52 Games Challenge 2023!!!

[telekill]

I beat Sonic 1 and 2 from Origin Collection during my days off. Fun nostalgia. I didn't bother getting all the emeralds on those though. I tried in Sonic 2 and by the third special stage I realized it's far more difficult for me on those than the Sonic 3 special stages. Oh well.

[vivigamer]

The Sonic 2 Specials Stages can get tough, the magic of Save States can help but god only knows how I managed that back in the day! S3's are more managable and fun IMO.

Sonic Frontiers (PS5) - 09/01/2023
Sonic games these days have a tendency to be very hit or miss so there is always trepidation when the next one arrives. Sonic Frontiers is a game that initially disinterested me, the open world level design looked questionable and the art direction very bland. Having spent 25 hours on the adventure, overall... I had a very decent time with this one!

It's not without its faults mind you, the games structure is a mess. You have the open world maps, which have little challenges spread throughout the landmass that help you acquire tokens to progress with the main characters story of that section. You also have Keys to gather from Levels, each level has 5 challenges which if you do gets you near double the about of Keys. I found these Levels to be quite fun to play, among the best I have played within a 3D Sonic game that match Unleashed/Generations quality - Sadly, there is no incentive to play the levels as you can by pass them easily by finding more Keys in the Open World Section or participating in a Fishing game to where you can acquire any of  the Collectables you need for the Open World Section you are in. Also upgrading Sonics abilities was very tedious as you find little cute creatures, when returning them to the inhabitants of this land they upgrade Sonic 1 Level at a time, Yet the other creature takes all the Heart/Shield upgrades and accumulates them to upgrade your level in 1 go.

As much as I whine, there honestly was a lot of good within the game too! The Open World Sections where fun to navigate, I've heard many complain about the pop-in but this was not a detraction for me at all. There was only one Open World Section to where navigating felt like a chore and became really difficult to progress in but the other Sections were great. Also, I enjoyed the story overall too! It adds more depth to characters seen in Sonic Adventure in a respectful way - The only thing I will say is that, while this aspect was interesting I felt the active story within the game was very slim. If they do another game, I don't want it to be set in a digital dimension, I want active conflict with the main characters more. One minor gripe is that the final boss is hidden within the Hard difficulty within the game, which left playing it in Normal mode quite underwhelming.

Also, combat overall was very enjoyable! it's not the first thing I think of within a Sonic game but I found there enemies and sub-bosses very compelling and almost like little puzzle to figure out how to defeat. The main bosses of the Island while great spectacles played the exact same way and the Parry in the game requires you to hold the buttons rather than time the action right.

Sonic Frontiers does more right than not and good foundation to go forward with, I just hope for a little more empathist on the core levels and more active story telling next time around.

[conduit]

#1 BloodRayne: Terminal Cut

I played the original Steam release way back when but never got around to beating it due to the constant crashes. As a re-release Terminal Cut was suppose to run smoother on modern PCs. It ran fine on my system minus crashes after every loading screen. Lowering the texture detail to the lowest setting fixed the issue. As for the game itself, the gameplay still holds up. It's still fun hackin' and slashin' your way through the Nazis and Daemites and witnessing the bloody carnage that spawns from it. Although I feel the game was a bit too long for its own good and the final boss is a total pushover once you figure out its weakness.

It's a good game. Just not one I see myself coming back to once I get all the achievements.

[telly]

I finished The Last of Us over the weekend but I'm planning on playing Left Behind as well and will give all of my thoughts once I'm done with that!

[dhaabi]

02. Mom Hid My Game! || Nintendo Switch || 01.04.23

Recently, I was able to acquire a copy of Mom Hide My Game! (MHMG!) as part of a promotion. I've known about the game for some time, and, while I likely wouldn't have purchased it to play, simply having that immediate access prompted me to do so.

In short, MHMG! is a collection of 50 environment puzzles spanning 1-2 play screens for the player to interact with at a time. As the title suggests, Mom took the player-character's game, and it's our job to regain it. In order to accomplish this repeated goal, several different types of solutions are required, with puzzles ultimately having one solution. Typically, working toward the solution involves collecting nearby items and having them interact with either people or other items.

Throughout each puzzle, Mom acts as some always-watching authoritative figure often stalking in the background but sometimes in plain view. Most of the time, solutions revolve around avoiding Mom's attention. As puzzles progress, the difficulty fluctuates. Although, the situations generally become complex that require the player to employ different modes of problem-solving. While there is only solution to each puzzle, there are often numerous ways to fail. More often than not, the solution is simple to solve, but the required actions needed to progress must be executed perfectly without missing a step.

Routinely, failed attempts at regaining your taken handheld provide a good laugh as the narrative and possibilities rely on Japanese gag humor. Across the game's puzzles, players will be surprised at the lengths Mom goes to in order to keep her son away from playing video games. Without this tone, the game does not set itself apart from other simple point-and-click puzzle games, and it is very much the game's highlight.

Originally developed as a mobile game, its design clearly shows. Sometimes, the solution is apparent. However, there are puzzles where the placement of items must be perfect. As a result, players may disregard the proposed (and correct) solution and instead consider incorrect actions. From what I can gather, the original mobile version of MHMG! features only 30 puzzles, whereas the Switch version offers 50, so the added content is nice, as the game as a whole is a short 1 hour experience, at most.

Overall, MYMG! is fun for what it is, with most of its strengths being a result of the playful tone. For its low price, some here may find it worthwhile to play.

[justin8301]

1. Pokemon Violet (Switch) - Beat 1/14/23

First game of the year finished! Over all pretty happy with this one, just wish they could have fixed some of the framerate issue and bugs before they shipped it lol.

[conduit]

#2 Castlevania (NES)

After dying countless times, tonight I finally defeated Dracula in Konami's quintessential NES classic. As expected the later levels are an absolute nightmare, but nothing in the game can withstand a torrent of holy water. With each death I learned a little more about the game and its nuances. It's surprising how much depth there is from a game released in 1986 and how great the music is despite the hardware limitations. I don't think it'll top Rondo as my favorite Castlevania, but it's fairly close.

Definitely see myself coming back to play when I get that Castlevania itch.

[telly]

Game 2 - Mom Hid My Game! (Switch) - 1 Hour

This game was available free of charge for a little bit so I downloaded it to give it a go. It's quite the interesting little puzzle game! It's a point and click game with the goal of finding your hidden game system (thanks mom!  ) The game has a ton of quirky Japanese gag humor and the fact that all the dialogue is untranslated adds to the charm. The game also has a very "low-budget" look to the graphics and animations which I honestly felt added to the game experience. I actually kind of like the ending they went with too after you finish all of the levels! That was an unexpected surprise.

Unfortunately, this game is as forgettable as it is charming. Across 50 levels, almost all of them are pretty easy to solve without much critical thinking, meaning it's a very short experience. Compared to the last puzzle game I played, The Witness, this game is almost too easy. The music, while cute to listen to for the first maybe 3 times, quickly becomes very irritating. There's almost no replay value to speak of once you finish the game, other than some weird minigames. So while this game was an interesting little diversion, it's not really substantial.

[bikingjahuty]

4. Metal Slug 3 (PS4)

It's been a while since I played a Metal Slug game, so maybe I'm remembering things wrong, but I cannot remember a Metal Slug game being as unrelenting and oppressively hard than Metal Slug 3. I also can't remember a Metal Slug game being as pretty or sounding as good as 3 either. Speaking to the games difficulty, I feel like the balancing in the game is very, very off where bosses have insane HP that pretty much means unless you've played this game a hundred times, you are almost guaranteed to need at least 4 or 5 continued to defeat a single boss. Likewise, there are many cheap "gotcha" moments where shit just hits you when you weren't expecting it, and also certain vehicles that you are given during certain parts just don't feel well suited for the situation. The end result is a game that isn't terrible to play, but also demoralizes you at the same time. I have no idea how anyone ever played this in an arcade and didn't spend $20 or more to see the end assuming continued were 50-cents or less. Luckily I played this on the PS4 so I just had to press a button and I was back on my way to killing everything on screen. So yeah, this game is pretty good, but also lacks considerably where it counts the most, its gameplay. (1/17/23) [34/50]

[kashell]

5. Arc the Lad: Twilight of the Spirits

Another classic PlayStation 2 RPG completed, this time with PSN trophies. Earning the platinum in this game was a lot of fun for two reasons. One is because it caused me to do things in the game I didn't do the first time I played it. Two is because I haven't played this game since it was launched in 2003. I forgot a lot of things, but surprisingly, I remembered a lot of things, too. The final boss wasn't nearly as bad as I remembered either, but that's probably because I had characters leveled between 40 and 52. My final party was Darc, Kharg, Volk, Maru, Choco and Diekbek.

[telly]

4. Metal Slug 3 (PS4)

I have that Anthology Collection on PS2 and I think the general consensus is that Metal Slug 3 is by far the hardest in the series. I felt that way when I played it. I've only really been able to beat the 1st game haha.

[bikingjahuty]

4. Metal Slug 3 (PS4)

I have that Anthology Collection on PS2 and I think the general consensus is that Metal Slug 3 is by far the hardest in the series. I felt that way when I played it. I've only really been able to beat the 1st game haha.

I'm glad it isn't just me lol. I remember the other games that I've played being hard, but this game was on an entirely different level.

[bikingjahuty]

5. Metal Slug X (PS4)

While I've never played Metal slug X before, I have played the game its a remake of, Metal Slug 2. I primarily wanted to see if Metal Slug 3 was in fact as the insanely hard as it seemed when I played it, or if I'm just going soft in my old age. While Metal Slug X is very hard, it luckily proved to be easier then the murder machine that is Metal Slug 3. While I'd say Metal Slug X plays slightly better and has more balancing than 3, it unfortunately lacks in the visuals and audio department, and also just isn't as engaging in terms of what happens during the course of the game. I still liked it quite a bit, but was surprised I didn't like it more given how much more balanced the gameplay felt. (1/18/23) [34/50]

[bikingjahuty]

6. Metal Slug 4 (PS4)

I've admittedly never played Metal Slug 4 and prior to playing it i'd heard it was one of the weakest entries in the series. Still, I tried going into it with an open mind, and while I do think some of the gripes with this game have to do with it following the beloved Metal Slug 3, Metal Slug 4 is genuinely not a great game. For starters it has some of the most poorly designed sections and bosses in the entire franchise which create an endless stream of frustration and constant deaths when you're getting through them. A lot of these crap sections occur in areas that are vertical where you're either ascending or descending through a section of a stage. As for the bosses, many are incredibly cheap and also they suffer from mostly being some of the least remarkable enemies I've seen in the game, even compared to some of the Metal Slug 1 bosses which at least have the excuse of being the first game in the series. The audio is pretty good as are the visuals, but this game is an absolute downgrade from every game that proceeded it in the series. (1/19/23) [28/50]

[telly]

Game 3 – The Last of Us Remastered (PS4) – 17 hours (15 hours main story, 2 hours Left Behind DLC)

I’ve personally always wondered why I didn’t enjoy playing through the first 3 Uncharted games a few years back, but have enjoyed playing TLOU 1 and 2. Replaying this game again really showed me why I enjoy this series so much more. For me it’s the superior world concept and characters. The setting of the Last of Us, while certainly filled with clichés, works because it focuses on the resulting fallout of the outbreak and the harsh and unforgiving world that each character is forced to navigate. I have really enjoyed experiencing this world and the characters that inhabit it. Every time you see a burned-out car or corpse, you think about the untold stories that are lost to time. It’s just such an interesting and cool game to explore and reflect on. I find that Joel and Ellie’s chemistry is really great, and over the course of the game a lot of unique dialogue moments crop up which add additional depth to the characters.

The gameplay, while excellent, does have some holdovers from Uncharted’s game design that does frustrate me somewhat. There are combat situations where it feels like you have more control over what you can do but it becomes obvious that there is only one solution. But the overall tone of the game which is heavily woven with survival, horror, and tragedy, it made me enjoy segments that felt more scripted, and all of the frankly mindless looting, opening doors and propping ladders that take up all of TLOU’s non-combat gameplay.

The biggest blemish on what otherwise would have been an excellent game was the ending. Last time I reviewed this game I didn’t say much about the ending but this time I have some more to share. I’ll put a spoiler link so people who haven’t played the game yet don’t have things given away:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ttv9FS0Fu97Mme5A7sB-aLu94P7fXEeUmcL6OJYKgE0/edit?usp=sharing

Lastly, the Left Behind DLC was new content for me on this playthrough and I enjoyed it a lot. It was very short and sweet, and story wise it didn’t really add a ton of new information, but it had some genuine and heartfelt moments, some of which have become my favorite in the game. The ending definitely left me wanting more but it was still really well done.  It does feel in many ways like a bridge between the 1st and 2nd game with its quality in storytelling. I think the gameplay takes a step down personally. Ellie’s knife kills infected in one hit with incredible range and doesn’t break like Joel’s shivs. In the first game, it works because you’re fighting humans that have guns and more advanced AI, while in this you’re mostly fighting infected, which makes the combat pretty easy.