(Jan) Battlefield 3 - Series X.
(Jan) Hi-Fi Rush - Series X.
(Jan) Daymare 1998 - Series X.
(Jan) The Beast Inside - Series X.
(Feb) XIII - Series X.
(Feb) Close to the Sun - Series X.
(Feb) Atomic Heart - Series X.
(Feb) Return to Grace - Series X.
(Feb) MADiSON - PS5.
(Mar) TDPA: House of Ashes - PS5.
(Mar) RE Village: Shadows of Rose - PS5.
(Mar) Those Who Remain - Series X.
(Mar) Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun - Series X.
(Mar) Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart - PS5.
(Mar) Control: Ultimate Edition - Series X.
(Mar) DREDGE - Series X.
(Apr) Little Nightmares - Series X.
(Apr) Shadow of the Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition - Series X.
(Apr) Robocop: Rogue City - PS5.
(Apr) Little Nightmares II - Series X.
(May) Fallout 4 - PS5.
(May) The Maw - Xbox 360.
(May) Senua's Saga: Hellblade II - Series X.
(June) Alan Wake II: Night Springs dlc - Series X
(June) Castlestorm: Definitive Edition - Series X
(July) Still Wakes the Deep - Series X.
(July) The Quarry - PS5.
(July) Bright Memory Infinite - Series X.
(July) Diablo IV - Series X.
(Aug) Call of Duty: MWIII - Series X.
(Aug) Call of Juarez: Gunslinger - Xbox 360.
(Aug) No More Heroes III - Series X.
(Aug) Trepang 2 - Series X.
Games Completed 2024
Re: Games Completed 2024
How was Trepang2? Looks interesting
Re: Games Completed 2024
02/09 - Splatoon
Recently I finally got around to setting up Pretendo to play some of this again. But part of doing that meant starting a whole new profile on this game, so I figured I might as well play through the story mode again while I'm at it. It was a fun little nostalgia trip going through this again. Very short though of course, being able to finish it in a single sitting. Although this mode has never been the focus of the series, this version comes off as somewhat quaint compared to what the series has done since this.
As for Pretendo itself, I've had a really good time using it. Very quick and easy to set up, and once you do it simply just works. You can enter public lobbies and the game is pretty active with players too. I have had the occasional issue when trying to match up with other players, but that hasn't been too common, and the matches themselves work fine.
Recently I finally got around to setting up Pretendo to play some of this again. But part of doing that meant starting a whole new profile on this game, so I figured I might as well play through the story mode again while I'm at it. It was a fun little nostalgia trip going through this again. Very short though of course, being able to finish it in a single sitting. Although this mode has never been the focus of the series, this version comes off as somewhat quaint compared to what the series has done since this.
As for Pretendo itself, I've had a really good time using it. Very quick and easy to set up, and once you do it simply just works. You can enter public lobbies and the game is pretty active with players too. I have had the occasional issue when trying to match up with other players, but that hasn't been too common, and the matches themselves work fine.
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Tolkientaters
- Member
- Posts: 145
- Joined: April 22nd, 2021, 10:39 pm
- Location: Florida, USA
Re: Games Completed 2024
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seansthomas
- Member
- Posts: 868
- Joined: March 31st, 2015, 8:10 am
Re: Games Completed 2024
Jan 4th - Shadow of the Tomb Raider (PS5)
Jan 10th - Jusant (Xbox Series S)
Feb 6th - Resident Evil 4 (PS5)
Feb 19th - Resident Evil 4 - Hardcore (PS5)
Feb 25th - Interaction isn't explicit (PS5)
Mar 10th - The Last of Us Part II: Remastered (PS5)
Apr 16th - TLoZ: TOTK (all shrines) / Shadow of the Tomb Raider (Challenge Tombs) / Helldivers 2 (PS5) / Split Second (Xbox Series S)
May 1st - Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown (Xbox Series S)
May 17th - Resident Evil 4: Separate Ways (PS5)
May 27th - Shadow of the Colossus (PS5)
July 23rd - Shadow of the Erdtree: Elden Ring (Xbox Series S)
July 24th - Lego Builders Journey (Switch)
July 29th - Metroid Fusion (Switch: NSOnline)
August 7th - Star Wars Jedi: Survivor (PS5)
August 13th - Thank goodness you're here! (PS5)
September 5th - Arranger: A role-puzzling adventure (Switch)
Interesting game. A 5hr or so indie title where you do slide puzzles, combine items and shift around objects to move around a 2D world. All controlled by simply using the Dpad.
Gotta be honest, for the first hour or so I was thinking 'oh man this isn't my bag'. Twee story with a paper thing allegory. Tons of text. Puzzles that I seemed to be solving more by luck than knowing why. A couple of road blocks early doors I had to Youtube.
But by the end, my brain was clued in differently and I had had a few 'gotcha!' moments.
I'm not sure it's anywhere close to a GOTY contender for me like the EDGE 9/10 score gave it. And from various podcasts I've listened to, it's clear that a ton of people are bouncing off of it by the 2nd hour on the free Netflix version.
BUT the back half of the game is way cleverer, more interesting and builds to a decent finale.
Jan 10th - Jusant (Xbox Series S)
Feb 6th - Resident Evil 4 (PS5)
Feb 19th - Resident Evil 4 - Hardcore (PS5)
Feb 25th - Interaction isn't explicit (PS5)
Mar 10th - The Last of Us Part II: Remastered (PS5)
Apr 16th - TLoZ: TOTK (all shrines) / Shadow of the Tomb Raider (Challenge Tombs) / Helldivers 2 (PS5) / Split Second (Xbox Series S)
May 1st - Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown (Xbox Series S)
May 17th - Resident Evil 4: Separate Ways (PS5)
May 27th - Shadow of the Colossus (PS5)
July 23rd - Shadow of the Erdtree: Elden Ring (Xbox Series S)
July 24th - Lego Builders Journey (Switch)
July 29th - Metroid Fusion (Switch: NSOnline)
August 7th - Star Wars Jedi: Survivor (PS5)
August 13th - Thank goodness you're here! (PS5)
September 5th - Arranger: A role-puzzling adventure (Switch)
Interesting game. A 5hr or so indie title where you do slide puzzles, combine items and shift around objects to move around a 2D world. All controlled by simply using the Dpad.
Gotta be honest, for the first hour or so I was thinking 'oh man this isn't my bag'. Twee story with a paper thing allegory. Tons of text. Puzzles that I seemed to be solving more by luck than knowing why. A couple of road blocks early doors I had to Youtube.
But by the end, my brain was clued in differently and I had had a few 'gotcha!' moments.
I'm not sure it's anywhere close to a GOTY contender for me like the EDGE 9/10 score gave it. And from various podcasts I've listened to, it's clear that a ton of people are bouncing off of it by the 2nd hour on the free Netflix version.
BUT the back half of the game is way cleverer, more interesting and builds to a decent finale.
Re: Games Completed 2024
Yeah I played about an hour and haven't been back. I just thought "this is okay" but nothing pulling me back to it.
Re: Games Completed 2024
A few more from me over the last few weeks:
Rage 2
Rage 2 is a weird one. It's essentially a mediocre game in most aspects, however the combat loop is fantastic. The game is also about 70% combat loop and 30% driving.
I went in expecting the game to have good combat and bad everything else, and with my expectations set to that level I enjoyed it a "zone out" game where I just went around clearing camps of goons.
That's pretty much all there is to say on Rage 2. Guns and abilities feel great, combat is a lightning fast release of dopamine, the rest is bland and forgettable
Pokémon Emerald
I replayed the Gen 1 and 2 games over the last few years, and that's as far as I got as a kid, so this was my first foray into Gen 3.
I liked all the stuff I liked from the Gen 1 and 2 games here, plus the double battles were a great addition. The story was also more fleshed out than it was in the previous games, though it's still nothing too special.
The grind to beat the Elite 4 is a pain in this game, and this was also true of Yellow and Crystal. All 3 games have solid pacing right until the end, when you're staring down the Elite 4, 20 levels below them, with only Victory Road as a decent place to grind.
You can either grind and be bored or grind a bit and cheese the final bosses with lots of item use, both paths are pretty anticlimactic.
Still, an enjoyable game with great pixel art and music
Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons
This was a replay, after originally playing the game at release back in 2013. (I replayed the 2013 version, and not the hideous remake)
I think this game still looks great, the art style really elevates the quite simple models. The game is much slighter than I remembered. It took me under 3 hours to finish. The game builds up to a really great section right near the end where narrative and mechanics intersect, which is still a highlight.
You can see a lot of ideas here that were expanded upon in the fantastic It Takes Two as well, and overall the games concept is still pretty unique.
Rage 2
Rage 2 is a weird one. It's essentially a mediocre game in most aspects, however the combat loop is fantastic. The game is also about 70% combat loop and 30% driving.
I went in expecting the game to have good combat and bad everything else, and with my expectations set to that level I enjoyed it a "zone out" game where I just went around clearing camps of goons.
That's pretty much all there is to say on Rage 2. Guns and abilities feel great, combat is a lightning fast release of dopamine, the rest is bland and forgettable
Pokémon Emerald
I replayed the Gen 1 and 2 games over the last few years, and that's as far as I got as a kid, so this was my first foray into Gen 3.
I liked all the stuff I liked from the Gen 1 and 2 games here, plus the double battles were a great addition. The story was also more fleshed out than it was in the previous games, though it's still nothing too special.
The grind to beat the Elite 4 is a pain in this game, and this was also true of Yellow and Crystal. All 3 games have solid pacing right until the end, when you're staring down the Elite 4, 20 levels below them, with only Victory Road as a decent place to grind.
You can either grind and be bored or grind a bit and cheese the final bosses with lots of item use, both paths are pretty anticlimactic.
Still, an enjoyable game with great pixel art and music
Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons
This was a replay, after originally playing the game at release back in 2013. (I replayed the 2013 version, and not the hideous remake)
I think this game still looks great, the art style really elevates the quite simple models. The game is much slighter than I remembered. It took me under 3 hours to finish. The game builds up to a really great section right near the end where narrative and mechanics intersect, which is still a highlight.
You can see a lot of ideas here that were expanded upon in the fantastic It Takes Two as well, and overall the games concept is still pretty unique.
Re: Games Completed 2024
07/09 - Silent Hill 2: Enhanced Edition
Some time back I got the desire to give this series a proper attempt, but only ended up playing through the first game as I didn’t really click with it. But now that this Enhanced Edition mod for this game got its final update, that motivated me to give it another stab. I’m very glad I did, this was a great experience, and a huge improvement over the first game. I finally properly understand why people rave about this game so much.
The biggest improvement over the previous game is how it deals with story. With the first one, I felt like the narrative wasn’t really present in the events of the game itself. It was pushed to the background, hard to follow, and largely disconnected from what the game actually demanded you pay attention to. That’s not a problem this time, with the much greater focus on characters. Pushing them to the forefront lets the game convey its themes way better, and the characters themselves are great too. This is one of those games where for the longest time I never expected I would actually play it myself, so I didn’t shy away from spoilers, meaning I went in already knowing a lot about the direction of the plot and what it was going for. In a way that perhaps meant I missed the chance to come to some realisations myself, but at the same time it gave me the context to pick up on things I might have missed on my own. The way each character reflects something about James’ own insecurities and regrets is really well handled. It’s got subtleties and nuances to it that give each character a sense of having their own inner world like James, while they all follow a cohesive thematic stream too. All with relatively sparse dialogue and interactions throughout the game.
The performances of the dialogue are an interesting topic too. To casual observation one might call it bad. Stilted and wooden, possibly a product of bad localisation, etc. Then there’s also the hypothetical counter argument that it’s “bad on purpose”, but I think neither of these are true. It is true that several of the characters talk in an awkward tone with a somewhat emotionally flat delivery, but in context it feels perfectly natural. These are people with severe issues. People who struggle to relate to others or feel anxiety about how they come across. The result of trauma, suppressed emotions, or other problems. It does add to the unnerving tone of the game, but the performances still feel very deliberate, and like they still portray the characters sympathetically. There are also examples of really well done voice acting that is more warm and personable too, when it’s appropriate for who the speaker is.
This game nails the aesthetic and mood too. The eerie visuals and fantastic sound design create a really rich atmosphere of unnerving dread and unreality that is pitch perfect. The level of graphical fidelity is also extremely impressive. One of the best looking games from the PS2 era despite being one of its earliest releases. The lighting, shadows, and general detail are still really remarkable even now. The soundtrack has a really great mix of ambient or more abstract pieces that set the tone really well for the darker parts of the game, along with the excellent instrumental tracks that are a bit more mellow and really catchy, despite still having that melancholic, off-kilter vibe that leaves you feeling like not everything is quite right even in the safer moments.
I got along with the gameplay much better this time around too, although I still wouldn’t exactly say I loved it. I had a better time with the tank controls now as I’m a bit more experienced with them, but also because I didn’t try to make it work on the D-pad this time and just went straight to using the thumbstick. Combat was still clunky, but manageable. That was probably more down to just playing on Easy though, which also helped in making the puzzles much less of a frustration this time too. I never got stuck on anything, except for a couple of instances of being stumped on navigation. There were some points where the way forward wasn’t well indicated at all, and I had to refer to a guide. But I didn’t feel bad about it, since I didn’t have to lean on it too hard, and gameplay challenge was never what I was aiming to get out of the game anyway.
A great time overall then, and very much worthy of its reputation. I’m really glad this is one I was finally able to get on with, especially considering how hard a time I have getting on with horror games in general. I haven’t done Born From A Wish yet, but I definitely intend to. When I played SH1 a couple of years back, my original plan was to go through all the Team Silent games, but that desire dried up after that first game. This game has reignited that motivation and I do want to get through all these games for real this time. Maybe even some of the later games afterwards too.
Some time back I got the desire to give this series a proper attempt, but only ended up playing through the first game as I didn’t really click with it. But now that this Enhanced Edition mod for this game got its final update, that motivated me to give it another stab. I’m very glad I did, this was a great experience, and a huge improvement over the first game. I finally properly understand why people rave about this game so much.
The biggest improvement over the previous game is how it deals with story. With the first one, I felt like the narrative wasn’t really present in the events of the game itself. It was pushed to the background, hard to follow, and largely disconnected from what the game actually demanded you pay attention to. That’s not a problem this time, with the much greater focus on characters. Pushing them to the forefront lets the game convey its themes way better, and the characters themselves are great too. This is one of those games where for the longest time I never expected I would actually play it myself, so I didn’t shy away from spoilers, meaning I went in already knowing a lot about the direction of the plot and what it was going for. In a way that perhaps meant I missed the chance to come to some realisations myself, but at the same time it gave me the context to pick up on things I might have missed on my own. The way each character reflects something about James’ own insecurities and regrets is really well handled. It’s got subtleties and nuances to it that give each character a sense of having their own inner world like James, while they all follow a cohesive thematic stream too. All with relatively sparse dialogue and interactions throughout the game.
The performances of the dialogue are an interesting topic too. To casual observation one might call it bad. Stilted and wooden, possibly a product of bad localisation, etc. Then there’s also the hypothetical counter argument that it’s “bad on purpose”, but I think neither of these are true. It is true that several of the characters talk in an awkward tone with a somewhat emotionally flat delivery, but in context it feels perfectly natural. These are people with severe issues. People who struggle to relate to others or feel anxiety about how they come across. The result of trauma, suppressed emotions, or other problems. It does add to the unnerving tone of the game, but the performances still feel very deliberate, and like they still portray the characters sympathetically. There are also examples of really well done voice acting that is more warm and personable too, when it’s appropriate for who the speaker is.
This game nails the aesthetic and mood too. The eerie visuals and fantastic sound design create a really rich atmosphere of unnerving dread and unreality that is pitch perfect. The level of graphical fidelity is also extremely impressive. One of the best looking games from the PS2 era despite being one of its earliest releases. The lighting, shadows, and general detail are still really remarkable even now. The soundtrack has a really great mix of ambient or more abstract pieces that set the tone really well for the darker parts of the game, along with the excellent instrumental tracks that are a bit more mellow and really catchy, despite still having that melancholic, off-kilter vibe that leaves you feeling like not everything is quite right even in the safer moments.
I got along with the gameplay much better this time around too, although I still wouldn’t exactly say I loved it. I had a better time with the tank controls now as I’m a bit more experienced with them, but also because I didn’t try to make it work on the D-pad this time and just went straight to using the thumbstick. Combat was still clunky, but manageable. That was probably more down to just playing on Easy though, which also helped in making the puzzles much less of a frustration this time too. I never got stuck on anything, except for a couple of instances of being stumped on navigation. There were some points where the way forward wasn’t well indicated at all, and I had to refer to a guide. But I didn’t feel bad about it, since I didn’t have to lean on it too hard, and gameplay challenge was never what I was aiming to get out of the game anyway.
A great time overall then, and very much worthy of its reputation. I’m really glad this is one I was finally able to get on with, especially considering how hard a time I have getting on with horror games in general. I haven’t done Born From A Wish yet, but I definitely intend to. When I played SH1 a couple of years back, my original plan was to go through all the Team Silent games, but that desire dried up after that first game. This game has reignited that motivation and I do want to get through all these games for real this time. Maybe even some of the later games afterwards too.
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Indiana747
- Member
- Posts: 1037
- Joined: September 3rd, 2012, 5:17 pm
Re: Games Completed 2024
(Jan) Battlefield 3 - Series X.
(Jan) Hi-Fi Rush - Series X.
(Jan) Daymare 1998 - Series X.
(Jan) The Beast Inside - Series X.
(Feb) XIII - Series X.
(Feb) Close to the Sun - Series X.
(Feb) Atomic Heart - Series X.
(Feb) Return to Grace - Series X.
(Feb) MADiSON - PS5.
(Mar) TDPA: House of Ashes - PS5.
(Mar) RE Village: Shadows of Rose - PS5.
(Mar) Those Who Remain - Series X.
(Mar) Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun - Series X.
(Mar) Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart - PS5.
(Mar) Control: Ultimate Edition - Series X.
(Mar) DREDGE - Series X.
(Apr) Little Nightmares - Series X.
(Apr) Shadow of the Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition - Series X.
(Apr) Robocop: Rogue City - PS5.
(Apr) Little Nightmares II - Series X.
(May) Fallout 4 - PS5.
(May) The Maw - Xbox 360.
(May) Senua's Saga: Hellblade II - Series X.
(June) Alan Wake II: Night Springs dlc - Series X
(June) Castlestorm: Definitive Edition - Series X
(July) Still Wakes the Deep - Series X.
(July) The Quarry - PS5.
(July) Bright Memory Infinite - Series X.
(July) Diablo IV - Series X.
(Aug) Call of Duty: MWIII - Series X.
(Aug) Call of Juarez: Gunslinger - Xbox 360.
(Aug) No More Heroes III - Series X.
(Aug) Trepang 2 - Series X.
(Sept) Deliver Us Mars - PS5.
(Jan) Hi-Fi Rush - Series X.
(Jan) Daymare 1998 - Series X.
(Jan) The Beast Inside - Series X.
(Feb) XIII - Series X.
(Feb) Close to the Sun - Series X.
(Feb) Atomic Heart - Series X.
(Feb) Return to Grace - Series X.
(Feb) MADiSON - PS5.
(Mar) TDPA: House of Ashes - PS5.
(Mar) RE Village: Shadows of Rose - PS5.
(Mar) Those Who Remain - Series X.
(Mar) Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun - Series X.
(Mar) Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart - PS5.
(Mar) Control: Ultimate Edition - Series X.
(Mar) DREDGE - Series X.
(Apr) Little Nightmares - Series X.
(Apr) Shadow of the Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition - Series X.
(Apr) Robocop: Rogue City - PS5.
(Apr) Little Nightmares II - Series X.
(May) Fallout 4 - PS5.
(May) The Maw - Xbox 360.
(May) Senua's Saga: Hellblade II - Series X.
(June) Alan Wake II: Night Springs dlc - Series X
(June) Castlestorm: Definitive Edition - Series X
(July) Still Wakes the Deep - Series X.
(July) The Quarry - PS5.
(July) Bright Memory Infinite - Series X.
(July) Diablo IV - Series X.
(Aug) Call of Duty: MWIII - Series X.
(Aug) Call of Juarez: Gunslinger - Xbox 360.
(Aug) No More Heroes III - Series X.
(Aug) Trepang 2 - Series X.
(Sept) Deliver Us Mars - PS5.
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Jobobonobo
- Member
- Posts: 613
- Joined: July 27th, 2016, 4:30 pm
Re: Games Completed 2024
- Spoiler: show
I found this to be an absolute delight. The controls and general feel of the game feel much tighter than the PS1 original and the greater degree of control over the net allows you to swipe up monkeys more effectively and giving you more chances to catch them all. Most of the more unorthodox mechanics from the first game such as rowing a boat are refined a good bit here and while still taking a while to adjust to, is vastly improved from before. Catching monkeys is still an absolute delight and like with the first title, I collected every single monkey and had a great time doing it. The monkeys are even more full of personality with many of them dressing up in stage appropriate costumes depending on the level (jester in a circus, knight in a castle, etc.) and again, the localisation did a fantastic job with the Monkeypaedia where the names are full of all sorts of puns and references. The coins are a fantastic collectable also seeing as there are used for collecting gacha prizes that can contain stories, concept art, music and so much more. This really incentivizes players to collect as much coins as possible to unlock all this content. As a collectathon, Ape Escape 2 really excels at playing to the strengths of that particular sub genre of 3D platformer.
Where I think the game really falters is in the audio department. While the music is silly and bubbly as you would expect, it is nowhere near as unique as the techno jungle beats of the original which does end up draining the game of some of its character. Ape Escape 1 had a soundtrack more befitting of a Friday night rave in the late 90s than a typical cutesy platformer and it is truly a shame to see that not be present here. Also while many of the returning cast has the same voice acting as the PS1 game, Specter now sounds like a cartoon villain sidekick which is a real shame as the PAL version he sounded like a suave Bond villain which made him quite a charismatic antagonist. Mini games are still not great either but since there are not required to beat the game, I can take them or leave them.
Overall, I think Ape Escape 2 is a great follow up and really shows that the original hook of using he dual shock to use various gadgets to catch monkeys is still a strong premise. Levels are varied and a joy to go through, bosses are improved (the final showdown with Specter is a fair bit harder than the PS1 game) and the many of the monkeys offer up some unique challenges in capturing them. The original Ape Escape was too silly and unique an idea to be left as one game so I’m delighted they expanded on this silly idea in such a great little sequel. This now sits easily among one of the best PS2 platformers out there. If you enjoyed the original, then I strongly recommend this.
Re: Games Completed 2024
12/09 - Silent Hill 3
This game is pretty interesting for bringing back the story threads and general vibe of Silent Hill 1 but with the advancements that came from the experience of SH2 and a new console generation. I didn’t like it quite as much as SH2, but I still liked it a lot. Some of the issues I had were fairly similar to what I had with SH1, but it’s still cool in its own right, and I ended up enjoying it more the further I got in to it.
Of course it has a great aesthetic once again. Really atmospheric was fantastic art design and visuals with a lot of attention to detail. It returns to the rusty look of SH1 really well, with the same kind of aggressive and abrasive tone to the horror, but this time refined in a way that makes it hit much more effectively. There were some parts later on in the game which were genuinely scary, just through environmental design. It does some creatively surreal stuff that is very creepy. The monster design is really good too, and I think I might even prefer it to SH2, with its disturbingly twisted monstrosities. Although that said the weird bipedal things that show up more towards the first half of the game come across as a bit silly. Another great touch to the visuals I noticed is how the noise filter only shows up when you actually get to the town of Silent Hill itself. Like the place has some kind of subtle influence that blurs your vision of reality just by being there.
I didn’t care for the story quite as much as SH2 though. It doesn’t have that same character focus, and so most of their interactions aren’t as interesting. It pays more attention to the cult conspiracy, which is decent enough on its own, but it doesn’t feel like it has the same psychological depth, at least when it comes to the characters themselves. Those themes show up more in the symbolic visual design of the environments and enemies I suppose. Suggesting Heather’s fears about being used as an object by others. Heather herself is a good character too. She’s pretty fleshed out and has a fun rebellious attitude to her, and her relationship with her father feels genuine, even if we don’t really get to see it. The story was good overall though, and it definitely feels a lot more relevant to the events of the game than SH1’s did.
The structure of the game is different to both previous games in a way that I also didn’t quite vibe as well with. Almost the whole game takes place within closed off levels, with very little freedom to explore like those games did between levels. It gives the game less of a sense of ebb and flow, and instead stays in that more claustrophobic mode through most of the game. It gives it less of a sense of place too. But I can also see that as being an intentional choice, to convey the sense of being trapped and alienated that Heather does from the people she interacts with. Although aside from that, I did also find myself having trouble finding the way forward fairly often, in ways that don’t feel thematically justified. I had to resort to a walkthrough way more than with SH2, to find things like doors that weren’t marked on the map at all.
But despite the occasional issue I still liked the game a lot overall. None of the problems were particularly big ones either. In terms of its atmosphere and art design though, it was brilliant. Potent, chilling, and wonderfully crafted.
This game is pretty interesting for bringing back the story threads and general vibe of Silent Hill 1 but with the advancements that came from the experience of SH2 and a new console generation. I didn’t like it quite as much as SH2, but I still liked it a lot. Some of the issues I had were fairly similar to what I had with SH1, but it’s still cool in its own right, and I ended up enjoying it more the further I got in to it.
Of course it has a great aesthetic once again. Really atmospheric was fantastic art design and visuals with a lot of attention to detail. It returns to the rusty look of SH1 really well, with the same kind of aggressive and abrasive tone to the horror, but this time refined in a way that makes it hit much more effectively. There were some parts later on in the game which were genuinely scary, just through environmental design. It does some creatively surreal stuff that is very creepy. The monster design is really good too, and I think I might even prefer it to SH2, with its disturbingly twisted monstrosities. Although that said the weird bipedal things that show up more towards the first half of the game come across as a bit silly. Another great touch to the visuals I noticed is how the noise filter only shows up when you actually get to the town of Silent Hill itself. Like the place has some kind of subtle influence that blurs your vision of reality just by being there.
I didn’t care for the story quite as much as SH2 though. It doesn’t have that same character focus, and so most of their interactions aren’t as interesting. It pays more attention to the cult conspiracy, which is decent enough on its own, but it doesn’t feel like it has the same psychological depth, at least when it comes to the characters themselves. Those themes show up more in the symbolic visual design of the environments and enemies I suppose. Suggesting Heather’s fears about being used as an object by others. Heather herself is a good character too. She’s pretty fleshed out and has a fun rebellious attitude to her, and her relationship with her father feels genuine, even if we don’t really get to see it. The story was good overall though, and it definitely feels a lot more relevant to the events of the game than SH1’s did.
The structure of the game is different to both previous games in a way that I also didn’t quite vibe as well with. Almost the whole game takes place within closed off levels, with very little freedom to explore like those games did between levels. It gives the game less of a sense of ebb and flow, and instead stays in that more claustrophobic mode through most of the game. It gives it less of a sense of place too. But I can also see that as being an intentional choice, to convey the sense of being trapped and alienated that Heather does from the people she interacts with. Although aside from that, I did also find myself having trouble finding the way forward fairly often, in ways that don’t feel thematically justified. I had to resort to a walkthrough way more than with SH2, to find things like doors that weren’t marked on the map at all.
But despite the occasional issue I still liked the game a lot overall. None of the problems were particularly big ones either. In terms of its atmosphere and art design though, it was brilliant. Potent, chilling, and wonderfully crafted.
Re: Games Completed 2024
- Spoiler: show
The gaming equivalent of a tub of Celebrations. Addictive, bite sized and fun, with lots of familiar faces that will occasionally surprise you. Astro is still the only game I’ve played that takes full advantage of the dual sense (Chadley doesn’t count). It gives the game a tactile quality that seriously elevates it. I love the ‘thonk thonk’ of the boxing gloves, the skittering sound when you run on metal, the popping sound of the suction vacuum.
The power ups are generally great, although the downside to the ‘use it, throw it away’ style is that some of the best ones feel underutilised. Levels are tightly put together, and there’s a lot of charm and attention to detail in making everything fun and light. It does eventually start to feel a bit samey, due to Astro’s limited move set, and the game seeming a bit scared to test you. The challenge levels pick up the slack here, and all pushed me in an enjoyable way, bar the stupid rubber duck one (don’t ask).
However like Playroom I was a bit underwhelmed by how much of this game is metafictional, from the character references to the playstation hardware and branding. Again, the characters I don’t mind so much. They’re charming and lead to the themed levels, which are great highlights at the end of a galaxy. But the total package leads to the whole thing feeling a bit cheap and hollow. Especially when the game is already very derivative of games like Super Mario Galaxy, Odyssey, Cuphead etc.
Astro Bot feels like it was made for millennials and above to reminisce about the games they grew up on and potentially share with their kids. In that sense I think it is a success, very charming and warm hearted, and made me wish I had kids to share it with. Assuming there are more Astro games, I hope he’s allowed to step out of Sony’s shadow. I’m tired of metaverses, IP, easter eggs and references.
Re: Games Completed 2024
- Spoiler: show
After Astro Bot I needed more platforming goodness. This is a great little game, if short - my play clock said just over five hours to beat it. The 3D effect is great, really adds depth to the game, which allows it to shift and play around with the perspective in fun ways. I really like the ‘3D Mario that plays like a 2D Mario’ conceit. 3D World expands on it a lot more, but this is great too, and has all the charm and high quality you’d expect from a Mario game.
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ratsoalbion
- Admin
- Posts: 7976
- Joined: August 28th, 2012, 9:41 am
- Location: Brighton, England
- Contact:
Re: Games Completed 2024
There's kind of an entire 'B' Game once you've finished SM3DL once...
Re: Games Completed 2024
The special levels? I'll take another look. I tried the first one but it just looked like a speed run thing. The same level but with more enemies and stars dotted about.
Re: Games Completed 2024
21/09 - Silent Hill 4: The Room
I ended up not getting on with this one very well. Most of the time I just found it boring and tedious to be honest. It’s very lacking in vibes, and doesn’t do a good job of building any kind of tension or atmosphere. A lot of the aesthetic choices feel somewhat uninspired, especially for the first half of the game. It didn’t intrigue or scare, or really produce any emotion in me. The audio design was pretty spotty too. The only things that stood out did so for the wrong reasons, with goofy and inappropriate sound effects for monsters. Barely any of the music was enjoyable or interesting either, and the best stuff it did have pales in comparison to the previous games.
The second half of the game does get a bit more interesting once the more surreal stuff starts happening and the environments change to reflect that. There is some cool imagery in there that feels appropriately Silent Hill-esque, but it’s massively undercut by them taking place in repeated levels. Playing through them the first time was already a slog, and then they force you go to through every single one of them a second time, with the addition of having to lead around an NPC the entire time which slows you down a lot.
The enemy design also really rubbed me the wrong way in certain areas. Most of the basic enemies are okay, but the ghosts are extremely annoying. They have loads of health, deal a lot of damage, and cannot be permanently killed in most circumstances. I get they aren’t supposed to be treated like other enemies and you’re meant to run away most of the time, but they just ended up being a huge pain that dragged down the experience.
The game also has a weirdly fiddly inventory system too. What you can carry with you is very limited, forcing you to back out of levels to your safe room to drop stuff off and move things around a lot. Having to constantly backtrack through levels over and over gets old very quick, with it being at its absolute worst in the last level as it’s the only one where there aren’t multiple portals back to your room. When you’re in the safe room you sometimes have to deal with supernatural hauntings there too, which just came off as busywork and a drain on resources. Not really spooky or anything. The game can also be really picky about where you can place objects to deal with them, leading to wasting them on occasion.
I didn’t care much for the story either, although I have to give it some acknowledgement for what it was trying to do at least. It’s meant to be a character study of the eventual antagonist, with the levels you go through being places important to their past. What seems mundane or arbitrary at first does gain more meaning on a second visit when you have the extra context. The surreal additions and monsters you find in these levels do have a clear symbolic meaning relevant to what gets revealed over the story. But even so, it left me nonplussed for the most part. More like an “oh, I see what you’re doing”, instead of a satisfying revelation as a result of effective storytelling. Maybe because a lot of that context is just delivered directly to you in text notes about stuff that happened in the past. I didn’t really like any of the characters either. All of them are pretty bland and boring. They don’t really have any personality, and their relation to the themes of the story were tangential at best.
I knew this game was pretty divisive among fans, so I wasn’t exactly sure what my response would be. But I suppose as someone who still finds horror games pretty hit-and-miss, it’s not a huge surprise. Having gone through all these original Silent Hill games was a good experience though, and I think it has helped me warm up to the genre much more than I had before. I used to assume I just couldn’t get anything out of games like this, but now I know I can. SH2 and 3 were great, and a lot of their moments and music have been stuck in my head since playing. I also realised that in recent years I’ve covered most of Konami’s major PS2 output, which I never touched at the time. A lot of those games have become some of my highlights of recent times.
I think I’m taking a break from this series for now though. I still do want to have a shot at some of the post-Team Silent games, but I’m not in a rush to get to them right away. I think Origins would be the next one I have my eye on. I know that one has a reputation for being a bit “safe” and not the most original, but maybe that will hit the spot for me after this one.
I ended up not getting on with this one very well. Most of the time I just found it boring and tedious to be honest. It’s very lacking in vibes, and doesn’t do a good job of building any kind of tension or atmosphere. A lot of the aesthetic choices feel somewhat uninspired, especially for the first half of the game. It didn’t intrigue or scare, or really produce any emotion in me. The audio design was pretty spotty too. The only things that stood out did so for the wrong reasons, with goofy and inappropriate sound effects for monsters. Barely any of the music was enjoyable or interesting either, and the best stuff it did have pales in comparison to the previous games.
The second half of the game does get a bit more interesting once the more surreal stuff starts happening and the environments change to reflect that. There is some cool imagery in there that feels appropriately Silent Hill-esque, but it’s massively undercut by them taking place in repeated levels. Playing through them the first time was already a slog, and then they force you go to through every single one of them a second time, with the addition of having to lead around an NPC the entire time which slows you down a lot.
The enemy design also really rubbed me the wrong way in certain areas. Most of the basic enemies are okay, but the ghosts are extremely annoying. They have loads of health, deal a lot of damage, and cannot be permanently killed in most circumstances. I get they aren’t supposed to be treated like other enemies and you’re meant to run away most of the time, but they just ended up being a huge pain that dragged down the experience.
The game also has a weirdly fiddly inventory system too. What you can carry with you is very limited, forcing you to back out of levels to your safe room to drop stuff off and move things around a lot. Having to constantly backtrack through levels over and over gets old very quick, with it being at its absolute worst in the last level as it’s the only one where there aren’t multiple portals back to your room. When you’re in the safe room you sometimes have to deal with supernatural hauntings there too, which just came off as busywork and a drain on resources. Not really spooky or anything. The game can also be really picky about where you can place objects to deal with them, leading to wasting them on occasion.
I didn’t care much for the story either, although I have to give it some acknowledgement for what it was trying to do at least. It’s meant to be a character study of the eventual antagonist, with the levels you go through being places important to their past. What seems mundane or arbitrary at first does gain more meaning on a second visit when you have the extra context. The surreal additions and monsters you find in these levels do have a clear symbolic meaning relevant to what gets revealed over the story. But even so, it left me nonplussed for the most part. More like an “oh, I see what you’re doing”, instead of a satisfying revelation as a result of effective storytelling. Maybe because a lot of that context is just delivered directly to you in text notes about stuff that happened in the past. I didn’t really like any of the characters either. All of them are pretty bland and boring. They don’t really have any personality, and their relation to the themes of the story were tangential at best.
I knew this game was pretty divisive among fans, so I wasn’t exactly sure what my response would be. But I suppose as someone who still finds horror games pretty hit-and-miss, it’s not a huge surprise. Having gone through all these original Silent Hill games was a good experience though, and I think it has helped me warm up to the genre much more than I had before. I used to assume I just couldn’t get anything out of games like this, but now I know I can. SH2 and 3 were great, and a lot of their moments and music have been stuck in my head since playing. I also realised that in recent years I’ve covered most of Konami’s major PS2 output, which I never touched at the time. A lot of those games have become some of my highlights of recent times.
I think I’m taking a break from this series for now though. I still do want to have a shot at some of the post-Team Silent games, but I’m not in a rush to get to them right away. I think Origins would be the next one I have my eye on. I know that one has a reputation for being a bit “safe” and not the most original, but maybe that will hit the spot for me after this one.
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Indiana747
- Member
- Posts: 1037
- Joined: September 3rd, 2012, 5:17 pm
Re: Games Completed 2024
(Jan) Battlefield 3 - Series X.
(Jan) Hi-Fi Rush - Series X.
(Jan) Daymare 1998 - Series X.
(Jan) The Beast Inside - Series X.
(Feb) XIII - Series X.
(Feb) Close to the Sun - Series X.
(Feb) Atomic Heart - Series X.
(Feb) Return to Grace - Series X.
(Feb) MADiSON - PS5.
(Mar) TDPA: House of Ashes - PS5.
(Mar) RE Village: Shadows of Rose - PS5.
(Mar) Those Who Remain - Series X.
(Mar) Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun - Series X.
(Mar) Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart - PS5.
(Mar) Control: Ultimate Edition - Series X.
(Mar) DREDGE - Series X.
(Apr) Little Nightmares - Series X.
(Apr) Shadow of the Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition - Series X.
(Apr) Robocop: Rogue City - PS5.
(Apr) Little Nightmares II - Series X.
(May) Fallout 4 - PS5.
(May) The Maw - Xbox 360.
(May) Senua's Saga: Hellblade II - Series X.
(June) Alan Wake II: Night Springs dlc - Series X
(June) Castlestorm: Definitive Edition - Series X
(July) Still Wakes the Deep - Series X.
(July) The Quarry - PS5.
(July) Bright Memory Infinite - Series X.
(July) Diablo IV - Series X.
(Aug) Call of Duty: MWIII - Series X.
(Aug) Call of Juarez: Gunslinger - Xbox 360.
(Aug) No More Heroes III - Series X.
(Aug) Trepang 2 - Series X.
(Sept) Deliver Us Mars - PS5.
(Sept) Black Myth: Wukong(True Ending) - PS5.
(Jan) Hi-Fi Rush - Series X.
(Jan) Daymare 1998 - Series X.
(Jan) The Beast Inside - Series X.
(Feb) XIII - Series X.
(Feb) Close to the Sun - Series X.
(Feb) Atomic Heart - Series X.
(Feb) Return to Grace - Series X.
(Feb) MADiSON - PS5.
(Mar) TDPA: House of Ashes - PS5.
(Mar) RE Village: Shadows of Rose - PS5.
(Mar) Those Who Remain - Series X.
(Mar) Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun - Series X.
(Mar) Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart - PS5.
(Mar) Control: Ultimate Edition - Series X.
(Mar) DREDGE - Series X.
(Apr) Little Nightmares - Series X.
(Apr) Shadow of the Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition - Series X.
(Apr) Robocop: Rogue City - PS5.
(Apr) Little Nightmares II - Series X.
(May) Fallout 4 - PS5.
(May) The Maw - Xbox 360.
(May) Senua's Saga: Hellblade II - Series X.
(June) Alan Wake II: Night Springs dlc - Series X
(June) Castlestorm: Definitive Edition - Series X
(July) Still Wakes the Deep - Series X.
(July) The Quarry - PS5.
(July) Bright Memory Infinite - Series X.
(July) Diablo IV - Series X.
(Aug) Call of Duty: MWIII - Series X.
(Aug) Call of Juarez: Gunslinger - Xbox 360.
(Aug) No More Heroes III - Series X.
(Aug) Trepang 2 - Series X.
(Sept) Deliver Us Mars - PS5.
(Sept) Black Myth: Wukong(True Ending) - PS5.
Re: Games Completed 2024
Finished Tactical Breach Wizards. It’s firmly in my top 3 for the year now just behind Prince of Persia and Balatro. If you’re someone who enjoyed Into the Breach then this game is for you. I appreciated the tactics gameplay but it was nice that it’s done via a breezy campaign rather than a roguelike. I can see myself going back to it to do the optional objectives.
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Jobobonobo
- Member
- Posts: 613
- Joined: July 27th, 2016, 4:30 pm
Re: Games Completed 2024
- Spoiler: show
Sep 23: Pac-Pix
It was nice going back to one of the earliest DS titles that was really trying to show off the capabilities of the touchscreen. Pac-Man is trapped in a book by spilling some magic ink and he must defeat all the ink ghosts to escape out. This is basically Pac-Man, but you have to draw the iconic circular mascot and draw lines to guide him to gobble up the ghosts. Later stages have you drawing arrows and bombs to hit targets in the upper screen and blow-up obstacles respectively. This is a competent demonstration of what the DS can do for the most part and is a pleasant little puzzle game to play when you have a few minutes free. The latter stages can be proper stressful though, as you have to juggle bombs, arrows and Pac-Man in a limited time frame and drawing any of these under a strict time limit means that your desired shape will not come out as you would like. There were a few times when I drew a malformed looking Pac-Man that did not even have his mouth facing the right way which was unusable, and the bomb has to be drawn a bit more precise than was necessary at times. But despite these few annoyances I beat the game and saw credits. There is another book unlocked with 12 chapters, but it seems to be just a harder version of the base game. Might try it out when I have nothing else to do. I saw the credits to this, so I consider it done!
But overall, yeah this was alright and there are certainly worse things you could play on the DS.
Sep 23: Tinykin
I must concur with what others on this forum have said about this title and say that this was a brilliant little gem of a game. While obviously Pikmin inspired, the game is really a collectathon 3D platformer at heart and a damn good one at that. The levels are sprawling and huge, but you can move quickly with your bar of soap and constantly creating shortcuts with your tinykin ensures navigation is a breeze. Also, this game utilises collectibles such as pollen very well where you see some in the distance and you know that this is a new part of the level you have not explored. There are no enemies at all in this game with the main challenges being puzzle solving and navigating these large intricate environments. However seeing as platformers as a genre are not combat focused this allows this game to focus strongly on its strength which it does with aplomb. The insect inhabitants are also delightful with a wide range of personalities from greedy moths to lazy, party animal silverfish. It also has some pretty witty dialogue with the Kitchen level even containing some amusing satire on revolutions. Another funny little detail is how historical rivalries are parodied with many characters throughout the game such as Tesla and Edison, Cope and Marsh and Marx and Proudhon.
There is such a joyful vibe to the whole thing that makes spending time in this world a real comforting experience. Adding to this are the distinctive visuals with 2D characters interacting in a fully 3D environment which gives the game a wonderful aesthetic of Pikmin mixed with Paper Mario. The music is also soothing, silly and atmospheric which also does one of my favourite things a videogame soundtrack does which is slightly change the tempo and instrumentation depending on where you are in the level and what you are doing. I was always interested in trying this out and knew it had a great reception, but I was still surprised by how much I like this. If you are a fan of 3D platformers or Nintendo style charm, this game is an easy recommendation.
Re: Games Completed 2024
Picked this up for mobile. It's pricey for a mobile game at £9.99 but still comparatively cheaper than console version. It's fair to say I'm hooked. I played five hours yesterday. At work. Oops.Truk_Kurt wrote: ↑June 3rd, 2024, 9:06 am Balatro
It took me 35 hours to get my first win but it's testament to the game that I was always having fun the whole time. It was perfect to pick up and play and gave me a nice endorphin rush when you racked up the big scores in one hand. It's now firmly one of my favourite indie games and one of the most addictive, one more go that types I have played since Into the Breach. I only knock one point off as I sometimes thought the run would be perhaps a little too reliant on luck. 9/10
(I was doing a lot of waiting around yesterday at court and then the hospital, but still, I could have been doing something a little more productive...
)