There are things I respect about Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon. Its soundtrack, for one, is uniformly pretty good, and the game’s ambition is undeniable, but I can’t really say I enjoyed much of my time playing it, moment to moment. Occasional striking vistas and questlines can’t make up for a world that feels pretty inauthentic in its representation of a fictionalized version of Celtic culture, and the way you are forced to constantly wander it to complete straightforward missions makes it a space that is hard to enjoy exploring. And while there are interesting roleplaying narrative beats, that is rarely reflected in gameplay that railroads you into one of two playstyles.
Clair Obscur feels big, it feels important, it feels like a game for now, that you’ll be thinking about for years to come. Expedition 33 might be built off of the groundwork laid by decades of creatives that came before, but its impact is wholly singular and essential in its own right.
The Mad Dog of Shimano is getting up there in age, but he’s still got a few new tricks up his snake-skin sleeves that Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii is worth taking to the seven seas for.
The music and vibe of Afterlove are both fittingly beautiful with the contrast in difficulty in certain rhythm sections doing a great job of showcasing Rama’s focus at the time.
Simply put, the act of playing Orcs Must Die! Deathtrap is not fun enough to abate that existential question from rattling around your head while you play.
Despite this not being the traditional type of story we associate with Kiryu, Infinite Wealth is a fitting send-off to a legend of gaming. In the words of Kiryu, "Even if I'm not as strong as I once was, I'm still me. And I'm starting to think that's not so bad."
Having now completed every side mission, substory, and objective in a little over 25 hours, I can only hope Ryu Ga Gotoku learns from this game and works on more bite-sized spin-offs fleshing out the rest of this universe roster of loveable weirdos, gallant heroes, and snarling villains.