52 Games Challenge 2025!!!

[bikingjahuty]

I'm still marching forward towards 100 games beat by the end of the year. With summer around the corner, I have several games in mind that I really want to try and play before the fall. Some of these games are more summery in nature (I guess), but overall I just want to make sure I play and beat the following games before the beginning of September. Here is my current list of summer time games I plan on beating.


- The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
- Donkey Kong 64
- The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
- Halo 2


I definitely plan on playing more than just those four games, but those are the ones that if nothing else, I definitely want to make sure I've beat them before summer's end.

Wow, what a drag. Half the games I was deadset on playing this summer are ones I eventually abandoned. While The Witcher 3 was a bit of a wildcard for me given my difficulty playing and beating RPGs, I thought for sure I'd love revisiting DK64. Unfortunately that was not the case and I ended up dropping it out of sheer boredom. Luckily the other two games I set out to beat this summer were ones I really enjoyed.

[bikingjahuty]

82. Columns (Genesis)

Columns will always remind me of one of my good friends from elementary school. We both had Genesis consoles and I remember he had a model 2 that came with a six in one cart pack in game. One of the games included on it was columns. Funny enough, the two of us probably played columns more than any other game on that pack in cart, which included Sega greats like Streets of Rage 2 and Sonic the Hedgehog. While i still enjoy Columns, the game just doesn't do it for me like it did over 30-years ago.


The game is called Columns and columns is what you get. Instead of different shaped boxes like you get in Tetris, every set of boxes that comes your way is an arrangement of three different colored jewels stacks on top of one another. The only control the game gives you is changing the stack order of the three jewels. You'll then want to line up three or more of the same colored jewels, which causes them to disappear and create more room for more columns of jewels. Like in Tetris, if you're too slow or make too many mistakes in getting boxes, or in this case jewels to disappear, you'll get a game over. The premise in both Tetris and Columns is so simple, yet so fun at the same time. I will say that Columns cranks up the difficulty way faster than Tetris does, which is a bit annoying, but it's definitely one of those games that you'll likely get into a groove after playing for only half an hour and should be able to get to level 8 or level 9 difficulty by then. Also, the limited nature of what you can do with the columns certainly adds to that difficulty as well, not that Tetris is any slouch either.


The audio and visuals in Columns are super basic, even for a 1990 Sega Genesis game. Aside from some ancient greek looking mosaic art you'll get at the start menu screen, the gameplay is pretty no frills with just your grid and multi colored columns of jewels falling down. The soundtrack and sound effects are satisfying, but unfortunately nearing just as basic as the graphics. I will say that the default song that plays will forever be burned in my brain given the countless hours I've spent playing this game as a kid and even as an adult. It's catchy and very Genesis appropriate, which are both positives in my book.


Columns is absolutely a simple game, but a classic game nonetheless too. It is deceptively fun if you enjoy games like Dr. Mario, Puyo Puyo, or of course, Tetris, and certainly worth being mentioned in the same conversations as those games. (7/30/25) [32/50]

[dhaabi]

Wow, what a drag. Half the games I was deadset on playing this summer are ones I eventually abandoned. While The Witcher 3 was a bit of a wildcard for me given my difficulty playing and beating RPGs, I thought for sure I'd love revisiting DK64. Unfortunately that was not the case and I ended up dropping it out of sheer boredom. Luckily the other two games I set out to beat this summer were ones I really enjoyed.

Good on you for having a goal toward playing specific games and at least seeing if they interested you enough to complete them. A lot of the goals I set for myself each year are more like motivators than anything else since I tend to stray from them. If I happen to actually clear a goal, it's just an added bonus.

[bikingjahuty]

83. Gundam Battle Assault 2 (PS1)

When I became an anime fan in the late 90s thanks to Toonami on Cartoon Network, there was a depressing lack of video games available in the US based on many of the anime franchises I fell in love with. While there were a handful at the time, most were either super expensive, super rare, or both. What I eventually would end up doing is paying some random person to mod my consoles so I could play imported copies of various Japanese only anime based games. Fortunately, by the very end of the decade and into the early 2000s, game publishers caught onto the growing popularity of anime in the US and started localizing various titles for North American consumption. Gundam, specifically Gundam Wing, was my gateway drug into giant mech anime and for a while I loved pretty much anything Gundam I could get my hands on. I had a bunch of Gunpla model kits and would watch various series religiously. When I learned of Gundam Battle Assault getting a US release I made sure I had enough money to buy it asap. However, while I remember having a blast with the first Battle Assault game, it was its 2002 sequel that the bulk of my fond Gundam gaming memories belong to.


In many ways, I would consider Gundam Battle Assault 2 to fall into the hidden gem category of retro games. For one, it has an OST that is way too good for a game like this. I can't imagine the budget for Battle Assault 2 was huge, but holy crap did they go above and beyond in the audio department! There are some incredible songs in this game which not only capture the vibe of the various series during that time, but are also very memorable and catchy. The end credits theme specifically is downloaded onto my phone and gets regularly listened to while I'm driving around or working. But beyond the music, it's pretty commendable that Bandai actually got a big chunk of the English voice cast to reprise their respective roles for this game. It's a fairly small touch, and often the dialogue is just silly, but the fact that it matches up with the various localized Gundam series of the time is just awesome.


Almost just as memorable as the audio in Gundam Battle Assault 2 is its visual presentation. The sprite work on all the playable mobile suites is absolutely amazing. Nearly all the details from the anime are present in the sprites, which is further complemented by their animations. And to add to further to this, there are A TON of unlockable mobile suits in this game. All are just as detailed and awesome looking as the more well known Gundams, and again, it's something I definitely tip my hat towards the developers for doing. Stage design and background is also very impressive with themes that feel in line with the various Gundam shows. Stages also are a mix of 2D and 3D elements, as well as cool dynamic elements that change while you're fighting. Oh, I almost forgot! mobile suit sprites all show off various damage animations and effects as you're fighting against your fellow Gundams and whatnot. I've seen much more respectable fighting game franchises that don't show off this level of care and detail in their presentations. Unfortunately, the top notch quality of the visuals and audio were not applied to Battle Assault 2's gameplay.


Sadly, it feels like Bandai put all their focus and energy on the presentation of this game and forgot all about the gameplay. The fighting mechanics and gameplay of this game are not terrible, but they are far from being great either. Movements and controls feel somewhat delayed and certainly very clunky. In some ways, Battle Assault 2 feels like a very pretty version of rock em' sock 'em robots, where you're just bludgeoning your opponent in an attempt to take them down before they take you down. There is some depth in this game, mostly thanks to the side step mechanic, blocking, and a rechargeable energy meter, but overall this is a pretty cumbersome game to play. As mentioned, there are a crap ton of unlockable mobile suits in this game which will become the reason most people will continue to fight through the poorly implemented gameplay in order to see all or most of them. I know that was my main motivation to keep on playing.


I feel like if even a little more effort had gone into this game's gameplay, we might be talking about Gundam Battle Assault 2 as one of the great fighting of the 5th generation. While its visuals and audio are worthy of being in the same conversation as fighting games that punch way above Battle Assault 2's level, the gameplay is just too meh for that to realistically happen. Still, if you fancy yourself a Gundam or mech fighting game fan, I would definitely recommend this game, if only for its eye and ear candy. Otherwise, it's still a fairly good, fun game to play, and one that is very sentimental to me personally. (7/31/25) [36/50]

[realpoketendonl]

8. Metroid Prime 3: Corruption

Finally beat this game. And goddamn, it was beyond amazing. We all know how acclaimed and beloved the Metroid Prime trilogy is. And this game truly lives up to that reputation.

This was honestly a bit of an emotional one for me too. I bought Metroid Prime 3 as a kid, all the way back during the Wii era, as probably my first Metroid game. Back then I tried to play it, but it was too difficult to figure out for kid me and I gave up on it. Years later, I tried again, and gave up a second time. But since then, I became a true Metroid fan. Easy top 5 favourite gaming franchises, probably top 3. I've beaten most of the other games at this point, and not counting the original NES Metroid, Federation Force, Pinball and Hunters (which I may still try again at some point), this was the one Metroid game I still had to conquer (especially before Prime 4 comes out). And now I tried it again. With the same disc, on the exact same Wii I've been using since I was a kid. And this time, like Prime Remastered before, it completely clicked with me and I had a fantastic time from start to end. But something just felt special about this one in particular, finally playing and conquering this incredible game and the original end to the trilogy, while also hearing those familiar Wii disc reader sounds I've heard ever since my very first experience with this franchise. I don't know, in an odd way it felt like some form of closure of something that had been open for over 15 years? I don't know, it just felt special all right? I can be emotionally sappy if I want to sometimes.

So yeah, needless to say, I love this game. One of my favourites on the Wii no doubt. If you're even vaguely interested in Metroid Prime 4: Beyond later this year and you haven't played through the original trilogy yet, I can very highly recommend them. (Metroid Prime Remastered on Nintendo Switch is incredible too fyi).

(Also, for those worried about that: I had no issues at all with the motion controls! Felt very natural and worked flawlessly.)

Already know what I'm gonna do next: play a game I've already beaten before. May not be entirely what this challenge is for, but I've only played through Metroid Dread once when it came out and I've played through all the other 2D Metroids again since then. I want to play through Dread one more time, to once and for all figure out what my favourite Metroid game of all time is. (Spoiler: it's probably going to be either Super Metroid or Metroid Dread. Almost certainly Dread.).

[bikingjahuty]

Wow, what a drag. Half the games I was deadset on playing this summer are ones I eventually abandoned. While The Witcher 3 was a bit of a wildcard for me given my difficulty playing and beating RPGs, I thought for sure I'd love revisiting DK64. Unfortunately that was not the case and I ended up dropping it out of sheer boredom. Luckily the other two games I set out to beat this summer were ones I really enjoyed.

Good on you for having a goal toward playing specific games and at least seeing if they interested you enough to complete them. A lot of the goals I set for myself each year are more like motivators than anything else since I tend to stray from them. If I happen to actually clear a goal, it's just an added bonus.

I think because I've had so many other things going on in previous years, I never got to just go wild with playing games at the pace I wish i could. This year, while not completely free of issues or busyness (dealing with some of that right now actually), has been fairly open for me to play games at my heart's content. I'm actually happy I was able to play the four games I set out to play this summer too, since sometimes I jsut don't feel like playing certain games, which was certainly the case with all four of them at one time or another. I have similar goals for games i want to start playing in September and going into October. We'll see if I get to all those, but baring some crazy life event that completely derails me from playing anymore games, I feel pretty confident about beating 100+ games this year. Next year is looking fairly open too, but I'm probably going to tone my output of games played down a bit and focus on other interests, both gaming and non-gaming related.

[dhaabi]

47. Mr. Driller || PlayStation || 07.27.2025



For a long time, Mr. Driller has been a game that's interested me for some reason. All this time, I thought it maintained a considerable amount more popularity than I think it actually does, though I suppose it was still popular enough for it to become a franchise. I'm not sure why exactly I bought a PlayStation Classic when I did at the time of its release, but this was actually the first opportunity I found to use it after all these years.

As its name may suggest, Mr. Driller tasks players with drilling downward through a seemingly never-ending layer of blocks as the titular Mr. Driller. One may presume this is some sort of action game—and it is—but it's predominantly within the puzzle genre but with lesser action gameplay alongside it. In short, the player's goal is to drill down far enough to reach a certain depth at 5ft intervals, but this is far easier said than done. While all blocks can be drilled through and destroyed in order to clear this goal, prioritizing one's safety instead becomes the biggest challenge. While drilling, blocks of various colors are stacked atop another in a grid-like fashion, and blocks with the same color link together which prevents them from falling further. Additionally, there are toxic blocks referred to as X-Blocks which I'll mention further below. Once a block connects with an existing group of three or more blocks with the same color, they disappear. Because of this, chain reactions easily form with or without the player's direct involvement, and remaining blocks left on the playing field threaten the player from high above as they fall down.

With that understanding, blocks left on the playing field after others have been removed are not fully bound to gravity. Instead, if a falling block comes into contact with another same-color block or blocks and isn't then automatically removed from the playing field due to block count, it remains suspended in place. This outcome is crucial to identify beforehand while drilling, as knowing what will be suspended and what will fall to the bottom is the difference between moving forward (downward, rather) or losing a player life since there is little working space for Mr. Driller to move throughout. And though each block's color defines them for puzzle-related purposes, they damage players indiscriminately in the same way. When blocks fall, there is a brief wriggle animation that players as they dislodge themselves from their current position. So there is some visual input provided to help aid players avoid death. As a result, players are only given a fleeting moment to plan their next move during this time, whether that be to continue drilling, side-step, or remain still. There is no health system but instead a finite number of player lives, so few errors can be made before reaching a game over. Unlike some other arcade-style games, there is no means to gain or re-gain player lives, although the option to slightly adjust this number is present in the main menu.

However, it is not just the falling blocks which pose a threat to players but time itself too. Instead of a depleting time meter, though, time is representing by the amount of air available for Mr. Driller to breathe as he explores beneath the world's surface. The breathing meter empties fairly quickly, though air capsules may be found nestled between blocks and collected. So, the amount of air available to Mr. Driller is constantly being exhausted and replenished. As players descend further and further below, the game's difficulty naturally increases, and this shift in difficulty forces priorities to change. While the goal of reaching to a specific depth still remains, the player's immediate concern instead becomes collecting air capsules. At first, air capsules are easy to access and with simple block barriers surrounding them, but they become increasingly difficult to gain later on as X-Blocks surround them. So, players are tasked with solving how to collapse individual block columns to actually collect air. Or, needless to say, they will lose a player life once the air meter reaches zero. It is past the game's opening segments that are easier when the game's puzzle mechanics become most present.

Unlike many other arcade-style games, Mr. Driller is not level-based but instead features several different modes including Arcade, Survival, and Time Attack. But for the purposes of my playthrough, I only focused on Arcade which is divided into two objectives: reaching 2,500ft and reaching 5,000ft. Additionally, I later discovered that each mode can have its difficulty adjusted. The expected Easy, Normal, and Hard difficulties appear, but Expert difficulty is also present. I was actually quite surprised at how difficult Normal difficulty is, as I was never even able to clear the 5,000ft objective and only ever reached around half that depth when selecting that depth goal. There is also an arcade scoring system, but I wasn't interested in it as just clearing the game at all proved to be so challenging. Even after spending several hours playing trying to improve my skill and understanding of the game, I felt as if I wasn't making any progress when selecting the 5000ft challenge even when altering my play style. Perhaps I just need to invest even more time into playing is all.

Requiring spontaneous reflexes and strategic planning, Mr. Driller is the kind of puzzle game I typically don't find myself playing. Despite not being that skilled at it, I did still enjoy my time playing, though. I'll probably play a few more rounds with the hopes of just clearing my personal depth record before properly retiring it. I own one other sequel entry I may get around to playing sometime, and I'm now curious just how challenging it may be.