Games Completed 2018

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Alex79
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Re: Games Completed 2018

Post by Alex79 »

Alex79uk wrote: October 6th, 2018, 10:34 am JAN - Lumino City (Android)
MAR - Dark Souls 3 (PS4)
MAR - What Remains Of Edith Finch (PS4)
MAR - Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (PS4) MAR - Infamous: Second Son (PS4)
APR - Uncharted 3: Drakes Deception
MAY - Shadow Of The Colossus (PS4)
MAY - Uncharted: Lost Legacy (PS4)
JUN - God Of War (PS4)
JUL - Dying Light (PS4)
JUL - Resident Evil VII: Biohazard (PS4)
AUG - Yakuza Kiwami (PS4)
AUG - Gorogoa (Android)
AUG - The Last Of Us Remastered (PS4)
SEP - Metro 2033 Redux (PS4)
OCT - Little Inferno (Android)
OCT - Assassin's Creed 2 (PS4)
OCT - The Last Of Us: Left Behind (PS4)


NOV - Shenmue (PS4)

This was an interesting one. I'd not played it other than a few minutes at a friends when it was released, so I approached the game with no sense of nostalgia whatsoever. I was interested to see if it holds up.

The short answer is no. It doesn't.

It's tedious, looks terrible, has some awful game design choices, and wasn't that much fun to play.

Did I enjoy it? Well, honestly, I can't say I actually enjoyed it, but there was something that kept me playing. I thought the combat was poor, the voice acting diabolical, and the story nonsensical.

The game was lauded upon release for containing this living, breathing world. It doesn't. The characters are flat, one dimensional, and never have anything interesting to say. Most of them don't even want to give you the time of day! The game was hilarious in places for all the wrong reasons, yet had a weird charm which kept pulling me back in.

I honestly don't know why, and I'm even more puzzled as to why I'm looking forward to cracking on with the second game.

Absolutely baffling.
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mikeleddy83
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Re: Games Completed 2018

Post by mikeleddy83 »

Spoiler: show
Jan - Mega man 3
Jan - Mega man 4
Jan - Mega man 5
Jan - Mega man 6
Jan - Mega man 7
Jan - Mega man 8
Jan - Mega man 9
Jan - Mega man 10
Jan - Horizon: Zero Dawn
Jan - Metal Slug XX
Jan - Dead Rising: Case Zero
Jan - Talespin
Jan - Darkwing Duck
Jan - Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers
Jan - Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers 2
Jan - DuckTales
Jan - DuckTales 2
Feb - Wild Guns Reloaded
Feb - Bound
Feb - Quantum Break
Feb - Monster Hunter: World
Feb - Forza Horizon 3: Blizzard Mountain
Feb - Steins;Gate 0 (platinum)
Mar - Marvel vs Capcom: Infinite (story and arcade)
Apr - Tekken 7
Apr - Ratchet & Clank (2016)
May - Resident Evil – Code: Veronica X
May - Hyper Dyne Side Arms
May - Street Fighter
May - Street Fighter II: The World Warrior
June - Street Fighter II′: Champion Edition
June - Street Fighter II' Turbo: Hyper Fighting
June - Super Street Fighter II: The New Challengers
June - Street Fighter III 2nd Impact: Giant Attack
June - Street Fighter Alpha 2
June - Street Fighter Alpha: Warriors' Dreams
June - State of Decay 2
June - Devil May Cry 4: Special Edition
July - The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
July - Splatoon 2
Aug - Hollow Knight
Aug - Bayonetta
Sep - Bayonetta 2
Sep - Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles (all endings)
Sep - Castlevania: Rondo of Blood (all endings)
Sep - Mega Man: Maverick Hunter X
Oct - Salamander 2
Oct - Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (all Alucard endings)
Nov - Ultimate Ghosts 'n Goblins
Nov - Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon
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Hunter30
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Re: Games Completed 2018

Post by Hunter30 »

Alex79uk wrote: November 11th, 2018, 8:57 pm
ColinAlonso wrote: November 11th, 2018, 7:49 pm I usually have a walkthrough near to hand when playing any point and click games (it isn't a regular genre for me), but I played a the first half of Broken Age on a plane with no internet access. I think its relative ease got a bit of criticism at the time, but then that game had to be all things to all its Kickstarter backers so it was never going to avoid criticism.
I ended up having to look stuff up towards the back end of that game, it does get quite fiendish. It's pretty front loaded, too. Really enjoyed the first half, the second was OK but not as good in my opinion.
I'll be honest, I don't think I would have got through the second half without the help of a guide if it was just me playing on my own. One of the reasons my missus and I are enjoying playing through these types of point-and-click games together is that two brains are usually better than one (especially when the solo brain is mine...) and it's one way of making those particularly devilish puzzles seem slightly more solvable without having to look things up. Quite often, when one of us is stumped, the other one will have a flash of inspiration - it's a similar experience to when I played Portal 2 co-op with a mate.

Now deciding what we can tackle next. I've got my eye on Stasis although I'm not sure she'll be keen on the horror theme. Having said that, I did manage to make her sit through the entirety of Hereditary a couple of weeks ago...
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Re: Games Completed 2018

Post by duskvstweak »

I just finished vanilla XCOM 2 on Iron Man Veteran. Only took me six campaigns...
Fun game. The last mission was a big improvement from Enemy Unknown, but I'm still not sure it's the type of game that lends itself well to a "FINAL MISSION". So much fun and anger over that game. I can't wait to tackle War of the Chosen someday!
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Re: Games Completed 2018

Post by Simonsloth »

Spoiler: show
January 2018:
Bleed
Crackdown
Rez Infinite
Resident evil directors cut
Bioshock
Resident evil 2
Bioshock 2
Resident evil 3:Nemesis

Feb 2018:
Bioshock infinite
Def Jam: fight for Ny
Zone of The Enders
Resident Evil:code Veronica
Resident evil zero
Hyper light drifter
Braid
Yoshi’s Woolly World
Resident evil 4

March:
resident evil 5
resident evil 6
Lostwinds
lost winds 2
Ico 3D
Dead space
Dead space 2
Heavenly Sword

May:
Horizon Zero Dawn plus Frozen Wilds
Enslaved
Dmc
Steinsgate 0
Hellblade
Shadow of the Colossus Remake
Resident Evil 7

June:
Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth
Bastion
Detroit
Vanquish
Battlefield 3 Singleplayer
Alice: Madness Returns

July:
Prince of Persia
The Last Guardian
Syndicate
Binary Domain
Call of Duty Classic HD

August:
Cave story 3ds
Eternal Darkness
Luigis Mansion
Mickey’s castle of illusion
Super Mario Bros
Silent Hill 2 HD Collection
999: 9 persons, 9 doors...
Shenmue

September:
Shenmue 2
Half-life
super Mario Bros 2
Deadly Premonition

October:
Half Life 2
Half life 2:episode 1/2
Portal
System Shock
Alan Wake
Nier
Medal of Honor: Allied Assault
Star Fox
El Shaddai

November:
Zelda II
LA Noire
14/11
Streets of Rage 1, 2 and 3

I fancied a splurge of brawling nostalgia after my foray into LA. Was a great burst of pure arcade entertainment and was fun experiencing the evolution of the series in an afternoon.
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Chopper
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Re: Games Completed 2018

Post by Chopper »

duskvstweak wrote: November 13th, 2018, 9:47 pm I just finished vanilla XCOM 2 on Iron Man Veteran. Only took me six campaigns...
Fun game. The last mission was a big improvement from Enemy Unknown, but I'm still not sure it's the type of game that lends itself well to a "FINAL MISSION". So much fun and anger over that game. I can't wait to tackle War of the Chosen someday!
I skipped this because of the much-ballyhooed presence of timed missions; how are they? Having played Phantom Doctrine this year, which has limited timed missions (basically evacuate in a set number of turns when a mission goes bad), I'm coming around to the idea that they're not all bad.
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Re: Games Completed 2018

Post by Scrustle »

Spoiler: show
04/01 - Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance (Normal)
05/01 - Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance - Jetstream Sam DLC (Normal)
06/01 - Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance - Blade Wolf DLC (Normal)
10/01 - Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance (Hard)
14/01 - Killer Is Dead (Hard)
18/01 - Q.U.B.E: Director's Cut
20/02 - Okamiden
23/02 - Bayonetta 2 (Normal)
27/02 - Shadow of the Colossus
02/03 - Monster Hunter World
06/03 - Snake Pass
08/03 - Deus Ex: The Fall
10/03 - Bayonetta 2 (Hard)
22/03 - Ty the Tasmanian Tiger
28/04 - Warden: Melody of the Undergrowth
03/05 - Ni No Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom
05/05 - Devil May Cry 4: Special Edition (Nero/Dante - Devil Hunter)
08/05 - Devil May Cry 4: Special Edition (Vergil - Devil Hunter)
12/05 - Yakuza 6: The Song of Life
13/05 - Devil May Cry 4: Special Edition (Lady/Trish - Devil Hunter)
21/05 - Omensight
26/05 - Mafia II
27/05 - God of War
31/05 - God of War: Ascension
12/06 - Unravel Two
15/06 - Splatoon 2: Octo Expansion
23/06 - Vampyr
05/07 - Cat Quest
14/07 - The Legend of Korra (Extreme)
20/07 - The Vagrant
28/07 - A Hat in Time
31/07 - Way of the Samurai 4
25/08 - Castlevania: Lords of Shadow (Knight)
25/08 - Deus Ex: Human Revolution
10/09 - Zone of the Enders The 2nd Runner : MVRS
18/09 - Yakuza Kiwami 2
19/09 - Figment
20/09 - Darksiders: Warmastered Edition
20/09 - AER: Memories of Old
22/09 - Deus Ex: Mankind Divided
11/10 - Forza Horizon 4
06/11 - CrossCode
14/11 - Darksiders II: Deathinitive Edition (Deathinitive)

And once more through this game just in time for the third entry. This time I decided to clear up the last few achievements, which meant beating the game on the hardest difficulty. Or at least the hardest in terms of how hard enemies hit you. There's another mode that has permadeath, which there is no achievement for beating, and sounds like madness to even attempt too. It was pretty cool to play through this mode though. It was never in the original version of the game, and was added in to this remaster. Yet despite never being designed with it in mind, the combat really shines in this mode. It makes it feel much more intense and purposeful. Definitely got me to up my skills, and resulted in some cool looking gameplay as well. It makes the game pretty tough at the start, but as the game goes on and you get better gear, the difficulty evens out a lot. But it still keeps you on your toes and demands you give it your best shot, or else things can go wrong very quickly. I suppose a way to maintain that extreme difficulty throughout the game would be to avoid using anything other than the lowest tier of loot, which could be an interesting experience to try.

I also tried to play around a bit with my build, as I wanted to avoid going for the ice damage build that I usually use. Played around with different elements, falling back on ice at one point. And to be honest, it kind of took a bit of the fun out of the combat this time around. Freezing enemies solid is pretty overpowered, that being the reason I always used it before. But this time I was enjoying the challenge, so I decided to go back to something else, settling on inferno damage. I still really wish they would explain the differences between the lower and higher tier versions of elements though. Despite tinkering around with them, I still have no idea what the difference between shock and lightning is. The internet at large doesn't seem to know either, from what I've been able to find.

Anyways, very fun game that I still enjoy a whole lot after all these years. This makes it five times through this game now. A nice comfort game to come back to. Great combat, fun puzzles, bold art style, and a great soundtrack too.
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Re: Games Completed 2018

Post by duskvstweak »

Chopper wrote: November 14th, 2018, 7:24 am
duskvstweak wrote: November 13th, 2018, 9:47 pm I just finished vanilla XCOM 2 on Iron Man Veteran. Only took me six campaigns...
Fun game. The last mission was a big improvement from Enemy Unknown, but I'm still not sure it's the type of game that lends itself well to a "FINAL MISSION". So much fun and anger over that game. I can't wait to tackle War of the Chosen someday!
I skipped this because of the much-ballyhooed presence of timed missions; how are they? Having played Phantom Doctrine this year, which has limited timed missions (basically evacuate in a set number of turns when a mission goes bad), I'm coming around to the idea that they're not all bad.
For myself, they were tough. Some missions were right down to the wire and they were the missions I was most likely to fail. BUT, they do add stress and remove the Overwatch Creep mentality. There were many times that I had to send someone into the yellow just to get visuals. But, that's what Run and Gun is for!
I would definitely not skip the game because of them, but they may indeed hold the game back for you. Your mileage may vary.
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Alex79
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Re: Games Completed 2018

Post by Alex79 »

Alex79uk wrote: October 6th, 2018, 10:34 am JAN - Lumino City (Android)
MAR - Dark Souls 3 (PS4)
MAR - What Remains Of Edith Finch (PS4)
MAR - Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (PS4) MAR - Infamous: Second Son (PS4)
APR - Uncharted 3: Drakes Deception
MAY - Shadow Of The Colossus (PS4)
MAY - Uncharted: Lost Legacy (PS4)
JUN - God Of War (PS4)
JUL - Dying Light (PS4)
JUL - Resident Evil VII: Biohazard (PS4)
AUG - Yakuza Kiwami (PS4)
AUG - Gorogoa (Android)
AUG - The Last Of Us Remastered (PS4)
SEP - Metro 2033 Redux (PS4)
OCT - Little Inferno (Android)
OCT - Assassin's Creed 2 (PS4)
OCT - The Last Of Us: Left Behind (PS4)
NOV - Shenmue (PS4)
NOV - Hollow Knight (PS4)

What an amazing game. Loved it from start to finish. So many adventure stories to tell, so many places to explore, it just keeps on giving. Every time you think you've uncovered the whole map you find new little secrets and treasure. Awesome level design, great enemies, I can't wait to see what these guys do next. This was special.
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Re: Games Completed 2018

Post by ColinAlonso »

Spoiler: show
Jan 7 - Bleed (PC)
Jan 19 - The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Switch)
Feb 11 - Super Mario Odyssey (Switch)
Feb 28 - Ori and the Blind Forest: Definitive Edition (PC)
Mar 8- Final Fantasy III (PSVita - PSP version)
Mar 21 - Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (Switch) Three stars on all 150cc cups.
Mar 24 - Golf Story (Switch)
Apr 2 - Nier: Automata (PS4)
Apr 23 - Yakuza Kiwami (PS4)
May 3 - Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies - Turnabout Reclaimed DLC (3DS)
May 5 - Final Fantasy IV (PSVita - PSP version)
Jun 4 - Advance Wars: Dark Conflict (3DS - DS cart)
Jun 9 - Ratchet and Clank (PS4)
Jun 23 - Pocket Card Jockey (3DS)
Jul 13 - Ace Attorney: Spirit of Justice (3DS)
Jul 14 - Mario Kart: Super Circuit (GBA) All 10 cups on 100cc
Jul 21 - Ultimate Marvel Vs Capcom 3 (PS4) Arcade mode - Normal
Jul 29 - Final Fantasy V (GBA version on an emulator)
Jul 30 - Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice (PS4)
Aug 19 - Professor Layton and the Curious Village (3DS - DS cart)
Sep 16 - Ridge Racer Type 4 (PSVita - PS1 classic)
Oct 7 - 80 Days (Android)
Oct 8 - Horizon: Zero Dawn (PS4)
Oct 20 - Final Fantasy VI (PSVita - PS1 classic)
Oct 27 - Celeste (Switch)
Nov 8 - Valkyria Chronicles 4 (PS4)
Nov 12 - Yoku's Island Express (Switch)

A bright cheery diversion over the 5+ hours it took me to get to the credits but not enough to make me go back and clear everything else.
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Re: Games Completed 2018

Post by duskvstweak »

Scrustle wrote: November 6th, 2018, 3:12 pm
06/11 - CrossCode
Spoiler: show
A fantastic experience that does a lot of great things, but is also rather obtuse and thorny in a few areas. In general it was very fun and an impressive achievement for such a small team, and was definitely worth waiting all the years since the crowdfunding campaign.

It has great pixel art with lush environments, exciting and well fleshed out combat with very good animation and sound design, and a really enjoyable story. It does lean very heavily on tropes, so it's a pretty predictable plot if you're familiar with any kind of sci-fi/anime/JRPG stuff, but it executes it really well with some great dramatic moments and charming characters with a lot of personality and humour. It's actually pretty impressive how expressive they make the main character, despite her not being able to talk. I suppose it lacks a compelling antagonist, but the driving force behind figuring out all the secrets behind the amnesiac protagonist, and seeing their interactions with other characters was a lot of fun.

Gameplay mechanics are really well fleshed out and satisfying. It's pretty unique, with its mix of melee combat and almost twin-stick shooter style to it. It's fast, flashy, and packs a strong audiovisual punch that has a lot of polish to it. And the different elements you can switch between add a fun layer of strategy to fights as well, with each having their own unique special moves too, which are all very fun to pull off. The skill trees for each element are huge! Really impressive how much there is to get in to in levelling up. The way these mechanics work with the puzzles is really cool as well. Juggling different elements together to solve some very tricky puzzles was a lot of fun. The way it uses projectiles in puzzles I thought was pretty unique and interesting too.

Some aspects of the game are a little grating though, and it did verge in to frustration a few times, although it was never bad enough to ruin the experience overall. One issue comes from the double-edged sword of the freedom of movement this game gives you. In general it feels really good, giving you free 360 degree movement, and letting you jump around the environment and hop over gaps quickly and fluidly. But the problem is that this can make navigating certain areas pretty confusing, as you're not exactly sure what elevation some platforms are. It can also be an issue with some of the enemy design. While enemies are generally fun to fight, there are a few which move up and down vertically, and it can be a pain trying to hit them and work out where they are in space. Some of the earlier dungeons are also not too great at conveying what they want you to do, and sometimes sidequests have really obtuse objectives that were a pain. Dungeon design gets a lot better as the game goes on however, with them simultaneously getting more complex but also better at signalling what they want from you in puzzles. Better paced too.

Another thing worth mentioning is that this game is actually pretty damn hard! It's not impossible or anything, but it certainly makes you work for your success. Levelling is scaled in such a way that you are rarely in a position where you can let your guard down against the current area. Puzzles can also get very complex and require a lot of hard thinking. Usually when you work them out they seem obvious in retrospect, but getting there can be pretty demanding. It's a lot harder than any Zelda-like game I've played in a long time. The game does have difficulty sliders for both combat and puzzles, but since I played the majority of the game before they patched those in, I didn't touch them at all. And the way the puzzle slider works, it would only make one type of puzzles easier. The game is also really long! Took me about 70 hours to beat it, and I still didn't do everything. The game does imply that you can get a slightly different ending if you 100% it, which I might try, since I don't think I'm that far off.

Very satisfying experience overall though. A game that brings out very strong emotions, both positive and negative. But the lows make the highs all the more sweet. Impressively expansive and well crafted too.
Thanks for the review! I think this put the game into a healthy perspective for me and I look forward to playing it myself! Appreciate the detailed write-up!
Joshihatsumitsu

Re: Games Completed 2018

Post by Joshihatsumitsu »

duskvstweak wrote: November 16th, 2018, 12:46 am
Scrustle wrote: November 6th, 2018, 3:12 pm
06/11 - CrossCode
Spoiler: show
A fantastic experience that does a lot of great things, but is also rather obtuse and thorny in a few areas. In general it was very fun and an impressive achievement for such a small team, and was definitely worth waiting all the years since the crowdfunding campaign.

It has great pixel art with lush environments, exciting and well fleshed out combat with very good animation and sound design, and a really enjoyable story. It does lean very heavily on tropes, so it's a pretty predictable plot if you're familiar with any kind of sci-fi/anime/JRPG stuff, but it executes it really well with some great dramatic moments and charming characters with a lot of personality and humour. It's actually pretty impressive how expressive they make the main character, despite her not being able to talk. I suppose it lacks a compelling antagonist, but the driving force behind figuring out all the secrets behind the amnesiac protagonist, and seeing their interactions with other characters was a lot of fun.

Gameplay mechanics are really well fleshed out and satisfying. It's pretty unique, with its mix of melee combat and almost twin-stick shooter style to it. It's fast, flashy, and packs a strong audiovisual punch that has a lot of polish to it. And the different elements you can switch between add a fun layer of strategy to fights as well, with each having their own unique special moves too, which are all very fun to pull off. The skill trees for each element are huge! Really impressive how much there is to get in to in levelling up. The way these mechanics work with the puzzles is really cool as well. Juggling different elements together to solve some very tricky puzzles was a lot of fun. The way it uses projectiles in puzzles I thought was pretty unique and interesting too.

Some aspects of the game are a little grating though, and it did verge in to frustration a few times, although it was never bad enough to ruin the experience overall. One issue comes from the double-edged sword of the freedom of movement this game gives you. In general it feels really good, giving you free 360 degree movement, and letting you jump around the environment and hop over gaps quickly and fluidly. But the problem is that this can make navigating certain areas pretty confusing, as you're not exactly sure what elevation some platforms are. It can also be an issue with some of the enemy design. While enemies are generally fun to fight, there are a few which move up and down vertically, and it can be a pain trying to hit them and work out where they are in space. Some of the earlier dungeons are also not too great at conveying what they want you to do, and sometimes sidequests have really obtuse objectives that were a pain. Dungeon design gets a lot better as the game goes on however, with them simultaneously getting more complex but also better at signalling what they want from you in puzzles. Better paced too.

Another thing worth mentioning is that this game is actually pretty damn hard! It's not impossible or anything, but it certainly makes you work for your success. Levelling is scaled in such a way that you are rarely in a position where you can let your guard down against the current area. Puzzles can also get very complex and require a lot of hard thinking. Usually when you work them out they seem obvious in retrospect, but getting there can be pretty demanding. It's a lot harder than any Zelda-like game I've played in a long time. The game does have difficulty sliders for both combat and puzzles, but since I played the majority of the game before they patched those in, I didn't touch them at all. And the way the puzzle slider works, it would only make one type of puzzles easier. The game is also really long! Took me about 70 hours to beat it, and I still didn't do everything. The game does imply that you can get a slightly different ending if you 100% it, which I might try, since I don't think I'm that far off.

Very satisfying experience overall though. A game that brings out very strong emotions, both positive and negative. But the lows make the highs all the more sweet. Impressively expansive and well crafted too.
Thanks for the review! I think this put the game into a healthy perspective for me and I look forward to playing it myself! Appreciate the detailed write-up!
I agree... Crosscode has been on my radar a bit too, and what's holding me back is rumours of a possible console port.

It happened with Undertale, where I bought the Steam version, never played it, but when it came to console I was all over it.
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NuKaholic
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Re: Games Completed 2018

Post by NuKaholic »

Nier: Automata (PS4)
Persona 5 (PS4)
God of War (PS4)
Dark Souls 2 (PC)
Dark Souls 3 (PC)
Bloodborne ( PS4)
Uncharted 4 (PS4)
Last of Us Remastered (PS4)
Hollow Knight (PC/Switch)
Shovel Knight (Switch)
Bayonetta 2 (Switch)
Doki Doki Literature Club (PC)
Hat in Time (PC)
Oxenfree (PC)
What Remains of Edith Finch (PC)
Celeste (PC/Switch)
Red Dead Redemption 2 (PS4)

It's been a busy year...
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KSubzero1000
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Re: Games Completed 2018

Post by KSubzero1000 »

Yeah, I'm just gonna join the dogpile and say that I appreciated the CrossCode review as well. I'll definitely be on the lookout for an eventual console port. Thanks, Scrustle.


So, Valkyria Chronicles, then. Wow, what a game.

It's not everyday that a backward curmudgeon with a laundry list of pet issues like myself falls in love with an entirely new game without feeling the need to compare it negatively to a previous classic, but what do you know? That's exactly what happened. It simply nails the big three for me: Gameplay, Story and Presentation.

I'm a sucker for games with a distinct audiovisual hook, and the combination of faux-pencil art style and faux-sketchbook chapter format is marvelous. The music isn't the kind of top shelf stuff I would necessarily listen to outside of the game itself, but every track is fitting and underlines the action / cutscene perfectly. No complaints here.

I found the story to be surprisingly good. I have a soft spot for japanese war stories in general because I find the perspective of many writers to be very nuanced and interesting due to various cultural factors. This game is rather trope-y and veers into anime territory one too many times for its own good, but it does have very memorable characters and handles a lot of its subject matter rather well. It's not quite great, but it certainly goes above and beyond the bare minimum that would have been necessary to frame the gameplay like so many other video game stories. I for one was looking forward to every cutscene and never felt disappointed.

The gameplay on the other hand is nothing short of fantastic. The game thankfully opts for refined and easily understandable basics instead of over-saturating the player with hundreds of stats and half-baked mechanics like so many of its competitors. But what it lacks in obfuscating complexity, it makes up for in variety. Now that's speaking my language. The missions and maps are brilliantly designed, always with a new twist around the corner that forces you to rethink your strategy. The absence of a grid-based movement system and character usage restrictions meant that I had to fundamentally reevaluate the way I approached each encounter because I was so used to Fire Emblem at first, but by the end of the game I was completely in the zone without the usual nagging feeling of "I've done this before, and it was better the first time". This type of gameplay structure meant that my engagement and enjoyment of the game only increased over time instead of the other way around. The late game Citadel Ghirlandaio battles in particular are some of the genre's standout moments. Last but not least: the enemy Ace system is the kind of ingenious extra challenge that I adore, the adorable Medic triplets provide a much appreciated safety net to soften the blow of the permadeath system, and it never feels as if the RNG has any major influence on the outcome of any battle. Great polish, everything just feels tight and well-considered. Wonderful stuff.

Character balancing is also really good for the most part. Level progression being class-based instead of individual-based encourages mix-ups, perks are distinct enough to make a noticeable difference at times without ever breaking the game *cough* Awakeni(r)ng *cough*, and every class fulfills a useful and specific role. As many have pointed out before me, scout rushing is indeed overpowered, but I opted for a more conservative playstyle my first go around in order to make the best out of my team and the overall map design. Fun times. Bring on NG+.

I can't believe I'm saying this, but this game can definitely hold its own against the best Fire Emblem games, which is nothing short of insanely high praise coming from me. If anything, it made me significantly more critical of XCOM in retrospect, thanks to its very reasonable amount of randomization, wonderful mission design/variety and impeccable technical performance.

I'm ashamed of myself for taking 10 bloody years to finally play it. Many thanks to the podcast crew for bringing this gem to my attention. For the record, my interest in VC4 went from "oh cool, I'll certainly be tempted for under 25€ at some point" to "can't wait to receive my LE tomorrow!!". And needless to say, I'd be all over a console port of 2 and 3 if that ever happened.

We need more games like this one and we need them now. Sega does what Nintendon't, indeed. After the critical acclaim that VC4 has received, all I need is for Intelligent Systems to stick the landing with Three Houses and we'll be in the golden age of Tactical RPGs once again. Let the Renaissance be lush and bountiful, so the world may be mended.

Great game, epic shelf, gold star, GOTY 2008 runner-up, yadda yadda yadda.

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Flabyo
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Re: Games Completed 2018

Post by Flabyo »

2 takes a bit of a step backward with its story (it’s set in a military academy, so it’s rammed full of high school anime tropes), and the PSP limits the size of the missions areas a lot, but it does have some interesting new mechanics, notably a system where characters have a ‘flaw’ perk that you can replace with a beneficial one by completing a special ‘character’ mission.

3 hasn’t had an official English translation done, but is apparently a similar game to 2 but with a much grimmer plot (your unit is a Prison legion in that one).

Revolutions... you can ignore.

4 is apparently much closer to 1 in play, though it also has those character story missions from 2. I have it, just not started it yet, probably going to wait for my Christmas break.
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Michiel K
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Re: Games Completed 2018

Post by Michiel K »

Excellent stuff, K! Glad you got so much out of it. I also strongly feel it's one of the very best games in the genre that I've played.

15-11 Dynamite Deka 2, route 1 (Dreamcast)

What an incredibly silly and entertaining polygonal beat 'em up. The first game was cheesy AF, but this one very deliberately goes off the deep end completely. "WE HAVE A SITUATION DOWN THERE. SOME MODERN DAY PIRATES HAVE HIJACKED A HUGE CRUISER."

Want to do the other routes as well and play co-op with a friend.
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Scrustle
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Re: Games Completed 2018

Post by Scrustle »

Joshihatsumitsu wrote: November 16th, 2018, 1:03 am
I agree... Crosscode has been on my radar a bit too, and what's holding me back is rumours of a possible console port.

It happened with Undertale, where I bought the Steam version, never played it, but when it came to console I was all over it.
A PS4 version has been confirmed, but no release date yet, and in a recent stream the devs did they hinted that a Switch version might be on the way at some point too.
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DomsBeard
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Re: Games Completed 2018

Post by DomsBeard »

Will be getting VK based on what I have read. I have been curious before
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ratsoalbion
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Re: Games Completed 2018

Post by ratsoalbion »

Spoiler: show
06 Jan: Resident Evil: Director's Cut (PAL PS1 on PS3)
09 Feb: Final Fantasy II (GBA)
16 Feb: Resident Evil 2 (NTSC PS1 on PS3)
26 Feb: Yoshi's Woolly World (WU)
09 Mar: BioShock Infinite (PC)
10 Mar: BioShock Infinite: Burial at Sea - Episode One (PC)
12 Mar: BioShock Infinite: Burial at Sea - Episode Two (PC)
18 Mar: Shadow Complex Remastered (PC)
19 Mar: Splatoon (WU)
29 Mar: Resident Evil 3: Nemesis (NTSC PS1 on PS3)
06 Apr: Actual Sunlight (Vita)
08 Apr: Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus (PS4)
27 Apr: God of War (PS4)
07 May: Resident Evil - CODE: Veronica X HD (PS3)
20 May: Pikmin (Wii on WU)
28 May: Zone of the Enders HD Edition (PS3)
10 Jun: Final Fantasy IV (PSP on Vita)
16 Jun: Resident Evil HD Remaster (PS4)
19 Jul: Secret of Mana (SNES Nintendo Classic Mini)
26 Jul: Resident Evil 0 HD Remaster (PS4)
30 Jul: WarioWare Gold (N3DS)
21 Sep: Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice (PS4)
11 Oct: Resident Evil 5 (PC)
26 Oct: Horizon Zero Dawn (PS4)
16 Nov: Tetris Effect (PS4)
Journey mode (Beginner)
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Chopper
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Re: Games Completed 2018

Post by Chopper »

ratsoalbion wrote: November 16th, 2018, 3:42 pm 16 Nov: Tetris Effect (PS4)
Journey mode (Beginner)
Urgh! I just can’t cope with that final level :(
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