The Jimquisition
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It’s not enough to say that Resident Evil 6 is poor as a Resident Evil game. That alone implies there could be a quality experience if fans can get past their preconceptions and feelings of betrayal. No, Resident Evil 6 is poor by the standards of any game, not just the high ones set by its own legacy.
Quantum Break is not the most revolutionary of games, and its box of time toys cover what is, at heart, a fairly standardized shooter. However, it carries itself with style and speed to create something genuinely fascinating to play, flavored by a story that, while failing to pay off in the final stretch, is more detailed and engrossing than most in its league.
Hyrule Warriors Legends is every bit as good as the original, with more meat to chew through and a colorful cast of extra playable characters. While some of the original game's problems are still present, improvements made to the fluidity of battles and player freedom more than make up for it. In fact, I'd go as far as to say this is easily one of the best 3DS games ever released, at least if you have a New 3DS in your pocket.
Tom Clancy's The Division is overwhelmingly okay. It will drown you in its abundant okayness, so okay is it in terms of playability and content.
I like it, is what I'm saying.
Ultimately, Heavy Rain is an experiment that both succeeded and failed, when it could easily have been a total success if the brains behind it weren't trying so hard to be smart and cared more about providing a sensible plot as opposed to a shocking one.
You'll see talk online about how Superhot is "the most innovative first-person shooter I've played in years." It's a phrase people who've played the game keep using, and there's a memetic reason for that -one I won't spoil. I will, however, have to say that I'm on board with the sentiment of the phrase despite any potential ironic usage. Because it is simply true. Superhot is the most innovative shooter I've played in years.
Fast becoming my favorite online shooter of choice, Garden Warfare 2 is lovable, preposterous, and completely rampageous. Never though I'd say this about an EA game, but it's everything a modern premium experience should be.
While other venerable franchises like Call of Duty are afraid to challenge themselves and make only halfhearted gestures toward invention, Primal plots a course through uncharted waters with a battle-tested vessel and actually commits to making its new ideas more than vapid window dressing.
Layers of Fear is well made, but commits a potentially greater sin than a game that's simply bad. It's dull. It's dreary. It's got as much bite as a beach ball. Perhaps for those who have only the lightest experience with horror games, it could be seen as authentically and astutely terrifying. For me, it's nothing new at all, and its presentation is so railroaded it might as well have been a ghost train.
When it comes to fighting against someone, it's one of the most polished Street Fighters to date. When it comes to everything outside of that fight, it's a huge steaming turd that I look at with a scrunched up, grossed out face.
Firewatch is not what many people may have wanted, but that doesn't mean it's bad. Fans of interactive drama will absolutely want to give this a try, as it shows how you can craft a "walking simulator" while keeping players involved and intrigued as opposed to ignored and bored.
Cloying adorability is Unravel's saving grace. Propped up on a crutch constructed from mawkish sentimentality, it gets away with a fair few missteps and manages to claw together a smattering of memorable moments. This pretty shell, however, is undeniably a shell, and no amount of pretty little animations can make up for a total drought of engaging game design.
American Truck Simulator remains an authentic and gratifying production, one of the few simulators out there still worthy of positive attention.
While most of this generation's avalanche of double-dips have felt cynical and unwarranted, Gravity Rush truly benefits from a change of system and a chance to reach a comparatively huge audience. It is, simply put, a better game than it used to be, and I can't complain about that.
If anything, Dark Arisen reminds me just how much I missed my time with Dragon's Dogma, and how I'd love to see another one in the works. Here's hoping Gransys has more adventures for us in future!
Hours and hours of content await for players who need a time sink. I'll confess I'm still battling my way through it, though I've sunk many slogging hours into the thing – plenty to have a good rounded view of the experience. There's so much to chew through, and so many tasks to complete, that you'll find yourself more than satisfied if you're a content hound.
Halo 5: Guardians is okay. Its campaign is rubbish, but the multiplayer is solid thanks to the foundation it's built upon. Warzone is a really enjoyable experience, and while combat is still mostly about tossing grenades and hitting the melee button, the whole Requisition gimmick adds some much-needed flavor to proceedings. It's just a shame it also adds not-needed money to Microsoft pockets.
I'd say that, if you already bought and played Resident Evil last year, this won't be an essential purchase. However, the physical release bundles both games together, and I'd say that's at least worth a punt. As far as the game on its own goes, I guess I'm kind of happy to see it.. but it just makes me long for that Resident Evil 2 do-over.
So, from a subjective standpoint, I would argue that, despite not being a great product, That Dragon, Cancer is still very good at what it does – forging a link with its audience and delivering a love-filled, mercilessly sad, story. It's being sold as a product, it should be criticized for that, but it should also be praised for the things it does so very well.