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Maneater is a fantastic central concept around which an intermittently enjoyable game has been built. It might not be a classic, but it'll be hard to forget, and that's the kind of game that typically seems better as time goes by. Expect to see this absurd bit of bloody, barbaric business pop up on lists of cult favorites for years to come, and deservedly so.
If Found bridges the gaps between a handful of different mediums and artistic disciplines to create a sad, poignant, ultimately uplifting tale.
Moving Out is one of the best couch co-op games out there right now.
With a good (if shabby) heart, Persona 5 Royal wants, above all, to win our empathy for the Phantom Thieves. They've definitely earned it.
Panzer Dragoon: Remake barely makes an concessions to how games have grown over the last 25 years, and that makes it hard to care about it. The superior sequel will be getting a remake next year; this might be one of those situations where the first game in a series can easily be skipped over in the hagiography. Even the biggest members of the Dragoon Squad can sit this one out.
Whether you’ve played the original or not, you probably won’t forget Final Fantasy VII Remake any time soon.
Street Fighter V is more than capable of holding its own in a fight, especially the new Champion Edition; it’s just not an all-time great like its dad.
That head might naturally drift towards the hellishly contorted world we live in, and not the delightfully cartoonish one of Animal Crossing, but escapism is overrated anyway. I'd rather worry about every aspect of modern living while quietly reflecting on the rhythmic roar of a videogame ocean than while sitting slackjawed in a living room I won't ever be able to leave again. Give me these New Horizons—rigid, commercial, and staid—over the chaos of the last decade.
An experience that reduces the bulk of files and audio logs that personify the narrative delivery of the base game, in favor of vertical platforming and fight sequences with the Hiss.
I ran, I jumped, I killed. And I died. A lot. And these days, that's enough.
Once you complete Crystal, you're allowed, like many games, to retain your save and begin again with additional difficulty. I won't be doing that. Instead, I'll be replaying Muppet Treasure Island, the reigning champion of Jim Henson-verse videogames since 1996.
Ultimately, it delivers exactly what I desire from games in its genre: a brain busting experience that challenges the limits of my creative problem solving skills without exhausting them.
Re: Mind only serves to remind me of all the untapped potential of this series; of all the room it has to evolve; of how its audience has matured but it has failed to do so alongside it.
Will you like Shenmue III? I can't say. This is likely the last new game I'll play before the year ends, and it's a sure win for my Game of the Year. Shenmue III spoke to me on a level few games have. I thought about giving it a 10/10, even began gearing myself up to argue that with my editor. But Shenmue isn't perfect. It defies real perfection, because life is imperfect. Shenmue III is knobby and requires tremendous, repetitive effort before it gives up the special, unique warmth.
I do wish there were more to Luigi's Mansion 3, that the controls were tighter and more precise, but I also find myself wanting to play it more despite these problems. I don't know that I'll pick it back up when my partner and I finally collect every last gem, and suck out every last coin from every possible hiding place. But the liveliness and charm of its world, the bizarre questions it doesn't ask but gestures to, and the happiness I've had playing it with my partner on the couch will likely stick with me for quite some time.
As much as I'd like to see the full Pokédex in a Pokémon game, what would be the point? Every Pokémon deserves a detailed treatment, and Sword and Shield don't achieve that. It's nice to hunt Pokémon in a more expansive playfield and I plan to completely fill out the rosters on both games. But its potential remains not entirely realized, as tantalizingly out of reach as our ability to catch 'em all.
Obsidian is on to something good with The Outer Worlds. The writing has an irresistible humanity, and the factions, skill system, and dynamic companion interactivity offer a beautifully complicated depth that makes me mourn the loss of Fallout 4 all over again. With it, I don't have to miss Fallout: New Vegas anymore—I can just enjoy what its core features have become. So far, this new horizon looks promising.
Its several systems gracefully combine to create a cog that you want to keep turning until you reach the end. Ultimately, most of us are just cogs in a larger machine operated by those at the top. Neo Cab chooses to see the importance of the little cogs, and that's why it'll stick with me.
Many years have passed since I played the masterpiece that is Ever 17, and I'm still in awe of his ability to weave in so many strands, concepts, and plot twists and still create something that isn't just coherent, but also adrenaline-inducing and emotionally resonant. Every game is a team effort, but Uchikoshi's brilliance is what's made many of the visual novels he's directed and written become cult classics. AI: The Somnium Files isn't his best work, but it's entertaining from start to end and a game I'd recommend to anyone interested in visual novels, murder mysteries, or simply a great story.
It's a shame that Borderlands and I are no longer a good fit. What I miss most of all is its personality. The aesthetic and surface changes to the series don't make it a stranger; the change in temperament does. We just don't have as many laughs as we used to. Better to cut things off now, and remember the relationship for what it once was, because it doesn't get any better from here.