearly made by the B-team and everyone had already moved on to the N64. It's not bad, but it's clearly the lowest of the SNES DKC Trilogy.
60: Castlevania: Rondo of Blood
It's good. It's real good. Maria FTW! (I also beat Dracula as Richter.)
My first post-52 game update!
53: Castlevania I
A classic that started a new franchise. Still holds up pretty well, but I prefer its remake for the SNES.
54: Ninja Gaiden I
Another classic. They really tried to make a cinematic game with this one. I'm speaking of the NES version, if that wasn't clear. (Although I do like the revival.)
55: Mega Man 11
Capcom actually pulled it off and released a damn good Mega Man game in 2018!
56: Ninja Gaiden II: The Dark Sword of Chaos
Actually holds up as a pretty solid follow-up to the original.
57: Ninja Gaiden III: The Ancient Ship of Doom
Fuck, they made this game even harder by removing unlimited continues, and you lose so much progress when you die. I will admit that I save scummed to get past this one.
58: Castlevania II: Simon's Quest
You could see what they were trying to do, but... Yikes...
59: Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble
The real problem with this one is it was clearly made by the B-team and everyone had already moved on to the N64. It's not bad, but it's clearly the lowest of the SNES DKC Trilogy.
60: Castlevania: Rondo of Blood
It's good. It's real good. Maria FTW! (I also beat Dracula as Richter.)
20. Red Dead Redemption ll
Xbox One X | Time Played: 40 Hours | 10/10
Red Dead Redemption 2 is a perfect celebration of Rockstar Games rich history in the industry and marks a change in their open world psychology. They have created the most immersive cowboy game of all time, which lays the groundwork for future Rockstar Games titles. The game is one of the best releases in history, with so much content and attention to detail. Horse riding has never looked better! This title deserves to be played on your biggest screen.
Xbox One X | Time Played: 40 Hours | 10/10
Red Dead Redemption 2 is a perfect celebration of Rockstar Games rich history in the industry and marks a change in their open world psychology. They have created the most immersive cowboy game of all time, which lays the groundwork for future Rockstar Games titles. The game is one of the best releases in history, with so much content and attention to detail. Horse riding has never looked better! This title deserves to be played on your biggest screen.
[Continued From]
53. Uncharted: Drake's Fortune | PS4 (6.0/10) - 10.27.18
I went into this game with low expectations and was pleasantly surprised, though I struggle to find any high points in its favor aside from the occasional bits of witty banter between three likeable (but a little flat) main characters. As a cover shooter it's a passable experience, and as a story it's a decent Indiana Jones knock-off that you might find coming straight to DVD. The graphics are impressive for its age, though it's hard to say how much of this is due to Naughty Dog's excellent facial animation and how much is Bluepoint's uncanny ability to bring out the best in their remasters. A solid start for the franchise with a whole lot of room to build upon.
54. Sundered | PS4 (6.5/10) - 11.4.18
Sundered is a game with a severe identity crisis. Though it boasts an incredible art style with massive bosses that rival Jotun's finest, it ends up being caught between three entirely separate genres. As a metroidvania it suffers from randomized tilesets that diminish its ability to use environmental storytelling or carefully tweak encounters to stay fresh and interesting across a dozen or so hours. As an RPG it encourages grinding to tough out its most potent enemies but there's little reason to continue exploring the world when only one or two locations will give out hefty amounts of experience (or 'shards' in this case). And as a rogue-like it fails to give any reason to exist at all. If the developers had simply stuck to one or maybe two of those clashing systems, they might have made something that really worked. Instead, these elements fought one another and created a product that was less than the sum of its parts.
55. Astro Bot: Rescue Mission | PSVR (8.0/10) - 12.2.18
After a month-long break from gaming spurred by writing a novel and a week-long vacation, I returned with Black Friday hauls in hand and a shiny new PlayStation VR. Since I got the bundle with Astro Bot and Moss, I decided to give the former a go and ended up getting hooked. Though I don't know whether or not it deserves the infamous(?) "Super Mario 64 of VR" moniker, it's a decidedly great game that rivals the best 3D platformers of the generation. It utilizes virtual reality extremely well and places the player firmly inside the playing space. Though it took some getting used to, I never once felt sick or ill even after playing for several hours (though I'll admit that reality felt a little weird after long bouts of playtime). This is a must-own for the PSVR and is likely one of the best introductions to the system I could have.
56. Persona 5: Dancing in Starlight | PS4 (6.5/10) - 12.12.18
Alright, I'll admit it: I'm a sucker for Persona spin-offs.
Persona 5 is my favorite game of the generation. Its soundtrack lives up to that legacy and continues the trend of its predecessors. So when I read that they'd announced a sequel to my favorite Persona spin-off, I was ecstatic. However, we soon learned that the two new rhythm games would be lacking in story, something I personally felt added a great deal of heart to the original. That story is replaced by a whole new set of Social Links. Getting past my initial skepticism, I appreciate what they did with these and enjoyed seeing the characters of Persona 5 interact without the looming threat of annihilation hanging over their heads. It still felt gutted in some ways and a little light on content, but the remixes are generally good to great and I enjoyed the inclusion of non-remixed versions of many songs. I don't think its soundtrack worked as well as Persona 4's did, but I was more than happy to listen to Rivers in the Desert for the 500th time regardless.
57. Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice | PC (7.5/10) - 12.16.18
Video games have rarely taken on mental illness in such a frank yet meaningful way, and even fewer have gone through the lengths Ninja Theory did to ensure that their work was accurate and realistic. The game never beat around the bush when it came to the darkness that psychosis can bring and the difficulty in living with that pain, and its impressive audio and disturbing visuals were a great way to convey those aspects of Senua's psyche. Though it took a back seat to its cinematics and story, the combat could have been more varied and the puzzle solving could have been more interesting. They were perfectly serviceable and never detracted from the experience, but I can say little more about them. I also felt like the game dragged on just a little and could have wrapped up earlier instead of beating the player over the head with its themes. These issues are mild, though, and I can easily recommend the game to anyone with a strong stomach and a powerful will.
53. Uncharted: Drake's Fortune | PS4 (6.0/10) - 10.27.18
I went into this game with low expectations and was pleasantly surprised, though I struggle to find any high points in its favor aside from the occasional bits of witty banter between three likeable (but a little flat) main characters. As a cover shooter it's a passable experience, and as a story it's a decent Indiana Jones knock-off that you might find coming straight to DVD. The graphics are impressive for its age, though it's hard to say how much of this is due to Naughty Dog's excellent facial animation and how much is Bluepoint's uncanny ability to bring out the best in their remasters. A solid start for the franchise with a whole lot of room to build upon.
54. Sundered | PS4 (6.5/10) - 11.4.18
Sundered is a game with a severe identity crisis. Though it boasts an incredible art style with massive bosses that rival Jotun's finest, it ends up being caught between three entirely separate genres. As a metroidvania it suffers from randomized tilesets that diminish its ability to use environmental storytelling or carefully tweak encounters to stay fresh and interesting across a dozen or so hours. As an RPG it encourages grinding to tough out its most potent enemies but there's little reason to continue exploring the world when only one or two locations will give out hefty amounts of experience (or 'shards' in this case). And as a rogue-like it fails to give any reason to exist at all. If the developers had simply stuck to one or maybe two of those clashing systems, they might have made something that really worked. Instead, these elements fought one another and created a product that was less than the sum of its parts.
55. Astro Bot: Rescue Mission | PSVR (8.0/10) - 12.2.18
After a month-long break from gaming spurred by writing a novel and a week-long vacation, I returned with Black Friday hauls in hand and a shiny new PlayStation VR. Since I got the bundle with Astro Bot and Moss, I decided to give the former a go and ended up getting hooked. Though I don't know whether or not it deserves the infamous(?) "Super Mario 64 of VR" moniker, it's a decidedly great game that rivals the best 3D platformers of the generation. It utilizes virtual reality extremely well and places the player firmly inside the playing space. Though it took some getting used to, I never once felt sick or ill even after playing for several hours (though I'll admit that reality felt a little weird after long bouts of playtime). This is a must-own for the PSVR and is likely one of the best introductions to the system I could have.
56. Persona 5: Dancing in Starlight | PS4 (6.5/10) - 12.12.18
Alright, I'll admit it: I'm a sucker for Persona spin-offs.
Persona 5 is my favorite game of the generation. Its soundtrack lives up to that legacy and continues the trend of its predecessors. So when I read that they'd announced a sequel to my favorite Persona spin-off, I was ecstatic. However, we soon learned that the two new rhythm games would be lacking in story, something I personally felt added a great deal of heart to the original. That story is replaced by a whole new set of Social Links. Getting past my initial skepticism, I appreciate what they did with these and enjoyed seeing the characters of Persona 5 interact without the looming threat of annihilation hanging over their heads. It still felt gutted in some ways and a little light on content, but the remixes are generally good to great and I enjoyed the inclusion of non-remixed versions of many songs. I don't think its soundtrack worked as well as Persona 4's did, but I was more than happy to listen to Rivers in the Desert for the 500th time regardless.
57. Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice | PC (7.5/10) - 12.16.18
Video games have rarely taken on mental illness in such a frank yet meaningful way, and even fewer have gone through the lengths Ninja Theory did to ensure that their work was accurate and realistic. The game never beat around the bush when it came to the darkness that psychosis can bring and the difficulty in living with that pain, and its impressive audio and disturbing visuals were a great way to convey those aspects of Senua's psyche. Though it took a back seat to its cinematics and story, the combat could have been more varied and the puzzle solving could have been more interesting. They were perfectly serviceable and never detracted from the experience, but I can say little more about them. I also felt like the game dragged on just a little and could have wrapped up earlier instead of beating the player over the head with its themes. These issues are mild, though, and I can easily recommend the game to anyone with a strong stomach and a powerful will.
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Game 47 – Dino Crisis (PS1) – 3 hours, 25 minutes – 3.5/5
Finally getting to this one. As an almost lifelong fan of Resident Evil it took long enough. As a fan of those games this came to me really naturally. The movement, combat, and overall gameplay flow feels right out of a RE game just with dinosaurs and more of a puzzle focus. Some of the puzzles in this game were definitely something, definitely had me more stumped than 90% of any of them in the Res.
It was cool to see elements of this that seemed to have carried into RE3 like the choices/branching paths and the pursuing enemies from room to room. I'm sure they aren't anything substantial but I would like to return someday to get the other endings and try the other paths. Looking forward to trying Dino Crisis 2 when I can get to it.
Game 48 – The Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit (PC) – 1 hour, 41 minutes – 3/5
Didn't have high hopes for this one but it caught me off guard. The younger kid as a lead in addition to the super hero framing wasn't particularly appealing so I expected something to enjoy for a short period but not overly invest myself in. In the end this ended up effecting me emotionally on a level some of the lesser big moments in LiS and BtS did.
If this had an effect on me in this way with a less than appealing set-up I'm bracing myself for LiS2 and whatever is to come.
Game 49 – Resident Evil 2 (PS1) – 2 hours, 50 minutes – 4/5
Played Claire A this time. Will probably return for Leon B soon. Got an A rank.
Not a lot to say about this one. While it's my least favorite of the original trilogy of games this is still really special. Love the soundtrack and atmosphere in the police station. I just wish this had a bit more bite to it challenge wise like in 1 and 3.
Game 50 – The Final Station (XB1) – 4 hours, 2 minutes – 1/5
I enjoyed the concept of this one but the gameplay itself was nowhere near good enough to carry a game of this length. Things were already getting repetitive after the first block of levels and there were still 4 or so to go. Lot's of questionable design elements like getting messages/plot developments on the train that you can't read without your passengers going hungry and/or dying that really work against itself.
Would love to see a second attempt at this, still. There's potential.
Game 51 – Theresia (DS) – 11 hours, 54 minutes – 3/5
Great little point and click adventure/horror game. It is a bit overlong in the end and thigns get repetitive with similar feeling labyrinth level designs and puzzles but the atmosphere and story were enough to carry me through.
Just now saw that Arc System Works acquired this in addition to Jake Hunter and a few other IPs last year. There's already been a Jake Hunter game since but hopefully we'll see ports of the games that never left Japan for this series or maybe a new game all together in the future.
Game 52 – Deadly Premonition (360) – 22 hours, 58 minutes – 5/5
One of the most charming games I've ever played. These almost 23 hours flew by in what felt like no time and I could do it all again soon without hesitation. This nails open world type gameplay on a level that I have never seen elsewhere since.
Main Post
#68: Valley (PC) | 3.6h | Oct 11 | ★★★½
Visually great looking first-person platformer. The gameplay was really fun and it all took place in a semi-open world with surprisingly good level design. The story is told through audio logs and tablets that you have to collect which feels quite rewarding. But as much as I enjoyed the platforming aspect the game was a bit too short and too easy.
#69: KC:D – Adventures of Sir Hans Capon (PC) | 9.8h | Oct 17 | ★★★
Great story and characters but overall just not enough content to justify $10 for this DLC. It says 6.4h but I was fooling around with some other non-DLC stuff, the story lasted 1-2h. But a quest line that comes with this DLC was bugged at release which is supposed to add another 2-3h apparently, so I may update the score.
edit: played the new quest line and got another 3h out of it, so I'll adjust the rating. Too bad this quest didn't have anything to do with this DLC's theme, though. Pretty sure it was cut from the main game to justify the price here. Great quest nonetheless.
#70: Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales (PC) | 35.9h | Oct 28 | ★★★★
Finished Thronebreaker after 36h and yeah, it's pretty good. Better than I expected. The story and characters are definitely the game's strong suit but the standard Gwent gameplay can't really live up to that (too easy, even on hardest difficulty). The puzzles were really fun and most of them were quite clever, though. I'd prefer to just have puzzles and no standard Gwent rounds in the next one. At least the game gives you the option to skip battles which I started doing when I reached the last map/area.
#68: Valley (PC) | 3.6h | Oct 11 | ★★★½
Visually great looking first-person platformer. The gameplay was really fun and it all took place in a semi-open world with surprisingly good level design. The story is told through audio logs and tablets that you have to collect which feels quite rewarding. But as much as I enjoyed the platforming aspect the game was a bit too short and too easy.
#69: KC:D – Adventures of Sir Hans Capon (PC) | 9.8h | Oct 17 | ★★★
Great story and characters but overall just not enough content to justify $10 for this DLC. It says 6.4h but I was fooling around with some other non-DLC stuff, the story lasted 1-2h. But a quest line that comes with this DLC was bugged at release which is supposed to add another 2-3h apparently, so I may update the score.
edit: played the new quest line and got another 3h out of it, so I'll adjust the rating. Too bad this quest didn't have anything to do with this DLC's theme, though. Pretty sure it was cut from the main game to justify the price here. Great quest nonetheless.
#70: Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales (PC) | 35.9h | Oct 28 | ★★★★
Finished Thronebreaker after 36h and yeah, it's pretty good. Better than I expected. The story and characters are definitely the game's strong suit but the standard Gwent gameplay can't really live up to that (too easy, even on hardest difficulty). The puzzles were really fun and most of them were quite clever, though. I'd prefer to just have puzzles and no standard Gwent rounds in the next one. At least the game gives you the option to skip battles which I started doing when I reached the last map/area.
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September
35. Marvel's Spider-Man (22/09/2018) - PS4 Pro - 8/10 - 39 Hours
Overall it's a very good game and I still feel conflicted by my score as the story is masterfully executed throughout which tempted me into scoring it higher due to the incredible adrenaline pumping highs and emotional lows throughout Peter/Spidey's journey but ultimately the dull and repetitive side missions come back to haunt it as an overall package.
36. Shadow of the Tomb Raider (26/09/2019) - PC - 9/10 - 34 Hours
I really do think that Eidos Montreal have made the game most faithful to the original source material as well, it actually felt like an old Tomb Raider game in lots of ways rather than just aping off Uncharted - like the original - and some Uncharted/lifeless open-world amalgamation like Rise was. Out of the trilogy it feels the most original in ideas and execution to me and I just love that I was back to just tomb raiding, finding artefacts and exploring exotic locales rather than some out-of-this-world action filled romp.
37. Donut County (26/09/2018) - iOS - 8/10 - 2 Hours
Even though the game is so short I was besotted with the two Protagonists - Mira and BK - in that time (way more than some lengthy AAA games managed in their duration). They were just so cool and likeable with a really interesting dynamic, loveable banter and wicked sense of humour between the two.
38. Moss (27/09/2018) - PS4 Pro & PSVR - 7/10 - 3 Hours
It's one of the weirdest endings I've ever experienced, you reach your objective you've been getting to the entire game and then the game just kind of ends with a 'this is the end of Book 1, go home and rest for the journey is not over yet' so you think this is just the end of the first Act but then the credits start rolling and I was like WTF, that's it?
Seriously underwhelming and it dampened my thoughts a little on the game as a whole as a result. Nevertheless it's still a charming, entertaining puzzle-platformer that I definitely highly recommend if you've got a PSVR headset but like many PSVR games it's not worth picking the system up for, particularly with its short length.
39. Life is Strange 2 - Episode 1: Roads (28/09/2018) - PC - 8/10 - 4 Hours
An emotional roller-coaster throughout. One of the very best openings to a game that I've ever experienced. Truly shocking, heart breaking stuff.
A very different game than the original LiS but with Dontnod's impeccable story-telling and attention to detail at the forefront.
40. Among the Sleep (28/09/2018) - PC - 7/10 - 3 Hours
Initially it just looks like another Amnesia-like but it is a very novel take on the formula. By having you play as a toddler in a big foreboding house it gives a unique perspective that very few games have ever tackled before.
The way it plays isn't exactly incredible but it does the job and never feels like it outstays its welcome.
41. Far Cry 5 - Dead Living Zombies (29/09/2018) PC - 5/10 - 2 Hours
Didn't really rate this at all. It's 7 zombie movie pitches that you play through that can change on the fly but each one was incredible forgettable and frustrating due to a lack of checkpointing.
42. Far Cry 5 - Hours of Darkness (30/09/2018) - PC - 7/10 - 4 Hours
Far Cry's mechanics fit the behind-enemy-lines type scenario incredibly well and when you pair that with Vietnam you get something that was just a perfect fit in terms of locale and mechanics.
It still wasn't amazing or anything but I definitely enjoyed my time with it.
October
43. Bury Me, My Love (10/10/2018) - iOS - 6/10 - 2 Hours
This is definitely one of the more unusual games I've played.
It's a visual novel but set out in the style of a text conversation with some modern day smartphone features like pictures, GPS coordinates, maps etc. too. It plays out in real time (you can adjust this if you want to speed up the story) with you acting as Majd and typing his responses, chatting to his wife/girlfriend Nour.
It tells the story of a refugee escaping the Syrian Civil War and attempting to travel into Europe so on the face of it you'd think the story would be pretty grim and dark, but it is often surprising how normal and down-to-earth the conversations between the two are, often making jokes, bantering with one another and things like that but obviously dark subjects come up when Nour is in a dangerous area or is put in a dangerous situation and all you can do is wait until she comes back 'online' to ask if she's ok.
44. Forza Horizon 4 (14/10/2018) - PC - 8/10 - 14 Hours
I'm a big fan of the Forza Horizon games and this is more of the same really. My personal favourite of the series is FH3 and this just doesn't hit those highs for me.
The music along with the setting just doesn't resonate to the same degree, I think it was also a bit of a let down to discover they'd done away with the story mode and ending so now the game feels a little aimless to me.
Nevertheless, an incredible racing game but just didn't resonate for me as much as FH3.
45. Florence (16/10/2018) - iOS - 6/10 - 45 Minutes
A very short coming-of-age tale. Unfortunately although it was beautifully presented it just failed to resonate with me or be anything more than forgettable. Excellent music and art design but not much substance.
46. Super Lucky's Tale (21/10/2018) - PC - 7/10 - 8 Hours
Finished this the other day, took me 8 hours according to the Xbox App to 100% it (although weirdly I'm still missing 17 clovers but I'm assuming they're DLC?)
Quite enjoyed it. It's nothing extraordinary don't get me wrong but it's just a relatively run-of-the-mill easy going platformer really. Not at all difficult aside from a couple of frustrating moments in levels right near the end and I just enjoyed how chilled out it was and that I could basically not really have to engage my brain too much to be able to get through every level.
There's only 4 World's and another 2 as DLC, I think there's only 20 levels or so in total which isn't much but I felt like it was the perfect length and didn't outstay its welcome at all, I was even compelled to go back and get the odd clover I'd missed in a level and stuff which is rare for me in a platformer. The levels are mostly 3D but there are a few 2D levels every now and again which tend to be a tiny bit more challenging.
47. Unravel Two (27/10/2018) - PC - 6/10 - 4 Hours
Didn't rate this as highly as the first game at all. It just lacked the first game's emotional thread and I felt it was overly short.
I will say though that the level design and puzzle mechanics between the two Yarny's were much improved from the first game and overall it's far less repetitive in its mechanics but nowhere near as memorable as the first.
48. Assassin's Creed Odyssey (28/10/2018) - PC - 9/10 - 99 Hours
I can definitively say that Kassandra and the story in this are definitely the best the series has ever produced. The personal feel to the story makes you care about Kassandra that much more and when certain events play out you genuinely feel for her and for the first time ever in an AC game I found myself getting a little bit emotional in some scenes, the dialogue choices obviously help with this as well as you feel more involved in the plot and directions that it's taken. The writing and care in the dialogue is just something you don't usually see or associate with an AC game, the only low point is the villain which is written so incredibly poorly and so over-acted by the voice actor - luckily though he is only in the game for about 30 minutes max out of a huge story.
Overall though it is a truly astounding game. Not only a truly great AC game but a truly great RPG in its own right.
49. Grow Home (30/10/2018) - PC - 6/10 - 2 Hours
I found this very enjoyable at times but the frustration towards the end and when you continuously fall off the stems just ate into my enjoyment more and more. It has a lot of charm though and feels incredibly original in terms of mechanics, it didn't outstay its welcome either.
November
50. Deltarune - Chapter 1 (02/11/2018) - PC - 7/10 - 3 Hours
The unexpected new game from Undertale creator, Toby Fox.
It's more of the same really? I thought Undertale was incredibly original and should be applauded for its irreverent sense of humour but ultimately a little bit overrated and it's the same case with Deltarune.
Definitely worth playing for free if you've got a PC or Mac though.
51. Battlefield V: War Stories - Nordlys (14/11/2018) - PC - 7/10 - 2 Hours
Quite enjoyed this, similar to BF1's War Stories but had a little more innovation to it. The setting and story was just so personable and unique being set in Norway with you sneaking around, skiing through the snow to save a family member. Some of the base infiltration was similar to BF1 but it had neat little touches like a section where you had to warm yourself up to stop hypothermia.
52. Battlefield V: War Stories - Under No Flag (15/11/2018) - PC - 7/10 - 2 Hours
This didn't really have as much originality as Nordlys. It was pretty much the same as the BF1 War Stories in infiltrating a base Far Cry style and blowing something up. The story added a couple of points to my score because it was personable and - even though the accents were terrible - I felt like even in that short amount of time I'd gotten to like the protagonists and their plight.
Currently Playing:
Red Dead Redemption 2 (PS4)
Next up:
Shenmue I & II (PS4)
Yakuza Kiwami 2 (PS4)
Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age (PS4)
Taiko no Tatsujin (Switch)
Pokemon Let's Go! Pikachu (Switch)
September
35. Marvel's Spider-Man (22/09/2018) - PS4 Pro - 8/10 - 39 Hours
Overall it's a very good game and I still feel conflicted by my score as the story is masterfully executed throughout which tempted me into scoring it higher due to the incredible adrenaline pumping highs and emotional lows throughout Peter/Spidey's journey but ultimately the dull and repetitive side missions come back to haunt it as an overall package.
36. Shadow of the Tomb Raider (26/09/2019) - PC - 9/10 - 34 Hours
I really do think that Eidos Montreal have made the game most faithful to the original source material as well, it actually felt like an old Tomb Raider game in lots of ways rather than just aping off Uncharted - like the original - and some Uncharted/lifeless open-world amalgamation like Rise was. Out of the trilogy it feels the most original in ideas and execution to me and I just love that I was back to just tomb raiding, finding artefacts and exploring exotic locales rather than some out-of-this-world action filled romp.
37. Donut County (26/09/2018) - iOS - 8/10 - 2 Hours
Even though the game is so short I was besotted with the two Protagonists - Mira and BK - in that time (way more than some lengthy AAA games managed in their duration). They were just so cool and likeable with a really interesting dynamic, loveable banter and wicked sense of humour between the two.
38. Moss (27/09/2018) - PS4 Pro & PSVR - 7/10 - 3 Hours
It's one of the weirdest endings I've ever experienced, you reach your objective you've been getting to the entire game and then the game just kind of ends with a 'this is the end of Book 1, go home and rest for the journey is not over yet' so you think this is just the end of the first Act but then the credits start rolling and I was like WTF, that's it?
Seriously underwhelming and it dampened my thoughts a little on the game as a whole as a result. Nevertheless it's still a charming, entertaining puzzle-platformer that I definitely highly recommend if you've got a PSVR headset but like many PSVR games it's not worth picking the system up for, particularly with its short length.
39. Life is Strange 2 - Episode 1: Roads (28/09/2018) - PC - 8/10 - 4 Hours
An emotional roller-coaster throughout. One of the very best openings to a game that I've ever experienced. Truly shocking, heart breaking stuff.
A very different game than the original LiS but with Dontnod's impeccable story-telling and attention to detail at the forefront.
40. Among the Sleep (28/09/2018) - PC - 7/10 - 3 Hours
Initially it just looks like another Amnesia-like but it is a very novel take on the formula. By having you play as a toddler in a big foreboding house it gives a unique perspective that very few games have ever tackled before.
The way it plays isn't exactly incredible but it does the job and never feels like it outstays its welcome.
41. Far Cry 5 - Dead Living Zombies (29/09/2018) PC - 5/10 - 2 Hours
Didn't really rate this at all. It's 7 zombie movie pitches that you play through that can change on the fly but each one was incredible forgettable and frustrating due to a lack of checkpointing.
42. Far Cry 5 - Hours of Darkness (30/09/2018) - PC - 7/10 - 4 Hours
Far Cry's mechanics fit the behind-enemy-lines type scenario incredibly well and when you pair that with Vietnam you get something that was just a perfect fit in terms of locale and mechanics.
It still wasn't amazing or anything but I definitely enjoyed my time with it.
October
43. Bury Me, My Love (10/10/2018) - iOS - 6/10 - 2 Hours
This is definitely one of the more unusual games I've played.
It's a visual novel but set out in the style of a text conversation with some modern day smartphone features like pictures, GPS coordinates, maps etc. too. It plays out in real time (you can adjust this if you want to speed up the story) with you acting as Majd and typing his responses, chatting to his wife/girlfriend Nour.
It tells the story of a refugee escaping the Syrian Civil War and attempting to travel into Europe so on the face of it you'd think the story would be pretty grim and dark, but it is often surprising how normal and down-to-earth the conversations between the two are, often making jokes, bantering with one another and things like that but obviously dark subjects come up when Nour is in a dangerous area or is put in a dangerous situation and all you can do is wait until she comes back 'online' to ask if she's ok.
44. Forza Horizon 4 (14/10/2018) - PC - 8/10 - 14 Hours
I'm a big fan of the Forza Horizon games and this is more of the same really. My personal favourite of the series is FH3 and this just doesn't hit those highs for me.
The music along with the setting just doesn't resonate to the same degree, I think it was also a bit of a let down to discover they'd done away with the story mode and ending so now the game feels a little aimless to me.
Nevertheless, an incredible racing game but just didn't resonate for me as much as FH3.
45. Florence (16/10/2018) - iOS - 6/10 - 45 Minutes
A very short coming-of-age tale. Unfortunately although it was beautifully presented it just failed to resonate with me or be anything more than forgettable. Excellent music and art design but not much substance.
46. Super Lucky's Tale (21/10/2018) - PC - 7/10 - 8 Hours
Finished this the other day, took me 8 hours according to the Xbox App to 100% it (although weirdly I'm still missing 17 clovers but I'm assuming they're DLC?)
Quite enjoyed it. It's nothing extraordinary don't get me wrong but it's just a relatively run-of-the-mill easy going platformer really. Not at all difficult aside from a couple of frustrating moments in levels right near the end and I just enjoyed how chilled out it was and that I could basically not really have to engage my brain too much to be able to get through every level.
There's only 4 World's and another 2 as DLC, I think there's only 20 levels or so in total which isn't much but I felt like it was the perfect length and didn't outstay its welcome at all, I was even compelled to go back and get the odd clover I'd missed in a level and stuff which is rare for me in a platformer. The levels are mostly 3D but there are a few 2D levels every now and again which tend to be a tiny bit more challenging.
47. Unravel Two (27/10/2018) - PC - 6/10 - 4 Hours
Didn't rate this as highly as the first game at all. It just lacked the first game's emotional thread and I felt it was overly short.
I will say though that the level design and puzzle mechanics between the two Yarny's were much improved from the first game and overall it's far less repetitive in its mechanics but nowhere near as memorable as the first.
48. Assassin's Creed Odyssey (28/10/2018) - PC - 9/10 - 99 Hours
I can definitively say that Kassandra and the story in this are definitely the best the series has ever produced. The personal feel to the story makes you care about Kassandra that much more and when certain events play out you genuinely feel for her and for the first time ever in an AC game I found myself getting a little bit emotional in some scenes, the dialogue choices obviously help with this as well as you feel more involved in the plot and directions that it's taken. The writing and care in the dialogue is just something you don't usually see or associate with an AC game, the only low point is the villain which is written so incredibly poorly and so over-acted by the voice actor - luckily though he is only in the game for about 30 minutes max out of a huge story.
Overall though it is a truly astounding game. Not only a truly great AC game but a truly great RPG in its own right.
49. Grow Home (30/10/2018) - PC - 6/10 - 2 Hours
I found this very enjoyable at times but the frustration towards the end and when you continuously fall off the stems just ate into my enjoyment more and more. It has a lot of charm though and feels incredibly original in terms of mechanics, it didn't outstay its welcome either.
November
50. Deltarune - Chapter 1 (02/11/2018) - PC - 7/10 - 3 Hours
The unexpected new game from Undertale creator, Toby Fox.
It's more of the same really? I thought Undertale was incredibly original and should be applauded for its irreverent sense of humour but ultimately a little bit overrated and it's the same case with Deltarune.
Definitely worth playing for free if you've got a PC or Mac though.
51. Battlefield V: War Stories - Nordlys (14/11/2018) - PC - 7/10 - 2 Hours
Quite enjoyed this, similar to BF1's War Stories but had a little more innovation to it. The setting and story was just so personable and unique being set in Norway with you sneaking around, skiing through the snow to save a family member. Some of the base infiltration was similar to BF1 but it had neat little touches like a section where you had to warm yourself up to stop hypothermia.
52. Battlefield V: War Stories - Under No Flag (15/11/2018) - PC - 7/10 - 2 Hours
This didn't really have as much originality as Nordlys. It was pretty much the same as the BF1 War Stories in infiltrating a base Far Cry style and blowing something up. The story added a couple of points to my score because it was personable and - even though the accents were terrible - I felt like even in that short amount of time I'd gotten to like the protagonists and their plight.
Currently Playing:
Red Dead Redemption 2 (PS4)
Next up:
Shenmue I & II (PS4)
Yakuza Kiwami 2 (PS4)
Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age (PS4)
Taiko no Tatsujin (Switch)
Pokemon Let's Go! Pikachu (Switch)
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Main Post
52. Final Fantasy IV - PSTV
Completed 10/30/18
Score - 9/10
Mission Accomplished!
I wanted to go out on a game that I put off for way too long. Some day I will get through all of the Final Fantasy games and this was next on my list. I started it a year or so ago and stopped for no reason. Really glad I was able to play it because I really enjoyed it. It was a tad easy at times. I had a few issues in Slyph Cave and the final boss but overall it was just a really fun RPG.
Really didn't think I would be able to beat 52 games, especially some on my list, with 2 months to spare! Think I might play some more of my VR and bounce between retro and new stuff.
52. Final Fantasy IV - PSTV
Completed 10/30/18
Score - 9/10
Mission Accomplished!
I wanted to go out on a game that I put off for way too long. Some day I will get through all of the Final Fantasy games and this was next on my list. I started it a year or so ago and stopped for no reason. Really glad I was able to play it because I really enjoyed it. It was a tad easy at times. I had a few issues in Slyph Cave and the final boss but overall it was just a really fun RPG.
Really didn't think I would be able to beat 52 games, especially some on my list, with 2 months to spare! Think I might play some more of my VR and bounce between retro and new stuff.
Lately i've been trying to finish my backlog on my PS3 and i'm having a blast. Unfortunately, i don't remember what games i've finished this year and to be honest i didn't play much due to personal issues but now that i'm recovering i feel like my gaming passion is coming back to me.
Before October
1-God of War - 10/10
This game was perfect for me. The whole dynamic between Kratos, Atreus and Mimir was great. The lore talk while on boat was nice to listen to and the combat was Souls but better.
I still need to go back and finish the remaining side quests and maybe try out ng+
2-X-COM 2: War of The Chosen - PC - 8/10
My problem with X COM is that i'm not very patient. Whenever i'm waiting for my research to finish and a random mission appear i try to rush it and lose my soldiers and sometimes i ignore alerts lol. A big upgrade from the first game and War of the Chosen expantion made it even better.
October
2- Sherock Holmes: Crime and Punishment - PS3 - 7/10
I had this game from PS+ for a lot of time and i didn't even think i would try it one day even though i like Sherlock Holmes and i like being a detective. Aside from frame rate issues i think this game is amazing. Each new case comes with a new set of characters that i actually got attached to. The possibility that i might reach a wrong conclusion made me think a lot before any decision and boy do i love Sherlock Holmes.
All the references to previous games made me want to play them. I've read that The Devil's Daughter wasn't that good so idk. Maybe The Testament of Sherlock Holmes next?
3- Journey - PS3 - 7/10
Late to the party. It's a nice relaxing game with amazing art and sound. I actually enjoyed my 3 or 4 hours with it. Didn't encounter anyone online but hey at least i got to experince the game finally.
Edit: More:
4 to 6 - 7 - 8
Before October
1-God of War - 10/10
This game was perfect for me. The whole dynamic between Kratos, Atreus and Mimir was great. The lore talk while on boat was nice to listen to and the combat was Souls but better.
I still need to go back and finish the remaining side quests and maybe try out ng+
2-X-COM 2: War of The Chosen - PC - 8/10
My problem with X COM is that i'm not very patient. Whenever i'm waiting for my research to finish and a random mission appear i try to rush it and lose my soldiers and sometimes i ignore alerts lol. A big upgrade from the first game and War of the Chosen expantion made it even better.
October
2- Sherock Holmes: Crime and Punishment - PS3 - 7/10
I had this game from PS+ for a lot of time and i didn't even think i would try it one day even though i like Sherlock Holmes and i like being a detective. Aside from frame rate issues i think this game is amazing. Each new case comes with a new set of characters that i actually got attached to. The possibility that i might reach a wrong conclusion made me think a lot before any decision and boy do i love Sherlock Holmes.
All the references to previous games made me want to play them. I've read that The Devil's Daughter wasn't that good so idk. Maybe The Testament of Sherlock Holmes next?
3- Journey - PS3 - 7/10
Late to the party. It's a nice relaxing game with amazing art and sound. I actually enjoyed my 3 or 4 hours with it. Didn't encounter anyone online but hey at least i got to experince the game finally.
Edit: More:
4 to 6 - 7 - 8
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I did! I hit 52! It's so weird because I feel like I've barely put a dent into my backlog and still have a bunch of small things to get through and finish up. I feel I should go back and update my playtimes
MAIN POST
51. KOF XIV + Season 2/ver. 3.0 (PS4) - 4/4 ("Completed" Sept 30, 2018)
Attempted All Trials | Played Online 15+ hr w/ S2 Characters
I was surprised to hear that SNK was adding four new characters this year: Oswald, Heidern, Najd, Blue Mary. I love this game, I should play it more but I'm intimidated by the online community and very few of my FGC fans care for this game haha. I played this on and off, and did all the trials - Blue Mary's were so weird, I had some trouble wrapping my head around her moves. Played online for 15+ with new and old characters so I felt this deserved to be here. Still a great game, not much to say.
52. Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep Final Mix HD (PS4) - 4/4 (Completed Oct 21, 2018)
Completed Story | Critical Difficulty | 100% Trophies | Completed All Trinity Reports
I had played this game three times in the past but never attempted to 100% the game until now. I always thought of this as one of my favorite games in the franchise, but after doing everything in the game for the Platinum, I think I'm going to have to move it down just a little. The thing I hate about the game is that for it to be considered "complete", you have to play through all of the end game content three times for each character. The content itself is great, the new bosses introduced in Final Mix were pretty fun once you learn their patterns (except I still cheesed out Vanitas Remnant with Strike Raids behind a rock). I like the deck system but in end game you really just use like three moves since you can be hit out of the bigger, flashier moves - it also makes the game look less interesting than KH2. Ah, I can't bring myself to hate it too much though. I ultimately still love this game, otherwise I wouldn't have put so much time into it and I'm glad this is my 52nd game this year.
53. Marvel's Spider-Man: The City That Never Sleeps - The Heist (PS4) - 4/4 (Completed Oct 27, 2018)
Completed Story | Amazing Difficulty | 100% Trophies | Additionally Beat New Game + on Ultimate
More Spider-Man, just like I wanted! I loved the character dynamic between Peter and Felicia here, it feels a bit cliche but thematically dense as well - Peter being naive and wanting to help everyone, Felicia being good at heart but struggling with trust and intimacy. I was happy to be able to swing through NYC again, the DLC was short but it scratched my urge just fine. The paintings tasks had an interesting side story but I wish it were a bit more involved and tied into the plot somehow. The Screwball tasks were a nice addition and ties into the main game well but I wish there were more of them. I also played through NG+ on the hardest difficulty for the trophies, skipping all the tasks and cutscenes so it didn't take too long. Keeping all your previous progress, I didn't find the new difficulty hard to beat at all. This game may have an outdated gameplay loop but I still find it really enjoyable to swing and fight.
54. INSIDE (PS4) - 4/4 (Completed Oct 28, 2018)
Completed Story | 100 % Trophies | Found All Secrets | Completed Secret Ending
I thoroughly enjoyed this game more than Limbo. It feels better to play, deaths don't feel unfair, the environment was interesting, the story told through said environment was intriguing and kept my going, and that last act was fantastic! I don't want to spoil it but I'm excited to see what that iam8bit and RealDoll collaboration is. I want more games that let me play as non-humanoid characters. There's interesting similarities between this and Limbo, fan theories are fun to read. I was hesitant after Limbo but now I can't wait for what they do next - something about an astronaut and a falling star?
55. Destiny 2 (PS4) - 4/4 (Completed Oct 28, 2018)
Completed Story | Played as Warlock | 12% Trophies
Didn't play Destiny 1 and really only got this because it was free on PS+. I was surprised by how much I ended up liking this game, every bit of feedback from your actions feels good and they managed to make Diablo into an FPS. At first I was trying to pay attention to the story as much as possible but I got bored by the end. I can't see myself sticking with this game enough to do all the small things in it and playing through again in the other two classes. However, I enjoyed it enough that I'll jump back in for the story stuff in the DLC and eventually Forsaken.
56. Kemono Friends Picross (3DS) - 3/4 (Completed Oct 30, 2018)
Completed All Picross, Mega Picross, and Clip Picross Puzzles
This was a surprise drop for me, I didn't see any news of this and one day just saw a bunch of jokes on Twitter about this. I had to grab it because I can't resist (branded) Picross. I was a bit disappointed though - all the puzzles are just faces. Every single one. There's just as many puzzles and features in this game as Picross S2, but there was this odd sense of monotony to it. I don't care much for Kemono Friends and this game didn't sell me on it either.
MAIN POST
51. KOF XIV + Season 2/ver. 3.0 (PS4) - 4/4 ("Completed" Sept 30, 2018)
Attempted All Trials | Played Online 15+ hr w/ S2 Characters
I was surprised to hear that SNK was adding four new characters this year: Oswald, Heidern, Najd, Blue Mary. I love this game, I should play it more but I'm intimidated by the online community and very few of my FGC fans care for this game haha. I played this on and off, and did all the trials - Blue Mary's were so weird, I had some trouble wrapping my head around her moves. Played online for 15+ with new and old characters so I felt this deserved to be here. Still a great game, not much to say.
52. Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep Final Mix HD (PS4) - 4/4 (Completed Oct 21, 2018)
Completed Story | Critical Difficulty | 100% Trophies | Completed All Trinity Reports
I had played this game three times in the past but never attempted to 100% the game until now. I always thought of this as one of my favorite games in the franchise, but after doing everything in the game for the Platinum, I think I'm going to have to move it down just a little. The thing I hate about the game is that for it to be considered "complete", you have to play through all of the end game content three times for each character. The content itself is great, the new bosses introduced in Final Mix were pretty fun once you learn their patterns (except I still cheesed out Vanitas Remnant with Strike Raids behind a rock). I like the deck system but in end game you really just use like three moves since you can be hit out of the bigger, flashier moves - it also makes the game look less interesting than KH2. Ah, I can't bring myself to hate it too much though. I ultimately still love this game, otherwise I wouldn't have put so much time into it and I'm glad this is my 52nd game this year.
53. Marvel's Spider-Man: The City That Never Sleeps - The Heist (PS4) - 4/4 (Completed Oct 27, 2018)
Completed Story | Amazing Difficulty | 100% Trophies | Additionally Beat New Game + on Ultimate
More Spider-Man, just like I wanted! I loved the character dynamic between Peter and Felicia here, it feels a bit cliche but thematically dense as well - Peter being naive and wanting to help everyone, Felicia being good at heart but struggling with trust and intimacy. I was happy to be able to swing through NYC again, the DLC was short but it scratched my urge just fine. The paintings tasks had an interesting side story but I wish it were a bit more involved and tied into the plot somehow. The Screwball tasks were a nice addition and ties into the main game well but I wish there were more of them. I also played through NG+ on the hardest difficulty for the trophies, skipping all the tasks and cutscenes so it didn't take too long. Keeping all your previous progress, I didn't find the new difficulty hard to beat at all. This game may have an outdated gameplay loop but I still find it really enjoyable to swing and fight.
54. INSIDE (PS4) - 4/4 (Completed Oct 28, 2018)
Completed Story | 100 % Trophies | Found All Secrets | Completed Secret Ending
I thoroughly enjoyed this game more than Limbo. It feels better to play, deaths don't feel unfair, the environment was interesting, the story told through said environment was intriguing and kept my going, and that last act was fantastic! I don't want to spoil it but I'm excited to see what that iam8bit and RealDoll collaboration is. I want more games that let me play as non-humanoid characters. There's interesting similarities between this and Limbo, fan theories are fun to read. I was hesitant after Limbo but now I can't wait for what they do next - something about an astronaut and a falling star?
55. Destiny 2 (PS4) - 4/4 (Completed Oct 28, 2018)
Completed Story | Played as Warlock | 12% Trophies
Didn't play Destiny 1 and really only got this because it was free on PS+. I was surprised by how much I ended up liking this game, every bit of feedback from your actions feels good and they managed to make Diablo into an FPS. At first I was trying to pay attention to the story as much as possible but I got bored by the end. I can't see myself sticking with this game enough to do all the small things in it and playing through again in the other two classes. However, I enjoyed it enough that I'll jump back in for the story stuff in the DLC and eventually Forsaken.
56. Kemono Friends Picross (3DS) - 3/4 (Completed Oct 30, 2018)
Completed All Picross, Mega Picross, and Clip Picross Puzzles
This was a surprise drop for me, I didn't see any news of this and one day just saw a bunch of jokes on Twitter about this. I had to grab it because I can't resist (branded) Picross. I was a bit disappointed though - all the puzzles are just faces. Every single one. There's just as many puzzles and features in this game as Picross S2, but there was this odd sense of monotony to it. I don't care much for Kemono Friends and this game didn't sell me on it either.
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Well I'm so behind there's no chance of hitting 52 this year but that's an aside.
Main post
GAME #09: Dark Souls III
From Software - PC - ★★★★★
Completion State:
Completed NG and NG+ for a few different character types (179 hours, 77% Steam achievements).
Comments:
Let me get this out of the way upfront: I think this game is an astonishing thing, the best in an already incredible series and probably one of my favourites of all time. That said I recognise it is far from perfect and most definitely not a game for everyone.
Right from the start the game explains very little in terms of mechanics or lore. After an initial brief series of instructions presented as notes in a short tutorial section of a level the player is pretty much left alone to fight the first boss and find a way through the dark and dangerous Kingdom of Lothric. There are some atmospheric cut scenes here and there but these attempt to explain very little about the world and the stories of the characters within. The mythology of Lothric is divulged sparingly and in a typically From Software arcane fashion. Most of the detail is hidden in item descriptions or implied rather than presented directly and plainly like most games do. What story is told is done so in an entirely abstracted way, open ended and ultimately up to me to put together and interpret as I see fit.
I have no doubt this lack of clarity and lack of cohesive told story, puts off people in their droves but in the context of a game so jam packed with Dark Souls references and tributes I don't think it really matters. If I had disliked DeS, DaS and DaS2, this wasn't ever going to change my mind, it didn't even bother trying. "Here's some Dark Souls, get stuck in" was pretty much the entirety of the message.
So get stuck in I did. I have over 170 hours into the game and nary a one feels wasted. Around every corner of the fantastically designed levels is a new challenge, a new From recipe enemy, a new cool weapon or armour piece. There's always something to find, something to see, something to try, something to get stuck into. Everything feels lovingly and knowledgeably placed to challenge but not frustrate, giving enough encouragement and enough give to make me feel like I can do it even when I've just been bodied for the fifth time by a seemingly unassailable enemy. And hell, when I do get through, I feel like punching the air in glee and satisfaction.
There's some skill and level checks in here but nothing ever felt unfair. The bosses are powerful and at time pains in the proverbials but there are always several viable strategies to beat them and the game is more generous with bonfire placements than ever before. It never feels like a chore to go up against them several times and the feeling of "I'm getting better at this" is tangible enough to slice with a sharp +10 Uchigatana.
I'm a very average player, and this game is unapologetic in reminding me of that often but it doesn't do so because it doesn't like me or because it wants to shame me, it does so because it wants me to get better. To git gud. But if I can't, well it's perfectly happy with that too.
"Grind the hell out of the Dragonkin Mausoleum if you like my friend, I don't care, I'm just here enjoying this fine Siegbrau".
The game doesn't penalise me beyond my time for being a shameless cheese head. There's no bad ending, there's no S ranks, there's no stats, there's no extra hard difficulty setting to goad me in the menu. It's just me, the game and as many hours as I want or can sink into it.
Superb.
Main post
GAME #09: Dark Souls III
From Software - PC - ★★★★★
Completion State:
Completed NG and NG+ for a few different character types (179 hours, 77% Steam achievements).
Comments:
Let me get this out of the way upfront: I think this game is an astonishing thing, the best in an already incredible series and probably one of my favourites of all time. That said I recognise it is far from perfect and most definitely not a game for everyone.
Right from the start the game explains very little in terms of mechanics or lore. After an initial brief series of instructions presented as notes in a short tutorial section of a level the player is pretty much left alone to fight the first boss and find a way through the dark and dangerous Kingdom of Lothric. There are some atmospheric cut scenes here and there but these attempt to explain very little about the world and the stories of the characters within. The mythology of Lothric is divulged sparingly and in a typically From Software arcane fashion. Most of the detail is hidden in item descriptions or implied rather than presented directly and plainly like most games do. What story is told is done so in an entirely abstracted way, open ended and ultimately up to me to put together and interpret as I see fit.
I have no doubt this lack of clarity and lack of cohesive told story, puts off people in their droves but in the context of a game so jam packed with Dark Souls references and tributes I don't think it really matters. If I had disliked DeS, DaS and DaS2, this wasn't ever going to change my mind, it didn't even bother trying. "Here's some Dark Souls, get stuck in" was pretty much the entirety of the message.
So get stuck in I did. I have over 170 hours into the game and nary a one feels wasted. Around every corner of the fantastically designed levels is a new challenge, a new From recipe enemy, a new cool weapon or armour piece. There's always something to find, something to see, something to try, something to get stuck into. Everything feels lovingly and knowledgeably placed to challenge but not frustrate, giving enough encouragement and enough give to make me feel like I can do it even when I've just been bodied for the fifth time by a seemingly unassailable enemy. And hell, when I do get through, I feel like punching the air in glee and satisfaction.
There's some skill and level checks in here but nothing ever felt unfair. The bosses are powerful and at time pains in the proverbials but there are always several viable strategies to beat them and the game is more generous with bonfire placements than ever before. It never feels like a chore to go up against them several times and the feeling of "I'm getting better at this" is tangible enough to slice with a sharp +10 Uchigatana.
I'm a very average player, and this game is unapologetic in reminding me of that often but it doesn't do so because it doesn't like me or because it wants to shame me, it does so because it wants me to get better. To git gud. But if I can't, well it's perfectly happy with that too.
"Grind the hell out of the Dragonkin Mausoleum if you like my friend, I don't care, I'm just here enjoying this fine Siegbrau".
The game doesn't penalise me beyond my time for being a shameless cheese head. There's no bad ending, there's no S ranks, there's no stats, there's no extra hard difficulty setting to goad me in the menu. It's just me, the game and as many hours as I want or can sink into it.
Superb.
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Games 1-4
Games 5-9
Games 10-13
Games 14-17
Games 18-22
Games 23-30
Games 31-42
Games 43-47:
#43
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
PS3
Completed: September 23, 2018
Playtime: 27h 30m
Best entry in the series by a significant margin for me so far. Presentation - audio, visuals and overall style - is top notch, the game still looks and plays great today. Story is the most cohesive it's ever been in MGS, it even almost makes sense sometimes. Stealth gameplay is well-designed, and boss encounters are awesome and memorable (as expected by now). If I had to name things I didn't really like, one would be annoyingly long alert timers - it's no fun to be forced to sit doing nothing for 80-90 seconds every time you need to hide after being spotted, even if the accompanying music is cool. And another would be the game's constant and blatant shipping of Snake/Eva, I never felt that she could or should be trusted.
#44
Undertale
PC
Completed: October 05, 2018
Playtime: 14h 41m
Charming indie game which is a lot deeper than it looks on the surface, and boasts a great soundtrack. I enjoyed my first blind playthrough the most, but kind of screwed it up by
Unfortunately that led to me having to replay it again as I was trying to follow the game's directions to get a better ending, only to eventually be told I had to redo yet another thing to get one. So um ... why didn't you tell me all the requirements the first time, game? Don't get me wrong, you're fun, but not 3-playthroughs-in-a-row level of fun. This kind of spoiled my impression of Undertale, since it just felt like I was being jerked around at that point. I stopped there and looked up what I missed on youtube later, which turned out to be quite a lot of important stuff which I wish I could have experienced myself.
#45
Persona 5
PS4
Completed: October 12, 2018
Playtime: 151h 29m
Finally finished this latest entry in one of my favorite franchises, been playing this game for months. Played it on Hard difficulty since P4G felt very easy on normal, and a few boss battles definitely kept me on my toes. Loved most of it, although after a strong start it kind of loses its pacing and drags on towards the end. Great visuals and stylish presentation of everything including the UI and transitional loading screens. Charming cast of party characters as usual, although I think I still prefer P4's team a bit more. Glad to see premade dungeons make a comeback, really helps each case feel unique. My main complaint is with the story, to be more precise with its portrayal of villains.
#46
Prey: Mooncrash
PC
Completed: October 18, 2018
Playtime: 18h 17m
An original idea for an expansion for sure, I don't think anyone expected a Prey/rogue-like crossover. I wasn't sure if I was going to like this as much as I did the base game, but it turned out to be quite fun. Finished all characters' story objectives and completed all kasma orders, including the big "escape with everyone in a single run" one. It seems brutally difficult at first when you have nothing, but as you collect neuromods and fabrication plans, and learn the map layout and various helpful tricks the game teaches you (like that the disruptor gun can get you through the blocked gates), it gets much easier to survive and get your objectives done. Didn't like the corruption level mechanic very much - it forces you to rush at all times, especially in the later parts of the game, which means you can't afford to explore everywhere and read all the email terminals (something I enjoyed doing in Prey).
#47
XCOM 2: War Of The Chosen
PC
Completed: October 29, 2018
Playtime: 74h 25m
XCOM 2 was one of the best games I played last year, and this expansion gave me an excuse I needed to return to it. It's excellent, adding multiple new layers and interesting options into the game. Bumped difficulty to Commander this time to compensate for convenience mods I used on Steam which made a game a bit easier (more lenient mission timers and more utility item slots for all soldiers). I probably won't play another campaign, but I definitely want to come back some time to play the missions from the Tactical Legacy Pack which released midway through this playthrough.
Currently playing:
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Switch)
Divinity: Original Sin II (PC)
Nier (PS3)
Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance (GameCube)
Heavy Rain (PS4)
The MISSING: J.J. Macfield and the Island of Memories (PC)
Games 5-9
Games 10-13
Games 14-17
Games 18-22
Games 23-30
Games 31-42
Games 43-47:
#43
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
PS3
Completed: September 23, 2018
Playtime: 27h 30m
Best entry in the series by a significant margin for me so far. Presentation - audio, visuals and overall style - is top notch, the game still looks and plays great today. Story is the most cohesive it's ever been in MGS, it even almost makes sense sometimes. Stealth gameplay is well-designed, and boss encounters are awesome and memorable (as expected by now). If I had to name things I didn't really like, one would be annoyingly long alert timers - it's no fun to be forced to sit doing nothing for 80-90 seconds every time you need to hide after being spotted, even if the accompanying music is cool. And another would be the game's constant and blatant shipping of Snake/Eva, I never felt that she could or should be trusted.
#44
Undertale
PC
Completed: October 05, 2018
Playtime: 14h 41m
Charming indie game which is a lot deeper than it looks on the surface, and boasts a great soundtrack. I enjoyed my first blind playthrough the most, but kind of screwed it up by
accidentally killing Toriel. Expected that fight to end the way the final boss fight later did - with an option to spare your opponent.
#45
Persona 5
PS4
Completed: October 12, 2018
Playtime: 151h 29m
Finally finished this latest entry in one of my favorite franchises, been playing this game for months. Played it on Hard difficulty since P4G felt very easy on normal, and a few boss battles definitely kept me on my toes. Loved most of it, although after a strong start it kind of loses its pacing and drags on towards the end. Great visuals and stylish presentation of everything including the UI and transitional loading screens. Charming cast of party characters as usual, although I think I still prefer P4's team a bit more. Glad to see premade dungeons make a comeback, really helps each case feel unique. My main complaint is with the story, to be more precise with its portrayal of villains.
It feels like each next introduced adversary gets more and more aggravatingly pompous and demonically evil, to the point of absurdity. Then after the case is wrapped up and the next case begins, we eventually learn that that last dude didn't have much choice, was abused and shit on by his boss, was only manipulated into being evil by the next big baddy, yadda yadda etc. etc. Like, for heaven's sake game, if you want me to feel any sympathy for a certain scumbag at a certain point in your story, don't make a point of showing me multiple cutscenes highlighting how absurdly evil and cruel they are earlier in the same story.
#46
Prey: Mooncrash
PC
Completed: October 18, 2018
Playtime: 18h 17m
An original idea for an expansion for sure, I don't think anyone expected a Prey/rogue-like crossover. I wasn't sure if I was going to like this as much as I did the base game, but it turned out to be quite fun. Finished all characters' story objectives and completed all kasma orders, including the big "escape with everyone in a single run" one. It seems brutally difficult at first when you have nothing, but as you collect neuromods and fabrication plans, and learn the map layout and various helpful tricks the game teaches you (like that the disruptor gun can get you through the blocked gates), it gets much easier to survive and get your objectives done. Didn't like the corruption level mechanic very much - it forces you to rush at all times, especially in the later parts of the game, which means you can't afford to explore everywhere and read all the email terminals (something I enjoyed doing in Prey).
#47
XCOM 2: War Of The Chosen
PC
Completed: October 29, 2018
Playtime: 74h 25m
XCOM 2 was one of the best games I played last year, and this expansion gave me an excuse I needed to return to it. It's excellent, adding multiple new layers and interesting options into the game. Bumped difficulty to Commander this time to compensate for convenience mods I used on Steam which made a game a bit easier (more lenient mission timers and more utility item slots for all soldiers). I probably won't play another campaign, but I definitely want to come back some time to play the missions from the Tactical Legacy Pack which released midway through this playthrough.
Currently playing:
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Switch)
Divinity: Original Sin II (PC)
Nier (PS3)
Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance (GameCube)
Heavy Rain (PS4)
The MISSING: J.J. Macfield and the Island of Memories (PC)
Original Post
https://www.resetera.com/posts/2732806/
Heres my October round up.
October
43. Astro Bot: Robot Rescue - Amazing. The Mario 64 of VR.
44. Waddle Home - meh. bought it back when it was on sale when PSVR was new and finally got around to it.
45. Moss - the gameplay was good but the atmosphere was amazing.
46. I Expect You To Die - Amazing intro and fun gameplay.
47. Rick and Morty: Virtual Rickality - Thought it was alright. Probably better if youre familiar with the source material.
48. Resident Evil: Revelations - Really enjoyed the single player mode.
Amazing month of VR with Astro Bot and Moss. Residebt evil revelations single player campaign was even better the the sequel IMO
https://www.resetera.com/posts/2732806/
Heres my October round up.
October
43. Astro Bot: Robot Rescue - Amazing. The Mario 64 of VR.
44. Waddle Home - meh. bought it back when it was on sale when PSVR was new and finally got around to it.
45. Moss - the gameplay was good but the atmosphere was amazing.
46. I Expect You To Die - Amazing intro and fun gameplay.
47. Rick and Morty: Virtual Rickality - Thought it was alright. Probably better if youre familiar with the source material.
48. Resident Evil: Revelations - Really enjoyed the single player mode.
Amazing month of VR with Astro Bot and Moss. Residebt evil revelations single player campaign was even better the the sequel IMO
OP
OP
Rejigged the Hall of Fame™ to be less of an eyesore in the first post! Hopefully folks prefer it, and don't mind me downsizing your avatars to better present everyone that's overcome the challenge this year.
Also added a 52 challenge icon concept, where I'll increment the icon by 1 each year someone beats the challenge. I.e. Spyware will be '3' come 2020 as he's beat it 3 times in a row, I'm sure. A small recognition and bonus 'fame' for those that consistently join in and beat the challenge.
Also added a 52 challenge icon concept, where I'll increment the icon by 1 each year someone beats the challenge. I.e. Spyware will be '3' come 2020 as he's beat it 3 times in a row, I'm sure. A small recognition and bonus 'fame' for those that consistently join in and beat the challenge.
Main Post!
44) Shadow of the Tomb Raider (PlayStation 4)
Day Finished: 9/6
Score: 8/10
The weakest of the reboot trilogy, yet still a very fun game. Love Lara as a character.
45) Radiant One (PC)
Day Finished: 9/16
Score: 6/10
A really short but neat little narrative game. Wish it went a little deeper into its message though.
46) Stone (PC)
Day Finished: 9/18
Score: 5/10
I liked the idea of this super Australian hip-hop stoner noire, but it needed a lot more work.
47) Transference (PlayStation 4)
Day Finished: 9/19
Score: 8.5/10
Has atmosphere to spare. I really loved a lot about this game. Would love to see more.
48) Creed: Rise to Glory (PlayStation VR)
Day Finished: 9/24
Score: 8/10
I originally suspected a licensed VR boxing game would be bad. Turns out I was crazy wrong.
49) Call of Cthulhu (PlayStation 4)
Day Finished: 10/23
Score: 6/10
It tries so hard, and the story is fantastic. But everything around it is super janky at best, and little else.
44) Shadow of the Tomb Raider (PlayStation 4)
Day Finished: 9/6
Score: 8/10
The weakest of the reboot trilogy, yet still a very fun game. Love Lara as a character.
45) Radiant One (PC)
Day Finished: 9/16
Score: 6/10
A really short but neat little narrative game. Wish it went a little deeper into its message though.
46) Stone (PC)
Day Finished: 9/18
Score: 5/10
I liked the idea of this super Australian hip-hop stoner noire, but it needed a lot more work.
47) Transference (PlayStation 4)
Day Finished: 9/19
Score: 8.5/10
Has atmosphere to spare. I really loved a lot about this game. Would love to see more.
48) Creed: Rise to Glory (PlayStation VR)
Day Finished: 9/24
Score: 8/10
I originally suspected a licensed VR boxing game would be bad. Turns out I was crazy wrong.
49) Call of Cthulhu (PlayStation 4)
Day Finished: 10/23
Score: 6/10
It tries so hard, and the story is fantastic. But everything around it is super janky at best, and little else.
Original post
54) Titanfall 2 (Origin, 6 hours)
What a ride. I honestly can't remember the last time I had such a great time with an FPS single player campaign.
55) Spirit Camera: The Cursed Memoir (3DS, 2 hours and 30 minutes)
Well, I guess it works, sort of. Very finicky and clumsy and as a result not scary at all. I do like the idea, but the execution is just bad, sadly.
Currently playing
Pixel Puzzle Collection
Pixel Puzzles 2: Space
Last Bible III
54) Titanfall 2 (Origin, 6 hours)
What a ride. I honestly can't remember the last time I had such a great time with an FPS single player campaign.
55) Spirit Camera: The Cursed Memoir (3DS, 2 hours and 30 minutes)
Well, I guess it works, sort of. Very finicky and clumsy and as a result not scary at all. I do like the idea, but the execution is just bad, sadly.
Currently playing
Pixel Puzzle Collection
Pixel Puzzles 2: Space
Last Bible III
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