Josh Knowles's Reviews
Persona 3 Reload is, as I said, the absolute textbook idea of what a remake should be. I'm super happy that this generation gets to experience this game and look forward to eventually seeing the same approach to Persona 4 and the Persona 1 and 2 duology. Now I must dive into Persona 4 Arena Ultimax after finishing Reload to take in the whole story!
Palworld offers a good amount of fun for the investment and has the potential to grow into something even more significant.
If you aren’t a Batman fan, I’m not sure that there is enough that stands out that dropping full retail on Gotham Knights is a smart move. The game could certainly use some patches, the full four-player mode isn’t out yet at release and I feel like holiday releases may quickly overshadow this game. That isn’t to say that there isn’t a great concept, but like Batman, it's crushed to death under all the debris.
You will enjoy this game if you can stomach the abuse that Elden Ring dishes out. Even if you cannot, there is so much out there that you can do if you aren't afraid of running from scary fights. Some locations can be less fun than others, and some bosses create skill-based stopgaps. Elden Ring is all about picking yourself up, dusting yourself off, and sometimes finding something more enjoyable to do. It's worth the investment.
I’m going out on a limb to say Dying Light 2 isn’t for everyone. There is a bit of frustration you need to initially power through. The overall gameplay loop requires a bit of self-sufficiency if you want to get the most out of your experience. Once you can take your time in the night/dark cycles of the game, there is a lot more that opens up, but that also requires a ton of backtracking.
The problem is, if Red Dead Redemption is perfect (which it is), 2 feels like more of the same but requires more patience than the original.
Destiny 2 is the game I was totally hyped to play three years ago, finally.
Even though I can take a sizeable time to complain about Breath of the Wild (and that’s not even talking about performance issues), the game is still a very good one. I would comfortably say that after an extensive period of playing Breath of the Wild, I do believe that it is one of the best Legend of Zelda games that has ever been made.
No Man's Sky has a framework that could have led to an impressive game. Instead, the core parts of "gameplay" seem to be limited in the name of calling it a "chill game". It's boring, uninspired, repetitive and simply unfun.
All in all, if you are looking for a good JRPG and a reason to use your 3DS that isn’t called Monster Hunter or Pokémon, this is it. The name may be a bit of a turn-off to people casually browsing the 3DS library, but this game delivers in a way that I never expected it would.
Odin Sphere Leifthrasir takes a game that deserved a lot more praise than it initially received and makes it the game that it always had the potential to be.
Overall, The Banner Saga 2's story is simply fantastic and is filled with beautiful animation. This game needs to be seen and heard.
If you didn’t get to play Valkyria Chronicles when the game released back in the PS3 days, picking this up is a decent investment for $29.99. It’s not a game for everyone, however, and watching most of it online on Twitch or Youtube will ruin a lot of the overall experience. I really did like the game, though, and I am pretty sure that if you are looking for a great RPG experience on the cheap, this is the one for you.
Dark Souls 3 is a great game, but it's a game that takes a few steps back to be accommodating for players that are still not acclimated to the series.
To sum it up, the "Enhanced Edition" content lets you add some filters, improves some animations and makes the zombies more dangerous. This is all before adding in some devastating new weaponry.
I'd be lying if I said that there wasn't anything left for me to do within the game, and I'm sure that statement will stand for quite awhile as well. A good game and an even better experience.
If you were looking for some sort of evolution to the music game genre, surprisingly Activision hit the nail square on the head. Not only is Guitar Hero Live a fun product to play, but it is also an enjoyable game to watch with its live performances and music videos. Rock Band 4 was hesitant to change, while I can't wait to see the future of Guitar Hero now!
Minecraft Story Mode really appears to be something marketed to younger players that love Minecraft, as there are things like conventions and little jokes for anyone that has sat in front of a crafting table before. I found the first episode amusing, but my son saw it as one of his favorite games given a new breath of life with a real story and characters within the world itself.
That's the thing with I am Bread. It's a game for video game masochists. It's fun in small 15 minute spurts, which it can mostly be played in, but really feels to captivate for any sort of time after that. Fortunately, that brief amount of time can be spent playing with the baguette and smashing your problems away.
Rock Band 4 seems like it was rushed to get out to the public. They had an opportunity to make a triumphant return with awesome music but opted to have you turn around and purchase all the "great DLC" that they made available the day the game came out. Thanks, but no thanks, Harmonix.