Messages

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Off Topic / Re: How do you deal with getting older?

« on: Today at 12:48:47 pm »

Idk if anyone else feels this but does it seem like time moves faster as you age?  Seemed like days were 2 days when I was younger.  Now it seems like no matter how much time I make. Plans I cancel. It's just wake up. And then its bedtime right after.  Theirs this sense of too quick. Idk.   Where it comes from.

How this relates to time going by faster is if you are not encountering new experiences, the brain doesn't necesssarily need to store that memory because it is already present. And as a result you only need to functionally remember less and this somehow seems to effect our perception of time.

It feels faster because the individual time amounts take up less and less of your overall life. Take summer vacation for example. To a 7 year old, that summer vacation is about 4% of their total life and all the memories contained. To a 37 year old, that same time period is now only 0.6% of their life.

From what I've learned after being introduced to this topic years ago, the passage of time on a general level (so not just tied to personal life experiences) and how we perceive it is correlated to various things including the two listed above: the lack of new experiences as we age and the total amount of time we've experienced throughout life. However, everyone perceives time differently, meaning this principle of time moving more quickly as we age is not universally shared. It's a study rooted in human psychology that's old and widely discussed, and there are numerous academic papers about it, such as this one.

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General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2025!!!

« on: July 04, 2025, 04:37:09 pm »

So I've been doing this challenge now for 10 years. I've decided to take all of my reviews and compile them into a Google doc that I will eventually print out and keep on a shelf so I can still look back at them over the years. It's been fun to read all of my reviews (terrible as some of them are)

With the amount of effort some of us put into toward collecting our thoughts on games after completing them, that sounds like a good idea. I only just locally saved my writing over the last five years a few months ago which is fine for my purposes. I wish that I had been a little more detailed once I began, but that's the natural writing process if one puts in the effort. Regardless, I'm glad I began writing since it forces me to be more analytical while also simply helping me remember key details that I otherwise probably would have forgotten. I feel like there are a lot of games I played prior to when I started writing that I just have a vague opinion on without remembering anything specific or substantial.

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General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2025!!!

« on: July 04, 2025, 04:13:40 pm »

42. Forrest Byrnes: Up in Smoke || Playdate || 06.28.2025



Before starting Forrest Byrnes: Up in Smoke, I was interested to see that the official page for it on Playdate's site describes it as a racing game. Until now, I've not played any racing games for the handheld, so I was curious how well that type of gameplay could work for this system.

However, Forrest Byrnes is not a racing game but instead a fast-paced action game with light platforming and arcade gameplay elements. In short, players assume the role of the titular protagonist Forrest Byrnes, a park ranger who's calmly evacuating some environment disaster. While avoiding hazards and the impending fiery destruction that follows behind you along the horizontal plane, the player is simply tasked with reaching the stage end safely. Regarding movement, controls work well but will take time for the player to become comfortable with. Specifically, positioning one's self at the edge of a platform is tricky while requiring precision, and I regularly was injured because of it. While Forrest runs toward safety, rocky walls must be scaled, dying trees must be toppled, and general hazards such as beehives and bear traps must be avoided. With each stage attempt, the player is given three units of health, though it's worth mentioning that player health remaining bears no impact on on stage completion. Simultaneously, neither does the time it takes to clear the stage. Actually, there is no time counter at all in the game, so that the game could be construed as racing game seems somewhat disingenuous. There is even a score grading system present, but again, it serves no purpose as stages cannot be manually selected.

With that said, individual stages cannot be selected. Instead, beginning the game spawns the player into some random one. And, whether failing or succeeding, players will be introduced to a different stage immediately after. Personally, I am not particularly keen on this approach to game progression. After thinking about why such a decision was made, I still can't really consider any valid reasons for how this either improves the gameplay experience or rewards players. If anything, being able to freely select stages allows players to practice them upon failure. It helps grant them the means to become more adept with specific platforming challenges to later use those same skills with new encounters. While the game is considerably short, stages are somewhat difficult due to the game's tight platforming at times. If choosing to do the bare minimum, the game is relatively easy, though there is no sense of accomplishing when playing this way whatsoever.

Before moving along, I'll now also mention the game's stages. While I may be wrong, it seems as if stages are randomly generated instead of being individually designed. After playing more and more, it certainly felt this way. If not, there is a fairly large pool of stages the game will load randomly then. While I'll mention collectibles more in-depth further below, it seems either substantially difficult or even impossible for players to collect everything in each stage presented, as I experienced several instances where I couldn't solve how to reach certain platforms due to the player-character's movement capabilities. I suppose my inability each time could have been the result of rushed gameplay as there is little time to actually think while easy penalizing mistakes. And, since there is no menu select screen alongside unlockables not being tied to any one specific stage either, I feel more confident that my thoughts are more than just a presumption.

Despite the grading score system come across as something that can be entirely ignored from a completionist's perspective, it is still present. During the journey toward evacuation, there are several types of collectibles which players may seek out to earn a better grade, though there's really no incentive to do so. Nevertheless, each collectible requires a different player response to successfully gain it, which includes campers needing saved from various traps (one of which utilizes the system's crank) and digging out medals from the ground. Just like with the player-character, campers can even be lost to the fire creeping behind you, which is a gameplay element I liked though didn't experience more than once. However, it is only puzzle pieces which bear any meaningful significance toward actually completing the game as they unlock fragments of gallery images, which there are five that are each divided into four segments. When they're all revealed, the game is effectively completed as there is nothing else to do since there are no in-game systems implemented revolving around player performance.

Unfortunately, Forrest Byrnes is not a game I particularly had fun playing, though that's largely due to the game's structure. I think what's built from a gameplay perspective could be fun if players were tasked with set challenges tied to stages, or if the game incorporated some sort of time trial system, or really anything else to provide depth. Because without any of these things, there is not much inherent value provided which results in the game being ultimately dull.

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Video Game Database Discussion / Re: Developer/Publisher Requests

« on: July 04, 2025, 10:12:35 am »

It appears that Salute Games was added as the developer instead of the publisher, please correct.  Also, this title was distributed, not published, by Good Deal Games thus the reason for the edit.

Corrected.

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General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2025!!!

« on: July 02, 2025, 01:31:39 pm »

41. Saturday Edition || Playdate || 06.26.2025



As I near the end of the Playdate's included season one of games that I intend to finish, it's become obvious that there are many who strongly favor the system's pick-up-and-play design that's complemented by arcade-style games. However, while I do think the system is ideal for arcade gameplay, what I find most successful and interesting are adventure genre experiences. So, I was greatly looking forward to Saturday Edition upon realizing it's an adventure game.

When we begin, it is 1976. The game's protagonist John Kornfield has returned to earth after being abducted by some alien race. For four years, Kornfield lived among them closely and happily. Things were good. Then, unexpectedly, Kornfield is brought back confused and with much of the public choosing to disregard any credibility from his recounted experiences. Now, ten years later, strange events are beginning again. Dozens of people are being reported missing each and every day, and connections are made from both the police and the media that these new disappearances mirror Kornfield's own past disappearance. So, Kornfield sets off on his own investigation working alongside friends, associates, and the police to uncover what his role in this ordeal is exactly. And in time, a disturbing truth regarding the city's history of widespread, unexplained disappearances becomes learned that is a fulfilling story to play through.

Throughout this fairly short adventure narrative, players assume the role of Kornfield while exploring a small city environment. Exploration is limited to less than ten total in-game areas that are each accessed from Kornfield's vehicle as he drives to them. Once there, movement is bound to a 2D plane which players will survey to glean new information from either the game's supporting cast or the environment alongside few instances of obtaining or using items in combination with light story-advancing puzzle segments. While exploration is limited at the beginning, new areas become accessible as reason to be there is given as the story continues. Each area is small with only a two or three screens forming it, but the world is large enough to meet the scope of the game. The act of taking learned information to see what it can unlock by utilizing in specific social encounters is a simple fun toward uncovering a mystery that only intensifies as more details are learned as Kornfield and town citizens come face-to-face with a local generational danger.

Largely, gameplay consists of engaging in conversation with the game's supporting cast in a certain order. And, since the crime case relating to the missing persons is exciting, triggering even the smallest changes through the right interaction is rewarding. Throughout it all, Kornfield expresses doubt and questioning through internal dialogue, and there are times when he comes across as some unreliable vehicle at the center of it all. With the small number of individuals aiding his investigation, conversations are to-the-point largely as a result of the cast regularly being emotionally distant, detached, and simply strange in off-putting ways that reinforce the plot's mysteries. At every point, Saturday Edition requires players to follow a strict linear path in terms of plot progression. There are a large amount of separate parts with seemingly nothing to do with another, so finding out how one piece of information relates to another through some social connection is regularly surprising to maintain player interest.

Concerning the game's presentation, I greatly enjoyed its limited and focused use of animation apart from character movement. At top, there is a small window which appears to preview what little action transpires in real-time. A power cable being plugged into an outlet. Television buttons being pressed to change one channel to another. Eyes panning off to the side to avoid uncomfortable eye contact. A preview window also appears when approaching something that can be interacted with, so there is no difficulty in discerning what is or isn't important. Complementing visuals is the game's sound design which is equally effective. Music is beyond spare for quite some time with only the game's environmental sounds being present, such as Kornfield's footsteps or when the car engine turns over when traveling between locations. Another aspect is the game's inventory system. Once they've been fully used, they're automatically marked as being unusable though do remain in the player's possession. Items are often just paper notes waiting to be crumpled, but this inclusion helps establish a sense of player accomplishment and is cleverly used in an unexpected way in the game's final moments.

While I didn't have any real expectations prior to playing, Saturday Edition proved to be one of my favorite games that's a part of the season one catalog. I'm a fan of these small graphic adventure games that I don't really play all that often, and this game and genre altogether have proved to make excellent use of the system's portability. It's likely not a game someone would play again until they've forgotten the story, but it's still one that was fun to experience.

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General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2025!!!

« on: July 02, 2025, 01:22:05 pm »

Finally we get to SF6's weakest area and honestly the aspect of it that kept me from wanting to play this game until it was cheap enough for me to justify buying it. Putting it bluntly, I hate the art direction of SF6. I never thought in a million years that the Street Fighter franchise would fall victim to the Fortnite/Zoomer shooter art aesthetic, along with all of its annoying cliches, but here we are. Nearly every returning SF character looks worse than they ever have in this game, while literally every new character to the series looks like crap from an artistic, design point of view.

Don't Street Fighter characters adopting a Fortnite art style look like this?



I don't play Street Fighter so I don't really have a deep opinion on the matter, but from what I can tell from other discussions, the general consensus seems to be that Street Fighter 6 greatly improves upon the previous two entries' cartoon-y, cel-shaded style known for characters' giants hands (particularly in regards to Street Fighter V.) So, it's interesting to read a dissenting opinion from the minority.

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Video Game Database Discussion / Re: Error Listings and Rejected Edits 2025

« on: June 28, 2025, 11:04:48 pm »

https://vgcollect.com/item/173238

Doing a preemptive alert since I'm undoing an edit by dhaabi. The name of OK K.O.! has a period between the O and the exclamation mark. (check the logo, the spine, and the copyright notice)

In these instances, grammar rules generally dictate how entry names are to be formatted which is why I made the change. However, that change was made in error due to misremembering the grammar rule. (I was confusing it with the rule concerning punctuation marks preceding a colon—not an acronym preceding a sentence-ending punctuation mark.)

Your correction has been approved.

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General / Re: VGC's Anonymous/"General" Topic:

« on: June 28, 2025, 06:32:46 pm »

And just like that, I'm done with XBONE collecting...sort of.

I own three physical games for Xbox One, one of which I should remove from the collection. Another is the Rare Replay compilation that I don't feel strongly about but should probably hold on to I suppose, and the one remaining is Sunset Overdrive which may be okay for my tastes but is something I haven't played to know for sure. So despite owning an Xbox One and an Xbox One X which both just so happened to be free, there is very little that entices me. I suppose if I were to ever become interested in racing games, there is always Forza, but that may be the only exclusive game(s) I feel are worth buying. Out of everything the Xbox One offers, its best feature is its convenience to play select Xbox and Xbox 360 games. If I were to buy another physical game for the system, I'd be surprised.

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Video Game Database Discussion / Re: Error Listings and Rejected Edits 2025

« on: June 23, 2025, 08:44:54 am »

All your efforts toward curating a niche category are appreciated. Your edits have been approved.

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General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2025!!!

« on: June 22, 2025, 02:54:42 pm »

40. Cuphead || Xbox One || 06.21.2025



Since its first major announcement in 2014, Cuphead is a game that's greatly interested me for its art direction and vision. Several years past before its eventual release, though that it was exclusive to the Xbox platform for some time ensured I'd likely not play it for some time, if at all. I've actually owned a digital copy of the game since 2018 after unexpectedly being given an Xbox One, though it is only now seven years since then did I finally take the time to play the game.

In short, Cuphead from a gameplay perspective relies on several different genre conventions that all help diversify play, and it's made easier with the game's stage-select structure that's, more-or-less, a take on a boss rush challenge. The majority of stages consist of single-shooter boss encounters, though there are also horizonal shoot 'em up segments alongside run 'n gun platforming trials. I've actually not ever played through a run 'n gun game before, and my experience with the broad shoot 'em up genre in general is quite limited. So, I'm not sure how to properly assess the game's difficulty as I have no reference point. Nevertheless, Cuphead is not a game for the casual or inexperienced player, even in spite of both standard and easy difficulty options being available when starting a new campaign that can even be adjusted with each boss stage. With that said, I decided to play through each stage at Regular difficulty, and I was able to complete that goal. Something else is that Cuphead actually has a two-player mode, though I didn't try that out.

During play, players have numerous actions to help aid them clear their goal. There are standard attacks, single-use special attacks that must be fully charged to use, and minor special attacks that only require limited charge. And early on, a shop is introduced which offers power-up wares and alternative shooting abilities, so there is a sense of customization to help players find a play style that suits them. As far the player's movement, a dash ability is paramount to success, and a defensive parry helps prevent damage, though the latter may only be used to counteract specific color-coded hazards and attacks. Meanwhile, bosses have numerous phases which must be tactfully avoided to successfully best them. Their attacks have all sorts of patterns with multiple hazards to avoid simultaneously. Clearing any one stage will likely require repeated attempts as only through trial-and-error and careful observation can patterns be identified. Under normal conditions, players are only awarded three units of health per attempt that can't be replenished, so the level of difficulty presented is considerably high. Meanwhile, platforming trials purely test the player's sense of movement and control with their chaotic design. In nearly every open space, some sort of hazard spawns or is waiting to run past. And for all stage types, there is an arcade quality to them, as a scoring system is present that grades the player on criteria such as health remaining and total time spent. I ignored this system though obviously tried my best with each stage, and my score average on a letter-grade scale was around a B, maybe even B+.

Prior to playing, I actually wasn't aware of the game's narrative details. They do provide context for the game's events but can largely be dismissed should the player choose, although what story there is is minimal. Controlling the titular Cuphead or assumed player two avatar Mugman, the pair finds themselves in a situation where they're debt collectors working for the Devil himself in order for their souls to be spared. With that in mind, Cuphead is not a fully linear adventure and has a small degree of an open-ended structure. Instead of moving automatically from one stage to the next, players navigate throughout a small 2D overworld while choosing which order stages can be completed. There is some gatekeeping present to prevent the game's full world being explored all at once, but there will always be an option for players to choose what's next. Fortunately, I was able to clear each stage one at a time without going back-and-forth through persistent effort.

Without question, the game features excellent visual and auditory design. Really, the presentation all-around is just top-notch, and the effort put in to implement all of the game's small details is hard to overlook. Those who are familiar with the game will know how art direction is heavily inspired by the Golden Age of animation from the 1930s to 1950s, particularly rubber hose animation practices. For each boss encounter, enemies morph seamlessly into something even more destructive than before with nonsensical humor that upends reality. Just like with cartoon viewers then, players never know what to expect when reaching a boss's next phase for the first time. There is a lot of humor just through visuals alone as a result of the game liberally ignoring real-world anatomy and physics. At the same time, music and sound greatly achieves at establishing Cuphead as some pseudo-cartoon from the era it hearkens back to. With every stage, an announcer readies the action to come, and it was always an enjoyable start to the next challenge.

After all this time, I'm glad that Cuphead was able to meet the high standards I expected from it to reach. Since I don't own its DLC, I know it's a game I'll be returning to at some point. It won't be soon, but it also won't be another seven years. I'll also mention that I've started watching the classic Silly Symphony cartoon short films as a result of playing, some of which I've seen before, and they've been fun.

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General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2025!!!

« on: June 22, 2025, 10:55:17 am »

39. Formless Star || PC || 06.20.2025



Looking for something casual to play, I decided to try out Formless Star on a whim. Prior to playing, I knew next-to-nothing about the game, but I decided to try it out based on its brief premise and cutesy pixel art design despite not regularly playing games with this kind of art.

As a field researcher for some sort of space exploration team, player-controlled protagonist Anemo is tasked with cataloging information on the planet's biodiversity, specifically its animal life. While this may sound relatively simple, the game is designed so that the world is ever-changing. Each time the player returns to their spacecraft and steps out again, the alien landscape will change to create a new world to explore. There aren't any threats or hazards beyond the world's formless nature, so the game's one sole task is simple to complete. In fact, while there are actually 61 species to identify to add to some compendium, only 30 are necessary to reach one of the game's endings, though it's a ultimately less satisfying experience.

And really, that's all Formless Star really is—a simple, 2D adventure exploration game. When out navigating the environment, exploration is bound to a grid-based tile system. While the world isn't really that large, there are various terrains to traverse through and even varied ground types within them which provide a greater sense of a living environment, and a fair majority of tile types even leave footprint impressions to help prevent players from needless backtracking. I did not realize until near the end of my playthrough, but there is a map system available which is fairly useful considering the game's procedurally-generated design. It's also worth mentioning that, beyond making brief interactions with the world's animals, players are also able to construct bridge walkways and, oppositely, destroy environment roadblocks. For the former, they're also able to be seen on the map which certainly helps identify players with where they are exactly.

Regarding animal wildlife itself, they are predictably unusual considering we've exploring an alien planet. Overwhelmingly, wildlife is non-confrontational as they really just idle around. Interacting with them initiates some sort of reactionary animation or even some action that mildly impacts the player, but there is no consequence during encounters. Since the majority of the game's writing is tied to journal field notes, now seems best to mention the game's lighthearted humor that's, regularly, also twisted in some way by revealing some depressing evolutionary truths. Toward the end of finding every animal, a new species that I believe is guaranteed to spawn right outside the spacecraft appears that provides the means for faster travel. Naturally, this resource makes it much easier to fully complete the catalog.

If choosing to find everything, there is also some not-so-subtle developer commentary regarding the intrinsic value of appreciating art and creating it that actually reminds me of a line from Cave Story. Additionally, finding everything also triggers a short but laughable post-credits scene. Concerning other aspects of the game beyond its gameplay, creature design is strange but whimsical, and this also extends to the world at large. There was one small visual design aspect I did not like, though, which is that a colored overlay filter appears and routinely changes once identifying a certain amount of animals which is evident in the above screenshot even. There is not much to comment on the game's sound, but it's appropriately space-y and with a sort of positive ambiance.

Taking only an hour or so to play through, Formless Star was a short but fun casual experience to relax with. I had been playing through some longer, more trying games while having decided to play through this, so it was a nice respite.

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Video Game Database Discussion / Re: International Classified Sites Research Archive

« on: June 19, 2025, 11:52:13 am »

I'll mention Satakore, although it may not be something we'd want to add since it's just a results page of eBay listings. It's useful for finding Japanese items, though.

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Modern Video Games / Re: Nintendo Switch 2

« on: June 18, 2025, 10:00:02 am »

Well, I now own a Switch 2. I already made it apparent that I wasn't interested in gaining one anytime soon, but I'm not the only person who plays video games in my household who's capable of buying what they want.

The system setup process is far more cumbersome than I remember it being with other modern consoles such as the PlayStation 5 and Steam Deck. There are so many QR codes to scan or other alternatives alongside some onboarding aspects being over-complicated and not user-friendly.

It was decided that the account wanting to be used for the system would not go through the formal system transfer process which includes transferring save data, so this caused inconveniences. While the account was able to be added manually without issue, it later became required to link the Switch and Switch 2 consoles together because the account was present on both of them. There did not seem to be a way to easily circumvent this, so I do not think it was possible to avoid. This issue was caused by accessing the system's digital Virtual Game Card software (Mario Kart World), even though the software in question is not something that can even be played on Switch hardware.

I've only handled the system for a short time at this point, and it's fine. There are some small but appreciated visual and auditory flourishes with the system UI, and the Switch 2 is far faster than the Switch, both in regards to the eShop and simply navigating menus. But, really, these are bare improvements to expect because the Switch struggled considerably with these aspects. Otherwise, the system seems more of a mid-generation upgrade to the Switch than a proper successor, and especially so considering how similar the two are from a visual and handling standpoint.

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Off Topic / Re: What TV/Netflix show are you currently watching? (Megathread)

« on: June 17, 2025, 11:07:53 am »

I've got a friend who has been trying to get me to watch How to because she knows how much I like Fielder.

I suppose this means there are now two people suggesting it to you. It's a short show of eighteen episodes, and you'll know almost immediately if it's for you if you ever do decide to give it a try.

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General / Re: 52 Games Challenge 2025!!!

« on: June 15, 2025, 06:44:32 pm »

38. Balatro || PlayStation 5 || 06.14.2025



Since its release and critical success, I've become familiar with Balatro and mildly curious to try it out. Admittedly, I am not that knowledgeable or skilled in poker or other card games but do enjoy them with a casual interest on the rare occasion I'm presented to play. It always takes a fair amount of time for me to re-familiarize myself with the basic rules and structure of the game, so I was hoping Balatro would have a low difficulty barrier toward understanding its own rules and mechanics.

Fortunately, Balatro is an easy game to understand and to begin playing largely because, as a video game, a lot of processes are streamlined with instant feedback alongside annotated explanations. Instead of the standard poker format which has participants playing against another to see whose hand scores highest, I found that Balatro presents a much simpler goal since it's only ever focused on the player's hand. During each round, players have a finite number of turns to create hands to meet a certain point threshold which, once met, automatically advances the round. With each additional round, the point threshold becomes higher alongside certain conditions making it more difficult to succeed, and at the end of each phase, a boss encounter appears which has strict limitations to play by or hurdles to overcome. While this may not seem much different from standard poker at first, another aspect that's important to note is Balatro's deck-building gameplay. Both hand and deck size can far exceed the standard amount, and abilities are gained from a wide assortment of special cards which permits cards to modified or outright deleted. So, there is a major focus on strategy experimentation.

However, perhaps the game's biggest strength lies in its multiplier system. After each round, a random selection of special cards may be purchased with the sparse money collected. Though there are several types of special card types, it is Joker cards which allow for point totals to reach ridiculously high numbers through multipliers when used in combination with another and with playing cards. Joker cards are generally a permanent addition to the player's working winning hand build, though only a small number may be active at a time during normal circumstances. So, this alone requires thoughtful strategy to consider, and especially so consider the game's emphasis on randomization. Because of randomization that impacts both cards gained and challenges presented, players will never have one consistent strategy to win. As mentioned, there are other types of special cards to purchase as well with their own types of bonuses, though they're often single-use.

Because of Balatro's randomized mechanics, players are forced to adapt and play a certain way with each run. Typically, this involves playing specific hands in combination with upgrading specific types of cards to accommodate the types of Jokers that are presented. So, for instance, my winning run was able to focus on straights as the special cards I was able to gain allowed for such a hand to easily earn high point values. From what I've gathered, the path to winning is to make small progress in forming additive score bonuses only to slowly replace them over time with better ones. To reach the game's formal end, players must clear the eighth phase, although runs can actually be played endlessly. Still, for my purposes, I considered the game finished once clearing its immediate goal. I did keep playing to see how far along I could get, though, and I reached the end of phase ten before not being able to clear the needed point threshold. Both accomplishments were challenging, though I recognize that, by comparisons with more seasoned players, it is a low-barrier milestone to reach. It took me around 15–20 failed runs to finally clear the eighth phase, and it felt irritating each time it seemed like an okay run with good bonus modifiers (they probably weren't) ended in failure.

Without a doubt, Balatro has a lot of appeal, and it comes natural to want to try once more after failing or even again once clearing certain challenges. There are all sorts of other gameplay elements and unlockables too to entice players to keep playing more to accomplish even loftier goals, and it's certainly a game that avoids being dull. Were I less focused on playing a variety of games, Balatro may be one I'd want to play indefinitely, but I'm not that kind of person.