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Most of Stories: The Path of Destinies is hinged upon the idea of discovering the best possible outcomes of its story, no matter how nonsensical it may be at first. It's a clever way to build a narrative, because it's built around the assumption one will fail multiple times while still retaining useful knowledge to apply in a different run.
Most of these additions and tweaks are bonuses or minor quality-of-life improvements learned from later games. The core is intact, unchanged, and still spectacularly fun. As the saying goes, they don't make them like they used to. Ratchet & Clank argues that maybe they should.
At one point, Paul Serene emphatically states that the timeline is set, and that the advent of time fracturing and collapsing on itself can't be avoided. There is only one reality, he argues. If Quantum Break is a game fractured between two worlds, the one reality set for us as players is the one in which it's a shooter that often isn't a shooter, and a story that doesn't fully explore its narrative potential. It has intriguing ideas regarding both, but in this case, two halves don't really make a whole.
Frustrations with its servers aside, The Division is what I wished Bungie's Destiny would have been. It has an engrossing and fascinating story, a wide variety of loot to collect, and collectibles and side missions that help give a much clearer picture of the terrifying reality of what would happen if New York City was hit with a deadly, flu-like virus.
Shadow Complex is a game that demands experiencing at least once. While those who played through multiple times and unlocked every secret the first go-round might not be especially compelled to do it again with such bare-bones revisions, it's a perfect vehicle for first-timers. If you haven't played Shadow Complex before, it's absolutely worth armoring up now.
It's not very effective
On the whole, these improvements make Twilight Princess HD the best version of the worst modern Zelda game. That said, even a mediocre Zelda game is still pretty fun. If you can get past its tonal oddities and paint-by-numbers structure, it's a good game, but not a great one. I enjoyed it as a cultural artifact, but replaying it made me appreciate that this direction for the series was temporary.
Maybe the same solid foundation with more robust content is all Garden Warfare 2 needs to be. The package feels more whole and satisfying, and while that may dampen my thoughts on the first game a bit, it's really only by comparison to this one. If Garden Warfare was the seed, this sequel is the harvest.
Overall Far Cry Primal is a promising idea, but the underlying potential of Takkar's journey is wasted on a stereotypical surface level story that keeps players from really connecting with the protagonist and supporting characters. The Master Beast Hunts are exhilarating, and require tons of preparation if you want to pull them off without a hitch, but aside from the few hunts offered up in the end game, the forced specialist quests are just as much a letdown as the game's underwhelming story. In the end the new abilities, like taming animals and riding them, are great additions to the game, but they just aren't enough to save Far Cry Primal from being a fairly average and mindless adventure in a time long forgotten.
Fan service isn't always for everyone, and with Project X Zone 2 overflowing with it, people are going to be turned off. I honestly don't think it could be any other way, though. Project X Zone 2 isn't for newcomers to its various represented series. It's for fans that have stuck by these venerable franchises for years. It shows how rewarding a zany bordering on nonsensical crossover can be, and it's unfortunate that more developers feel they can't take the risk to potentially alienate audiences with other properties.
Fire Emblem Fates exemplifies the best way to approach a sequel. It maintains and iterates on Awakening's best qualities, while also introducing new systems that have a profound impact alongside a richer and more poignant story. It's more than just a worthwhile successor to a recent hit. Taken as a whole, it's the best Fire Emblem to date.
Fire Emblem Fates exemplifies the best way to approach a sequel. It maintains and iterates on Awakening's best qualities, while also introducing new systems that have a profound impact alongside a richer and more poignant story. It's more than just a worthwhile successor to a recent hit. Taken as a whole, it's the best Fire Emblem to date.
Street Fighter V feels like it could be an incredible fighting game in the summer, filled with robust content and numerous game modes for both single-player and online multiplayer. But Street Fighter V isn't coming out this summer. It's coming out in February. The fact that a handful of game modes and features aren't ready for consumer use feels frustrating, especially since the quality of those inclusions can't be judged until they make it into the game. Battle Lounges, Online Lobbies, and Spectator modes could be awesome, but right now, nobody can say for sure. Thankfully, new features are coming down the line and whatever else is released afterwards can be earned through in-game currency, which is a welcome change from the past.
Had 'Russia' stuck to some of the roots of the main AC series, this could have been an interesting departure from the 3D games. But making the main characters feel paper thin while stacking the deck with inconsistent stealth mechanics, fussy controls, and timed objectives starts to make 'Russia' feel like a weekend in Siberia.
Unravel strengths lie more in its heart-warming story than offering compelling gameplay. Even though there are some thought-provoking puzzles, they're few and far between. There's no doubt Yarny is quite the adorable little mascot who has good intentions, but a video game can't succeed on good intentions alone.
I enjoyed my short time in the world of Firewatch. The world is beautiful and the voice acting is excellent. But Henry and Delilah's story is far too short, and the resolution of the game's story relies far too much on a backstory that isn't given the breathing room it needs. It's an emotional rollercoaster that just teeters back down to a merry-go-round, leaving me with a detached feeling that everything I had spent the past few hours working towards has been all for nought.
In many ways, XCOM 2 is more of what we already enjoyed in the recent reboot, with a few considerable improvements. The new units liven up the experience and add much more variety, while the procedurally generated maps help to customize every player's experience into a one of a kind novelty. If you're a newcomer to the resistance or an old veteran, XCOM 2 is a smartly designed action-strategy game with a staggering amount of content and replayability.
The Witness is an intentionally simple game to grasp, but enjoyment almost feels proportional to patience. These puzzles are absolute brain-breakers, so anyone that doesn't have the patience for them will get no enjoyment out of The Witness. I was certainly on the verge of being one of those people, but exploring the sheer beauty of the island and learning more about its central mystery turned out to make returning worthwhile.
LEGO Marvel's Avengers is what I expected it to be. It combined TT Games' ability to translate a popular film franchise into a fun and family-friendly experience while also adding some new tricks, such as the stud multiplier and combo attacks. And even though I was quite familiar with the source material, I still couldn't help but to pay close attention to its story as it was delivered in such a unique and fun package.
Final Fantasy Explorers was a smooth and accessible introduction to this game type, and has customization options galore, but if it intends to be a long-term dungeon crawling adventure, it needed more to explore.