Board 8 > Post Each Time You Beat a Game: 2023 Edition

(+) Yeah! (+)

Wario Land 3 (GBC)
I think I have new appreciation for this one. The structure is just so interesting. Combining WL2's basic concept with ability progression and this puzzle box world, where you don't simply progress from point A to point B but gradually unravel the world's secrets creates an experience that's hard to put down.
Golf is a headache, though.

Sol Divide

It took me months but I finally beat this short game.
I would basically get to the last stage with ease, only to have the first form of the last boss keep wrecking me. Endlessly. Like I would pass him at times, but there are several more (easier) forms to get through...but I would have no life to work with.

I finally went to 'unlimited lives' mode and tried to practice on him as much as possible. Then I played through again and forgot to turn off unlimied lives but I think I beat the game on what would have been 1 credit. WHAT A RELIEF IT WAS.

This was on easy btw, I was able to get to that boss on hard anyway I played the game so dang much.

As for the game, I thought it was a really cool take on the side scrolling shmup...which I was thoroughly enjoying until that first form of the final boss. Screw that guy.

But yeah, I liked the sprite-work, liked the characters and the fact that it attempted a story was cool! Great game with one terrible boss lol

Webbed (PC)

From a physics platformer perspective, this is a lot of fun and with tight and responsive controls. Some of the puzzle designs leave a lot to be desired (too many string up dozens of webs to lift something up or secure something in place). Overall, this was a great time.

Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3
Did all the levels from the original game, havent done the e-reader ones yet.

WarioWare: Touched!
A replay to fill back in one of the many save files lost when my previous N3DS died and I had to replace it without being able to do a proper transfer.

Murdered: Soul Suspect (PS4)

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/boards/8-gamefaqs-contests/80363758

Murdered: Soul Suspect stars detective Ronan O'Connor, who is murdered at the beginning of the game by a serial killer known as the Bell Killer. Ronan returns as a ghost and is able to use several abilities at his disposal to find out the truth behind his murder. It is a decent adventure game, and the story is well done. I also liked some of the short stories that unlocked after you collected a number of items in each area.

Speaking of collectibles, though - there are 242 collectibles scattered throughout the entire game. It's almost impossible to find all of them without a guide, especially in the case of the Ghost Girl messages which are just hidden on random walls in the game. Not to mention that one area becomes inaccessible at one point, so hopefully you got all of the ones in there before then! The combat and stealth mechanics are basically just a simple QTE and don't add anything to the game - it would be probably better if expanded or just removed all together. The investigation mechanics are also very simple, basically run around the room and investigate everything, then either come up with a conclusion - or the game will just solve it on its own and you don't get to actually do anything. I also had numerous bugs that popped up during the play through, one where the audio just completely cut out, and another where the 'next objective' was escape the attic for the entire play through even hours after I did so, even in the final area. All of these add up to a pretty mediocre title overall, even with the decent storyline.

In conclusion, if you want a good detective game where the main character is a ghost, play Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective instead. Good thing it's being remastered for release later this year!

Kirby's Return to Dreamland Deluxe (Switch)
I actually "beat" the game a while ago but I was still doing stuff.
KRTD was a good development for the Kirby series, bringing the brawling side-scrolling adventure of games like Kirby's Super Star into the modern era, or as modern as you could call late-gen Wii hardware anyway. It was a successful title that led to a series of follow-ups on the 3DS and Switch. This remake-port goes the extra mile to justify its repetition, adding a whole bunch of new stuff:
-Two new powers, Sand and Mecha (and a sparse screen-clearing oddity called Festival)
-Merry Magoland. Magolor has built a theme park! It serves as a hub for mostly-multiplayer minigames, original and some of the series' greatest hits. Checkerboard Chase awww yeah! These come with a series of objectives to attempt when playing solo, and there's quite a bit to do with these. Make Amusement Great Often?
-Masks! For some reason there are masks of other characters you can wear and this makes up a lot of the new unlockables. Some have sound effects!
-Magolor Gaiden: The Final Chapter! Play as Magolor in a mini-adventure of his own. It's alright.

In conclusion, if you like KRTD you should play this, and if you haven't played KRTD you should play this.

Dear Esther (Steam Deck)

This is the original game on Steam, not Landmark Edition.

I wanted a short game to get some real use out of Steam Deck, so I guess I went with this one. What a strange game. If you need a prime example of what a walking sim is, this is it. All you do is walk through an island and listen to guy's narration. I guess my sense of direction isn't that great, since as I was playing I was hoping to hear the narration or some music because that's when you know you're heading in the right direction.

It also has a weird way of ending. It literally just fades into a black screen with ocean sounds. That's it, no credits play. You have to exit the game through the menu from that point.

I guess when you're playing walking sims, you need to be in the right mindset. You have to be patient with yourself and the game.

Some beats from the last couple days:

Fire Emblem Engage (Switch)

I went into more detail about my thoughts in the FE topic(s) but the long and short of it is: I liked it but it's really messy, and the story/setting/aesthetics are pretty irredeemable. That said, the gameplay is probably the best its been since FE12, with only 3H being even potential competition. Also all the characters are incredibly bisexual for each other and it's great.

Florence (Switch)

This is a very short (~45 mins) story game about a relationship; there are no words, but you play out little minigames as the story progresses that are sorta like WarioWare level of complexity, but without the pressure of failing. It's fun and the art style is adorable! I can even forgive it for being a hetero romance because it's really cute (this is mostly a joke)

I thought the ending was pretty weak, and not for the reason other people say. I have no issues with the characters not staying together and I actually really liked that the moral is basically "you can end up not being right for each other and still keep those memories of the good times you had without bitterness". What I don't buy is Florence becoming a successful artist so quickly. Yeah the story was obviously leading that way but it didn't put in the work to make it believable, and it doesn't help that the art of hers we see is pretty bad. That said this is just a personal gripe, not really a flaw with the game. I recommend it if you can get it on sale.

Picross S 3 (Switch)

Counting this as beaten because I did all the normal picross, color picross, and clip picross, but not all the mega picross because I don't like it. And I don't really know how to play it, but I am getting better, so maybe I'll finish it out someday.

Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night (Switch) (replay, Aurora mode)

I posted more thoughts in the Game of the Month topic. To summarize, they have screwed up this game sometime between when I first played it and now. The performance is really really bad now and all the flaws that were there before are still there.

Aurora mode isn't great either. Like in Child of Light, you get infinite flight quite early and that's always fun, but it does kinda defeat the point of a platforming game. Aurora's attacks are a little onerous to use but incredibly powerful so you can even just tank through a lot of the boss fights (on normal difficulty at least). There's a little bit of story that attempts to tie the Child of Light and Bloodstained worlds together but it's pretty clearly not something they spent a lot of time on.

Unfortunately I still don't like Bloodstained! Money well spent on the kickstarter, I guess.

Metroid Prime Remastered (Switch)

Just did the final stretch of bosses today! It's not that challenging on Normal mode, but Omega Pirate was still the trickiest of the bunch for me. The game is still amazing and it looks so good in this version. It was, and still is, my favorite game of all time.

Shantae: Half-Genie Hero - Ultimate Edition (Switch)

Good game! This is definitely the best Shantae has ever looked (up til now, haven't played the most recent game yet), and it's in the running for best gameplay as well, but I might give the edge to Pirate's Curse there.

I do think the story is a big step back. It's like it wants to be a partial reboot, but there are tons of references to continuity and minor antagonists from previous games, so it doesn't even have the main advantage of rebooting. Also, just in terms of personal taste, if you give me a hero that is half-genie and half-human I will find stories where they have to rely on the human side to be inherently more interesting than ones where they can just rely on genie powers, and this game is nonstop genieing after Pirate's Curse was all humaning. Nobody's playing Shantae for the plot but this one does feel pretty unimpressive after Pirate's Curse at least had some legitimate hooks.

I 100%ed the main game because of course I did. There are roughly 43 other gameplay modes in this thing so I'll probably give at least one or two of those a whirl eventually.

Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3
Fun revisit to another game I played to death as a kid

Adios (PC)

There isn't much to say

The Disappearing of Gensokyo

Fun ... action Shump?
It's a Touhou game (I think)

All I know is that the game was challenging but not overbearing for 99.9% of the game
But the last attack of the last form of the last boss killed me about 1000 times and turned what should have been a 5-6 hour game into a 10 hour game and I kind of hate everything right now. I beat it but I barely feel anything since it was one stupid attack that kept me from moving on. The grind it was to get to the boss, coupled with the ammo situation (of randomly getting it for the right character) and dodging bullets for 10 minutes just waiting for the right stuff to drop...

I so wanted to be done with that game for about 3 hours.

Great up till that point though! Just....the ammo situation, the randomness of what drops, and that last attack was just too much.
It had good music though!

Axiom Verge 2 (PS5)

I had zero expectations going into this, because I can't remember a thing about the original Axiom Verge except thinking it was just "fine", and this one seems to have a mixed reception even among people who liked the first one. Then I started playing and it all started coming back to me -- the unlikable protag, the weird sci-fi setting, getting ordered around by giant stone statue heads... yep, this is Axiom Verge all right.

Anyway, this game kicks ass. That said, it's also weird and I can understand why some people wouldn't like it. Instead of focusing on platforming or combat, AV2 is more about throwing you into a weird alien world and saying, "okay, explore and figure shit out". The backstory is pretty convoluted with a lot of names and events to keep straight, but the actual story does quite a lot and is pretty clever despite how minimal it is.

Also I think the OST is absolutely great, especially the moodier pieces like Monsoon:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GcUZ_l7_tK4

Y'know, there was a whole topic on B8 a while ago about this game looking shitty and now that I've played it, it just... doesn't? Like it's not stunningly beautiful but it looks like a pretty nice looking SNES game. The areas do tend to be fairly monochrome but at least it gives them all their own identity. I'll take it any day over something like Metroid Dread where most areas were identical.

...huh. You should go back and play Axiom Verge 1 again. I liked 2 quite a lot, but it was more of "just another good Metroidvania" rather than "something special" as I felt about AV1.

Demon's Souls (PS5)

And I'm about to beat NG+ right now too! I have now conquered the very first and the very last games in the Souls series and...none of the others. Elden Ring was my first. Really loved this and it was very interesting to see where it all began and how it's been refined in Elden Ring. But also holy shit, this is a 14 year old game and I can't believe the mechanics are so incredibly similar to Elden Ring. I was just like...this is identical when I first started! And really, they almost are from a combat perspective. From has now just cleaned up healing (you don't need a million different healing items), given a few more slots to play with... that's like all I can think of. Every single stat is identical. Really wild.

I'm not gonna lie...I cheesed my ass off in this game. Spoilers for a method of cheesing because a part of me kind of wishes I never realized it was possible you can go to the home menu and close out of the game upon death, thus negating any souls lost and losing your body if you have it. But this certainly takes away...all the stakes, and like I said, kinda wish I didn't realize it was possible. But also this game throws way more BS your way than Elden Ring, so sometimes it feels justified to do so. It was hard not to abuse once I realized I could do this though.

I'm completely stoked to play Dark Souls now. Bought the remaster of that a while back and it will likely be my next game!

tomorrow won't come for those without (Steam)

this game is so good, i wish boys were real

Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core Reunion (PS5)

I never had a PSP so I never played CC growing up. I played FFVII but otherwise went into the game fairly blind. It was alright I guess. The story doesn't make much sense to me, the gameplay wasn't really that special, and the grind to 100% the missions was a bit annoying. That said, it was fun enough and it was cool to see Zack and the FFVII gang again.

Pokmon Legends: Arceus
I like it. Still lots of stuff to do before I'm actually done with it, but credits rolled at least.

_Blur_ posted...

...huh. You should go back and play Axiom Verge 1 again. I liked 2 quite a lot, but it was more of "just another good Metroidvania" rather than "something special" as I felt about AV1.

Honestly I have a huge backlog so this probably isn't in the cards right now, but it's definitely more likely than before I played AV2.

Persona 5 Royal (XS/X)

At its best, it had a very addicting loop as I was settling in, learning, and deciding what I favored. However, it was around 50 hours that I was ready for it to end...only to go through 40+ more. I have little doubt that it is a better game than Persona 4, but I think that I ultimately had more fun with 4 than 5 for a variety of reasons and also because I played 4 in my early 20s and 5 in my early 30s.

Figment (PC)
I didn't just get this for free on Steam but I finally played it because I saw it being free. At first I wasn't thrilled to see what appeared to be stray whimsy wrapped around less-than-tight puzzle and combat design. Eventually though, the jaded mind warrior Rusty and intensely chipper bird Piper grew on me as they had their buddy cop arc and banished personified fears from their host. And what fears! The leader in particular charmed me with his lines, voice acting and catchy music. The puzzles also improved, not doing anything all that unique for the genre but escalating steadily in complexity. I now am interested in the sequel, although I could do without an ad shouting at me about it whenever I quit the game.

I just like to post saying that ever since my last game beat, I've just been playing nothing but Deep Rock Galactic for 1 month now at least. I can't seem to escape its rabbit hole of a game loop and I'm very much enjoying it that most of my attempts to try and beat anything else have been left in the wayside. I usually hit the ground running start of the year for this topic but I think I'm just burned out by whatever is coming out lately.

Hogwarts Legacy
It's not bad, but it leaves a lot to be desired.

Fire Emblem Engage

Solid gameplay, fun characters. Beautiful presentation. LOVE the series fanservice. Story is ...unambitious lets say, though some beats at the end are pretty hype.

Resident Evil 4 Remake Demo
Does this even count as completing a game?

Immortals: Fenyx Rising (XB1)

This was a lot of fun. I wish the combat was more intrinsically or extrinsically rewarding, but it was fluiding and snappy enough. The game shines with its puzzles, especially with its constellation puzzles and those inside of vaults. I also liked the lighthearted tone and bright visuals.

Chicory: A Colorful Tale (PC)

I was pleasantly surprised at how puzzle-oriented this was as well as the quality of the bosses (they did seem to take awhile though). My main issue was how I was never quite comfortable using keyboard and mouse or a controller. The former was great for painting while the latter I found was better suited for unlocked movement abilities, especially paint swim.

Metroid
Metroid II: Return of Samus

Fusion being added to NSO put me in the mood, likely gonna start Super tomorrow

Street Fighter (PS4)

This is the first Street Fighter through the 30th Anniversary Collection.

Ok, this game is complete ASS! The controls and animations are janky as shit and it felt like the inputs for the special moves only worked like a quarter of the time (maybe this is less of an issue if you use a fight stick). I pretty much had to spam the inputs of the special moves and hope it goes off and hits the opponents.
Towards the end, I had to completely save scum because the last 2 fights are ridiculously tough, especially Sagat since he can kill you in like a second. Fuck that guy!

If there's anything good to say about the game it's that it's probably an pretty impressive looking game for something from 1987, and it was funny hearing Ryu say "Alright" after winner a round.

On another note, it's pretty funny that the trophy you get for beating this game is considered "Ultra Rare". I guess so many people just don't want to bother with it.

Mystik Belle (PC)

A game that was once at the top of my wishlist for an extended period of time until I finally bought it back in 2019 or so. It's a solid metroidvania with a nice compact map and a leveling system that makes you feel mighty toward the end.

Kirby's Dream Land 2
Another quick runthrough of a game I've played a couple times before, now on Switch

Mega Man 8 (PS1)
That's more like it. Still don't think it's as good as the NES offerings but it's a lot closer than 7 was. Never want to do those sled sections again, though.

Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon (Switch)
Yeah, they made a Bayonetta spinoff that draws from Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons and Okami instead of character action, one in which our heroine is not fantastically powerful but rather weak, even when fighting alongside her familiar. Many people may be confused about why this one exists, but let me be the first to say it's actually a very good game, with dazzling visuals and some interesting developments as it proceeds. The combat isn't bad either, given the genre. (No, I didn't finish this within several hours today. I was able to get my hands on it a couple days early.)

Aeterna Noctis (PC)
Hell yeah.

I don't know if this is the most difficult game I've ever played, but at the very least, it's in the conversation. Aeterna Noctis bills itself as a Metroidvania, and while that's definitely true, it's very much a precision platformer first and foremost. I've seen a fair number of people refer to it as what a whole game of Hollow Knight Path of Pain would look like, but having not played HK I can't comment on how accurate that is.

The game is incredibly well designed. The mobility options you acquire throughout are fun and responsive, and they all get mixed and matched in creative ways so you never feel like you're doing anything too repetitive. Hitboxes, with a couple of occasional exceptions, are clear enough that you'll rarely if ever feel like a death wasn't your fault. I had a very consistent feeling of satisfaction for my entire playthrough - oftentimes I'd be incredulous at what a particular area was expecting me to do only to find that I was actually equipped to handle it pretty well.

Combat with regular enemies is... Okay. Probably the weakest aspect of the game. Not bad, just sometimes an unwelcome distraction from the platforming. The bosses, though, are as great as one would hope for in a game of this type. There's a solid difficulty curve as you progress and get more used to all the options you have available; the first couple bosses only took me two or three attempts, but I spent a solid hour and a half on the penultimate fight and a good two-plus hours on the final one, so the final blows on those two were accompanied by some triumphant fist-pumping. Apparently one or two of the optional bosses are even tougher, as they should be.

I just don't have many bad things to say about this game. The artwork is gorgeous - I've seen some complaints that it's even a bit too much at times but I never felt that way. The music isn't anything you'll be humming to yourself for days, but it's well composed and excellent at capturing the feel and atmosphere of its respective areas and fights. There's even an upgrade skill tree for people who love those! The lore driving the plot is somewhat derivative, but it goes some places I wasn't expecting and makes for some really cool cinematic moments that make me feel like this could've been an interesting anime in an alternate universe.

A sequel's already been announced and I'm very much looking forward to it. I'm tempted to go and 100% this one but I've just got too many other games I want to play right now. If you like challenges like this, or if you're attracted by the notion that if you open the map at the beginning and try to scroll to the first objective marker you might think the game has frozen because of how long it takes, you should definitely at least check out the free demo.

DOOM (2016)

Finally got around to beating the last level of this. Forgot how awesome this game was! It's not quite classic doom (It's more of a Doom/Serious Sam hybrid) but it's an easy 10/10 and the best game released in 2016.

Now I just need to play the new one...I've heard some people say its better and others say it's no where near as good.

Metroid Fusion (NSO) - A fun, quick run. Zero Mission is my favorite 2D Metroid to pace through, but playing through Fusion again made me realise how good it is with how it keeps building up, creates a sense of suspense and mystery, throwing surprises your way all the time and its difficulty. It is more linear and story-heavy than most other Metroid games, but it's really well done here. Only some of the hidden stuff and boss placements are questionable, but other than that still a pretty amazing game after 20+ years.

Turbo Golf Racing (XS/X)

I played this quite a bit last year. I bought it on PC within the past few weeks, so I decided to play it one last time on console before uninstalling. I noticed it had an update, and either with this update or another since I previously played, they added a whole single player time trial mode with 50 or so holes.

Ikuze! Hot Springs Table Tennis (PS2)

Rather fun Ping Pong game from a developer that makes basically only SHMUPS (Psikyo)
Has a funny cast of characters (Including a alien mascot thing and a little girl who was actually a pro at the time) and what I would assume to be funny dialogue if I spoke Japanese.

I'd imagine that this would be a lot of fun against friends since it is all about quick reaction time...the CPU however is not very good. I beat the game in under an hour and barely lost any points...even when (I think I) put it on hard.

2 games in one day. Dang.

Twisted Metal 1 (Playstation Classic)

I watched someone play though this game on youtube in first person mode. Went "I forgot how awesome the first one was with it's atmosphere and Cockpit view".

So I pulled out the classic and proceeded to do awful in cockpit view and beat the game on Easy lol.

Great classic game. It isn't as good as 2 or some of the others but it has arguably more personality.
Cyburbia is the best map in the entire franchise....it's just a shame that it's really the only fleshed out map in the whole game.
I mean, it's got a better Highway map built right into it then the dedicated Highway map lol

Doom 64 (Steam)

You know, I don't think I've ever actually played the original Doom? My boomer shooter of choice was always Wolf 3D but it's weird that didn't, you know, lead to me playing Doom. At some point.

Anyway Doom 64 is p good. It did have a bad habit of crashing trying to get to the main menu on startup (and once during gameplay) unfortunately.

Hi-Fi Rush (XS/X)

I wasn't feeling this at first, but it definitely kept improving over the course of the game

Doom 64 was a good time. I miss the weird ass level design from that era of shooters.

Xtlm posted...

DOOM (2016)

Finally got around to beating the last level of this. Forgot how awesome this game was! It's not quite classic doom (It's more of a Doom/Serious Sam hybrid) but it's an easy 10/10 and the best game released in 2016.

Now I just need to play the new one...I've heard some people say its better and others say it's no where near as good.

It's not just better, it's significantly better in every way. Can't imagine anyone thinking such a step up is "nowhere near as good." I think there are some weirdos that complained about the story or whatever and that's where those horrid opinions come from. First, who cares about the story. Second, I actually somehow cared about the story! It goes places. But like... it's Doom and you're not there for that.

You have so many abilities in Eternal, you do have to get used to using them all. But once you get that down and can attain that flow state, it's almost like a rhythm game shooter. Also The Ancient Gods DLC rules (though I understand the criticisms of Part 2 being too easy). In conclusion: it blows the already fantastic 2016 reboot out of the water and is a masterpiece. Play it.

Oh and for me

Dead Cells: Return to Castlevania

Great DLC (though a 10/10 for this from IGN is...questionable standards to me). Two damn good new stages and the final boss is my new favorite boss in the whole game. As always, it's just an insanely good game and I think I've put close to 200 hours into it at this point. I only play 5 BSC and I just wish I could use more builds than my usual survivor builds though, especially since Vampire Hunter is a Brutality/Tactics weapon. But I have no idea how to survive 5 BSC without the Necromancy mutation to restore health.

This did get me to actually play with new weapons though! Death's Scythe is so damn cool and Medusa's Head is a pretty great secondary weapon (if you can get used to how slow it is compared to secondary weapons like the Frost Blast or Ice Shards). Gotta try Alucard's sword next since it's a Survival weapon!

White Mirror
A free platformer on Steam, took me about 10 minutes to complete. Perfectly fine for the price, I suppose.

Pronty: Fishy Adventure (Steam)

A pretty good Metroidvania that reminds me a lot of Aquaria mixed with Hollow Knight, though probably not as great as either one. There's a little bit of BioShock in there too, setting-wise.

I liked this game but it's very rough around the edges. The controls can be awkward, it's often extremely difficult to tell when or how you're taking damage, your companion's path-finding sucks (and since he's also your weapon, it's the equivalent of Samus' arm cannon randomly choosing to fuck off), and there's a lot of unnecessary dialogue when entering new areas and before picking up new upgrades that just says "hey let's explore this area" or "here's what that upgrade does", as if it's not all self-explanatory otherwise. The difficulty also feels very uneven. I definitely died more to the game's first real boss than I did to the final boss or secret boss. I *was* playing on the second highest difficulty though so maybe it's my fault. To the game's credit, it stuck the landing quite well, and the ending(s) actually made me retroactively care a lot more about the game's story and characters.

I did 100% this, but the game actually goes up to 101% if you beat the boss rush, and uh, no thanks!

If Found... (Switch)

This game is great. The writing, the artwork, the music, all terrific. That said, while I knew this game had a trans character I didn't realize it was mainly about dealing with transphobia and it was definitely the wrong game for me to play today in an attempt to get that stuff off my mind. Whoops!

Watch Dogs 2 (XB1)

It had been 6-8 years since I played the first, but I initially was unsure if I was going to continue on with this game. I can't say which game did stealth better (gut feeling is the original), but it otherwise seems like a step up across the board.

Dust: An Elysian Tail (iOS)

Dust: An Elysian Tail is one of those games that's good, but you're especially interested in what the future could hold for it as a franchise. It's got a lot of good things going for it, but they're all not worked out well enough that you can call it a really great game, but you see all the potential there to make something actually special.

The story is one of the first examples of this. The game stars Dust, an amnesiac warrior with a talking sword and Fidget, a Nimbat who is your sidekick. The plot meanders for the most part, with Dust just looking for clues to who he is and saving people on the way. Most of the plot and the twists happen near the end of the game; at their core, there are some cliches but I felt the game does enough to put its own spin on it to make it not a complete rip-off. The characters (and especially the side characters) are pretty emotive. Dust is a pretty stoic character for most of the game (with room to be awkward or joking at times) while Fidget is more of a comic relief sidekick, but I found the voice acting for both somewhat grating at times which made it difficult to really get attached to them. The main problems are incomplete attempts to tell the story; there's some dialogue options later on that feel like the game wanted to do split paths, but nothing happens there. The big bad of the game, General Gaius, is someone who is described throughout the game as a ruthless monster, but every actual scene that features him, casts him in a more positive light. It feels like the game is missing a chapter to really highlight the character of Gaius and his relation to Dust, but maybe the indie development cycle didn't allow for that.

Gameplay-wise, Dust: An Elysian Tail has been named a metroidvania. While the naming is understandable, there's not that much backtracking to be done, and the vast majority of it is purely to pick up some chests if you want those. There's one level with a significant amount of backtracking throughout and it's also the biggest chore. This is mostly due to the fact that the screens are pretty big (where in Metroid or Castlevania the actual screen can generally be traversed pretty quickly) and horizontal. Enemies respawn every time you leave the screen and love getting in the way, which makes it almost obligatory to fight them.

The combat is a mixed bag. It feels good and it looks really cool and great. The shame is that your arsenal is very limited. You have a normal attack, and early on the game teaches you two combos. Later on, you don't get any more combos. Very quickly you will learn that the Dust Storm attack is the way to go. This means you let Fidget throw a projectile, and then spin your sword so you can send out an attack that is powered up by her projectiles. Fidget will unlock different kinds of projectiles after each boss you beat, but the electricity one really makes all the other ones obsolete. Especially the aerial variant of the Dust Storm is a great weapon, as it offers invulnerability to the vast majority of enemies. So combat will always look a cool force of chaos on your screen, but it is quite unfortunate that the combat will feel like a chore later on, as it'll just feel a lot like button mashing. There's also a parry you can do, but there's very few enemies that will really offer the opportunity to do it, as all the smaller enemies will generally crowd you to the point that you won't be able to see when you have to do your parry.

Graphically, the game is very pretty. The backgrounds are lovely and detailed, the enemies have nice variety in their design even if they are variations of each other, and the characters are easy to keep apart. The actual character sprites when they are having a conversation feel lower quality, but not to the extent of being bothersome or ugly.

On the audio, the music was enjoyable without being extremely memorable. In a game where there's a lot of traveling around, not having any grating music is definitely a good point, but I also doubt I will look up any of the tracks of this game on YouTube later.

Overall, Dust: An Elysian Tail is a fine, solid game, without being anything more. The ending leaves room open for a sequel, but I can't find anything about it potentially happening online, which is a shame, as all the systems are there to be improved upon and perfected to create a truly awesome title.

Rogue with the Dead (Android)

Ahahahahahaha. I'm back from the insanity that is this Idle Gacha RPG. Now I know how Kaiji feels when he beat that giant Pachinko Machine by constantly throwing money at it (disclaimer I only did p2w twice, one for loot and one for no ads). First off kudos for this game to actually have an ending because I am so done with this hell. Secondly, it has a fairly "fair" breadth of choices when it comes to p2w. For example, the artifact that you get in this game go up to 9999 but you will never really need that much to finish the "main" story. I think they just exist so they don't get blocked off to be able to afford the rarer artifacts easier.

I don't wanna spend too much on mechanics it's your bread and butter idle gacha I will say though that after my one time purchase of premium currency there was enough to realistically anticipate and save up for the next tier of fighters you need to go further into the dungeon not to mention the constantly stacking up artifacts. Is this what dopamine feels like?

Anyways. The game isn't actually that long. There's this character who stays with you and she's really endearing and when you beat the game it's revealed that she has to go and just fucking disappears for the rest of the game. That is until you decide to go the distance and traverse twice as much as what you have done previously. I'm ngl, I don't know what possessed me even though this one npc was just an excuse to keep the idle going, but I just wanted to save her. And so after "beating" it once after 2 weeks, I would spend the next 3 months rescuing her from the Underworld.

And I've done it. I have no more life but I've done it. She's back in my NPC corner. I've unlocked "endless" mode. And she has extra dialog in other modes. I'm so fucking glad I have her and now I can consider this game beat.