Last Game You Finished and Your Rating

Elden Ring

I had my reservations about this before playing, having already seen a shift to 'open world' ruin two of my favourite game series already (Halo and Gears Of War). However for the most part this works ok here, although does lead to a lot of aimless exploration compared to the tighter design of the Dark Souls games.

The main problem here is the game seems really badly balanced. Not knowing the optimum route leads to a lot of 'oh I'm under leveled here' moments, but conversely you'll find yourself running through series of bosses without even breaking a sweat. The 'ash' mechanic, where you can summon helpers to tackle bosses reduces many fights to aimless mash fests. As if to combat this the late game features a handful of boss fights which are frankly unfair, something I could never say about previous games.

It's a shame, because there are some really brilliant moments, and the game looks and plays great. But the sad truth is that this was my least favourite Souls game by a very large margin indeed.

7/10

The Last of Us Remastered (ps4) - 8/10

Better than the TV show.

more heat than light wrote:Elden Ring

I had my reservations about this before playing, having already seen a shift to 'open world' ruin two of my favourite game series already (Halo and Gears Of War). However for the most part this works ok here, although does lead to a lot of aimless exploration compared to the tighter design of the Dark Souls games.

The main problem here is the game seems really badly balanced. Not knowing the optimum route leads to a lot of 'oh I'm under leveled here' moments, but conversely you'll find yourself running through series of bosses without even breaking a sweat. The 'ash' mechanic, where you can summon helpers to tackle bosses reduces many fights to aimless mash fests. As if to combat this the late game features a handful of boss fights which are frankly unfair, something I could never say about previous games.

It's a shame, because there are some really brilliant moments, and the game looks and plays great. But the sad truth is that this was my least favourite Souls game by a very large margin indeed.

7/10

I feel like I could go on endlessly about how flawed this game is. I still think the universal praise for it was a combination of journalists not having the time to finish it and also being afraid of the fanbase backlash.

Firebird (PC)

This is a visual novel where you're a trucker in trouble with some sort of Russian trucking mafia, and you end up transporting a mysterious girl back to her home village in Siberia. It's based on Slavic mythology so everything is not quite what it appears. Lovely game - really atmospheric and beautifully designed, especially the hand-drawn art in every scene. It starts slowly but I was gripped before long.

I like visual novels that go beyond "read the text and make a few choices" and here you also have to make sure you don't run out of money or petrol or your truck doesn't fall apart. Adds some jeopardy to proceedings - do you get out of the truck and have a look for supplies in the cabin you've stumbled upon when there are wolves prowling around? However, I got the feeling that the developers struggled to balance this with the direction the story went in after the halfway point.

It also fell into the visual novel trap of giving you three conversations options and letting you go through them one by one, but they're all conversation starters so it doesn't make sense that your character would also say the other two. But that is a pretty minor quibble. Very nice way to spend three hours and a glimpse into a world we don't see very often in gaming.

8

Trombone Champ - 7/10

Very silly and fun. I don't like how it handles small notes in rapid succession, was struggling to keep combo going w/o auto toot assistance option turned on. But I had lot of fun playing through each track, unlocking everything, saw the credits roll and getting every card to golden'd. I may go back to this off and on just to see if I can't get better scores (though I'll turn off auto-toot accessiblity first), for now can say I've fully completed it.

Seven wrote:Trombone Champ - 7/10

Very silly and fun. I don't like how it handles small notes in rapid succession, was struggling to keep combo going w/o auto toot assistance option turned on. But I had lot of fun playing through each track, unlocking everything, saw the credits roll and getting every card to golden'd. I may go back to this off and on just to see if I can't get better scores (though I'll turn off auto-toot accessiblity first), for now can say I've fully completed it.

I find exactly the same, no matter how fast I try to click / hit the keyboard I simply can't build up the multiplier.

Some of the songs you can mod in are brilliant though.

kazanova_Frankenstein wrote:Some of the songs you can mod in are brilliant though.

Yeah, I'll have to try it modded at some point!

Buddy Simulator 1984 - 8/10
I really like this - at first I was eh on one of sections because I wasn't in mood for it but it was short enough that I didn't mind it in the end. Does getr really creepy and can be uncomfortable in places (especially on 'bad' ending / bonus ending) but that was the point of the game and I've glad I gave it a chance.

Parasocial - 6/10
Another walking simulator that I really like the vibe of, but I'll admit I think I'm too dumb to understand what's going on. I get some ideas here and there, but I still don't know the whole picture yet. I don't really like some of sections where you were driving because all you do is just... drive. I guess there's radio, but that has no captions so it was empty gameplay for me and there's 3 sections of it which brings score down. Otherwise it's good enough for me to see all way to end / went for another playthrough to get all achievements on Steam.

Hypnospace Outlaw - 9/10
I won't lie, first time I played through it I was frustated at it than having fun with it, even with guide on. But on second playthrough (as I missed doing one thing) I actually took my time, going through everything and was really getting into it.

Deffo one to take your time with - it feels like I'm there in late 1990s internet, even though I never got online until early 2000s. The story is also nicely wrapped up, some grim things though. But I'm glad I played this one.

Saint Maker - 7/10
Same developers of The Letter (one of my favourite Visual Novels) - so I was happy they made another horror VN (They made other games that was.. well, more sexual in natrue and when there's nothing wrong with that I have no interest in them unless its M/M focused). It's not good as The Letter, but what it does made for really good reading through. Though it does remind me why I dislike religion in general, haha. It's very linear in sense choices don't really matter - no branching paths or anything like that. But I think for what is essentally short visual novel it does the job rather nicely.

Sheepy: The Short Adventure - 8/10

Saw this on Steam, it's a free game - and for a free game it feels like I could've paid for it and wouldn't even minded at all - It's very short but for the length I think it's fine; especially as you can use it to speedrun through the game if you wish to do so. Platforming feels good, checkpoints are generous and it looks really good. Would recommend this to anyone who plays on PC/Steam Deck.

EDIT: Monument Valley II - 8/10

More of same as first game, which is good thing. I do think it's easier than first game (which isn't either difficult, but did take me while to finish it) but I enjoyed the journey. Not much else to say about it, it looks pretty, plays good, the puzzles are fun to work out and I'm happy I played these games.

Disco Elysium - 9/10

Could have been a 9.5 if the performance was loads better on the Switch, but I've never played anything thats probably crashed 10 times in about 20 hours :fp:

A brilliantly written game, set in a depressingly bleak world with some amazing characters in there, who happen to be absolute sods at the same time.

Robbo-92 wrote:Disco Elysium - 9/10

Could have been a 9.5 if the performance was loads better on the Switch, but I've never played anything thats probably crashed 10 times in about 20 hours

A brilliantly written game, set in a depressingly bleak world with some amazing characters in there, who happen to be absolute sods at the same time.

I bought this for Switch and PS4 (with free PS5 upgrade) as I wanted the Switch physical. Looks like when I do my replay I will stick to my PS5 copy.

Sorry to hear you had so many technical issues but thanks for mentioning them - it has helped me with my format selection.

Disco Elysium (PS5) - 8.5/10
It took a while to warm to as i found it slow to start and needed time to figure out its systems. However, pacing issues and some overly wordy sections aside, my journey was certainly memorable! Was slightly disappointed with the finale though, but it was more about the journey than the destination.

kazanova_Frankenstein wrote:
Robbo-92 wrote:Disco Elysium - 9/10

Could have been a 9.5 if the performance was loads better on the Switch, but I've never played anything thats probably crashed 10 times in about 20 hours

A brilliantly written game, set in a depressingly bleak world with some amazing characters in there, who happen to be absolute sods at the same time.

I bought this for Switch and PS4 (with free PS5 upgrade) as I wanted the Switch physical. Looks like when I do my replay I will stick to my PS5 copy.

Sorry to hear you had so many technical issues but thanks for mentioning them - it has helped me with my format selection.

Probably the wise choice, it had moments when it ran well, but also moments when it slowed to a crawl. Autosave in particular, it felt like the game was about to crash each time it autosaved :lol:

Carrion (Switch) - 8.5/10
Aka John Carpenter's The Thing, trying to escape a research facility. This was a great wee game, just slightly let down by some troublesome navigation, particularly at the end. Had to resort to looking up where to go for the finale as I was searching for ages! Would def be up for a sequel.

Flower (PS4) - 6/10

+ Looks good
+ Some nice music
+ Quite a novel concept
+ Controls can be good and can enhance the experience

- Controls can also be frustrating and fiddly
- Camera isn't great in some places
- Not particularly engaging - only enjoyable in small doses

I liked this, but once the novelty wore off, it got a bit samey and it's not massively enthralling. I got all the trophies though and pretty much did and saw everything, so that says something I guess. Not bad.

Dave The Diver - 8/10

Would be 9 but I dunno, some aspects of it brought it down a little. Still very amazing game and I'm glad I gave it a playthrough. I just think the grinding bits do bring it down a bit (even if I don't mind it in other games) but it doesn't really stop me enjoying it loads.

I've gotten all achievements and I don't have urge to keep playing after though, even if I've got lot of cards left to get / there's open-end where I could try to get more profit, but I'm done with it for now. Story was main reason that kept me going as every part of it was amazing to experience.

Lunistice - 8/10 or more

As per my thoughts in the Switch thread I think this is a great game and well worth the tiny price if you fancy some no-nonsense platforming fun.

It's really responsive, has a great aesthetic and at times has a great sense of sling-shotting, soaring speed. It's also nicely lean and linear with 2D sensibilities. And good replayability - trying to get all the items scratches some of that more exploratory platforming itch. The jump sensitivity takes some getting used to, especially for precise small-stop platforming (which I could never Quite trust though this did also add to the stakes!) but there are lots of interesting ways to adjust it in the options to help.

Also the hit pause on hitting enemies feels good.

And the music grew on me.

Balla doesn't like it but I do

Alan Wake 2 (Series X)

When I started this I thought it was going to be an all time classic. It's certainly very impressive and the soundtrack is absolutely incredible.
It was dragged down for me by the story making absolutly no sense, so the ending was very unfulfilling to me (though I expected that). I also found myself enjoying it less and less as the game went on. Not uncommon in a videogame, but some of the earlier scenes were the most spectacular and memorable.

I actually thought the combat was pretty good, and the difficulty (on default) seemed spot on to me. Some lengthy checkpoints in a few places just helped with ramping up the tension.

I also had no issue with the jumpscares that so many were complaining about. But I guess it's a personal thing. I played the whole thing in a dark room with headphones and never found it any more creepy than RE4 Remake. It's certainly far darker though, and some of the S1 of True Detective comparisons seemed appropriate.

Finished on 28hrs. Doubt I will play the Final Draft unless there is a massive reason to do so, but I will get any future DLC.

8.5

Bluesky

Persona 3: Reload

I was initially quite positive about this remake but the shine had worn off by the latter half of the game. I was starting to find the modern graphics and stylish aesthetic touches of the game jarring because of how dated and stagnant the game is at its core. I liked Persona 3 but it's also a product of its time - a PS2 game that was reinventing the series, with much of the work on it setting a template that Persona 4 and 5 would have more time to build on. I liked that its tone was darker and more muted, but it also just suited the original game more.

Reload seems faithful to the source material to a fault. They could have done a lot more to flesh out the characters, or add more variety to the scenes and locations. Or do something new. Instead every story segment is identical, albeit with slightly different wording sometimes. They do add a couple of new scenes with Strega (the baddie Persona-wielding team) which, granted, are really cool, but it quickly becomes clear they are essentially filler because nothing is different in the story otherwise. They also added some 'linked episodes' which play out like social link outings, but they are optional and very missable if you are wanting to focus on maxing out social links.

It's not all bad obviously as I was enjoying the game a fair bit at first. It is very nice looking and I like the P5-style touches to the menus and UI, while it also has its own identity. The persona summoning animations and signature attacks looked very cool. The new combat mechanics are fun if a bit unbalanced (though it doesn't really bother me). The English dub features an almost entirely new cast and their voice acting is very good. Inevitably there are a couple of line readings where I preferred the original but overall they are better, and some of the characters have voices that suit them a lot more. And of course there's the quality of life changes, which were good but expected for the most part.

Honestly though I would have just taken an enhanced port of Persona 3 FES with the quality of life changes. Even if it meant no female protag route because they didn't add that for Reload anyway.

Rating: it's fine but I found it a bit disappointing (tl;dr)

Shining Force. Second time I've played this and it is one of my favourite games ever. I got all the secret characters this time. 5 Jogurts out of 5.

Final team :wub:

Batman Arkham City (PS5) 9/10 -
Really enjoyed my playthrough of City, everything seemed slicker and improved from Asylum. Even though Asylum was more focused, it felt more like a brawler with an overkill of fights. While City gave me more of the Batman feels; perching and flying across the city. Only real annoyance was the poor design of having to navigate around the large chunk of map that doesn't open up.

Also, 70s Batman costume :wub:

Last Game You Finished and Your Rating

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