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1

Gaming / Re: 2023 Still Back Loggin'

« on: March 13, 2023, 06:17:15 PM »

Metroid Dread 1000% Complete



I beat dread mode but didn't 100% dread mode...considering you die from any damage it makes 100% dread mode harder than low%. The first time I beat the final boss it took me like...literally..40+ attempts over 2 days. This time, I made an idiot mistake on the first try, and killed him the second try. I'd like to think I have achieved mastery of this game...ignore those deaths though...any sneeze = game over.



I don't even care anymore, this game is 10/10. No game is perfect, but jesus this game is close.

*edit*

Wasn't even trying to go fast, wasted a good few minutes dicking around because I was just playing for fun...but 3:10 Hard mode.

2

Gaming / Re: 2023 Still Back Loggin'

« on: March 12, 2023, 12:40:32 AM »

4. Metroid Fusion



3:45, 40% item completion.

I'm gonna preface. I cheated. I used the rewind feature, and totally used a save state before the final boss.

This is my least favorite metroid by far, as in, it is the only metroid game I do not like.

I get it, coming from Dread I am spoiled by great bosses and unmatched controls, but I have a caveat. The #3 game I beat was METROID 2, THE ORIGINAL GAMEBOY METROID 2, and I had a good time.

Way too much story for a metroid
OBEY THE COMPUTER GO HERE SAMUS GO THERE SAMUS SAVE YOUR GAME SAMUS
None of the bosses even enter a territory that I would call "fun". Rag on me all you want, but I beat every single boss in dread without taking a single hit, those are fun bosses. Trying to stand at a pixel perfect distance to hit a weakspot with micron accuracy 50 times is not fun...only to have an orb pop out of it and gib you for having low health.
x parasites in dread were annoying...they're only 50x worse in this game

There are good parts to this game, but I don't care to talk about them, the cons severely outweigh the pros.

I ain't going back to do the few parts of the game I used rewind on again, I am not going to revisit this game. I actually regret playing this game, it was better off as a mystery.

I had more fun paying my emergency room bill than playing this game.

*edit*

Feeling generous, and I will talk about a few good points.

For one this is metroid 4, to dread which is metroid 5, so you do see some carry over. Like how missiles are just straight upgrades instead of separate entities like in super. Or how power bombs have a vacuum effect for all x parasites in an area.

In dread where the whole first two areas turn to ice, this game has the ice zone which ends up melting and a few other environmental changes.

ledge grab, not executed that well in this game...but it's a good addition for future games.

Ohh Just thought of it. For as linear as the game is, I was alright with completing an objective and the game throwing a wrench at you "stuff is out of wack, 6 minutes to fix problem gogogo" or "power is out, find an alternate route to restore power, no elevators, save points, recharge stations work", mixed up the experience a bit.

Besides that I really don't understand why they want to keep adding "horror" elements to a metroid game. Fusion started this mess, and it's seeped into dread which would probably be named something else if not for fusion, and probably be an even better game for it. The cold isolation and lack of friendly npc's should be "horror" enough. And I feel super, and prime do this very well.

*edit*

I just can't stop playing dread. Did boss rush to unlock survival boss rush meaning anything unlockable in the game is unlocked. And also found through this that you can "practice" bosses you've gotten to in boss rush. I didn't know each boss had a time attack, or maybe you want to practice the quick kill on the z57 boss or whatever. Not a mode I typically care about, but given that the bosses ARE fun in this game..."cough"...worth checking out. 

3

Gaming / Re: 2023 Still Back Loggin'

« on: March 08, 2023, 06:59:57 PM »

APPARENTLY NOT FUCKING FIN



Beat the game 10 times, got all the gallery, beat hard mode, beat dread mode, beat game under 3 hours. I CRUSH THIS GAME!

WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgames!



This one was mostly due to fusion coming out very soon so I forked over the $$$ for the premium service to access the gba. This was a trip down memory lane, only warioware game I played, wasn't interested in the motion control gimmicks added to future releases.

A very short very specific period of time. Wikipedia says the game was released may26 2003, so I had to have gotten this near release because I specifically remember my parents buying this for me after school before summer, and I had a friend staying over a few nights...and we had pizza. I remember playing this, and taking turns on the gba sp while watching spirited away for the first time and other anime VHS TAPES I had at that time. Seen a review of the game in I think an EGM magazine and was motivated to buy it due to how weird it was, being the kids that were "so random" at that time, it was our jam.

Game itself is fine, short, but plenty of unlocks/content/things to do. A majority of the enjoyment I get is the nostalgia of being...15?16? Good memories. I specifically remember doing everything, unlocking everything, and competing with friends on the same cart to beat high scores. The videogame equivalent of licking your plate clean. Not doing that again this time, but I got far enough to see the credits and unlock a few more modes. Be a good game to turn on in a social setting for people to play around with being on the big screen instead of that small portable screen.

4

Gaming / Re: 2023 Still Back Loggin'

« on: March 01, 2023, 10:03:56 AM »

LAST POST ABOUT DREAD

SCHMAST POST ABOUT DREAD





FIN

5

Gaming / Re: 2023 Still Back Loggin'

« on: February 25, 2023, 11:53:10 PM »

Hopefully this is my last Metroid Dread related post.



In dread there are two galleries. One gallery is tied to item%, unlocking images for getting 100% item completion in each area, then one for all of them 100%. Getting all unlocked unlocks an image with various characters and Samus in what looks like her varia suit.

The other gallery is tied to beating the game on normal, under 8 hours, and under 4 hours. Then again on hard, under 8 hours on hard, under 4 hours on hard. Doing hard under 4 hours does not unlock the one tied to normal, as I found out yesterday. So you unlock the same image from the first gallery but with Samus in the zero suit instead.

Pretty minor, they don't really have an ending where you see her face or anything from 100% like in prime, but it's something.

Besides unlocking dread boss rush...which entails beating dread mode. I'd say I completed the game, entirely, 100% completely. Dread mode was added on some 7-8 months post release anyway. 

Going to try and put the game down now...not sure if I want to shave that 9 minutes off to get a sub 3...I totally could...but I think I had my fill.

*edit*

OKOKOKOK IM DONE I SWEAR



My 100% completion in the gallery was on "file 1" and my hard mode/speedrun unlocks were on "file 3" so I wanted the full gallery on that file...so a 100% hard mode run was in order. Aside from dread mode, which I do want to play around with in the future(made it to cataris, my death count...too many), and boss rush which I have no interest in...I THINK I SHOULD BE DONE WITH THIS GAME...for...now...

Most of my deaths were from the walking game over screens, err I mean EMMI's. I don't think any "real" bosses killed me this run...so I'm just gonna say this is a sub 3 death run, ignore the stats. Those "horror game" man gets near you and it's literally a game over don't actually count as a real game over.

This be a GREAT VIDYA GAME WORTHY OF PRAISE! /caps

6

Gaming / Re: 2023 Still Back Loggin'

« on: February 24, 2023, 11:26:38 PM »

Thinking about renaming this thread "Metroid"



I think I did the hard stuff, just need to beat it on normal in under 4 hours for the remaining ending gallery unlocks. Odd how they don't unlock from the hard playthrough. Hopefully I can snag a slightly faster time, my idiot brain still gets twisted around for the first half of the game.

Something to note. Let's ignore that I do die a lot, which I do, because I STILL am bad...hard mode don't feel that scary anymore. Like when you're fighting a boss, 2-3 hits into death feels fair to me. Early game normal enemies can do an entire energy tank worth of damage to you, but late game it feels like you can tank a few hits and I forget I'm playing hard. Now this is coming off from my 5th playthrough, so I better be improving, but still...dat dread mode doe...ANY HIT = GAME OVER...not sure if I'll beat the game on that difficulty.

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Gaming / Re: 2023 Still Back Loggin'

« on: February 21, 2023, 09:31:05 PM »

Metroid Dread (Hard Mode)



NOW WERE GETTING SOMEWHERE.

I REALLY like this game. I very rarely play hard mode, and this is a hard game on normal mode. Thing is the hard mode run was probably easier than my first playthrough. Enemies do more damage, and...I think that's it? They do A LOT of damage, but you still do the same damage to my knowledge. Don't make mistakes, git gud!

Metroid Dude in a Metroid Mood!

*edit*

IF I DIDN'T GET LOST ALL THE TIME I SWEAR...I'd be under 4 hours.

4:15:10 normal mode

Not sure if I'll push for it, I think I should look at playing other things. Again, not a speedrunner...but yknow...I totally have the ability to do a sub 4 hour run...assuming I knew the route without getting lost. Even did the fancy shinespark kill on that z57 boss...second attempt.

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Gaming / Re: 2023 Still Back Loggin'

« on: February 20, 2023, 03:52:58 PM »

Metroid Dread
...again



Metroid Dude with the Metroid 'Tude

Since Prime dropped I have really been in the mood for some damned Metroid.

7:49, not a speedrunner, not a good time, but better than my first time.

This game is still as good as I remember ohh so long ago back in late 2021. Honestly the music, while not bad at all, is the most lacking part of this game. Everything else, ESPECIALLY the god tier controls, top notch.

Actually I lie, those EMMI sections are still annoying. I get wanting to put a 'lil horror in your game about blasting everything to pieces, then obliterating the planet too...wait, no, I don't get it, it just doesn't fit. I think the EMMI just spawn in different places, so I just do the route I'm gonna do, die, and repeat till I get out of the zone. It's annoying, but at least it's quick. Game would be better without them.

BESIDES THAT, I will be playing this again. These damn controls though, it's gotta be one of the best "feeling" 2d games to exist, I can't be crazy for thinking this.

9

Gaming / Re: 2023 Still Back Loggin'

« on: February 19, 2023, 08:50:06 PM »

3. Metroid II: Return of Samus



Metroid man in a Metroid mood.

Let me first say, the metroid queen is a royal pain in the ass, and as such, while I did beat the game, I did use a single savestate before the metroid queen just to finish this sucker. My whole arm hurts, my wrist hurts, she requires 150 fucking missiles to down, and I'm usually dead before then. Death means going back to the last save point, going up the tunnel, getting max missiles/health, getting the ice beam, killing 8 regular metroids which being not perfect means I will take some damage...then going to attempt the queen. I did this 3 times being totally baffled at how many god damn missiles it takes to kill. I have beaten all of the metroid games minus prime 2, and 3(other m doesn't exist, and hunters I would call a spinoff). In the games I have beaten, metroid queen is the hardest boss out of all of them. Dread bosses require more finesse and knowledge, metroid queen requires a turbo controller which I do not have.

*the day after edit*

Ok this game counts for real for real now, no savestates/rewind. Took another 4 attempts and finally got it. All of the metroids before the queen minus one I can do without getting grabbed, so I usually have decent health. Also when the queen opens her mouth, you don't just morph ball and bomb, you gotta travel into her stomach and lay the bombs. I still don't know how you can do the fight without taking significant damage, and it still IS quite hard, but I got it once and that's all that counts. It's not like the save point is THAT far from the boss, but it's enough to be annoying.

Rage aside, this is an enjoyable little game if you have a map. Without a map...well, that's THE reason I have passed on this game in the past. But in interest of being entertained by a metroid game I haven't completed, I'ma use the tools I have to get through it. Game is pretty friendly for an old game despite the final boss/no map. Save points are placed in fair locations for the most part, final boss/no map aside, I would say this is one of the easier metroid games for the majority of the playthrough.

Like the first metroid on the nes, this game has a quirk with weapon upgrades. As in, the ice beam is required for the final boss, when you pick up the wave beam, you'll need the ice beam later. Unlike metroid 1 where you just don't pick up the wave beam ever, metroid 2 just gives you an ice beam before the final sequence, albeit after the save so every time the queen kills you, you have to get it again, but regardless they know you need it so you can use whatever flavor of beam you like before then.

The upgrades are pretty cool. Coming from the nes game, this game has spider ball which lets you climb...all walls...seriously. All walls that don't damage you for whatever reason can be something you roll on. Space jump is back, so infinity jumping is there, the timing is a bit odd feeling so it takes some getting used to. You also have screw attack late game, and even a varia suit upgrade which noticeably changes your character model. Minor things, but appreciated in something on this hardware.

I played the 3ds "Samus Returns" and going back to the original they did a really good job of taking the essence of this game and making a modern game of it. Like every time you'd kill a certain quota of metroids the next zone would open up by the "lava" or "acid" or whatever draining away. Hard to spoil a 30 year old game, but even the sequence after the queen with the baby metroid clearing your way was a nice touch. No "SURPRISE RIDDLEY IS THE LAST BOSS LOL" like they like doing in those remakes "cough" why do you fight sephiroth in 7r when you barely see him in the original? "cough"

Speaking of the baby, remember the beginning of super metroid, it says "metroid 3". Yeah like, 2 is the game that happened before 3! Sarcasm aside, while there really isn't "story" here, the events in metroid 2 are a pretty big deal going forward, as such, nice to experience.

I also wanted to test a new controller for some of these older games I wanna dive into. Mainly got it for fusion whenever that drops on the switch gba thing, but it works pretty well. The shoulders aren't great, but the d pad is great, it's clicky like the gba sp. For older pre n64 titles, I think it'll do the trick.

Gonna have to put this game on the worth playing list. This wasn't really on my backlog at all, but being as I do have memories of playing it as a kid without knowing what I was doing. Nice to see it to the end.

*edit*

Just watched somebody beat the queen with 2 energy tanks and 60 missiles. I may just need to git gud...though I didn't do the morph ball into the queen thing that much. Probably my main cause for frustration not making that a priority.

10

Introductions / Re: Hi

« on: February 15, 2023, 05:05:21 PM »

Few weeks late. Chirpin' in to say hi.

Was it you I used to talk to on instant messenger (forgot which one, msn, skype?) IIDX all the time? Long out of the rhythm loop, more into fightans/single player stuff now a days.

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Gaming / Re: 2023 Still Back Loggin'

« on: February 14, 2023, 07:24:51 PM »

Metroid Prime Remastered



Not counting this towards the list due to having beaten it before, and it's VERY faithful to the original to where I'd just say they're the same game.

So this came out of nowhere. I bought it immediately...finished dragon quest first...then cracked on this until I beat it. It really was that hard to put down. I kinda standby what I said when the first 90% of the game is fantastic and the last 10% is kinda meh. As soon as you beat omega pirate and you're just looking for remaining missile tanks and artifacts...it's a bit tedious. Going by more recent Metroid titles I beat the "victory lap" before the final boss is usually pretty fun, not so much in this game. Pretty tedious, and I freely admit to looking up all the random missile tanks I missed. Really makes you appreciate the little map icon saying "there is an item here" on newer Metroid titles, they don't tell you where, just that there is something to collect.

The main issue I actually historically had with this game was the room before metroid prime. Metroids who are immune to all of your weapons minus one, so you have to trial and error them because it is random, and they infinitely respawn...as  you have to climb a tower...and they'll knock your ass down. This caused me to hard NOPE in the past, but this time I got lucky ignoring those metroids with "minimal" frustration.

Final boss wasn't as hard as I remember, game wasn't as hard as I remember. Still challenging, probably easier due to the awesome new dual analogue controls. This is a Metroid Prime title with more or less traditional fps controls. The old controls are there if you want em, they also have the wii controls for those who are into that, or a controller gyro aiming hybrid, something for everyone. I swear there was a timed escape sequence in this game? After I beat the boss it was like escape!...and kinda just went cutscene to credits.

That said, while the last 10-15% was less fun, overall I need to rate this game higher. It's a game I will be replaying again in the future.

Music...not much to say. Top 5 videogame ost of all time.

Graphics hard to appreciate the work they did unless you do a side by side comparison, but damn it's a looker. I never noticed the framerate drop in my playthrough, feels very smooth.

I ain't a speedrunner or great at Metroid games, but I completed it on normal in 13:57 with 100% item percentage. Got the whole Samus takes off her helmet scene that we didn't receive in dread...it's good!

Really hoping they do the same treatment to Prime 2 and 3 in the future with these new fangled "traditional fps controls".

Not much else to end on other than buy this game, and here's hoping fusion drops on the gba service sooner rather than later.

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Gaming / Re: 2023 Still Back Loggin'

« on: February 12, 2023, 01:25:20 PM »

2. Dragon Quest Treasures



I am a few months late to this game. Originally thought it was a mobile game. It could have been a mobile game released somewhat recently or got announced or something and I got this confused for that. This is not a mobile game, it's a dragon quest spinoff game exclusive to the switch.

Unlike builders which...you can figure what kind of game that was. This one is a bit different. As the title says your main goal is to get treasure. It's a bit more than that though, you have a base that has various upgrades/utilities. You also have a party of 3 monsters by your side who you have no control over, but it works well enough. You can recruit monsters on the field, then you have to hire them proper by paying them various materials. So you'll get a monster you want, see it needs a food item you don't have, so you search for the recipe to get the mats to make the item to get the monster.

There's quite a bit to this game, it doesn't shoehorn you into the main quest so you can really do whatever you want. Enemy levels "sorta" scale, so you can go wheever whenever, and higher level monsters aren't impossible so you aren't punished for trying. Not exactly a hard game but it throws enough at you to keep you on your toes. I'd call it easy, but not faceroll.

I could go through "everything" there is to do, but I'll just not and say there's quite a bit here. Finished in ~25 hours, but there's still plenty to do. May put a few more hours into this title before moving on to something else.

I enjoyed it, square been doing a great job with these dragon quest spinoffs. Builders 2 was a great game, and this one is holding it's own next to it despite being a totally different type of experience.

13

Gaming / 2023 Still Back Loggin'

« on: February 04, 2023, 10:38:07 PM »

1. Frog Detective 1: The Haunted Island



So played a lot of games last year, told myself to take it easier this year, got sick...so kinda not much motivation to plug along on vidya right now. It'll happen eventually but kinda been casually pattering away at Qud, picking at games without much intent to complete them. Obsessing over scotch, which I do remind you, is not vidya.

So basically I stumbled upon a picture of this frog detective man, thought "I like the cut of his jib". Noticed the game is like $5.00, and also very VERY short.

40 minutes later I beat the game, it's short, they tell you and they are right.

This is a cute barely a game game that is kind of impossible to lose. Mostly just talking to people with some fairly entertaining writing and a very deliberate tone which is appropriate for the artstyle. It's a cute little short thing that is priced appropriately. If you like the way it looks and ain't gonna miss $5.00 for under an hour of playtime, there are worse ways to burn five bucks.

I enjoyed it, there's 3 games, I'll probably sprinkle them in throughout the year. It's almost an hour of amusement for five bucks, that's cool.

14

Gaming / Re: 2022 The Backloggening

« on: December 26, 2022, 11:59:09 AM »

I'm working on the first + highly doubt I'll sneak another game in so I suppose I'll end this thread a few days early.

Looking at the beginning of last year compared to this year feels like an eternity ago, my how the time do fly.

1. The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
2. Pokémon Legends: Arceus
3. Bayonetta 2
4. Trials of Mana
5. Gran Turismo 7
6. Star Wars Episode I: Racer
7. Astro's Playroom
8. Final Fantasy VII Remake
9. Shantae
10. Shantae: Risky's Revenge
11. Shantae and the Pirates Curse
12. Shantae Half Genie Hero
13. Shantae and the Seven Sirens
14. Soul Hackers 2
15. Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil Saga 2
16. We <3 Katamari
17. Merchant of the Skies
18. The DioField Chronicle
19. Baldur's Gate Enhanced Edition
20. XCOM 2: War of the Chosen
21. Pokemon Scarlet
22. Front Mission 1st
23. CRISIS CORE –FINAL FANTASY VII– REUNION

Things I've been playing throughout the year but didn't count on the list for various reasons.

Mass Effect (Legendary Edition)(insanity difficulty)
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
Death Stranding
Monster Hunter Rise Sunbreak
No Man's Sky
Even more Skyrim
Guilty Gear Strive
DNF Duel
Mount and Blade 2 Bannerlord

It has been a year of me taking it easy...obviously. Quit the 50hr/week grind last year, took ~5.5 months off work, and now I'm working roughly 3x 10 hour shifts a week till I find something better to do. Much free time to piddle away at whatever this year. I had a few more "categories" I wanted to add, but knowing me I forgot what they are, so I guess I'll give this a whirl and start by whatever I did last year.

Most rewarding game to complete

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion

Out of all 23 games I managed to complete this year I am the most happy I will never even have the thought of having to play this stupid game again. It has been a thorn in my side for over a decade now, and it is finally done. I don't hate on the people who do enjoy this game, but I do not at all like Oblivion.

Most rewarding part in a game to complete

star wars episode 1 racer

54 second hotlap on Abyss. Crushing the track that gave me nightmares as a kid.

Biggest Surprise

Gran Turismo 7

Me play a racing game? Me play a sim (at least more sim than most racers people play) racing game? Me invest...over 120 hours into said racing game? Anything can happen, variety is the spice of life. Really enjoyed my time with this title, despite it's flaws.

Least Favorite Game

Dragon Age Inquisition

This game to me is like Nier Automata, which makes it hard to say nice things about. They are both similar in that I read mostly positive things about them, and anybody I know IRL who has played them has nothing but mostly good things to say about them. Ontop  of that, I really like one thing or another about them, and I WANT to enjoy my time with the game...then I play them. I can't even say anything good about either title. I just can't derive any fun from these games, and I don't even think they're mediocre, I think both games are outright BAD. Like Dragon Age 2 is a bad game, it really is, but it's still...kinda fun, I don't get any entertainment from Inquisition at all.

Runner up Favorite

uhh...this one is just impossible this year. Pokemon Arceus, Pokemon Scarlet, FF7r, digital devil saga 2, several of the shantae games...I played a lot of damn good stuff this year and it really is hard to elevate one over another. Did I enjoy arceus over scarlet? Yeah I did, but I played scarlet twice as much as Arceus. ff7r finally blew my socks off, but the combat was still meh...but digital devil saga 2 has some of my favorite jrpg combat systems...just not feasible to pick one, or two...or three this year.

Special Mention

This is where "stuff not on the list that I played this year" comes in.

Had a blast playing 100+ hours in monster hunter sunbreak on pc. Runs very smooth, no real technical issues. The expansion  is loaded with content and nice features for most weapons. If capcom does one thing right it's monster hunter.

No Man's Sky keeps getting updated, so I sunk ~50 hours getting stuck in on the pc version.

DNF Duel I only played for ~17 hours, but in that time I probably sunk in more ranked matches than any other fighting game I've played. Very easy to get into, very good netcode when I played it, very fun.

Guilty Gear strive took up more time from me when they announced Bridget at EVO this year. Really fun character, not gonna replace Nagoriyuki for me but I'll play both. Then there was a hot topic in the fighting game scene about hitboxes, and I was hype from all the good matches...so I made a hitbox. They're a lot harder to use than I expected, but it's a fun thing to mess around with.



Mount and Blade 2 finally came out 10 years and 1 month after it was announced...and it's...pretty good. Unfortunately the issues I had with warband with the "end game" where you are trying to take over the map...still the same. It is slightly better, your allies actually tend to help now...but it's far from ideal. Plus the crafting system in this game "NEEDS" mods to be anywhere near enjoyable to engage with, and I don't really like relying on mods to make a game nice to play. It's a good time, but still needs a lot of polish.

Favorite Game/GOTY 2022

Trials of Mana

Got the game on switch few years ago. Booted it up on a whim earlier this year, thought the combat was meh...then beat the game. Immediately went to NG+ and beat it again got all 99 characters best gear, post game done, yadda yadda. I think I made a claim that I quote

Give this game a shot, it's a bonafied classic in my book. I put this in that list of "greatest rpgs I've ever played" Many pros, very few cons.

Then thinking about what my goty would be, and it's the time for sales, I snagged the game on pc...then beat it 3 more times, and...uhh...got all the acheivements in the game. I don't even care much for acheivements, and steam acheivements carry less meaning to me for some reason than xbox/playstation ones. Still, I beat this game 5 times this year, did everything there is to do...and I kinda wanna play it again. Iunno what kinda drugs they put in the code for that game, but beating the game 5 times to me means it ain't a fluke I am putting it as my favorite game out of ALL the damn games I played this year.




1- earthbound
2- monster hunter world
3- smt nocturne
4- smt 4
5- south park fractured but whole
6- xcom terror from the deep
7- persona 5
8- deus ex mankind divided
9- metroid: samus returns
10- dragon quest xi
11- smt 4 apocalypse
12- advance wars 2
13- disgaea 5
14. Front Mission 4
15. Paper Mario TTYD
16. Luigis Mansion
17. Zelda Wind Waker
18. Rebel Galaxy
19. Persona Q
20. Eternal Darkness
21. Dragon Quest
22. Strange Journey Redux
23. Shining Force Sword of Hajya
24. Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night
25. Doom (2016)
26. Metroid Prime
27. Plants vs Zombies
28. Disgaea 1 Complete
29. Links Awakening Remake
30. Pokemon Shield
31. Dragon Quest 2
32. Dragon Quest Builders 2
33. SteamWorld Dig
34. Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil Saga
35. Advance Wars Days of Ruin
36. XCOM Chimera Squad
37. Fallout New Vegas
38. Phantasy Star (Sega Ages)
39. Advance Wars Dual Strike
40. Cyberpunk 2077
41. The Outer Worlds
42. Dragon Quest VI
43. Doom Eternal
44. Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order
45. Monster Hunter Rise
46. Death Stranding
47. Captain Toad Treasure Tracker
48. Metroid Dread
49. Castlevania Harmony of Dissonance
50. Castlevania Aria of Sorrow
51. Zelda Breath of the Wild
52. 10000000
53. You Must Build A Boat
54. Shin Megami Tensei V
55. Into the Breach
56. The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
57. Pokémon Legends: Arceus
58. Bayonetta 2
59. Trials of Mana
60. Gran Turismo 7
61. Star Wars Episode I: Racer
62. Astro's Playroom
63. Final Fantasy VII Remake
64. Shantae
65. Shantae: Risky's Revenge
66. Shantae and the Pirates Curse
67. Shantae Half Genie Hero
68. Shantae and the Seven Sirens
69. Soul Hackers 2
70. Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil Saga 2
71. We <3 Katamari
72. Merchant of the Skies
73. The DioField Chronicle
74. Baldur's Gate Enhanced Edition
75. XCOM 2: War of the Chosen
76. Pokemon Scarlet
77. Front Mission 1st
78. CRISIS CORE –FINAL FANTASY VII– REUNION

Every year is uncertainty of what's gonna happen with the next. Think I wanna retool the goal from 10+ games/year, to...anything. This list is getting more and more close to 100, and I don't think I need to be in a rush or put more important things aside to cram more vidya down my gullet. There was a year or two where I felt forced to play stuff due to this self imposed "goal" of mine, but oddly enough not this year. If I get only 6 next year, they still add to this new meta list I have going.

I do think I play games different now that I have started this whole journey. I tend not to even start many games I know I won't finish, and most games I start I do intend to complete. Some cases like Inquisition it's just a waste of time, so ultimately I want to enjoy my time and passing on things is better than slogging through them. I do feel for me anyway, I tend to enjoy games more this way. When I play something, I know I'm going to PLAY the game.

Probably said enough to wrap this up. New thread with no self imposed goal whenever I witness credits in the next game...in 2023!

15

Gaming / Re: 2022 The Backloggening

« on: December 18, 2022, 12:47:41 AM »

23. CRISIS CORE –FINAL FANTASY VII– REUNION



So...this is a videogame. I remember it being pretty good on psp, it's...a'right I guess. It's a neat prequel to 7, but also, it's still a psp game. Literally 90% of this game is cut/paste side missions meant for the "on the go" nature of the psp. Jump in, do a few missions, get off your bus or whatever you were doing. I put ~20 hours into this game doing ~60% of the missions before tapping out and finishing the game.

Story wise...really really really cringe. I have beaten the original on psp years ago, so I am more ok to just SKIP A LOT OF CUTSCENES BECAUSE NO! I literally skipped all of the cutscenes from the "final boss point of no return", I could handle it no more. Horrible writing aside, it has a lot of plot info to get a bit less confused on obtuse parts of ff7. And uhh the ending is the same as the psp ending...which...with ff7r intergrade...NOT GONNA SPOIL ANYTHING, but there's some big fat contradictions going on, and I am very confused.

Gameplay is fun for the most part. Where I got fed up was there's 300 side missions in this game, which is a lot. 9999 hp ain't much hp when harder missions can chunk you for over 14k. I think the secret megaboss thing can hit you for 70,000 off a BLOCKED attack. Also a lot of enemies later on eat 9999 damage for breakfast...and then some eat 99999, like yknow they have 10,000,000 hp or something. It gets a bit much for me to want to deal with personally. Could be for some people, but not needed to finish the game. The optional min maxing get all the stats up gameplay is there if you want it, but I got what I wanted out of it before checking into the credits.

Music...kind of a mixed bag. The og ff7 stuff is always welcome, one of my favorite ost's across gaming. The newer crisis core tracks, especially the battle theme, not "bad" but I'm not a fan.

Graphics look pretty good. Really good actually, just, having came off ff7r...it is a downgrade. Mind you if ff7r did not exist, I would be praising this game for it's visuals, because they are very very good. However I did play ff7r on ps5, and that game is only comparable by games I can count on one hand. Unfair? maybe, but once you've seen something, you can't unsee it.

Think that covers it. Solid gameplay, mixed music, good fluff, really really really bad story, great graphics. Good game to play for ff7 fans, good game to play to understand some of the stuff less explained in ff7 like clouds origin. Actually the biggest reason to play is to understand clouds origin better in my opinion. That said, if you aren't in a rush to play the game, I'd wait for a sale or something. It's a good game but one that hasn't exactly aged the best.