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Ultimately, Uncharted 4: A Thief's End made me laugh, it made me cry, it made me curse and it make me shout. It made me take a break just to catch my breath, more than once. What more can I ask of a game? This isn't just a swan song for a beloved franchise, but a majestic and emotional symphony of love.
The Park is a great piece of psychological horror, one that doesn't dip into jump scares or excessive grit. Instead it introduces a playable protagonist you can't rely on, in a discomforting situation that smartly paces itself and holds back from excess. For anyone who wants to feel perturbed and have a hard time sleeping immediately afterwards, The Park is definitely for you.
Admittedly I went into Bravely Second: End Layer expecting to be let down, especially after how much I had enjoyed the first game. Despite the issue of sameness mentioned previously, my misgivings for the sequel have mostly been proven misplaced and I'm more than happy to eat crow as I continue to enjoy experiencing the trials and tribulations of this new generation of heroes as they find their place in the world, rescuing it along the way.
The original Skullgirls featured a fantastic fighting system, great characters and music — but not much more. With very little in the way of a single player suite, virtually nothing to unlock or explore and so few features that it was difficult to recommend to anyone except hardcore genre fans content to do nothing but duke it out in versus mode endlessly. Skullgirls 2nd Encore has complimented the meat with potatoes and given the title some substance. Now you get that stellar fighting with lots of modes to explore and plenty to unlock. This is the best version of the one of the most original fighters we've seen in the last decade. So go get it.
In my 10-12 hour time with Corpse Party (and the handful of endings I stumbled upon), I had lost a handful of friends and witnessed a fair amount of frights. More importantly, the twenty year-old game delivered on a captivating ghost story, fit for the most veteran horror-buffs. And while the art style and themes may turn a few people off, the game is a rewarding, terrifying experience that shows the limits of what a well-told story can accomplish in spite of its artstyle’s limitations.
Experience has delivered a resoundingly solid dungeon-crawler that will give any seasoned a JRPG fan a run for their money. Beyond a difficult barrier to entry, players will find rewarding innovation, stunning art, and core mechanics that keep drawing you back. And while this game may not be for everyone, gamers able to notice genre-bending nuance will be able to find something to enjoy.
Despite Star Fox Zero's relatively brief story mode (around 4-5 hours, absent the branching paths), the game remains a great value, with Guard's inclusion giving even more incentive to pick up this title.
As a sidestory in the matter of all things The Walking Dead, “Something to Fear” brings some needed improvements to the series’ pace while also adding some truly action-packed decisions needing to be made, bolstered by the continually strong presence of Michonne as the miniseries’ main character. However, The Walking Dead: Michonne continues to suffer in other ways with a supporting cast that doesn’t quite measure up to the same level or quality as Michonne, and a story that cuts deep with tension, but still feels like it could use a little bit more heft in its impact.
With the series now essentially moving into a new “season,” Minecraft: Story Mode has largely shaken things up a bit with a whole new area of its blocky, build-it world and some new faces alongside its older ones, while at the same time keeping its charm and good humor intact. While the supporting cast are still not quite getting the same level of attention or character development as some of the series more prominent actors, “Order Up!” still brings in one of the series’ best episodes to date, and builds up to a whole new adventure with three more episodes to see how the blocks all fall into place.
Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 2 isn't a perfect game, by any means. However, unlike other titles, Garden Warfare 2 revels in its imperfections, making it all of its minor flaws, imbalances, and awful puns a joy for the player. But before you pick up the title, make sure you are lighthearted enough to enjoy it.
And conquer I shall, even if for the first time in so many years, a MMORPG finally restored that sense of awe and adventure that I thought irremediably lost. For the first time in almost a decade, the world of a game finally managed to make me feel small again, and boy, this feels so good.
If that's your thing, then this game has tens of hours of bliss in store for you. Marquis de Sade used to say that it is always by way of pain one arrives at pleasure, and Dark Souls III certainly takes this concept to the next level.
As I rafted lazily down the river, passing churches and camp grounds, I found a moment or two to reflect on my time with The Flame in the Flood. I wonder "How much time have I spent with in-game menus?," "I wonder how far I can make it before my resources run dry?," and "How in the world can anyone kill a bear?" The game had lost its challenge an hour or so ago, but I remembered my first 10 or so hours fondly as constantly challenging and enjoyably tense. And while I don't see myself playing the game for too much longer, the The Flame in the Flood is a solid recommendation for anyone looking to diversify their catalog with a short, challenging, and artistically crafted indie title.
Ultimately, Quantum Break was obviously an experiment. On one side, I'd rather see game developers and publishers focus their resources on telling their stories via the games themselves, but it's impossible not to recognize the value of this title as a game. It looks awesome, it plays great, and makes you feel really badass. What's not to love? Remedy is back, baby!
Hyrule Warriors Legends offers players with tons to do and brings together many of the franchise’s most iconic characters in a way that is unexpected yet fun — however, the subpar technical performance and changes made to accommodate the handheld may make it an experience that’s far from legendary.
Dead or Alive Xtreme 3 is far from perfect, and I don’t see it bringing home any Game of the Year titles, but in today’s gaming landscape it’s certainly fairly unique. If that kind of uniqueness is what you enjoy, then you’ll most probably feel right at home on Zack’s new island. I certainly did, and plan to continue doing so for quite a while. Since the game won’t be available on the western market, the review copy used for this article was kindly provided by PlayAsia.
From the humble beginnings of the simple, singular image above to the fully fleshed out title we have now, it's been quite the journey. And considering the high quality product we've gotten for our patience, Pokkén Tournament has been worth the wait.
But where it falls on its face is in the lack of oversight in mending the issues that made the original game disappointing –- the AI. It’s a game that promises entertainment and, in that, it does deliver; but it will, sadly, also bring just as much discontent as it involves interfacing with a questionable Artificial Intelligence system that will frustrate you. A game with polish, but not enough polish in areas where they matter.
While playing leaves players at the mercy of its time period due to the lack of firearms and weapons we've come to know in recent installments, instead players are treated to a leaner, and thrilling take on the series that works perfectly in its Stone Age setting. In any case, Far Cry Primal proves that looking back to the past can reveal an experience that's crazy and brutally fun.
It's a shame that Street Fighter V currently suffers from a lack of content, because with free updates and patches, a legendary fighting game is waiting just below the surface. In a few months I hope we can look back on this tumultuous launch as an afterthought to the greatness I know that this game could hold.