52 Games Challenge 2021

[bikingjahuty]

It's been over two months since I last beat a game, hell, since I really even played a game. Most of this has to do with me working on yet another career path and hopefully what will develop into my own business in the near future. This is probably the longest I've gone without beating a game since this challenge began in 2015.


But I broke the game drought with a game I abandoned last year due to its controversial mid game shakeup. The Last of Us: Part II.


21. The Last of Us: Part II (PS4)

I'm not going to say any spoilers, but what made me pick this game back up was reading more about some of the overarching, main themes of this game that I wasn't aware of or I didn't care about given what happens midway through the game. I decided to play through the second half of the game with an open mind and very low expectations, and well, I was actually pretty surprised by what I found. I actually ended up liking the second half of the game more than the first and sympathized more with the main characters from that second half. On top of that, I liked the settings, objectives, and atmosphere of the second half more too. Unfortunately, the ending of this game was a bit of a drag, but not because of what happened between two of the main characters in the final scene, but rather it just sort of left everything loose during the scene following it. I guess Naughty Dog did this in order to leave things open for a Part III if that ever happens. Aside from this there was some fairly awkward scenes, most of the side characters throughout were forgettable or even annoying, and I'm not a fan of the game's heavy handed identity politics inserted throughout the game. Still, despite this the story, presentation, and gameplay were top notch. I still prefer the first game, no question, but I'm happy I at least have a newfound appreciation for Part II and I'm glad I decided to replay it despite some flaws and grievances. (5/2/21) [41/50]

[Cartagia]

April Update

Games Beat in April
Super Mario World - Wanted to try out my HDMI streaming set-up.  Worked great.  Beat the game in a single sitting.  Still a masterpiece.  Beat Apr. 1

Games played in April
Finished some rail systems I was working on in Minecraft.  Then got bored again.

Divinity: Original Sin 2 has eaten up most of my time this month. It's incredible.  I should be finishing in the next couple of days, then maybe I'll get back on track for 52.

[dhaabi]

19. Desert Child || PlayStation 4 || 05.01.21

Beginning Desert Child without any expectations or awareness to the what the game was about or offered, I only knew of it having some adventure-style gameplay as part of the experience. I was definitely not let down. Taking place in a future environment of year 2071, players are introduced to a world not that different from the world we live in today. Cities are sprawling with all sorts of types of people, nooks and crannies exist all over with small locales that have character, and society's underbelly still has a foothold to street politics. As the player-character, you experience all of these things and more as you street-race on your hoverbike to earn enough cash for your chance at competing in the planet's major racing event.

It's a little difficult for me to explain how to pinpoint this game's genre. On one hand, the racing elements are straight-forward action sequences. On the other hand, the overworld exploration is simply just that. There isn't really any interacting between characters and passerby, but, instead, the interactions are between you and traversing about this somewhat familiar city environment. In the city, a lot of personality can be seen. Graffiti is sprawled on walls, a near-naked man can be seen practicing yoga poses as he moves about the city on a day-to-day basis, river boat businesses can be visited, ramen shops offer tasty noodles at affordable pricing, and each and every passerby simply exists within this world seemingly to a beat as they and the player-character move to the background music.

Which, on such note, the game's music is phenomenal. Without a doubt, this game may be the most exemplary display of a game having its own vibe, and the music is a perfect complement to the world you find yourself exploring. Moving from place to place is a casual experience, and the music reinforces such idea. There isn't any hurry to begin seeking out races and criminal activity. Simply enjoy your time moving about to the sounds. I was glad that the game offered a "Chill" mode which offers a static screen as music plays.

While there are some slight problems, it's not a deal-breaker. My biggest gripe may be that it's important to keep most of your earned cash deposited in the bank. However, to progress to endgame, you'll need a large amount on-hand. When withdrawing and depositing from the bank, you can only do so in increments of +/- 10 or +/- all. I wasn't going to risk losing everything I had by endgame (which was much more than the needed amount), so it took a few minutes of spamming the action button to acquire the needed amount. Other than this small problem, some may be a little confused as to how to navigate certain menus. The game's UI isn't explained well. Overall, both of these problems are fairly insignificant, with the former being a large issue of not having user experience in mind.

Nevertheless, Desert Child was a fantastic treat. It's relaxed, it's humorous, it's fun. I highly recommend it.

[kamikazekeeg]

Resident Evil 2 Remake (PC 2019) - BEAT - Was in a RE mood with Resident Evil 8 coming up, couldn't really figure out what I wanted to do as I started into RE7, but wasn't feeling it, but saw that there was a randomizer for RE2R and figured why not.  Overall it was a kinda goofy way to play through the game, it didn't sequence break stuff a ton for me, though by the time I had Mr. X show up, I had basically everything I needed to leave to the garage, so I didn't have to deal with running around the station with him on my tail.  Also no majorly out of place items other than I did get that trophy clue in the police station, but that was about it.  It did make the game harder though as I was really struggling for ammo through much of the first 2/3rds of the game and then got to the lab and had basically all the ammo I could want practically and found the Magnum there lol  I think the only place I didn't get to loot was the green key room, I never found it, though it could've been with the statue puzzle that I never finished.  Didn't struggle for herbs though, you start to hate the crap out of herbs because they ended up being 60% of what you pick up, especially for me.  The only "bug" was that I ended up with double of most of the chest pieces for some reason, as I don't think there were meant to be doubles of any of them, but I was very happy to not come across any progression locks as the randomizer is still beta.

I'd definitely recommend it if you've played the game a few times already and want to mix it up abit for kicks.

[tripredacus]

29. Call of Duty: Ghosts

Single player is OK. Hold to slide is kind of weird, rarely used it. There was something just off about mouse look. Couldn't quite dial in the sensitivity. It either was too slow or had the chance of over compensating, which would result in me facing the wrong direction when doing a 180. Story was ok. Didn't play the co-op mode because no friends. Did install MP but there were only 22 people in lobbies, so one DM lobby and that's it. All gun camos were/are DLC so there is not motiviation to use any particular weapon besides what was comfortable.

[vivigamer]

11. Zone of the Enders / 12.ZoE2
I've always had a soft spot for this ZoE1 at times i feel the location is a little basic but overall the short running time and narrative are compelling. The weird thing is when I played ZoE2, I could see the vast improvements in action sequences with more unique objectives but the story very VERY underwhelming. I'm not sure why either, Dingo makes for a charismatic protagonist, and the story has plenty of cutscenes for a good pace but its just all rather dull... The Antagonist is rather 1-Dimensional and the big impending threat in the game is left a little too ambiguous to be compelling. I want to like ZoE2 and even can see why it could be considered an upgrade from it's predecessor but was left feeling unimpressed.

The TV Anime series Dolores,i however is fantastic! I don't tend to watch much anime but I really enjoyed it, it allowed time to see the in-game world and society more as when your piloting mechs in-game you're always high in the sky and never really get a great insight as to what life is like in this universe. It also adds much needed humour and the cast of characters are great to tag along with - highly recommend if you've enjoyed the games abut never bothered with it.

Oh and I gave up on Oddworld SoulStorm I reached the end of an area which has a fork pathway and didn't know which way to go. I'd have liked to explore the area to save as many prisoners as possible but the lack of a warning pushed me into the next area without any way to go back - so the prisoners I missed are effectively dead, which effects the progress and ending of the game. So I felt rather cheated and have put it aside for now.

[kamikazekeeg]

Resident Evil 7 (PC 2017) - BEAT - Had initially changed my mind on playing through RE7 again before RE8 came out, but changed it back to doing so, figuring I'd make a Madhouse run through it using infinite ammo.  Harder, but easier.  I was mostly just wanting to go through it for the story again as I've already beat the game a couple times at this point, so I was going through it all fairly quick.  Still a top notch game in terms of atmosphere, it's just so tense, and while I know for a lot of folks, the later half of the game isn't as good, which it sorta isn't, but it doesn't bother me much as it's still all very entertaining.   Also did Chris's DLC, think this is only my second time, it's okay, more action focused, but still entertaining.  Just gonna do End of Zoe next to finish it off and then I'll be ready for Resident Evil 8 tomorrow.

[kamikazekeeg]

Resident Evil: Village (PC 2021) - BEAT - This was a big one for me this year, I was such a fan of RE7 and to see that they were gonna take RE7 and just mix in a whole bunch of Resident Evil 4, I was all on board.  It's absolutely got a lot of RE4 to it, but in the best way as it's definitely not rehashing RE4, it's more a general feel of the game, but it's still much what RE7 was.  The cool thing was that they put more work into creating a bigger setting to explore.  There is stuff that will be cut off eventually, the castle is basically it's own location that you can't go back to, and there's a final section of the game that ends the free roam, but the village and its outskirts offer a good bit to explore. 

I have two complaints with the game mostly...One, on PC, I had a bunch of freezes.  They started happening a bunch in the castle, forcing me to quit, I did forget to update to the newest drivers and that eventually seemed to fix it, but I started to get them again right towards the end, which was super annoying.  My other complaint is that the puzzles are way too damn easy, to the point I feel like I don't see why they are puzzles.  There's only a couple that let you figure it out, which aren't hard, but otherwise, it's complete handholding, to the point that the answers are nearly given before you know there is a puzzle.  Same for the treasures, they just don't let you figure them out, if you have the two items that combine, it will tell you they combine.  I don't see why they are so adverse to having good puzzles, like this isn't a game for kids, you don't need to hold grown ass adults hands for this, you can have challenging puzzles! They shouldn't be getting worse than RE7.

Other than that, the story is crazy nuts as always, I would say this feels a lot like RE4 in that way with the big weird characters you go up against, same with a good bit of the gameplay feel, though still RE7 enough, because I was burning through ammo pretty quickly with how much ammo the enemies can take.  You can melee down enemies, but I felt they made that a little hard, like I think if you fought a lycan melee only, it would take a dozen hits at least and you will slowly take damage as guarding doesn't negate damage taken, it only minimizes it and you never get a better melee attack like your weapons upgrade.  It doesn't feel like a good backup like it does in RE4.

I think there will be some slightly divisive elements in this sorta like in RE7, but overall a real good time.

[tripredacus]

Marking Cities:Skylines as being beaten, although it is technically not possible to beat in any sense of the word. Previous "endless" games on my list where ones where some sort of victory condition exists but that the game can be replayed indefinitely. I could consider Cities: Skylines "victory condition" to be to unlock all of the monuments.

I have not met that victory condition, nor am I abandoning it, but I certainly do not want to put it as currently playing either. The game is interesting and neat but the issue for me is that it can't hold my interest for more than a couple of hours. I have no real ambition to try to complete any particular goal, no motivation to make any particular thing. Nothing really to work towards, no problem that needs fixing. It is just making new districts when the demand goes up, add water line and electricity lines. I spend more time trying to connect new roads to highways and rail lines. Have no interest in creating bus routes or metro rail. Maybe this indicates to me that I am no longer interested in city builders? Will I have this same reaction when I get to the SimCities of my backlog?

[kamikazekeeg]

Subnautica: Below Zero (PC 2021) - BEAT - Heck of a month for games for me, with Pokemon Snap, Resident Evil Village, Returnal was abit of a surprise for me, and then I forgot that Subnautica's standalone expansion was releasing, and really wanted to jump in.  Overall it's a solid game, just like the first, it's more of a standalone expansion, it's not as big and expansive as the first one, built more around characters and story, than what was mostly just a pure survival game with general story stuff to accomplish.  It all works pretty good, I like the lead Robin enough, the general experience is nice.  The smaller location feels nicely crafted, the first game was so big, it did sorta feel like wasted space at times, though this might be a little too small and it's design...well I don't want to say linear, but it's more directed than before, so it doesn't feel quite as free roaming as you'll end up going back and forth to a lot of the same spots.

My issues are small, like the new Snow Fox hover bike sucks, it feels kinda unfinished as it has terrible maneuverability, though it's fast, but it just feels like it's grinding along the ground most of the time.  I basically only used it for one thing and then never used it again as the Prawn is better, even on land.  Also the final mission stuff really wore me down, there's so much back and forth to the deepest section of the game, so if you don't have a base right nearby, there's a lot of running back and forth and it was starting to wear me down.  The new Sea Truck can be a mobile base, but it's not on the same level as the Cyclops.

A good time though, if you liked the first, you'll like this one even with a smaller scale and more story and characters happening.

[dhaabi]

20. Road to Guangdong || Nintendo Switch || 05.21.21

Interested in the idea of a game set in rural 1990s China as the player-character drives across from town to town across the highway system, I began playing with that premise being the extent of what to expect. I have to admit, while I personally found enjoyment from the game, it is certainly not a game for everyone, and I feel it to be difficult to make a convincing case for spending one's time with it.

Split between driving, car management, and basic adventure-style gameplay, Guangdong doesn't set out to offer anything new or anything even polished, really. A lot of the issues I found while playing could be remedied had there simple been more time spent throughout development. Spread throughout the game's few notable gameplay styles, basic input options are difficult to handle yet could be fixed by simple quality-of-life adjustments. I found most of my annoyances during moving to and from interacting with the car mechanics. For example, if the player has just purchased new car parts, they need to fully leave the mechanic to make the repairs on their own. Then, if they're wanting to sell the old parts (which is assumed, as there is limited inventory space), then they will need to enter the vehicle, drive away some, then drive back into the mechanic's shop.

To expand upon what little gameplay is offered, Guangdong would benefit from more story-telling and adventure-style segments. After driving for up to 30 minutes real-time to go from point A to point B, the adventure gameplay is minimal and can be argued lackluster. I would love for there to have been branching dialogue trees, however slight, and perhaps the problem-solving that requires gathering items. At the same time, it was a letdown that environments cannot be properly explored. There is no character movement, as moving from screen to screen is done by selecting from a text menu. Walking about these locales would have been both rewarding and a serve as breath of fresh air from all the driving in addition to showcasing China's beautiful environments.

Strange as it is, in spite of all these problems, I still found enjoyment with my experience playing Guangdong. Driving—albeit stiff—is carefree and relaxing, and it created an itch for driving across wide open spaces throughout rural places, with the idea of discovering new food in mind.

It's a hard sell. I'd recommend getting others' reviews before considering a buy. Again, I did still enjoy my time playing.

[dhaabi]

21. Sayonara Wild Hearts || Nintendo Switch || 05.24.21

Self-described as a "pop album video game," Sayonara Wild Hearts presents players an experience with such a strong identity that isn't shy about introducing new gameplay mechanics along the player's journey, all while in pair with a stunning visual style.

At its core, Sayonara is an action game. While the self-descriptor may confuse some players to believe the game to be rhythm-based, it is not. Sayonara is broken into approximately 25 musical segments that detail a woman's emotional journey. During each stage, the player-character must avoid obstacles in auto-runner fashion and is even reminiscent of Tron's lightcycle sequences, although failure to do so simply results in restarting from the previous checkpoint. However, as players progress, level design begins to introduce additional gameplay elements or styles—certain segments later on even replicated Rez's core gameplay, which was a much-welcomed surprise! These aspects are bundled together in an arcade-like presentation, with a built-in points system relating to combos and even in-game achievements to be unlocked.

Throughout the game, music is certainly a chief building block to providing a great gaming experience, but, again, it is not a part of the gameplay, unless responsive short quick time events can be categorized as such. In addition to Sayonara being described as a pop album video game, the developers are on record for also describing it as an interactive music video, as well. Largely revolving around synth instrumentals, the soundtrack is one that players will need to appreciate to enjoy the game. Mentioning Rez again, Sayonara seems to try to convey a similar multi-faceted sensory goal, with visual and auditory mechanics being blended together as one experience that cannot be separated.

While Sayonara does introduce a plot, it is not overly-descriptive about specifics while instead being fairly abstract toward its story progression. However, having a clearly-defined plot is not essential to enjoying the title, although I do believe that most players would understand enough that the game's stages are representative of the player-character's emotional journey. That being said, there is a lot to appreciate and analyze, if one is keen on doing so. Tarot cards are widely represented throughout the story, and there is good reasoning for why the cards are represented and introduced when done so. However, players can ignore this aspect altogether and not have their time with the game ruined—actually, understanding this aspect can only strengthen their experience!

Overall, Sayonara Wild Hearts introduces its own visual and auditory aesthetics and succeeds at blending the two together. I definitely recommend checking the game out.

[bikingjahuty]

I've been trying to play more games again and tonight I decided to binge on some MAME shmups I've been meaning to play for a very long time.


22. Sorcerer Striker (Arcade)

I always love when I'm surprised by how good a game is and Sorcerer Striker was definitely one of those instances. This game was Raizing's first shmup and consequently their first game. And wow! they get massive props for their first attempt! The biggest standout in this game is its OST and presentation, the music especially. The presentation is also excellent with some super cool enemies and stages. Gameplay is definitely above average, but not incredible. I'm very happy I finally played this game and it's absolutely one I plan on returning to. (5/25/21) [37/50]

23. Brave Blade (Arcade)

I felt like this game had a lot of promise and I figured since it was the last SHMUP Raizing developed that it would be on par with many of their other mid to late 90s SHMUPS. Nope! Not even close actually. The visuals looked like they were 3 or 4 years behind, and even then they would have been just okay. The gameplay was generic and poorly executed, and the soundtrack was definitely nothing special, but nothing bad either. Overall this was a pretty forgettable game and one I'm not surprised is still in the dustbin of obscure late 90s/early 2000s arcade games. (5/25/21) [21/50]

24. 1944: The Loop Master (Arcade)

One of my most controversial opinions, at least when it comes to shooters, is I'm not a fan of the 19XX series of shmups. Whether it's the ones made by Capcom, Psikyo, or in this case Raizing, none of them have impressed me and in fact I'm often left wondering when the game will be over so I can get on with my life. This was my experience with 1994: The Loop Master too. The game is as generic and repetitive as it gets where you pretty much just fight wave, after wave, after wave of slight variations in size and color of tanks, WW2 style planes, and battleships. That's it. And maybe worse yet is this game is WAYYY too long for its own good. I actually would have enjoyed this game just a pinch more had it been half its length. The soundtrack is forgettable, generic rock music, and the gameplay has no sense of balance, order, or strategy whatsoever. It's pretty much just an hour long exercise in madness as you zip around, shoot, die, continue, rinse and repeat. I know that might sound like all shooters to some, but when you've played hundreds of these games you know when the game's developers actually took the time to make sure the game is well crafted and there is purpose for way a certain section is the way it is over another. While this isn't the worst 19XX game I've played, it certainly didn't change my mind on it. I'm just glad it's over. (5/25/21) [20/50]

[bikingjahuty]

Decided to play two more before bed!


25. Kingdom Grand Prix (Arcade)

I've always wanted to beat this game, however up until recently I didn't know how to play it properly. This might seem like an odd thing to say considering this game is primarily a shmup, but it's also a Racing game. Yep, that second tacked on genre is what confused me for so long, and how I exactly won races that were in the form of SHMUP levels. While I did figure this out, unfortunately I realized after playing through this game several times that these two genres are fairly incompatible. In order to win the races you pretty much have to be holding down two buttons that prevent you from shooting, but also make you go faster. On top of that you more or less have to be riding the top of the screen the whole time since doing so makes you go even faster. You can decide not to do either of these things and just play Kingdom Grand Prix as a normal shooter, but in doing so you ignore half the game, and also the primary objective while playing. This is really too bad since both the game's OST and graphics are excellent, but unfortunately its schizophrenic gameplay really keeps this game back from being one of the greats. (5/26/21) [31/50]

26. Dimahoo (Arcade)

I've played this game before and from what I have played it's freakin awesome. While I still mostly feel this way after beating it, there are some things I'd definitely change, mainly the gameplay. The gameplay isn't horrible, in fact it's far from that, but it does lack the balancing and super tight gameplay of older Raizing shmups. Despite this the bosses are crazy awesome, the enemies are varied, the stges look great, and just overall this is a very visually pleasing sprite based game. I also really liked the OST, and it was nice to hear remixed versions of other Raizing titles in this game. While I certainly had a good time with Dimahoo it just didn't do it for me the way that a handful of other Raizing SHMUPS do. Probably the closest it came was to matching Battle Bakraid in quality; Dimahoo definitely more enjoyable to see and listen to, but Bakraid is more fun to play. Still, this is a cool SHMUP and one I'd recommend to someone who wants to go deep down the SHMUP rabbit hole. (5/26/21) [35/50]

[telly]

Game 9 - New Super Luigi U. (Wii U) - 2 player co-op, 6 hours

While New Super Mario Bros U. was hardly a breath of fresh air for Nintendo's long standing 2D platformer series, I had a lot of time playing it with a couple friends a few years back. I had been meaning to play through the standalone DLC release as well and finally got around to playing it this year.

Unfortunately, New Super Luigi U. is a very anemic and underwhelming experience. It recycles the entire world from the first game, including the same story and bosses. If you thought the original was derivative, then this game is even more so. What changes are present all make the game worse in my opinion. Luigi and co. are given a floatier jump with less traction on the ground like in older games, and it makes playing through the levels harder as a result. On the topic of difficulty, all the levels have a 100 second time limit now, so you have to play fast and reckless pretty much at all times, and it lead to some frustrating moments. All of the levels were very, very short as a result too, which made them feel over before they even started. The only addition that was fun was the addition of some older power ups like the penguin suit and the propeller-shroom.

Don't get me wrong, I still had fun playing it. I just think I would rather play the original or the Wii version over this.