52 Games Challenge 2024!!!!!

[kashell]

38. Samurai Shodown IV: Amakusa's Revenge - Shizumaru

I feel like it's important to take a break from Soul Hackers 2 since I want the platinum but don't want to get too burnt out on things. So, I'm playing shorter games in the interim. Up first is a game from my favorite fighting series: Samurai Shodown. The fourth entry isn't my favorite but it's one of the most polished. I got a game over and a bad ending when I played as Basara, but managed to get through the entire game with my homie Shizumaru. The translation is terribly funny, and I'm still not sure how to do the C+D combo. But, this is a gorgeous 2D fighter that is tight on controls and characters. I definitely recommend it.

[bikingjahuty]

26. Breakers Revenge (PS4)

I played the first Breakers game on the Dreamcast after finding out it was a port of a pretty obscure Neo Geo fighting game from the mid 90s. I did find some redeemable qualities while playing Breakers, overall though, it left a very bland taste in my mouth overall and mostly felt like another forgettable off brand 90s tournament fighter that was trying to be Street Fighter 2 or King of Fighters so badly, but fell short. Unfortunately, the same can be said about its sequel, Breakers Revenge. What surprised me most is that Breakers Revenge came out in 1998 despite looking like a game from the early 90s. In fact, I'd say overall it looks worse than the CPS1 version of Street Fighter 2. With that said, the sprites and character animations are still pretty good, however most of the stages are bland, generic, and forgettable. Speaking of bland and generic, these same adjectives can be applied to Breaker's pretty small cast of playable characters too. The audio, while someone pleasing, isn't really that memorable either. Gameplay is decent overall, however some annoying balancing issues and fairly shallow mechanics make this just as generic as the rest of the game. I really was hoping Breakers Revenge would somehow surprise me as a hidden gem on the Neo Geo, but unofortunately it ended up being about what I expected; a justifiably forgotten obscurity from the 1990s tournament fighter craze that most people forgot, and even more people never realized existed at all. (4/29/24) [29/50]

[dhaabi]

20. Tappingo 2 || Nintendo 3DS || 04.25.24



Having played and enjoyed the debut entry around ten years ago, I was curious to see if Tappingo 2 would leave the same kind of positive impression on me. At the same time, I was wanting to know if the gameplay would vary any in this sequel entry or if, instead, it would be more like an expansion to the first game.

In short, Tappingo 2 is a puzzle game which players are tasked to create an image—usually some sort of ordinary item—by moving blocks in a certain order. For each selectable block, a number printed on it indicates how many spaces it needs to expand outward, acting like a tape measure of sorts. Obviously designed for a dual-screen system, the game utilizes the bottom screen for player action whereas the top screen shows the puzzle being solved in real time, which is a small inclusion to help elevate the game beyond its straightforward gameplay. I'll also note here that the game requires precise movements best accomplished with the stylus. I can't imagine successfully progressing through the game without it.

To the game's advantage, gameplay is simple to understand once actually playing through a stage or two. The game's biggest puzzle elements come from blocks requiring to be moved in a specific series of steps. Otherwise, the path of adjacent blocks will either be barred from reaching their intended destination or, oppositely, overreach which disrupts the path of neighboring blocks. Generally working from side to side or corner to corner, I found it generally easy to visualize the steps needed to take for sections of the puzzle, although stage difficulty does increase once puzzle design relies more on color gradients and puzzle size becomes larger. Easily, mistakes can be made resulting in block paths needed to be retracted, which will inevitably cause neighboring chains to alter as well. At this point, the player will be forced to retract numerous blocks to then find another means to complete the puzzle. Fortunately, there isn't any major penalty for making an incorrect move despite the later minor inconvenience of needing to retract a small section of blocks. When a mistake is made, the game's puzzle system efficiently communicates when a certain action is incorrect in real time.

Accompanying the gameplay, stages are also timed to track how quickly puzzles can be solved. I suppose this aspect is a neat novelty which I can see more being utilized to compete with another player more so than besting one's personal records. While the game's stage count of 104 puzzles may sound high, it isn't really. On average, I'd estimate that I completed the first half of stages in 90-120 seconds per puzzle, whereas the second half of stages was around 3-4 minutes.

While offering a degree of fun, Tappingo 2 does become repetitive and a bit tedious given how many stages there are with little variety. One may assume that puzzle artwork matters little, but it's more than one would think. For instance, there are a total of about ten puzzles which the layout is a circle, resulting in the same types of block patterns to solve. In my observations, puzzles with unique layouts require different manners of thinking for specific sections. Additionally, the gameplay never evolves past what was introduced in the debut entry, and there is only one game mode. Only the most basic of features are offered, such as pause and restart. Something else worth mentioning is the lack of music. Across 104 stages, only four or five tracks exist. I suppose this is a suitable amount for a low-budget game, but tracks can't be individually selected. Instead, the only way to cycle through them is to reset the stage.

Compared to other logic puzzle games, Tappingo 2 is much more casual with its easy-to-pick-up qualities. Instead of forcing players to think critically, it feels more like a means to relax, although some degree of focused thought is obviously required to progress. If I'm being honest, I remember enjoying the debut entry much more than the sequel.

[kashell]

39. R-Type Final

I finished this game on the easiest setting appropriately named Baby. I'm not a shmup person in the slightest, but as always, I think it's important to get out of your comfort zone and play something different. Also, it further helped cleanse the palette before getting into my second file of Soul Hackers 2. I had no idea that R-Type had such a long history starting all the way back in 1987. At some point, I'd like learn more about the series. In terms of this one on the PlayStation 2, it was a lot of fun despite my lack of skill. There was a ton of variety in terms of ships, enemies, levels, weapons, and secrets. Outside of some slowdown the game still looked and played smoothly. I'm glad I took a chance on this one.

[dhaabi]

21. Don't Look Back || Browser || 05.01.24



Wanting to play more games like Passage, I soon became introduced to Don't Look Back. I don't think I knew about Don't Look Back until this point, but I am familiar with its creator, Terry Cavanagh, so I had certain expectations prior to playing given Cavanagh's development history. To many, Don't Look Back is also recognized as an art game.

As a game of about 20-30 minutes in length, Don't Look Back succeeds as a narrative-driven action-plaformer, albeit one omitting dialogue. At its core, the game is built with a room-based level design emphasizing a touch of difficulty, although such difficulty ultimately isn't too concerning as failing results in an immediate retry with no progress lost. Still, despite the consequences being minimal, the game introduces an appropriate amount of challenge. Moving room to room, players will likely be taken by surprise each time some new type of obstacle to overcome or avoid appears. In these moments, the game necessitates quick reaction and tight movements. For many if not all of these encounters, player action beyond running is not a requirement, as enemies may be avoided through successful, well-timed platforming. However, I'm not sure if there is any incentive to adopt such play style. Nevertheless, some rooms seemed intentionally designed for the player to avoid danger instead of vanquishing it.

Regarding narrative, it concerns death, the loss of a loved one, and the inability to accept the situation. In fact everything about Don't Look Back alludes to the Greek legend of Orpheus and Eurydice. With that understanding, it's important to mention that, throughout the game's first half, the player is permitted to look back behind them and even backtrack to previous rooms. But, until a room's enemies are defeated, they will all continue to respawn. That said, the player is not only discouraged from looking back in the second half but also unable to, as an immediate fail state occurs. Fortunately, only platforming sequences are present during this shift.

By the game's mid-point, I imagine that most players will assume how the game concludes, or at least have a faint idea, and especially so if they're aware of the source material being referenced. I certainly had my expectations, anyway. However, when I reached the game's conclusion, it felt as if the game had subverted that expectation to take on another layer of meaning. While the ending written is an interesting twist, it unfortunately doesn't leave a lot of room for interpretation. Although, perhaps that level of thought isn't necessary, as the end development is enough of a revelation on its own.

Apart from gameplay and narrative, the game's presentation utilizes a minimal art style employing large pixels, empty environments, and a selective color palette of four colors. While graphics are paired with a single looping track, the music actually doesn't grow tiresome and complements the game's other elements.

In the end, Don't Look Back offers a demanding experience which doesn't overstay its welcome. Like how other games of its kind are created to evoke a certain feeling or thought, Don't Look Back also achieves this, and rather abruptly too. Here, the finality presented offers only a moment to analyze in the context of the events before it, whereas other games often force the player to think critically throughout most of the events and action. However, this isn't necessarily a critique, as there is still a fair amount to deconstruct. Also, whether one's read any of the translations and interpretations of the legend of Orpheus and Eurydice matters little, although I think being aware of the tale prior to playing will enhance the adventure.

[bikingjahuty]

27. Mega Man X2 (PS4)

I've decided to branch out beyond the Mega Man X games I grew up with and played around the time they first came out. Aside from X on the SNES, I never played X2 or X3; I returned to the series for X4, but was so underwhelmed by X5 that I would drop the series once again. I need to replay X4 and X5 since it's been probably around 2 decades since i last played them, but for now X is my baseline for all the sequels that would follow.


X2 is a pretty good game for the most part, however I found it inferior to the original X in neraly every way. Mostly everything is slightly worse, but that's not to say X2 isn't a good time, because it is...mostly. The level design, the boss design and mechanics, as well as the power ups you receive by beating them just feel under developed and at times even poorly designed. I also found Mega Man's upgrades like the heart and health containers to be a lot more obscure and difficult to obtain for the most part. I thought the inclusion of the X Hunters was pretty cool, but I still prefer how you obtain Mega Man's suit upgrades more in X. The audio in X2 is pretty awesome, and while I disagree that it's as good as X's, it's still pretty rockin and one of the better ones I've heard on the SNES, which is saying quite a bit. While I certainly don't like X2 as much as X, it was still worthwhile to finally play it, and I'm curious to see how it stacks up against the later titles in the X series, especially X3 which seems to be the game that fights for X2 for second place when it comes to the best Mega Man X game on the SNES lol. (5/2/24) [33/50]