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February update: 10/52
Rhythm game month!!!
6. February 8th | Hi-Fi Rush | PC | 11h | ☆☆☆½(/5)
You know, Hi-Fi Rush really is a very easy game to root for. It came out of nowhere, is a (probably) fairly low budget game from a big studio going out of their comfort zone and going for the very unexpected "6th generation action game, but with the smoothness of modern controls". It also looks fantastic, like it was created in an alternate universe where Jet Set Radio was a huge hit and set the precedent for what future AAA should strive to look like, and it also has a really nice sense of humor and great character writing to boot. Conversations around video game pricing are the least interesting thing in the entire world, but I guess it doesn't hurt that it's also decently cheap while providing what feels like a complete package right out of the gate.
Now, I really did enjoy Hi-Fi Rush. It really has well written characters, is oftne very funny, looks fantastic and has some of the best animation work in the biz. On top of that, the combination of character action and rhythm game that really should not work as well as it does, is a surprising delight. I mean, it's not the best example of character action or of a rhythm game, but it does both well enough and shakes things up with different environmental hazards, enemies with different types of shields that require you to call in different partners on the fly (which felt surprisingly intuitive and not clunky at all!), weapons and parry mini-games that it never stops feeling fresh or boring in the least. It's also just super good at giving the player clear feedback when hitting on the beat, making each of those critical hits feel super satisfying. The boss fights are also extremely good, being challenging but fair and all very distinct from each other, though I wish I could just do refights without having to play the levels that come before them in some cases where the boss isn't their own stage.
The thing is, while Hi-Fi Rush really excels in combat scenarios and how good those feel to play, a lot of the game is pretty terrible feeling platforming. Chai (the main protagonist) is a very mobile guy, but his jumping just doesn't feel good and the only way to move around quickly is to constantly dash when I'd rather just be running normally and not have to tap dash three times in a row and then restart the cycle over and over again. I'll say that I do enjoy that there are some secrets hidden within the stages, though, but good platforming or not, the level designs also just aren't very intersting. They lack environmental variety as a whole, have pretty lackluster level geometry and often just feel like they go on for way too long (never forget having to climb two awful towers in the same stage), which really dampened my enjoyment of the game as a whole, since I knew after every combat encounter, I'd have to do some lackluster platforming across a pretty uninspired level, sometimes calling in my partners for very easy, short timing based mini-games that, outside of the Peppermint ones, just feel like a complete waste of time.
But it looks so good! The soundtrack is perfectly suited for hitting things on the beat (and also for listening to), and some of the needle drops are just *incredible*! The characters are great
except for Chai who's honestly just kind of an annoying idiot for most of the game! The plot's decently fun! The combat is very good! Fantastic boss fights! I swear I had a good time with the game! I don't really get the masterpiece claims thrown at it by so many people, but it is a fun start to this year of video games. Hopeful a sequel (which has to happen given its success, right?) can iron out some of the issues, but I'll most likely play it anyway for that sweet, sweet rhythm action.
Soundtrack highlight:
Wolfgang's 5th Symphony /
The Fizzith
7. February 10th | GOODBYE WORLD | Switch | 1h 25m | ☆☆½
Now here's a game I really wanted to love. Even bought it on release late last year, but like a lot of games just didn't play it then for whatever reason. It's just been sitting there in my Switch library, waiting to be played for a few months. Now that I finally have played it... man, what a disappointment.
GOODBYE WORLD, for those who don't know, is a very story focused game with a few platforming segments (which are supposed to be the game the protagonists are developing throughout the story) thrown in between the cutscenes, and it is not a game without any merits. The picture I'm using here is for some reason extremely compressed, but when actually playing, the pixel art with the soft filter over it is very pleasing to the eye, and the animations do give the few characters involved in the story some distinct quirks. If you've ever had any interest in creating anything, or honestly just an interest in the arts in general, the overall plot about how long one can chase after their dreams before giving up, and what really drives one to want to create something do hit home at times, as does some of the dialogue which can hit uncomfortably close to home.
What's so frustrating is that these good parts are really good, but the writing as a whole really lets the game down. The fact that it's just under an hour and a half shouldn't be an issue since it's basically just telling a story with almost no actual gameplay and ~90 minutes for that, but it wastes so much of that time for some bizarre reason doing flashbacks to things I've just seen in the game and really don't need to be reminded of, and while some of the dialogue absolutely does hit, but it felt like the writer had basically one idea about anxiety and being an indie game developer, but couldn't really find a way to make a whole game out of it so a lot of the scenes feel like repeats of ones I've watched, just with a few words replaced but with the same meaning behind it all. It's not terrible, but feels like the topic could have been explored a bit more.
What is terrible, though, is the game's ending. I truly do not know what went through the writer's (and I think this game was developed by one person, so also the developer) head when thinking it up. First of all, it ends on a terrible fake-out ending that would be way too drastic to work at all within this story, but then it pivots after the credits where it's revealed to be a joke, and I just... I get so tired, because I no longer know what's sincere in this story and what isn't. Like, there's no noticeable distinction between the ending and the rest of the game, so is it all not meant to be taken seriously? Is it just a parody of what the developer percieves as "deep" indie games of recent years that tackle similar issues around mental health and the human condition? I honestly don't know, but as it is in this very cryptic nature in which it is presented, it leaves a very bad aftertaste and really lowers my appreciation of what was otherwise a game with good intentions, but that maybe could have felt more like it wasn't a first draft. Too bad, but it is what it is.
The little 8-bit puzzle game was pretty fun though, and surprisingly difficult. Probably could have played a separate game that's just those stages.
Soundtrack higlight:
Honestly can't remember whether this game even had any music or not?
8. February 15th | Fire Emblem Engage | Switch | 47h 10m | ☆☆☆½
Another one where I had high expectations, and where they sort of weren't lived up to. Should probably put the disclaimer here that Three Houses is possibly my favorite Switch game and that's almost entirely thanks to its story and characters, so seeing as this was the follow-up to that one, I can't help but feel a bit disappointed despite even knowing beforehand that Engage wouldn't be on the same level.
It's not like every single written word is terrible in Engage (its script is honestly just too big to be 100% terrible), and if you're lucky, you may get a support between two characters that is actually pretty good and not the exact same joke repeated over and over again, but the vast majority is either extremely bland or almost offensively bad. Things just sort of happen, the game expects me to care about characters that have about the same depth as party members in the Persona spin-offs, and despite the voice actors trying their best to make it sound good, the dialogue just never sounds natural and is either just exposition or a lord praising the main protagonist in some way (or the villains hating on the protagonist either from afar or after a battle where the heroes and villains just meet up to diss one another, forgetting that a huge battle just took place.) The tone is also just strangely jovial for a game where basically zombies take over kingdom after kingdom with no end in sight, with no one really seeming to take anything seriously for any long period of time which really doesn't help with me caring more about what's going on.
The villain's weird turn to the more sympathetic right before the final battle is also terribly handle– but let's talk about the positives for a minute instead! Despite IS not knowing how to write basically anything to save their lives, Fire Emblem Engage actually plays super well. It has about a million systems and some that I really never cared about, plus a terrible menu where you can see who has what item or weapon equipped just through a tiny 8-bit icon instead of just showing their name which did make me upgrade the weapon of the wrong party member at least a few times, but when everything's said and done and everyone has their correct loadout, rings and whatever, the strategy RPG gameplay is the best I can remember experiencing... basically ever, I think? It does have its issues with so many maps having basically constant enemy reinforcements, but the maps are fantastic, the engage system adds a whole new layer of strategy and also makes every character viable, and it all feels challenging after the first few chapters, but never has any kind of "fuck you, here's Rapha on the roof" moment like a Final Fantasy Tactics where the game just completely blindsides you with a fight that can end your save if you're not prepared for it. There are certainly some difficult chapters, but it all feels fair and that it's just on me to plan better.
As someone who only got into the series with Awakening, Engage is also a surprisingly good advert for the other games in the series. All of the emblem rings have protagonists from the series' past and also their own missions which recreate maps from their respective games (and rearranged music as well), and they all tell the story about that particular map before the fight, but leave on a cliffhanger basically every time which really makes me curious to see what their adventures entailed. I do think it's extremely dumb that characters can die and not just retreat in these fights since it doesn't really make sense that the emblems would kill their allies in a friendly fight, but maybe they just got way too into the battles.
Engage looks great too. It doesn't have the incredible direction of something like Xenoblade Chronicles 3's cutscenes, but as far as graphics go on the Switch, not much really beats Engage and especially not its FMV's (though maybe that's cheating.) The artstyle itself might be very hit or miss (though I'm honestly shocked so many video game boomers here have been so vocally upset over the protagonist's two-colored hair) and some faces look... upsetting, but it's a real looker graphically. Nice upgrade from Three Houses in that aspect.
The main hub sure wasn't an upgrade though. Some would say the monastery in Three Houses was too big and I can't really disagree despite also not really having any issues with it. The Somniel is certainly more dense, but it also feels more pointless. It basically exists for three or four reasons: cooking, picking up materials and having characters pair up three times per post-battle. Everything else is just a waste of time, except for maybe the arena if you're obsessed with having the most optimal of optimal characters, which I didn't since the game really doesn't require it.
All in all a good game, but also a bad one? I don't know, just playing the actually strategy RPG parts of this strategy RPG is a great time, but the writing is just... no. Also, not that it matters, but I obviously ended up with Merrin in the end. Were there even any alternatives?
Soundtrack highlight:
Bright Sandstorm
9. February 18th | Gitaroo Man Lives! | PSP | 1h 14m | ☆☆☆☆
I don't know what inspired a game like Gitaroo Man to ever exist, but man am I glad that it does. Also always happy to get a reason to pull out my PSP. It's not often these days, but I still love that little guy :').
Anyway, feels very much like Parappa the Rapper in that its extremely weird, could never have been made in any other country than Japan and probably not in any other year than 2001. Just like Parappa, we follow a boy (named U-1, of course) in love with a girl, but his social anxiety stops him from telling her so he goes through several trials in order to get the courage needed. Instead of doing real world things, though, U-1 travels into outer space with his talking dog, and with his musical weapon, the Gitaroo, he liberates an alien planet from its evil dictator Zowie. It's stranger than I make it sound and might also all take place in U-1's imagination since both planets have characters who look exactly the same and serve the same role, but at the core of it all, it really is just a simple love story and despite the plot's constant layer of weirndess over this, it's honestly very well realized. It even shows character and plot progression through the gameplay in one of the later stages in a way that is honestly one of the coolest and most unexpected experiences I've ever had with a rhythm game.
Being a rhythm game maybe the story isn't what you're mainly after when playing it, so I'm happy to say that both the songs and the gameplay are just as good. This is not a long game so it's just 10 songs to play through, but they're both of varied styles and, most of all, very, very good. Despite being someone who praises soundtracks a lot in these entries, I don't actually know music theory or anything so I can't really tell you why they're so good, though. Just that they sounded good to my ears and were very memorable, I guess :). Made me bob my head a lot, etc.
Gameplay is sort of standard rhythm game where you hit the right button at the right time, but it's also very much its own thing. Every song consists of defensive and offensive phases, where you basically tap buttons coming in from up, left, down, or right to avoid taking damage, and then where you have to follow a line with the analog stick (which admittedly does feel a bit stiff on the PSP, but it works well enough) while also pressing the right button when the line reaches there to damage the opponent. It can be a bit overwhelming on some songs, but it never became too much (I think I had one game over during the entire game, and that was on the final boss) and I enjoyed its uniqueness when compared to other rhythm games I've played, as well as switching between those two gameplay styles throughout every song. Really kept me on my toes and somehow made the experience more immersive.
Honestly one of the ugliest artstyles I've seen in a game in a long time, though. Didn't really affect my experience with Gitaroo Man at all, but it's certainly not a looker of a game.
Soundtrack highlight:
Flyin' to your Heart
10. February 26th | Theatrhythm Final Bar Line | PS4 | 50h | ☆☆☆☆½
The least story heavy rhythm game of the month, but honestly my GOTY so far. It won't last (it would be a terrible year for video games if it did), but it is in this moment of time. And honestly, it's mainly thanks to having this much Final Fantasy music in a one game, and Theatrhythm's absolutely fantastic take on rhythm games that I wasn't sure would translate well to controls after having played so much of Curtain Call on 3DS, but the developers actually managed to make the transition from touch to buttons in a very good way and I could actually play through the whole game on Ultimate difficulty and have gotten a perfect chain on most of the songs. Never touching any song on Supreme, though. That's just way too much for my poor hands.
I don't really have much to say about this one since it really is just playing songs from the Final Fantasy series and meeting the requirements for each song when doing the series quests which do make the game's RPG system actually useful since characters have different stats and abilities (though I had Cloud in my party for almost every song anyway.) I have some issues with the song selections and the fact that the game has about a million different versions of Battle on the Big Bridge, but it's otherwise just a very good time and a great celebration of my favorite franchise, both with the music and the very cute presentation and surprising amount of unique milieus per game. It is pretty much 100% fan service (not the pervy kind) so it's probably not a game for anyone not familiar with Final Fantasy, but for me, it was just a gateway into unlocking old memories of playing all these games and life during those periods. It also made me want to replay basically all of them, so I'll probably do just that later this year (at least IV onwards since I played I-III last year).
Really nice DLC so far as well, if anyone was wondering. Certainly wouldn't have complained about getting maybe one or two more songs per pack (especially from Live a Live since that soundtrack's soooo good), but what's there is honestly plenty enough.
Soundtrack highlight:
No ❤️
Currently playing:
Kirby: Planet Robobot (3DS)
Pentiment (PC)
Nier Replicant ver.1.22474487139... (PS4)
Stories Untold (PS4)
