Rate the last game you played

[Wispy Willow]

Well, I just finished another playthrough of Gunman Clive 2 for the 3DS, so...

Presentation:​

Visuals:

To put it simply, this game looks like a Western version of Okami. That's all I really need to say.

Music:

I can pretty much sum up the soundtrack in one word: great. Though if you want proof of this greatness, here's the gist of it: The Cowboy is back in Town, Fight On, Asian Cowboy and my two personal favourites: North and Sunset Ride.

Story:​

There isn't much to say here, so I'll just sum it up with this sentence: After some large spider-like tank attacks the town and runs off, Clive (or whoever else you're playing as) follow it on a chase around the world. Then again, the fact that the 'story' is so bare-bones a good thing since it doesn't get in the way of the gameplay, which is the main attraction.

Gameplay:​

And now for twhat you've all been waiting for... Much like the first one, this game is pretty much a love letter to the fans of what I like to call Jump 'n' Shooters: the gameplay revolves around Clive (or whoever else you're playing as) jumping and shooting your way through a various stages and a few boss fights. The controls are very simple: you have the D-pad for movement (obviously), a jump button and a shoot button. That's it. However, that's all you really need for this type of game, especially when the controls are as tight as they are. As for the characters themselves, there's Clive who is simply the basic character of basicness, Ms. Johnson, who can 'glide' a-la Peach in some Mario games, the new character Cheiftan Bob who is like Clive only he has a melée weapon and the secret character you unlock upon beating the game who pretty much turns it into a bullet hell (or close to it).

As for the stages, with the exception one "screw you" level, they are very good. For instance, a lot of them have thier own gimmick, such as the second stage's moving platforms, Stage 8's ice physics (which isn't as bad as it sounds, since it's one of my favourite levels) or the fifiteenth stage's moving platforms. Oh, and it's not really a stage gimmick, but I'd like to point out that one of the rooms in a Russian level is a reference to Tetris. Also, it's nice to see the gravity-altering mechanic from near the end of the first game get more (and better) use.

As for new stuff, every now and then there is a 3D level where you have to avoid obsicles while traveling to a destination. They are actually a nice change of pace, my only complaint with them would be that it's a bit hard to aim.

As for the bosses, they're pretty much all good. For exapmle, there's probably my favourite first boss ever in the form of that spider tank, the gravity-bending second boss, a t-rex boss, a helicopter that becomes a humanoid robot... In fact I think the only 'meh' boss would be the submarine.

Though there is one thing I probably should metntion: the length. It's very short. As in, 1-2 hours short. which is actually a really good length considering that is only costs of 5 (NZ) dollars. Oh, and it makes it a great game to play when you need something to entertain yourself for an hour or two.

Other:​

Ducks. Just... Ducks.

Final Verdict:​

I see no reason why anyone with some spare e-Shop change shouldn't pick this up. The art style is great, ducks, the music is also great, more ducks, there isn't much story to get in the way of the Jump 'n' Shooting, yet more ducks, the Jump 'n' Shooting itself is very good and it's dirt-cheep. This is definately one of the greatest games you'll find on the e-Shop (that isn't Shovel Knight). I give it a my rating of DUCKS!!! (8.75/10).

 

[Zeb]

Mirror's Edge: 8/10

A fairly old game that's just been sitting on my shelf since I bought it last summer. Got around to playing it yesterday and completed it within a few hours. So it's a fairly short game, but what there was of it was incredibly fun and nothing like anything I'd played before. Graphics/art style of the game is very beautiful, crisp and clean too. Controls got a bit frustrating at times and I died very fast very often, but it was really fun. Plot wasn't much to be honest, but gameplay was enough to make up for it.

Apparently there's a 2 coming out soon, but most of the original team aren't involved apparently so I hope it ends up being good...

 

[Tyrfing]

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies

Story:

Pretty good. I've never played Ace Attorney apart from the Layton crossover, so I can't compare it to others in the series. While I'm not exactly a fan of some of the episodes just being kind of pointless in the grand scheme of things (Looking at you, the Monstrous Turnabout), they were all solid on their own. Where it really started to become fantastic, though, was Episode 4, especially the end. The best part about the story, though, is probably the very end, with the reveal of who set the whole plot in motion.

Spoiler

I mean, who would've suspected Bobby Fullbright?! Especially that he isn't even the real deal?!

I'll leave it at that, since it can get kind of deep, but I'll promise its good.

7/10

Music:

It's Ace Attorney. I've never played another and I know the music is always fantastic. This is no exception. The best one, though, is Pursuit: Keep Pressing On. With headphones on, it never failed to send chills up my back.

10/10

Graphics:

I was playing on the IOS, and I've heard the graphics are far better on there than the 3DS version. Lucky me. The visuals were splendid, especially compared to what I've seen of previous Ace Attorney games. Everything looks great, and the cutscenes are even better.

9/10

Difficulty:

This is where the game sort of falls short. Even in the final trial, sometimes I just saw a contradiction as clear as day and I didn't even need to press on anything. That sort of thing is excusable in the first episode or two, but it really shouldn't happen later on. It's still about right most of the time, though.

7/10

Characters:

To me, this is probably the most decisive factor for these sorts of games. I was really worried that many of the main characters would be bland.

I was not disappointed.

Phoenix Wright, with his mentor persona, was interesting, and the constant courtroom antics were always funny. He sometimes got annoying with his preaching that he must stop the dark age of the law, but it is alright, I guess. Apollo? Fantastic. Some of his developments are spoilers, so I'll omit them, but his trust issues were interesting. Athena... I'll admit, I found her as obnoxious as hell until I saw her with the black Psyche-Locks and Episode 5. She became solid after that in my eyes. Blackquill... I really need to stop fanboying over Blackquill... I found his character amazing as a prosecutor charged with murder, and the samurai metaphors were solid enough. His relationship with Athena and Aura were both quite interesting.

The villains, while somewhat bland, did their job. In particular, however, L'Belle stands out as terrible. At least the villain of Episode 3 was downright hilarious at the end; L'Belle just flopped in every category. Tonate was... fine, I guess, and Phantom... was fantastic, as mentioned previously.

Oh, and Edgeworth is Edgeworth. Always amazing, always impressive.

9/10

Overall rating: 8.5/10

 

[Peridorito]

I'm going to talk about Final Fantasy IV, but I'm not gonna give it a numerical score because these are completely subjective.

Story:

The story in the game is really cool. Dem plot twists man. It's really emotional at times.

Music:

Easily the best part of the game. I'm a sucker for videogame soundtracks and this one does not dissapoint. All songs are amazing, no exception at all.

Graphics:

The graphics are good. They could be better, other SNES games like EarthBound and Super Mario World are better in that regard, but they are still solid.

Difficulty:

Some bosses were really hard, but overall the difficulty was okay. Though that might be because I played the english version which is easier than the japanese one. lol

Characters:

The cast of characters is amazing. All of them have cool personalities and none of them feel boring or unnecessary.

Final Fantasy IV is amazing and is now one of my favorite games ever. I definitely reccomend it.

 

[Zeb]

Tales from the Borderlands Episode 2: 8/10

Not quite as good as the first episode in my opinion, but it's still a great episode nonetheless. Makes me excited for the other three episodes; it's probably my favourite Telltale game so far and we're only two episodes in. I wish you luck TWD S1, because a challenger approaches...

Also has the best opening credits to a game. Or one of the best at least. Then again, the Borderlands series always has great opening credits and good song choices with them.

 

[Wispy Willow]

Well, it's been a while since my last rate, so... I don't know where I was going with that. Either way, I'm here for a reason, and that reason it to rate a game, so here are my thoughts on the action RPG that has been sucking up most of my time: Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate.

Presentation:​

Visuals:

Well, this was actually one of the few turn-offs I had about getting it, since in the footage I was shown it didn't look as nice as MH3U, the only other Monster Hunter game I've played. However, when I actuially got my hands on it, I realised that my concerns were irrelevant, because it looks quite nice for 3DS standards. Granted, it doesn't look as nice as MH3U, but it still looks good. Oh, and the cutscenes look amazing.

Though I feel I should also mention the other turn-off I had when deciding wheather to get it or not, however minor it may be: the fact that, as far as I'm concerned, the landscapes don't look as nice as in MH3U. I'm not talking graphis here I just think that MH3U's enviroments are better to look at. That is all.


Sound:

For those of you who haven't played a Monster Hunter game before, I should probably mention that, while there is music in the game, there are only certian times when it plays, which are as follows: when in a town, a short jingle when you begin a hunt and the battle themes. This works in the game's favour, since it makes the Scare Chord that plays when you discover a monster (or when it discovers you) and the battle music that inevitably follows that much more of a contrast to wandering around the map with only of your footsteps keeping you company or the sound of your Pickaxe splitting the silence as you mine for stuff.

Although, speeking of music, I should point out that, aside from being pretty good music, the themes also tend to work well with what's going on in-game. As for some examples... The Dah'Ren Mohran Phase 1/Phase 2 themes (particularly the Phase 2 theme) are as epic as you'd expect a battle with a 100-metere long sand narwhal to be, the Zinogre theme is as awesome the actual monster, much like the Shagaru Magala theme, the Brachydios theme's use of percussion mixes well with explosions it attacks with, the Deviljho theme is something that you do NOT want to hear, since a Deviljho comes along with it... You get the idea. However, as for the music outside the battles... The only one I found noteworthy is the Cathar theme, to be honest. Either way, the thing all music and sound effects in this game share in common is that it builds an atmosphere, and a very good one at that.


As a whole, I give the presentation category a 9/10.

Story:​

Plot:

Well, there isn't really much to say here... This game is, after all, orientated towards online play, so you're not exactly going to get the stuff of Xenoblade Chronicles, now are you? But we'll get to that later - for now, I'll say that the plot basicly involes you traveling across the land, trying to figure out what some item some random guy has actually is/does, hunting various monsters along the way. Oh, and there's also stuff about a Frenzy Virus in there somewhere too.


Characters:

Much like the story, the characters aren't anything special. Which is probably why they decided not to give them names - heck, one of them is even called 'The Man'. But I digress, I'll just sum up the lot of them with one word: unmemorable.


Setting:

Now here's something to get excited about. The world or Monster Hunter is a place where various wyverns, giant beasts, oversized bugs and the occasional Elder Dragon roam the land. How can someone not get excited about that? I don't think I need to say any more because I can't be bothered thinking of anything else.


As for the story category, I'd give it a 5/10 because, while the charaters and plot are not really that interesting, the world of Monster Hunter is enough to bring the score up by a point and a half.

Gameplay:​

And here we come to the reason why it's sucking up soooooooo much of my time...

Well, if you've been paying attention, you would've already figured out by now that the main goal is to hunt monsters, so I don't feel I need to repeat myself. As for what these hunts are like, it's pretty simple: you have a map of several different Areas, each connected to another, and a monster in one of them to find and kill. However, it's not as simple as just finding it - this game is called Monster Hunter for a reason, after all. You see, you know how I mentioned there are several different Areas earlier? Well, they aren't just there to waste your time - to add a bit of realisism, the monsters you fight can run away if and when they want to, moving to a different Area and forcing you to chase it. Which is cool.

Monsters fleeing isn't the only bit of realisim they added either. When you first encounter your target, it'll be full of energy and ready to fight, but as you weaken it, it'll start to grow tired and search for food (and even go to sleep when it gets really weak). Which is cool. Oh, and while they effectively function as bosses, monsters don't have phases like in most games - insted they get Enraged at semi-regular intervils, which means thier attacks so more damage, they attack faster, gain some new attacks, thier weak spots (which are just bits of thier body that happen to take more damage, not like in, say, Zelda with those eyes) can change places... You get the idea.

Speaking of weak spots, we come now to one of my favourite features in the game: breaking. No, not the thing you do to slow down your car, I'm talking about the coolest way to measure damage I know of. If you do enough damage to a monster in a certian body part, that part may literally break. Not only is this a cool way of measuring damage, but it can have certin other benafits such as giving you special items after the quest is done or disabling a certian attack. And don't get me started on how satisfying it is to cut off a monster's tail...

But I've gone on about monsters long enough, let's talk about something else... How 'bout the progression system? Yeah, that'll do. You see, instead of gaining Exp. as one might in other RPGs, in this game the only way to get better stats is to make better armor. And guess how you do that? Yep, you use various monster bits. So the only way to get better stuff is to hunt better monsters. Now do you see why it's so addictive?

As for new stuff that's been added this game... There is a lot more freedom of movement thatn in previous titles, mounting is a thing, there are a couple new weapons and a lots of new monsters (obviously).

However, there is one thing I should mention: it can be a bit hard for new players to get the hang of it for two main reasons; first, the game can feel rather slow at times, to the point of being a, quote, 'battle with the animations'; second, there are a ton of complexities that I can't go over here because it'd be too long which are kinda really important.


Well, that's about as much rambling as I can handle for one day... I'm going to just give the gameplay a 9/10 before I loose my sanity.

Multiplayer:​

You aren't alone in you mission to grind for monster parts - you can use either local wireless or the interwebz to team up with up to four other people. It is great. That is all I can be bothered to say.

10/10

Final Results:​

I'm too tired after that gameplay ramble to think of a real conclusion here, so I'm just going to give a simple PLAY IT RIGHT NOW!!! (9/10).

 

[Username19]

Mortal Kombat X - 9.5
The visuals, music, story and little details were all absolutely incredible. The only thing I can really complain about is the fact that there was so little back story for the new character that I couldn't become very invested in them. I know that in fighting games the story is not all that important but why should I try playing as Cassie Cage when Sonya Blade has virtually the same move set, job, and an interesting history. Other then that the game is still fun to play even after story mode is finished.

 

[MachDragonX]

So I just completed The Evil Within. Since being released over 6 months ago, the game has drawn a lot of comparisons to Resident Evil 4 and for good reason – both games were Directed by Shinji Mikami, the creator of Resident Evil series. As a Resident Evil fan I decided to give The Evil Within a try, but I have to say my views on the game are a bit mixed.

Visuals: It's hard for me to rate the visuals in the game because I played the Playstation 3 version. The Evil Within was released for the Playstation 4, XBox One, Playstation 3, and XBox 360, so obviously the latter two versions are going to have inferior graphics. For a Playstation 3 game I'd rate the graphics as pretty good. I usually don't put a lot of stock into how pretty a game looks, but compared to the other games I own on the Playstation 3 the graphics are fine.

In my opinion, the overall aesthetic design of the enemies and environments is what is most similar to Resident Evil 4. Many times the scenery in certain levels felt like it came straight out of that game. For example, parts of the game take place in the woods, in a run down village, in the sewers, while a partner is driving a vehicle, etc. The way those environments are designed – with everything having a run-down look to it – and lit – with large swaths of environments being cloaked in shadows – is incredibly reminiscent of RE4.

The other comparable elements are the enemies. RE4's main enemies were the Ganados, infected villagers controlled by parasites. In The Evil Within, the main enemies are called "the Haunted." The Haunted look and act very similar to the Ganados from RE4, but overall they seem smarter/have better AI. The boss designs also seems draw inspiration from RE4 – the chainsaw wielding "Sadists" are nearly identical to the chainsaw wielding Ganados in RE4, while other bosses in the game have strong design similarities with Resident Evil 4 bosses chief Mendez and Ramon Salazar's final forms.

Music: The soundtrack did its job. That's about all I can say really. It didn't need to do much other than add a sense of creepiness and scariness to the visuals. The only piece of music I didn't care for was the main title theme, but you don't hear it at any point in the game outside of the opening and closing credits, so I can't complain too much.

Gameplay: This is definitely the most polarizing aspect of the game. The Evil Within is indeed very challenging, but it's the way it challenges you that is polarizing. At face value, the game itself isn't hard – what is hard is how stingy the game can be concerning what you need to do or are allowed to do in certain situations. Many times there are boss fights where you cannot damage or kill the boss until you get to a certain point on the map. At face value this isn't terrible, but the problem is the game usually doesn't clue you in on this fact and you wind up wasting valuable ammo/resources. Many of the bosses have one-hit kill moves, which doesn't help either.

But the main problem with The Evil Within is that it's full of traps and scenarios designed to create cheap deaths. And while I get that the traps and scenarios tie into where the game takes place, the constant trial and error it takes to deal with them really gets old after a while. Case in point, the last chapter of the game took me over 2 hours to complete on casual mode due to all the death traps and boss fights in that level, when length-wise, without the traps, it really should've taken me closer to 45 minutes to complete. Whether or not you enjoy The Evil Within will largely boil down to how much of an issue this is for you.

That said, the game is SCARY. Really scary. To again compare it to Resident Evil, I personally never found any of the Resident Evil games scary at all. They can be creepy and foreboding, but never once have I jumped out of my seat from anything in the series. The Evil Within is the opposite – not every chapter is scary, but the ones that are are intense. In particular, chapters 9 and 10 (especially 9!) are among the most frightening things I've experienced in a video game. If you're looking for scares, this is your game. The Evil Within absolutely does not belong to the action-survival genre that most Resident Evil games exist in, but rather true survival-horror.

The game is also gory, but don't confuse goriness with scariness. They are separate elements and one doesn't stem from the other.

Story: I won't get too into the story here since I don't want to spoil anything for those who haven't played it, but the story, while not deep, is solid. The main complaint I have is that it can be hard to follow at times. You're constantly given back story information in fragments, and it can get confusing. Some story elements are given in print in the form of newspaper articles, missing person summaries, and journal entries, while others are given in audio tape recordings or from the dialog spoken by the characters. The problem is you don't always know what information is important and what isn't, largely because it isn't really clear where you are or what is going on until about halfway through the game.

The characters are boring. The main character, Sebastian, is dull and I never grew to care about him at any point during the game. His back story is slowly revealed throughout the game and is tragic, but he shows no personality whatsoever. His partners, Joseph and Juli suffer from this same flaw. What's worse, the characters don't even act like what they're seeing and experiencing is real, which in turn made it harder for me to take the seemingly amazing stuff happening on screen seriously at times.

Verdict: Overall while I enjoyed the game, I would advise anyone who wants to buy this because they heard it's more "Resident Evil-like" than Resident Evils 5 and 6 to be cautious. While it definitely takes strong inspiration from the early Resident Evil games, The Evil Within really doesn't play like any of them. But if you're a survival horror purist, you'll love this game. But for me personally, I can't say I'd rate it as highly as my favorite Resident Evil games (REmake (RE1), RE4, and RE: Revelations) since they were more enjoyable experiences overall.

The Evil Within (7.5/10)

 

[Norzan]

Bowser's Inside Story - 9.5/10

Gameplay - This game uses the traditional turn-based combat but with a difference: you can actually dodge and counter enemies. Everytime the enemy attacks, you can either, depending on the enemy's attack, jump to avoid damage or counter with an hammer attack. This makes the game more immersive and more fun to me because of how involving it is. You can inflict more damage with your attacks by pressing A (or X for Bowser) at the right time and you have special attacks which have completely diferent executions from each other and most of them are overall fun to execute (except you Spin Pipe, i hate you).


Story - It's very lighthearded, very humorous and overall a joy to go through. It has some filler, but that's to be expected from RPG. Also, as mentioned above and the name of the game, Bowser is the main protagonist and this is the game that made me a fan of his.


Graphics - They are overall very colorful, pleasant to look at and the 2D animations are pretty solid.

Music - It's sublime, it's easily one of my favourite soundtracks in any videogame, there isn't a single song that i don't like.

This is one of the very few games i love to death, it's one of the few games where i don't have a single issue or annoyance. So yeah, i love this game.

 

[Dr. Buni]

Child of Light - 10/10

Similar to Ori and the Blind Forest, Child of Light is a magical, one-of-a-kind game. Ori tells the beautiful story of maternal bon, while Child of Light tells a beautiful and touching fairy tale, that is in no way lacking if compared to the famous Walt Disney fairy tales. Now, I am not trying to compare Ori and Child of Light here, the only reason I mentioned Ori is because it is another game I finished not too long ago and as Child of Light, it was a touching game for me.

Child of Light tells the story of Aurora, a little girl who dies right in the introduction of the game and then finds herself in a totally different place, the kingdom of Lemuria. As beautiful as said place, Lemuria, is, all Aurora really wanted is to go back to her home to be with her loved father again. And we follow her journey back home during the events of the game. The story is quite simple as usual, there are a few plot twists here and there, some really obvious, others not as much. That said, I think the story was great. It left me satisfied. If there is one thing I didn't like that much, was how rushed the final part of the game was. Although I think Child of Light has a nice duration and doesn't overstay its welcome (it lasts for ~10 hours), perhaps the developer could have added 1 or 2 extra hours so the final chapter would get a little bit more of development? Still, it is just a little detail and it didn't hurt my enjoyment with the game.

The characters in Child of Light are really nice. Fitting for a fairy tale-esque game, the characters have weird designs and quirks as well as peculiar ways of communicating with others. For those who like a diverse cast of characters, Child of Light surely delivers. The protagonist, Aurora, is quite charismatic and lovable. I can't say one bad thing about her. And, the game's villains aren't bad either, especially Nox (warning: do not google her name if you don't want a huge spoiler).

The soundtrack is beautiful and the songs add a lot to the fairy tale atmosphere of the game. It uses that scheme of soothing songs during exploration and epic songs during general battles and bosses. I like this song a lot, in particular, which plays during a few boss battles. Speaking of bosses, the game has a LOT of bosses, so if you aren't into boss battles, avoid Child of Light. I personally love bosses, so I had a great time.

The game looks stunning. As with the soundtrack, the visuals add a lot to the feel of the game. In short, I loved Child of Light. I really want more experiences like this one, but I am unsure if there is a need for a Child of Light 2. The story feels... concluded to me. Perhaps a different story set in the same world? Still, Aurora is such a great character, that a new game in the Child of Light universe without her as the main character wouldn't be the same.

 

[MachDragonX]

I recently finished playing The Last of Us. It did not disappoint:

Visuals: I played the PS3 version, but even without the remastered visuals this game is gorgeous. One of the best looking video games I've ever played. The characters' faces and clothing were super-detailed, and the locations in the game were beautiful. 10/10

Music and Audio: There wasn't a lot of music in the game, but what few tracks existed were very good. In my view the game didn't need a lot of music. As for the audio quality, voice acting, and sound effects, simply put they were the best I've experienced in a video game. 10/10

Gameplay: This is kinda where the game lost me a little bit. The gameplay is good, but it isn't unique and nowhere near the game's strength. There's a nice mix of survival-based scavenging, utilizing stealth to get past or kill enemies, and action/shooting, but none of it felt like anything more than a rehash of what other action/adventure/survival games have been doing for quite some time.

The game also has too many optional interactive prompts for my taste and comes off as too cinematic at times. But the optional prompts actually help add to the game's replay factor, which is really a good thing.

Some parts were also a bit too easy, and after a while I felt like the levels became a bit too formulaic in terms of when you encounter enemies and what obstacles you face. But overall the gameplay is very good and I can't nitpick it too much for not being innovative. The weapons are really fun, the combat is cool, and the items you craft and use are very realistic. 9/10

Story: The story is where The Last of Us shines brightest. The story is set in a post-apocalyptic United States where the population has been decimated by a spore-based fungus that turns human beings into what are basically zombies. The government no longer exists except for branches that control the military and enforce martial law. Civilization itself has collapsed and people are largely left to fend for themselves.

The main character is a man named Joel, who is tasked with smuggling a 14-year old girl named Ellie out of what remains of Boston and into the hands of an organization called the Fireflies. The Fireflies are dedicated to reinstating the traditional branches of the US government and overthrowing the remains of the US armed forces who are responsible for enforcing martial law. Ellie is apparently immune to the spores responsible for turning human beings into zombies (known as "the infected") and the Fireflies believe she is the key to making a vaccine capable of preventing humans from becoming infected.

Although the story revolves around getting Ellie to the Fireflies, the game is really about Joel and Ellie bonding. The game's ending is really thought-provoking and raises some very interesting questions relating to morality and the human condition. 10/10

Final Verdict: Minor nitpicks aside, this game is a must-play for anyone who owns a Playstation 3 or Playstation 4. The game is nearly flawless and I can't recommend it enough. There are rumors that a sequel to The Last of Us is currently being worked on. If true, I might just have to buy a PS4 just so I can play it. A sequel is warranted on so many levels. 10/10

 

[PaulTheProtist]

Guitar Hero: World Tour

Graphics: They're okay, I suppose. They're totally blown out of the water by Warriors of Rock, but they're alright. 7/10

Songlist: Most of the songs are great, like Shiver, Eye of the Tiger, The Wind Cries Mary, Beat It, The Kill, Re Education, and Crazy Train. There are a few foreign language songs that have little reason to be there, as well as some of the songs you have to pay for being not so great, but for the most part a good songlist. 9/10

Gameplay: Same as always. 10/10

Final Verdict: Not the best Guitar Hero game, but still a great one. 9/10

 

[Zeb]

Batman: Arkham Knight 8/10

Didn't feel as Batman-y as Asylum and City, always felt like something was missing. I didn't find the Batmobile as grating as I've seen other say they found it, but it still feels far too prominent and shoved into almost every aspect for no good reason, which really brings it down in the long run.

Also

Spoiler

TWO tank battles? Seriously? Deathstroke doesn't even get his own fight, he just gets a recycled Arkham Knight tank fight? Why?! What a damn waste and an awful decision. And you don't even fight Scarecrow at the end? The boss battles are depressing.

Still a good game, but not quite as good as I was hoping the series would end on.

Also fuck Riddler trophies.

 

[Norzan]

Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door - 10/10

This is probably the most fun i had with a game in years. Great story and characters, decently challenging, fixes most of the issues i have with the first game, fantastic soundtrack and the battle system is still really solid. If this game has flaws they detracted absolutely zero from the whole experience to me.

Totally woth the 55 bucks i spent on it.

 

[Dr. Buni]

Dead Space. 8.5/10. The game isn't scary at all, but it is pretty good still. Good gameplay, etc.

 

[MachDragonX]

Halo: Combat Evolved: 8.5/10

Maybe I'm not as impressed by this game because it hasn't aged well, or maybe it is because a large amount of its appeal lies in its multiplayer, but I wasn't really "wowed" by this game. The gameplay is definitely outstanding and deserves a 10/10, but I never felt drawn to the characters or story.

In my view the lack of music and dialogue during a lot of the action segments hurt the atmosphere of the game. Some of the level designs were also confusing, with the layouts of many buildings or caverns repeating themselves. But on the positive side, all of the weapons are cool and there are a variety of strategies one can use to overcome enemies or obstacles. The AI is solid and the levels got increasingly challenging in just the right ways.

IMO Goldeneye 007 for the Nintendo 64 is still the best FPS I have ever played, but Halo 1 is nevertheless a great and highly influential game in the genre.

 

[Wispy Willow]

Well, it isn't technicly the last game I played, but I just want a chance to talk about the 3DS game Ertian Odyssey IV: Legends of the Titan, so that's what I'm going to do.

Presentation:


Visuals:​

Well, there is probably something I sould mention for those of you who haven't played an Etrian Odyssey game before: there is a reletively small amount of things to see - appart from the enviroment and the monsterss you encounter, the most the visuals display is the occasional sprite or a treasure chest opening. Instead, whatever happens when you interact with something outside of battle is told through text. I rather like this, since not many games do that these days.

Anyway, on with my opinion on the visuals... They're pretty good. The Labyrinths you enter, while they are pretty to look at (with the exception of the post-game Labyrinth), can't really compare to those from Untold (a.k.a. the only other Etrian Odyssey game I've played).

As for the emeny/FOE models, while they don't quite look just as good as those from Untold, that doesn't mean they look terrible either. And the character sprites, while they aren't quite as detailed as those in the game I keep mentioning, they still look pretty good. Plus, everything in this game has a sort cel-shaded look to it, which is always a good thing.

As a whole, I give the visuals an 8/10.

Sound:​

I must say, they did a good job designing the sound in this game. From the sound of your character's footsteps on whatever type of floor you're stepping on giving you that little extra piece of emersion to the sound effects of attacks in battle giving you a sence that you're actually doing something as opposed to whacking at your target until it dies, they did a good job. That's all I can really think to say here.

As for the music... Oh, how I love the music. As opposed to the dungeon music of a lot of RPGs giving you the sence of being in, well, a dungeon, the Labyrinth themes are instead rather peaceful and relaxing (for the most part). For example, here's the first Labyrinth's theme. Beautiful. And the battle music is just as good, to the point where the regular battle theme is something that could make it onto a list of my favourite battle themes... Though the boss themes easilly outmatch it, wheather it is the story boss theme's build-up and the tension that it creates, the optional boss theme's pure epicness or the final boss's theme which I won't spoil for you, you can't really go wrong when it comes to this game's music. That and it's simply better than Ultold's soundtrack (with one noteable exception).

I give the sound of this game a 9/10.

Story:


Plot:​

The plot of this game can pretty much be summed up like so: you are one of many explorers heading to Tharsis, the closest city to a giant tree known as Yggdrasil as well as the game's hub. From there, your goal is pretty much as you'd expect - traverse the perils of various Labyrinths to try and reach the aforementioned great tree. It's simple, especially for an RPG, but it still works. That and it gets more complex as you get colser to Yggdrasil.

I give it a 7/10.

Characters:​

The character in this game... Aren't exactly the main attraction. While there is character develpoment for some of them, most are just the people that run the various facilities in Tharsis (or just random people hanging out in the bar) as opposed to actual characters. Well, there are some characters not from Tharsis, but I'd be spoiling the plot if I said stuff about them. Anyway, there are actually some sidequests where these characters ask you to do something, which is nice and all, but if you're looking for a story involving deep characters and a lot of character develpoment, there isn't too much here for you.

Oh, and while we're on the topic of characters, there is character creation in this game. However, outside of their classes, names and appearences, it doesn't really matter too much since the characters you create don't actually get any daiologe specific to them, instead it just gives a general description of what a given character does. While this may or may not be a small turn-off to some (though I don't really see why myself), I feel it lets you imagine your own personalities for said characters, which is a good thing for this type of game.

6/10 in the character department.

Setting:​

...I can't really go into as much detail as I'd like about the world of the Etrian Odyssey games take place in without spoiling some stuff from Untold, so I'll just cover what the areas in this game are like. Tharsis, the the city closest to Yggdrasil, is a rather pleasent city filled with facilities helpful to explorers. Oh, and its inhabitants have discovered basic skyship technology, which is a real help when it comes to exploring, among other things. As for what the explorers, well, explore, there are various natural Labyrinths dotted around the area outside Tharsis which hold the key to get to Yggdrasil. While they may seem very pleasent at first, they are also home to many dangerous beasts and a few natural perils. That's about all I can really think of to say.

I give the setting a 7/10.

Gameplay:​

Now, there is something you really should know about this game: as with the rest of the series, it can be really friggin' hard if you don't know what you're doing (though even if you do know what you're doing, it can still be rather challenging if you're playing on the higher difficuilty). Then again, at least compared to Untold, it's reletively easy, but still.

As for how the gameplay works, it's basicly a first-person dungeon crawler with turn-based RPG battles, which is ment to harken back to similar games from before the world began or something. I think that sums it up pretty nicely, but that doesn't mean I can't explain some of the nitty-gritty.

As for the combat, it's pretty standard fare for an RPG - you have various different classes, each of whom have a unique set of skill and stats. Really, the only unique thing I can think of is the lines system. Basicly, you have a front and back line, each of which have room for three of your five party members, which kinda forces you to form your party with a bit of stratergy. Oh, one of the ways this game is difficult is that the enemies, as well as coming in lines as well and being pretty strong (even the rats can take about half your health early on) will occasionally paired up in ways that will cause trouble for you, particularly in later Labyrinths. For example, late in the game, there are enemies that do a crap-ton of damage, but they always start the battle asleep. However, you could run into them and an enemy that can deal one or two points of damage to another enemy in excange for increasing its attack. And dealing damage to a sleeping enemy wakes it up. You can see why that is a problem.

...Anyway, I think I've rambled enough about the combat, so I'll move stop talking about it. As for the Labyrinths you explore, they are basicly grid-based mazes (obviously) that you have to find your way through in first-person, fighting monsters and gathering matterials along the way. Pretty standard fare here as well. However, there are a few things that make it unique. For one, there are enemies called FOEs that wander the Labyrinths. If you get in a battle with one the first time you are in a given Labyrinth, you are screwed, as they are a mile ahead of the regular enemies in terms of levels. And while some don't really chase after you, a other activley hunt you down. Avoid them at all costs. Also, somewhat related to FOEs is the fact that everything that goes on in the Labyrinths is turn-based. In ohter words, every time that you take a step, a turn passes. And each turn that passes also gives FOEs a change to move towards you. Oh, and if you're in a battle, turns outside said battle will still pass, giving FOEs a chance to jump you mid-fight. Needless to say, this can lead to some pretty tense situations.

The only other thing I can really unique thing I can think of in terms of gameplay is the thing that made me by the game in the first place: on the bottom screen is a map of the Labyrinth... However, it is up to the player to make sure the map is actually useful, since said player is the one who draws it. Since that was what drew me to this game in the first place, it's fairly obvious that I like this feature.

Now, as for a gameplay rating... I'll give it a 8.5/10 since, while the gameplay is great as far as I'm concernd, there is one feature from Untold that I really feel need to be added sooner: the ability to run.

Other:​

It is also worth mentioning that Yggdrasil, as well as a few enemies, are nods to verious mythos that aren't really represnted in video games too often. That is cool.

Final Verdict:​

Something something me BadAss raiting of It's Plain Good (8.35/10) something something.

 

[PaulTheProtist]

Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock 10/10

The best GH game in terms of graphics and songlist.

 

[MachDragonX]

Halo 2: Anniversary Edition (Xbox One): 9.2/10

Now this is more like it. Halo 2 feels much more refined than the original – a truly modern FPS. The characters are more fleshed out, the story is very good, and the weapons and combat are some of the best I have experienced in a video game.

The story of Thel 'Vadam, aka the Arbiter, was probably the best thing about the game IMO. The original game lacked a main antagonist, instead tasking you to get through each level, killing any Covenant or Flood along the way, and occasionally complete tasks. Halo 2 fixes this problem, not only giving us a primary antagonist but actually allowing players to play as him during certain levels. He has a very interesting story arc, going from a social outcast due to his military failures, to a redeemed figure when he is forced to become the Arbiter, to an ally and hero when he realizes what the Halo installations are really designed to do.

Another positive effect of Thel 'Vadam's story involves how the Covenant are portrayed. The Covenant and their society are much more prominently featured than in the original, resulting in the game developers using this opportunity to depict them as more serious and threatening adversaries.

The weapons and combat have been improved from the original. Players can now wield weapons in each hand if they want, but at the cost of being able to throw grenades. A larger number of weapons can be equipped and brand new ones not found in the original game can be encountered during certain levels. Some of my favorite new weapons are the Sentinel Beam, the Brute Shot, and the Type-51 Carbine.

Vehicle combat is much more prominent than in the original. Certain levels are almost entirely vehicle-based. I especially liked the early levels where you need to pilot a Ghost in a high speed chase through underground tunnels in Cairo and drive a Scorpion over a bridge full of Covenant vehicles as Master Chief, and later fly a Banshee and partake in aerial dog fights as the Arbiter.

The remade graphics are beautiful, especially in cut scenes, and the sound quality is excellent. One complaint I have is that can be tough to hear dialogue during fights. Another complaint is, as opposed to the original Halo which wasn't very cinematic in its presentation at all, Halo 2 is almost too cinematic. But my biggest issue with the game is, like in the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare franchise, you very often don't need to defeat or overcome the enemies you encounter, you just need to survive/endure them to progress. I didn't care for that aspect, but overall I still greatly enjoyed the game.


Code Name S.T.E.A.M. (Nintendo 3DS): 8/10

This game was fun and has a lot of potential, but I didn't feel it was refined enough to make it a truly memorable experience.

The cast of characters is fun, the story is ludicrous (in a good way), and there is a lot of subtle strategy involved in the game mechanics, but overall I found this game to be uneven in terms of difficulty and very frustrating at certain points. Code Name S.T.E.A.M. goes from being fine in terms of difficulty to becoming WAY too hard during the last few levels. The last two maps are particularly painful to play through due to the sheer amount of enemies encountered in the first map and how cheap the final enemy in the second map can be in terms of its overpowered abilities and the randomness of its actions.

I also did not like the fact that during many of the levels, you are forced to use particular characters. While you would think the characters you are forced to use during certain levels have specific value to beating those levels, this isn't always the case. Often times you are forced to use a character just for the sake of introducing that character to the player.

For anyone with a 3DS, I think this game is worth trying. But whether or not you think it is a game worth buying is probably going to depend on the person.

 

[Zeb]

Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 10/10

Amazing game. Very large and time-consuming, but it's such a good game that the length never felt like a chore because I kept wanting more. Loved the world + characters a lot, super sad I've finished it now (after two months of solid playing). It probably makes my top 3 favourite games ever tbh. Had a few bugs and glitches here and there but in a game this massive and with such a good quality in everything overall I can forgive them. Bring on the DLC I neeeeed more!