ZTGD's Reviews
I don’t want to spoil any more of the experience. I went from liking Pikmin to loving Pikmin with Pikmin 4. It’s just one of those games that I think is near flawless. It may have lost some of its difficulty, but I think all the things we gained in exchange are worth it.
Players won’t find combat in Lifeless Moon, instead this game is made for fans of classic sci-fi, the stuff from Rod Sterling’s Twilight Zone, the kind of sci-fi that makes you think about it after you turn it off. And for all those reasons I really enjoyed this game, while I did find it overly easy at times moving through the world and the various biomes and figuring out its story was the real payoff, and if you like that type of sci-fi then you should check this one out before you get lost in Starfield.
While not quite reaching the heights of the Danganronpa series, Master Detective Archives: Rain Code is great spiritual successor to the cult classic and whether this is the beginning of a new franchise or if it will be a stand-alone title, it marks a return to form for Tookyo Games.
Lisa: The Painful is just a perfect name for this game as it evokes such emotions while playing. Depending on the gamer though this dark, sometimes humorous, always shocking world could be just the ticket to see something polar opposite from say a Final Fantasy. I certainly walked away from this game not feeling the light and pride of finishing the usual RPG’s, Lisa: The Painful is a bleak experience but one that is worth it if you can stomach it.
Viewfinder is a unique game that begs to be experienced. I do wish it was available on more platforms as everyone needs to experience this unique puzzle game. I could not put it down until the end and I cannot wait to see what this team accomplishes next. There is so much here that impresses, it never overstays its welcome, and the technical achievement will be talked about for years. Definitely play this game if you have the means
Atlas Fallen does some things right as a new franchise, the world that the team has made is interesting and begs to be explored, the story is for the most part extremely well told and as I said graphically the game looks great. But the unevenness of the combat just makes avoiding fights more common than facing enemies head on. Which is truly a shame because as I said above, I love action games and had high hopes that Atlas Fallen would stick the landing. I am hoping this is something that can be fixed with a patch, because I did enjoy skating around the sands and exploring the massive levels.
Miasma Chronicles isn’t far removed from the studios previous outing with Mutant Year Zero in neither setting or gameplay. That doesn’t mean however that it’s a bad game at all, Miasma feels more polished and nuanced than its predecessor which speaks volumes of the talent at the studio. However, for me the narrative wasn’t as strong as the world itself which wasn’t helped by the feeling of an abrupt ending to the whole affair. But Miasma Chronicles remains a good time due to the mix of tactical strategy and stealth gameplay.
The team at Larian Studios are to be commended, Baldur’s Gate 3 is nothing short of a masterpiece when it comes to RPG’s.
Double Dragon Gaiden continues the trend of the series’ ups and downs. While it has some truly great designs, it has a lot of frustrating choices that hold it back. I was really excited to see a new game in the series, but it feels like they just want to build something new with each entry instead of capitalizing on what made the original so great. With the recent revival of so many classic beat ‘em up franchises, Double Dragon Gaiden just doesn’t impress nearly as much as it should have.
Graphically Front Mission: 1st Remake looks phenomenal on the Series X, small touches like working windshield wipers on vehicles and things really help to immerse players in the game and its world. The remake presents the game in a different camera angle from the original but allows players to choose how they want to play. This is also true of the soundtrack in game as the original and a remastered and remixed version is available as well. While I enjoyed the story of Front Mission: 1st Remake, the combat made the game feel like a chore. In fact, it felt like for everyone good thing I found with the game, I would end up with two negatives. I had issues with the camera control in the heat of battle, the overall difficulty on default is a tad hard (but there is a difficulty selection if you want to play on easy), missing more attacks than I hit even in melee and all these things just led to a poor experience. I think Id love to play a new Front Mission game, one that isn’t a remake and is charting its own path forward; hopefully we can see that one day.
Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2 provides another dark look at war and its effects on those who are waging it. Just like in the first there are some very dire consequences to using certain abilities in game, thankfully the developers have added another option which will only disable instead of destroying, which is nice but still feels bad to use either weapon. (Im being vague on purpose but if you played the original you know what I’m talking about) While I loved this game almost as much as I enjoyed the original, I just can’t shake the feeling that this didn’t do enough to be a full sequel, so much of it is so similar to the original. It doesn’t mean Fuga 2 isn’t great though, the story is just as moving as the original and the relationships players will be stewards over with these kids is one of, if not the best thing about this series.
So much about this game is questionable, from the backwards ass way the narrative is presented to just having one mode available at launch to the inclusion of a battle pass. I don’t get it one bit, but Exoprimal is on Game Pass and I encourage you to check it out because there is fun to be had, but your mileage will definitely vary on how much you have that’s for sure.
As an epilogue to cap off a series spanning a whopping NINE games, Trails into Reverie delivers in all the areas that makes this one of the best RPG series on the market, featuring impeccable world building, compelling, nuanced characters and an enjoyable combat engine with plenty of room for experimentation. In a way, this entry feels like a reward for all those who have stuck with the series thus far and as we look towards Calvard and the future of the series as a whole, we can rest easy knowing that we’ve sent the heroes off in style, without any regrets.
There really isn’t one thing that I walked away from in Forever Skies that I absolutely hated; in fact, I found its approach quite refreshing to the genre. Having a lone scientist return to the polluted Earth is a great jumping point for some survival stories. And flying through the world was strangely beautiful at times, seeing the sun rise and set against the green sky and thunderstorms with the impressive lightning flashes and rain were my favorites to witness. Alas there just isn’t enough content currently for me to invest in this game fully, I don’t want to get burnt out on the limited content and then never come back to check out the game in all its glory. Forever Skies isn’t a bad game by any means, it’s just not a complete one and if you know that going in and aren’t bothered by it then you will have some fun in the skies.
Aliens: Dark Descent does a great job of mashing up tactical action and the tension and fear of its source material. Not without its pain points however such as the lip syncing during cutscenes, controller buttons not being recognized usually when in the heat of battle, and some other bugs and glitches. I commend these developers for taking so many different things and successfully putting them together to deliver a wonderful tactical strategy game, some more time gestating and this one would have been ready to really burst forth and do some real damage.
If anyone comes into these remasters expecting Metroid Prime or Skyward Sword levels of work, be prepared to be disappointed because these releases are more akin to the Super Mario Sunshine reissue included with Super Mario 3D All-Stars. I see the primary audience from Nintendo’s point of view being those who have never played Pikmin who are interested in Pikmin 4, however not having all the options from Pikmin 3 Deluxe (also on Switch) limits the enjoyment for those introduced to the series from that release as the other main Pikmin games were released on systems that don’t have official support anymore and a very small percentage of people actually had a Wii U. Also, the fact that buying the two games separately is $10 more than buying both together is just an odd business strategy. Overall, I would say these games are worth playing, but are unfortunately not definitive versions that wholly replace previous releases or bring changes that future releases would make to the previous titles.
If anyone comes into these remasters expecting Metroid Prime or Skyward Sword levels of work, be prepared to be disappointed because these releases are more akin to the Super Mario Sunshine reissue included with Super Mario 3D All-Stars. I see the primary audience from Nintendo’s point of view being those who have never played Pikmin who are interested in Pikmin 4, however not having all the options from Pikmin 3 Deluxe (also on Switch) limits the enjoyment for those introduced to the series from that release as the other main Pikmin games were released on systems that don’t have official support anymore and a very small percentage of people actually had a Wii U. Also, the fact that buying the two games separately is $10 more than buying both together is just an odd business strategy. Overall, I would say these games are worth playing, but are unfortunately not definitive versions that wholly replace previous releases or bring changes that future releases would make to the previous titles.
This collection is more than worth the time even if the digital version feels incomplete. It was great revisiting these classic shooters all in one place. They are not as in-depth as other shooters, but are still a ton of fun. Definitely worth checking out for anyone that still clings to that classic genre.
As a huge fan of the AEW product, it’s hard for me not to be disappointed in Fight Forever. The gameplay on offer here is certainly a solid, if flawed, base to build off for future updates. There just isn’t very much to do at present. The game does succeed in capturing the overall fun-loving spirit of the promotion, and If the developers stick to their plans to add modes, wrestlers, and additional creation suite options (as well as putting time and effort in to squash the clipping and AI issues) they could have something good here in 6-8 months. As it stands now, there is no doubt that Fight Forever is fun to play but if you’re someone who favors the creative side of wrestling gaming or if you intend to spend nearly all your time playing the game on your own, you’re going to run out of things to do pretty quickly. It may be helpful in that case to wait for some future updates before jumping in.
I also don’t know what to expect if this game does well as this is a story that has an ending but maybe we will see these mechanics come back? It’s a really unique game that I think plays best in this release, particularly because of how good it looks. If puzzle games with good stories and colorful art styles sound interesting, then this is probably a game you should pick up.