Kyle Hilliard's Reviews
Breath of the Wild is a feat of design and polish. Hyrule feels like a real place, and the journey Link and Zelda undertake to defeat Ganon is compelling
Inside is the closest I have ever felt to experiencing a simulated nightmare. It’s the perfect showcase of the kind of emotion an interactive experience can inspire
Nearly every encounter, whether puzzle, traversal, or combat, must be reconsidered. It makes you think in new ways. I didn’t get the same goosebumps exploring Hyrule as I did in the past, but I did experience new emotions both on a granular level from solving individual puzzles and on a larger scale by going back to one of my favorite video game locations. They say you can never go home again, but I adored returning to Hyrule with all new tools.
Hyper Light Drifter sticks with you long after the final boss, thanks to its impressive wealth of secrets, amazing soundtrack, and mysterious world
God of War Ragnarök feels a lot like God of War (2018), which is a compliment considering how fantastic that game is. Sony Santa Monica was right to not break what wasn’t broken and it has expertly continued the story threads that were left hanging from the previous game.
Tropical Freeze stands among the best platformers of the last decade. Playing as Funky Kong is great for alleviating frustration or allowing skilled players to breeze through the game at high speed
This is a dense, content-rich package that raises the bar for remakes and re-releases. Whether you want to relive the campaigns or revisit multiplayer, you can find something here to enjoy
Even without being remade, Majora's Mask stands as one of the most interesting and thought-provoking entries. The experience has only been made better for the 3DS
A literally endless supply of Mario levels is at your fingertips, as long as you don't mind if they aren't up to Nintendo's standard of quality. Getting creative with the tools is fun, and so is seeing what others have devised
Shadow of the Colossus is a masterpiece, and developer Bluepoint has done a fantastic job bringing it to a new generation
Iconoclasts plays well, looks great, and has some strong level design, but the unexpected highlight is a narrative that examines topics like religion and environmentalism in a well-realized world with real consequences
Beat Saber is a blast, and one of the best experiences you can have in virtual reality. You truly feel like a musical samurai (even if you look silly to everyone watching)
Astro Bot is an excellent platformer with great motion controls, and its execution in virtual reality creates something fresh in a well-worn genre
Pikmin may never rise to the top of the Nintendo heap, and it’s probably unfair to expect it ever could, but the latest Pikmin is the best effort yet.
Sea of Stars is a stellar throwback that appeals to fans like me who love 16-bit RPGs, but it also functions as an excellent entry point. Annoyances that hindered early games that inspired Sea of Stars are nowhere to be seen. Simple actions like moving around the world feel great, the story picks up quickly, and farming experience is effectively unnecessary. It all leads to a smooth, consistently thrilling adventure with fun combat, all in a gorgeous and inviting world.
The adventure isn’t overlong, and you don’t spend more time than necessary fighting. The world, art, and narrative are unique, but it makes me nostalgic for a game I remember from the past. It’s as though developer Sandfall Interactive managed to make a classic RPG with only the good parts.
You'd be hard-pressed to not uncover something you enjoy in this nostalgia-laden package
Mario & Luigi continues to have the best sense of humor of Nintendo's assorted franchises, and a quicker pace in the tutorial and storytelling departments make this one of the best entries yet
The Fractured But Whole is a worthy follow-up to one of the best video game adaptations of a TV show ever made. It has consistent humor, a story with a satisfying pay-off, and a fun new combat system
Breaking down a large cube into a recognizable object using your puzzle-solving smarts is hugely rewarding