Previous Years: 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
1. Tormented Souls - Switch
2. Battlefleet Gothic: Armada II - PC
3. Fantasy Empires - PC
4. Vagrant Story - PS1
5. Might and Magic 7: For Blood and Honor - PC
6. Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown - Switch
7. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III: The Manhattan Project - NES
8. Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - PS5
9. Tomb Raider Remastered - PC
10. Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth - PS5
11. Unicorn Overlord - Switch
12. Mechwarrior 5: Mercenaries: Solaris Showdown - PC
13. Princess Peach: Showtime - Switch
14. Fida Puti Samurai - PC
15. Fallout New Vegas: Dead Money - PC
16. Fallout New Vegas: Honest Hearts - PC
17. Fallout New Vegas: Old World Blues - PC
18. Wrath: Aeon of Ruin - PC
19. Fallout New Vegas: Lonesome Road - PC
20. Super Buff HD - PC
21. SaGa Emerald Beyond - Switch
22. Blasphemous 2 - Switch
23. Trepang2 - PC
24. Homeworld 3 - PC
25. Blood West - PC
26. Marathon - PC
27. Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord - PC
28. Little Kitty, Big City - PC
29. Dread Delusion - PC
30. Alan Wake 2: Night Springs - PC
31. PO'ed: Definitive Edition - PC
32. Space Cats Tactics - PC
33. Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree - PS5
34. Balatro - PC
35. Afterimage - Switch
36. The Legend of Heroes: Trails Through Daybreak - PS5
The long-running Trails series continues with Trails Through Daybreak. This is the first game of the latter half of the planned series; all the plots that first began all the way back in Trails in the Sky were wrapped up by the end of Reverie, other than the very vague and deep overall plot that's run through everything. Reverie included a scene that gave some hints as to where that plot was going, and Daybreak is the first game along that journey.
The main character is a spriggan in the Republic of Calvard. A spriggan is basically a private eye, taking on various jobs that tend to be a bit more morally grey (such as surveillance), or are otherwise unsuited for the more above-board organizations such as the police or the Bracer Guild. And this is the setup that kicks off the plot, as in through Van's door walks Agnes, a girl who is seeking relics that belonged to her great grandfather, who happens to be the man who first kick started the Orbal Revolution (think Industrial Revolution, but with magitek). What first seems to be a simple job gets more complicated, as these relics have a mysterious power and are entwined in the machinations of a nihilistic mafia group.
The game iterates on the combat system we saw in Cold Steel and Reverie. Like before, battles are turn based with free movement within the range of your move distance, so you can position yourself to catch enemies in the area of your attacks or dodge the areas of enemies. Adding to this positioning is the ability for certain crafts to get bonus damage from a side or rear attack, and an iteration on the link system of Cold Steel. Now, instead of setting up links pre-combat that causes follow up attacks and the like, here it's based entirely on proximity. If you are next to an ally when you attack, they follow up. If you use a craft or art they boost the damage. This leads to a tension of do you want to spread out to avoid aoes or cluster for all the boosts? One final component is they've adjusted how they manage preemptive attacks. Instead of a basic system of getting behind an enemy (or them getting behind you), there is now a full on real-time combat system. It's very basic; you can attack, dodge, and do a heavy attack when you build a meter. You can jump into turn based combat at any time, so it is much easier to avoid enemies when you don't want to fight them (or just do the real time to kill weak enemies faster than in turn-based mode). And real-time attacks can stun enemies; doing so and then jumping into turn-based is how you do preemptive attacks, as you get a free set of hits on enemies.
On the character growth end, they've adjusted how you slot in quartz. Now, everyone has four lines, each of which has up to four slots. All but one character has three lines of four and one line of three; the final character has four lines of four. Aside from the obvious stat boosts from slotting quartz, you gain a certain amount of elemental power; the sum of these on a line will activate various passive bonuses. The passives available are different on each line; one line provides attack bonuses, while another provides casting bonuses. Some of them have quite impressive effects, like a passive that has a chance upon casting to follow up by hitting all enemies with free damage that builds your hit counter and can delay. Meanwhile, master quartz has been replaced with a combination of a core (which provides various stat boosts when you activate a super resource) and a driver, which gives you a fixed set of spells plus a certain number of plugin slots (free slots for other spells). You have a fair amount of flexibility overall, and you have to make a lot of tradeoffs, as you can't get everything you want.
While the game ends with some unanswered questions that will undoubtedly be answered in the sequel and beyond, it doesn't have the same massive cliffhanger that Sky and Cold Steel 1 & 3 had. In that way, it's closest to Zero, though there's even less of a hint at how the events might be connected to a larger plot that feeds into the series-wide plot. I'd also point out that this game is full of returning characters and callbacks to previous games; you will be utterly lost if you come in as a new player. So if you're interested, buckle down and start at the beginning.
Games Beaten 2024
Re: Games Beaten 2024
Blizzard Entertainment Software Developer - All comments and views are my own and not representative of the company.
-
PartridgeSenpai
- Next-Gen
- Posts: 3072
- Joined: Mon Dec 14, 2015 9:27 am
- Location: Northern Japan
Re: Games Beaten 2024
Partridge Senpai's 2024 Beaten Games:
Previously: 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
* indicates a repeat
1~50
51. Adventures of Lolo (Famicom)
52. Adventures of Lolo 2 (NES)
53. Adventures of Lolo II (Famicom)
54. Adventures of Lolo 3 (NES)
55. Kickle Cubicle (NES)
56. Adventures of Lolo (GB)
57. Cocoron (Famicom)
58. The Darkness (PS3)
59. Haze (PS3)
60. Animaniacs (GB)
61. Lair (PS3)
62. Bionic Commando (PS3)
63. Donkey Kong Land (GB)
64. Darkwing Duck (NES)
65. Donkey Kong Land III (GBC)
66. Donkey Kong Land 2 (GB)
67. Metroid II (GB) *
68. Pokemon: Brilliant Diamond (Switch)
69. Eggerland (FDS)
70. Eggerland: Meikyuu no Fukkatsu (Famicom)
71. Eggerland: Souzou he no Tabidachi (FDS)
72. Marvelous: Mouhitotsu no Takarajima (SFC)
73. Legendary Starfy (GBA) *
74. Legendary Starfy 2 (GBA)
75. Tales of the Abyss (PS2) *
While this is indeed a game I've beaten before, it's been a veeeeery long time since I did. I last played this on my 3DS around the time it came out more than a decade ago. I remember quite liking it, but it'd be a few more years before I'd play any more Tales games and start really getting hooked on the series. Flash forward to a few weeks back, and I just suddenly felt like playing another Tales game. As it so happens, my wife has been meaning to play through this game for quite some time too, so as we did with the Ace Attorney games, we decided to play through this side by side (me on my PS2, and her on her 3DS). According to my Activity Log app, it took me around 52 or so hours to play through the game in English back on my 3DS all those years ago. I'm not exactly sure why, as I don't feel like I dicked about with side content or got lost THAT much (maybe it had to do with watching nearly 400 of the game's nearly 500 skits? <w>), it took me some 82-ish hours to finish the Japanese version of the game on real hardware.
Tales of the Abyss (which does have an actual Abyss!) is the story of Luke fone Fabre. A young man of 17, he's lived the past seven years of his life effectively under house arrest in his family's mansion in the kingdom's capital, and the only things he has to look forward to are hanging out with his servant Guy and training under his sword master Van. However, on the day that Van unexpectedly stops by to leave for a sudden trip, a mysterious woman, Tear, infiltrates the mansion and tries to assassinate Van. Jumping to his master's defense, a strange explosion occurs when Tear's weapon strike's Luke's, and they're both suddenly blown away to some far off land. Deciding that they'll need to trust each other if they ever want to get back, Luke and Tear set off on the start of what will be a very long journey.
Tales of the Abyss is easily the most popular and well remembered Tales game in Japan largely for its narrative, and it's honestly not hard to see why. It's also not hard to see why I enjoyed this game so much when I played it when I was younger, but goodness, I really couldn't appreciate just how good this game was back then. It's a long narrative, sure, but it's a damn well paced and executed one. We've got a small cast, and in grand Tales tradition (of the well written ones at least), their respective arcs are excellently woven through the story rather than being segregated off into missable side content. This is a really powerful story about what it means to be alive and be yourself, about the struggles and importance of thinking for yourself in the face of adversity instead of just following others, and about living with what you've done (both good and bad, but especially bad). There had been some well written (and not so well written) Tales games before this, but this really is the first one where they REALLY get nail down the narrative design. The PS2 is no stranger to very well written games, but god damn, this is easily among the best of the best, no question about it.
Mechanically, this game is built upon the Tales of Symphonia engine (and certainly feels like it), but it's a fairly major improvement on those systems. Much like in Symphonia, you're operating in a 3D battle space instead of a 2D one as in older Tales games, and you've got normal attacks and artes you can combo together to fight enemies, you can issue commands to allies (and adjust their normal AI behaviors for more optimal auto play), and the stuff anyone familiar with the series is likely very used to by now. However, the biggest improvement from Symphonia is that we FINALLY have the ability to free run. No longer will you suffer stuck against a wall because every entity but you can free run whenever they want! XD. Skills have also been reworked since Symphonia, and they're (thank goodness) no longer tied to consumable items and you just get them as you level up now. They're not quite as polished as some later games where you can only have so many equipped at a time, but this is such a massive improvement over how things used to be that it's hard to complain too much. Playing as Luke is fun, though the combat definitely isn't as polished as it'd be over the next several console titles. Regardless, as with the skills system, combat overall is done very well and is very well balanced through the game. I came quite close a time or two, but I never ended up getting a game over, and bosses always felt like a good challenge for where I was at in the game. It's not the best playing Tales game out there, sure, but it's a very highly needed improvement over where we'd been, and a good stepping stone towards where we were going~.
Aesthetically, the game is very very nice looking, at least when compared to Symphonia. Characters have a lot more detail as do environments and enemies, and it's honestly SO much better you'd almost think we'd jumped a console generation in the meanwhile. *That said*, all of those better graphics do come at a cost. The game very frequently REALLY chugs on the overworld, especially if you're turning the camera while you're moving. It's never something that affects gameplay to a significant degree or anything, but it definitely makes traversing the overworld slower. I imagine the reason it often feels like the overworld takes so long to navigate, even in the plane, is because your movement speed is reduced to just let the game load fast enough XD. That extends on to loading times as well. They're far from the worst thing ever, but there is no shortage of like, 5~10 second loading screens between areas, and I reckon a not insignificant amount of that 30 hour difference between my original playthrough and this one is just far more loading times. If there was any reason to play the 3DS version over this one, it'd be the less bad loading times for sure. The music is very good though as is the voice acting, and its overall really what you'd expect from a Tales game by this point in the series.
Verdict: Highly Recommended. The PS2 is no stranger to excellent RPGs, but this is easily one of the best of them, hands down. Great fun to play and one of the best narratives in the series (in a series that's no stranger to excellent writing), this game holds up incredibly, and it's no longer any surprise to me why it's got the cultural cache it does here in Japan. If you're a fan of Tales games or just RPGs in general, this is an absolute must play, because they frankly don't get much better than this (especially for the time).
Previously: 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
* indicates a repeat
1~50
52. Adventures of Lolo 2 (NES)
53. Adventures of Lolo II (Famicom)
54. Adventures of Lolo 3 (NES)
55. Kickle Cubicle (NES)
56. Adventures of Lolo (GB)
57. Cocoron (Famicom)
58. The Darkness (PS3)
59. Haze (PS3)
60. Animaniacs (GB)
61. Lair (PS3)
62. Bionic Commando (PS3)
63. Donkey Kong Land (GB)
64. Darkwing Duck (NES)
65. Donkey Kong Land III (GBC)
66. Donkey Kong Land 2 (GB)
67. Metroid II (GB) *
68. Pokemon: Brilliant Diamond (Switch)
69. Eggerland (FDS)
70. Eggerland: Meikyuu no Fukkatsu (Famicom)
71. Eggerland: Souzou he no Tabidachi (FDS)
72. Marvelous: Mouhitotsu no Takarajima (SFC)
73. Legendary Starfy (GBA) *
74. Legendary Starfy 2 (GBA)
75. Tales of the Abyss (PS2) *
While this is indeed a game I've beaten before, it's been a veeeeery long time since I did. I last played this on my 3DS around the time it came out more than a decade ago. I remember quite liking it, but it'd be a few more years before I'd play any more Tales games and start really getting hooked on the series. Flash forward to a few weeks back, and I just suddenly felt like playing another Tales game. As it so happens, my wife has been meaning to play through this game for quite some time too, so as we did with the Ace Attorney games, we decided to play through this side by side (me on my PS2, and her on her 3DS). According to my Activity Log app, it took me around 52 or so hours to play through the game in English back on my 3DS all those years ago. I'm not exactly sure why, as I don't feel like I dicked about with side content or got lost THAT much (maybe it had to do with watching nearly 400 of the game's nearly 500 skits? <w>), it took me some 82-ish hours to finish the Japanese version of the game on real hardware.
Tales of the Abyss (which does have an actual Abyss!) is the story of Luke fone Fabre. A young man of 17, he's lived the past seven years of his life effectively under house arrest in his family's mansion in the kingdom's capital, and the only things he has to look forward to are hanging out with his servant Guy and training under his sword master Van. However, on the day that Van unexpectedly stops by to leave for a sudden trip, a mysterious woman, Tear, infiltrates the mansion and tries to assassinate Van. Jumping to his master's defense, a strange explosion occurs when Tear's weapon strike's Luke's, and they're both suddenly blown away to some far off land. Deciding that they'll need to trust each other if they ever want to get back, Luke and Tear set off on the start of what will be a very long journey.
Tales of the Abyss is easily the most popular and well remembered Tales game in Japan largely for its narrative, and it's honestly not hard to see why. It's also not hard to see why I enjoyed this game so much when I played it when I was younger, but goodness, I really couldn't appreciate just how good this game was back then. It's a long narrative, sure, but it's a damn well paced and executed one. We've got a small cast, and in grand Tales tradition (of the well written ones at least), their respective arcs are excellently woven through the story rather than being segregated off into missable side content. This is a really powerful story about what it means to be alive and be yourself, about the struggles and importance of thinking for yourself in the face of adversity instead of just following others, and about living with what you've done (both good and bad, but especially bad). There had been some well written (and not so well written) Tales games before this, but this really is the first one where they REALLY get nail down the narrative design. The PS2 is no stranger to very well written games, but god damn, this is easily among the best of the best, no question about it.
Mechanically, this game is built upon the Tales of Symphonia engine (and certainly feels like it), but it's a fairly major improvement on those systems. Much like in Symphonia, you're operating in a 3D battle space instead of a 2D one as in older Tales games, and you've got normal attacks and artes you can combo together to fight enemies, you can issue commands to allies (and adjust their normal AI behaviors for more optimal auto play), and the stuff anyone familiar with the series is likely very used to by now. However, the biggest improvement from Symphonia is that we FINALLY have the ability to free run. No longer will you suffer stuck against a wall because every entity but you can free run whenever they want! XD. Skills have also been reworked since Symphonia, and they're (thank goodness) no longer tied to consumable items and you just get them as you level up now. They're not quite as polished as some later games where you can only have so many equipped at a time, but this is such a massive improvement over how things used to be that it's hard to complain too much. Playing as Luke is fun, though the combat definitely isn't as polished as it'd be over the next several console titles. Regardless, as with the skills system, combat overall is done very well and is very well balanced through the game. I came quite close a time or two, but I never ended up getting a game over, and bosses always felt like a good challenge for where I was at in the game. It's not the best playing Tales game out there, sure, but it's a very highly needed improvement over where we'd been, and a good stepping stone towards where we were going~.
Aesthetically, the game is very very nice looking, at least when compared to Symphonia. Characters have a lot more detail as do environments and enemies, and it's honestly SO much better you'd almost think we'd jumped a console generation in the meanwhile. *That said*, all of those better graphics do come at a cost. The game very frequently REALLY chugs on the overworld, especially if you're turning the camera while you're moving. It's never something that affects gameplay to a significant degree or anything, but it definitely makes traversing the overworld slower. I imagine the reason it often feels like the overworld takes so long to navigate, even in the plane, is because your movement speed is reduced to just let the game load fast enough XD. That extends on to loading times as well. They're far from the worst thing ever, but there is no shortage of like, 5~10 second loading screens between areas, and I reckon a not insignificant amount of that 30 hour difference between my original playthrough and this one is just far more loading times. If there was any reason to play the 3DS version over this one, it'd be the less bad loading times for sure. The music is very good though as is the voice acting, and its overall really what you'd expect from a Tales game by this point in the series.
Verdict: Highly Recommended. The PS2 is no stranger to excellent RPGs, but this is easily one of the best of them, hands down. Great fun to play and one of the best narratives in the series (in a series that's no stranger to excellent writing), this game holds up incredibly, and it's no longer any surprise to me why it's got the cultural cache it does here in Japan. If you're a fan of Tales games or just RPGs in general, this is an absolute must play, because they frankly don't get much better than this (especially for the time).
Last edited by PartridgeSenpai on Sun Aug 04, 2024 6:04 pm, edited 1 time in total.
I identify everyone via avatar, so if you change your avatar, I genuinely might completely forget who you are. -- Me
-
Markies
- Next-Gen
- Posts: 1522
- Joined: Fri Mar 27, 2015 4:29 pm
- Location: St. Louis, Missouri
- Contact:
Re: Games Beaten 2024
Markies' Games Beat List Of 2024!
***Denotes Replay For Completion***
1. Mario Kart Wii (Wii)
2. Jackal (NES)
***3. Evolution: The World Of Sacred Device (SDC)***
4. Skies Of Arcadia Legends (GCN)
5. Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando (PS2)
6. Sunset Riders (GEN)
***7. Tactics Ogre (PS1)***
***8. Forza Motorsport (XBOX)***
9. Riviera: The Promised Land (GBA)
***10. Darkstalkers (PS1)***
***11. Splatoon (WiiU)***
12. Eiyuden Chronicle: Rising (NSW)
***13. Dusty Diamond's All-Star Softball (NES)***
14. 3D Dot Game Heroes (PS3)
***15. Puzzle Kingdoms (Wii)***
16. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Fall Of The Foot Clan (GB)
17. Steel Empire (GEN)
***18. Super Mario Strikers (GCN)***
19. Evolution 2: Far Off Promise (SDC)
20. The King Of Fighters '95 (PS1)
21. Disgaea 3: Absence Of Justice (PS3)
22. Jade Empire: Limited Edition (XBOX)
23. The Magical Quest Starring Mickey Mouse (SNES)
24. Super Smash Bros. For WiiU (WiiU)
***25. Final Fantasy X-2 (PS2)***
***26. Ducktales 2 (NES)***
27. Uncharted: Drake's Fortune (PS3)
28. Super Paper Mario (Wii)
I beat Super Paper Mario on the Nintendo Wii this afternoon!
The first two Paper Mario Games are some of my favorite games of all time. In fact, Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door was the #1 Game I beat in 2016. So, when Super Paper Mario ditched the turn-based battles, I was incredibly hesitant. However, I remember people and a friend telling me that it is not as bad and that I should give it a try. Well, in 2022, I was at my local retro convention and I saw a very nice copy for sale. Since it wasn't too expensive, I decided to give it a try. Earlier this year, I was looking for a Wii game to play and everything seemed either too long or too hard, so I decided that Super Paper Mario would fit nicely as it didn't seem like either. Thankfully, I was right.
Super Paper Mario is still a RPG, but it is now an Action-RPG. You gain experience by killing enemies, but the battles are no longer turn based. Its like a regular Mario game with running and jumping. Honestly, this took a bit to get used to. But, after a while, I kind of just removed the Paper History and treated the game like a whole new series. Once that happened, the game became much easier. One of the main gimmicks is that you can switch between 2D and 3D. Its used for solving puzzles and finding your way around, but its also not a huge aspect and kind of falls apart near the end. Its an interesting idea, but I don't know if it works well in the Paper aesthetic. Also, the game is quite forgiving which I really enjoyed. You have plenty of healing items and save points throughout your journey and no area is really that terrible. Besides the game play, the story takes up the majority of the game. It is good writing and can be quite clever at times.
However, the dialogue does go on forever. For example, I beat the game in less than 20 hours and I would say listening and watching the dialogue probably made up over 5 hours of the games. And its just loud scrolling text, so it begins to wane on you especially in long play sessions. Also, the game play can be kind of one note with only one stage in space that really changed things up.
Overall, I still really enjoyed Super Paper Mario. Obviously, it is nowhere close to the two original Paper Mario games. However, if you remove the lineage, the game is fine enough to stand on its own. Nothing groundbreaking, but if you are looking for a short and rather simple action RPG, this isn't bad. A fun time for a simple game!
***Denotes Replay For Completion***
1. Mario Kart Wii (Wii)
2. Jackal (NES)
***3. Evolution: The World Of Sacred Device (SDC)***
4. Skies Of Arcadia Legends (GCN)
5. Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando (PS2)
6. Sunset Riders (GEN)
***7. Tactics Ogre (PS1)***
***8. Forza Motorsport (XBOX)***
9. Riviera: The Promised Land (GBA)
***10. Darkstalkers (PS1)***
***11. Splatoon (WiiU)***
12. Eiyuden Chronicle: Rising (NSW)
***13. Dusty Diamond's All-Star Softball (NES)***
14. 3D Dot Game Heroes (PS3)
***15. Puzzle Kingdoms (Wii)***
16. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Fall Of The Foot Clan (GB)
17. Steel Empire (GEN)
***18. Super Mario Strikers (GCN)***
19. Evolution 2: Far Off Promise (SDC)
20. The King Of Fighters '95 (PS1)
21. Disgaea 3: Absence Of Justice (PS3)
22. Jade Empire: Limited Edition (XBOX)
23. The Magical Quest Starring Mickey Mouse (SNES)
24. Super Smash Bros. For WiiU (WiiU)
***25. Final Fantasy X-2 (PS2)***
***26. Ducktales 2 (NES)***
27. Uncharted: Drake's Fortune (PS3)
28. Super Paper Mario (Wii)
I beat Super Paper Mario on the Nintendo Wii this afternoon!
The first two Paper Mario Games are some of my favorite games of all time. In fact, Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door was the #1 Game I beat in 2016. So, when Super Paper Mario ditched the turn-based battles, I was incredibly hesitant. However, I remember people and a friend telling me that it is not as bad and that I should give it a try. Well, in 2022, I was at my local retro convention and I saw a very nice copy for sale. Since it wasn't too expensive, I decided to give it a try. Earlier this year, I was looking for a Wii game to play and everything seemed either too long or too hard, so I decided that Super Paper Mario would fit nicely as it didn't seem like either. Thankfully, I was right.
Super Paper Mario is still a RPG, but it is now an Action-RPG. You gain experience by killing enemies, but the battles are no longer turn based. Its like a regular Mario game with running and jumping. Honestly, this took a bit to get used to. But, after a while, I kind of just removed the Paper History and treated the game like a whole new series. Once that happened, the game became much easier. One of the main gimmicks is that you can switch between 2D and 3D. Its used for solving puzzles and finding your way around, but its also not a huge aspect and kind of falls apart near the end. Its an interesting idea, but I don't know if it works well in the Paper aesthetic. Also, the game is quite forgiving which I really enjoyed. You have plenty of healing items and save points throughout your journey and no area is really that terrible. Besides the game play, the story takes up the majority of the game. It is good writing and can be quite clever at times.
However, the dialogue does go on forever. For example, I beat the game in less than 20 hours and I would say listening and watching the dialogue probably made up over 5 hours of the games. And its just loud scrolling text, so it begins to wane on you especially in long play sessions. Also, the game play can be kind of one note with only one stage in space that really changed things up.
Overall, I still really enjoyed Super Paper Mario. Obviously, it is nowhere close to the two original Paper Mario games. However, if you remove the lineage, the game is fine enough to stand on its own. Nothing groundbreaking, but if you are looking for a short and rather simple action RPG, this isn't bad. A fun time for a simple game!
Re: Games Beaten 2024
Previous Years: 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
1. Tormented Souls - Switch
2. Battlefleet Gothic: Armada II - PC
3. Fantasy Empires - PC
4. Vagrant Story - PS1
5. Might and Magic 7: For Blood and Honor - PC
6. Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown - Switch
7. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III: The Manhattan Project - NES
8. Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - PS5
9. Tomb Raider Remastered - PC
10. Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth - PS5
11. Unicorn Overlord - Switch
12. Mechwarrior 5: Mercenaries: Solaris Showdown - PC
13. Princess Peach: Showtime - Switch
14. Fida Puti Samurai - PC
15. Fallout New Vegas: Dead Money - PC
16. Fallout New Vegas: Honest Hearts - PC
17. Fallout New Vegas: Old World Blues - PC
18. Wrath: Aeon of Ruin - PC
19. Fallout New Vegas: Lonesome Road - PC
20. Super Buff HD - PC
21. SaGa Emerald Beyond - Switch
22. Blasphemous 2 - Switch
23. Trepang2 - PC
24. Homeworld 3 - PC
25. Blood West - PC
26. Marathon - PC
27. Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord - PC
28. Little Kitty, Big City - PC
29. Dread Delusion - PC
30. Alan Wake 2: Night Springs - PC
31. PO'ed: Definitive Edition - PC
32. Space Cats Tactics - PC
33. Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree - PS5
34. Balatro - PC
35. Afterimage - Switch
36. The Legend of Heroes: Trails Through Daybreak - PS5
37. Lords of Exile - Switch
Lords of Exile is a Castlevania-inspired platformer that adds in a bit of quality of life and some additional features to spice up your options. The story is straight excuse plot, so I won't even bother recounting it, other than to mention it's set in feudal Japan for an aesthetic.
The game is divided into eight stages, each one having its own theme. You start off with just a sword, but you'll quickly pick up subweapons. These are ammo-based and can be replenished with picking up another of the same or through a generic refill power up (though the generic one only gives you half the amount a bespoke one does). There are four; a knife and a scythe that act like Caslevania's knife and axe, a double scythe that auto-targets in an area around you and is amazing for getting through stages, and a bomb that does huge damage but also takes three ammo per throw.
In terms of the rest of your kit, you start with a slide (faster than walking) and a ground pound to break through blocks (and deal significant damage to anything you land on). As you beat bosses your kit expands. You'll pick up a double jump and an enhancement to your ground pound, among other passives. There are also two enhancements gained mid-stage; one is used to destroy certain blocks in your way, the other lets you grapple onto distant poles to shoot yourself across a gap. Neither of these is really useable in combat. One notable thing is that even though the game generally feels like it has Castlevania physics, you do have a tiny bit of air control. Basically, just enough that if you're up against a ledge, jump, and then hold forward, you'll land on top of the ledge.
The bosses are pretty well done; they all have a very comprehensible pattern that can be learned with a couple of attempts, leaving it to you to properly execute against them. Don't get sloppy and you'll make it through them. Fortunately, the game has infinite lives and a checkpoint every screen transition, so there is a minimum of old school frustration.
Upon beating the game you unlock a second character who acts as the easy mode. Now you're playing Ninja Gaiden in a Castlevania game, as you jump higher, move faster, and your basic attack is ranged. It's not necessarily worth a second playthrough, but it is fun to take into the boss rush you also unlocked so you can see just how much easier they get with the better kit. All in all, a solid retro throwback title.
1. Tormented Souls - Switch
2. Battlefleet Gothic: Armada II - PC
3. Fantasy Empires - PC
4. Vagrant Story - PS1
5. Might and Magic 7: For Blood and Honor - PC
6. Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown - Switch
7. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III: The Manhattan Project - NES
8. Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - PS5
9. Tomb Raider Remastered - PC
10. Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth - PS5
11. Unicorn Overlord - Switch
12. Mechwarrior 5: Mercenaries: Solaris Showdown - PC
13. Princess Peach: Showtime - Switch
14. Fida Puti Samurai - PC
15. Fallout New Vegas: Dead Money - PC
16. Fallout New Vegas: Honest Hearts - PC
17. Fallout New Vegas: Old World Blues - PC
18. Wrath: Aeon of Ruin - PC
19. Fallout New Vegas: Lonesome Road - PC
20. Super Buff HD - PC
21. SaGa Emerald Beyond - Switch
22. Blasphemous 2 - Switch
23. Trepang2 - PC
24. Homeworld 3 - PC
25. Blood West - PC
26. Marathon - PC
27. Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord - PC
28. Little Kitty, Big City - PC
29. Dread Delusion - PC
30. Alan Wake 2: Night Springs - PC
31. PO'ed: Definitive Edition - PC
32. Space Cats Tactics - PC
33. Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree - PS5
34. Balatro - PC
35. Afterimage - Switch
36. The Legend of Heroes: Trails Through Daybreak - PS5
37. Lords of Exile - Switch
Lords of Exile is a Castlevania-inspired platformer that adds in a bit of quality of life and some additional features to spice up your options. The story is straight excuse plot, so I won't even bother recounting it, other than to mention it's set in feudal Japan for an aesthetic.
The game is divided into eight stages, each one having its own theme. You start off with just a sword, but you'll quickly pick up subweapons. These are ammo-based and can be replenished with picking up another of the same or through a generic refill power up (though the generic one only gives you half the amount a bespoke one does). There are four; a knife and a scythe that act like Caslevania's knife and axe, a double scythe that auto-targets in an area around you and is amazing for getting through stages, and a bomb that does huge damage but also takes three ammo per throw.
In terms of the rest of your kit, you start with a slide (faster than walking) and a ground pound to break through blocks (and deal significant damage to anything you land on). As you beat bosses your kit expands. You'll pick up a double jump and an enhancement to your ground pound, among other passives. There are also two enhancements gained mid-stage; one is used to destroy certain blocks in your way, the other lets you grapple onto distant poles to shoot yourself across a gap. Neither of these is really useable in combat. One notable thing is that even though the game generally feels like it has Castlevania physics, you do have a tiny bit of air control. Basically, just enough that if you're up against a ledge, jump, and then hold forward, you'll land on top of the ledge.
The bosses are pretty well done; they all have a very comprehensible pattern that can be learned with a couple of attempts, leaving it to you to properly execute against them. Don't get sloppy and you'll make it through them. Fortunately, the game has infinite lives and a checkpoint every screen transition, so there is a minimum of old school frustration.
Upon beating the game you unlock a second character who acts as the easy mode. Now you're playing Ninja Gaiden in a Castlevania game, as you jump higher, move faster, and your basic attack is ranged. It's not necessarily worth a second playthrough, but it is fun to take into the boss rush you also unlocked so you can see just how much easier they get with the better kit. All in all, a solid retro throwback title.
Blizzard Entertainment Software Developer - All comments and views are my own and not representative of the company.
-
RobertAugustdeMeijer
- 24-bit
- Posts: 199
- Joined: Fri Sep 02, 2022 10:15 am
Re: Games Beaten 2024
First 30:
31: Xenosphere
Fascinating concept, taken to its limit. Yes, you actually play as a Twitch streamer. Great job on the acting, and doesn't overstay its welcome. It's a one-trick pony you gotta experience.
7/10
32: Paranormasight
Highly produced visual novel, with good writing and excellent plot. The occasional puzzle requires you to follow the plot and figure out the crime, which is worth paying attention to in detail.
7/10
33: Halo 3
I hear the multiplayer was great for console players, but did it have anything that wasn't already in Quake/Unreal on PC? Anyhow, the campaign is dumb and brisk. The new weapons make it ever so slightly more fun that the first two, which isn't saying much.
5/10
34: Persona 5
Characters, plot, music, interface, and snappy combat are better than ever. Should have gone deeper with its sex-positive attitude. Ultimately, the real challenge is figuring out your schedule, which makes 'time off' surprisingly stressful!
8/10
35: Super Mario Wonder
Still lacking behind romhacks in creativity and controls, it's nevertheless everything you could hope for from a commercial product. Best part is helping other in online mode.
8/10
Fascinating concept, taken to its limit. Yes, you actually play as a Twitch streamer. Great job on the acting, and doesn't overstay its welcome. It's a one-trick pony you gotta experience.
7/10
32: Paranormasight
Highly produced visual novel, with good writing and excellent plot. The occasional puzzle requires you to follow the plot and figure out the crime, which is worth paying attention to in detail.
7/10
33: Halo 3
I hear the multiplayer was great for console players, but did it have anything that wasn't already in Quake/Unreal on PC? Anyhow, the campaign is dumb and brisk. The new weapons make it ever so slightly more fun that the first two, which isn't saying much.
5/10
34: Persona 5
Characters, plot, music, interface, and snappy combat are better than ever. Should have gone deeper with its sex-positive attitude. Ultimately, the real challenge is figuring out your schedule, which makes 'time off' surprisingly stressful!
8/10
35: Super Mario Wonder
Still lacking behind romhacks in creativity and controls, it's nevertheless everything you could hope for from a commercial product. Best part is helping other in online mode.
8/10
-
RobertAugustdeMeijer
- 24-bit
- Posts: 199
- Joined: Fri Sep 02, 2022 10:15 am
Re: Games Beaten 2024
I just wanted to give an extra shout out to Mr. Popo, for reviewing all those new games! Really appreciated!
Re: Games Beaten 2024
1. Live A Live (RPG)(Switch)
2. Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion (Action)(Switch)
3. Pathway (Strategy [Tactics])(PC)
4. Rewind or Die (Horror Adventure)(PC)
5. Tomb Raider (Action Adventure)(PC)
6. Remnant: From the Ashes (Action RPG)(PC)
7. House Flipper (Simulation)(PC)
8. Might and Magic VII: For Blood and Honor (RPG)(PC)
9. Wild West and Wizards (FPS/RPG)(PC)
10. SPRAWL (FPS)(PC)
11. Lunacid (RPG)(PC)
12. PowerWash Simulator: SpongeBob SquarePants (FPS)(PC)
13. PowerWash Simulator: Warhammer 40,000 (FPS)(PC)
14. PowerWash Simulator: Back to the Future (FPS)(PC)
15. Marathon (FPS)(PC)
16. Star Trek: Voyager - Elite Force (FPS)(PC)
17. Rome: Total War (Strategy)(PC)
18. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (FPS)(PC)
19. Thief II (Stealth)(PC)
20. Jydge (Top-Down Shooter)(PC)
21. Command & Conquer (RTS)(PC)
22. Iron Lung (Horror Adventure)(PC)
23. Scorn (FPS)(PC)
24. Killer Frequency (Survival Horror)(PC)
25. Intravenous (Top-Down Shooter)(PC)
26. Outlast (Survival Horror)(PC)
27. Metal Wolf Chaos XD (Action)(PC)
Metal Wolf Chaos has been one of those games that fascinated me ever since I heard about its Japan-only release in 2004 on the Xbox. This is in part because it was a Japan-only release on the original Xbox (that eventually saw a US release on modern consoles and PC in 2019), partly because it is a fast moving mech game, but if I'm honest, most of it came from the utterly ridiculous plot: the Vice President (in a mech) launches a coup, so the President of the United States of America has to suit up in his own mech to take back America, starting from the west coast and making his way east, area by area. Levels include Alcatraz, the Grand Canyon, Chicago, Houston, Liberty Island, Las Vegas, and even a big finale on a space station in which the President uses a piece of space trash and rides it like a surfboard into the Earth's atmosphere. And all of it is done with utterly ridiculous voice acting of blatantly Japanese translations which make no sense being uttered by Americans. The plot of this game is AMAZING.
And the gameplay isn't bad either. You're fast, you get a large loadout of weapons that work based on your game style (up to 8 depending on your weapon selections), you're mobile, and there is a lot of destructibility incorporated in the levels. Viable tactics do include blowing up the platforms or bridges enemies are standing on, so why not pull out your bazooka and blast away? Level design is also varied, with some being timed, some being simply "Destroy the Targets", some boss battles, and so forth. Each level feels unique, and that's good, because you'll also be replaying them a lot; Metal Wolf Chaos offers a ton of replayability, with unlockable weapons and mech color schemes, alternate difficulties, score ratings to go for, collectable health boosts and hostages to rescue, and even secret UFOs to find.
Are there downsides? Sure. The PC controls for the XD release take a little getting used to with your mobility, so jumping into a ground slam versus mid-air shifting versus flying can throw me, and weapon swaps involve a system of scrolling through which took me a bit to feel comfortable with. And with such variance of the levels, there are certain to be some you dislike. I loathe the Chicago level, and I'm happy to say I never have to play Las Vegas again. But my gripes here are miniscule compared to how much fun I'm having, so by no means does this take away from my experience.
I'm having a blast with this game. And I still have more to do with it, which keeps me excited to play it.
2. Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion (Action)(Switch)
3. Pathway (Strategy [Tactics])(PC)
4. Rewind or Die (Horror Adventure)(PC)
5. Tomb Raider (Action Adventure)(PC)
6. Remnant: From the Ashes (Action RPG)(PC)
7. House Flipper (Simulation)(PC)
8. Might and Magic VII: For Blood and Honor (RPG)(PC)
9. Wild West and Wizards (FPS/RPG)(PC)
10. SPRAWL (FPS)(PC)
11. Lunacid (RPG)(PC)
12. PowerWash Simulator: SpongeBob SquarePants (FPS)(PC)
13. PowerWash Simulator: Warhammer 40,000 (FPS)(PC)
14. PowerWash Simulator: Back to the Future (FPS)(PC)
15. Marathon (FPS)(PC)
16. Star Trek: Voyager - Elite Force (FPS)(PC)
17. Rome: Total War (Strategy)(PC)
18. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (FPS)(PC)
19. Thief II (Stealth)(PC)
20. Jydge (Top-Down Shooter)(PC)
21. Command & Conquer (RTS)(PC)
22. Iron Lung (Horror Adventure)(PC)
23. Scorn (FPS)(PC)
24. Killer Frequency (Survival Horror)(PC)
25. Intravenous (Top-Down Shooter)(PC)
26. Outlast (Survival Horror)(PC)
27. Metal Wolf Chaos XD (Action)(PC)
Metal Wolf Chaos has been one of those games that fascinated me ever since I heard about its Japan-only release in 2004 on the Xbox. This is in part because it was a Japan-only release on the original Xbox (that eventually saw a US release on modern consoles and PC in 2019), partly because it is a fast moving mech game, but if I'm honest, most of it came from the utterly ridiculous plot: the Vice President (in a mech) launches a coup, so the President of the United States of America has to suit up in his own mech to take back America, starting from the west coast and making his way east, area by area. Levels include Alcatraz, the Grand Canyon, Chicago, Houston, Liberty Island, Las Vegas, and even a big finale on a space station in which the President uses a piece of space trash and rides it like a surfboard into the Earth's atmosphere. And all of it is done with utterly ridiculous voice acting of blatantly Japanese translations which make no sense being uttered by Americans. The plot of this game is AMAZING.
And the gameplay isn't bad either. You're fast, you get a large loadout of weapons that work based on your game style (up to 8 depending on your weapon selections), you're mobile, and there is a lot of destructibility incorporated in the levels. Viable tactics do include blowing up the platforms or bridges enemies are standing on, so why not pull out your bazooka and blast away? Level design is also varied, with some being timed, some being simply "Destroy the Targets", some boss battles, and so forth. Each level feels unique, and that's good, because you'll also be replaying them a lot; Metal Wolf Chaos offers a ton of replayability, with unlockable weapons and mech color schemes, alternate difficulties, score ratings to go for, collectable health boosts and hostages to rescue, and even secret UFOs to find.
Are there downsides? Sure. The PC controls for the XD release take a little getting used to with your mobility, so jumping into a ground slam versus mid-air shifting versus flying can throw me, and weapon swaps involve a system of scrolling through which took me a bit to feel comfortable with. And with such variance of the levels, there are certain to be some you dislike. I loathe the Chicago level, and I'm happy to say I never have to play Las Vegas again. But my gripes here are miniscule compared to how much fun I'm having, so by no means does this take away from my experience.
I'm having a blast with this game. And I still have more to do with it, which keeps me excited to play it.
Re: Games Beaten 2024
1. Lufia & the Fortress of Doom (SNES)
2. OutRun 2 SP (PS2)
3. Dynamite Cop (DC)*
4. Soul Calibur (DC)*
5. Melfand Stories (SFC)
6. Lufia II: Rise of the Sinistrals (SNES)
7. Dynamite Cop (Arcade)*
8. Klonoa 2: Lunatea's Veil (PS2)
9. Kishin Douji Zenki FX: Vajra Fight (PC-FX)
10. Wild Arms (PS1)
11. The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX (GBC)
For my Summer Games Challenge I wanted to take on a Game Boy game or two that I've had for quite a while but never dedicated the time to sit down and finish. I originally received The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX for a Christmas gift and I played through a chunk of it but never beat the game back then. I was most likely distracted by the other 32-bit games I was into at the time. Anyway, with a new 3D printed GBA Gem SP courtesy of Anapan, I've been getting back into handheld gaming this past year.
Gameplay wise, Link's Awakening contains a total of eight dungeons and you'll need to collect the instrument in each of these dungeons to reach the final showdown. There is a good amount of challenges to be found here, from collecting all the seashells and heart pieces, finishing the trade sequence, beating the extra color dungeon, and collecting all the photographs. I managed to complete all these quests in the game, except for getting all the photographs. Unfortunately I missed a few in which you need an additional character with you to acquire. Also, Nintendo fans will notice an array of cameos from the company's other IPs, such as goombas, bow-wows, Yoshi dolls, and more.
In regards to the game’s controls, I thought the development team did a great job, as any weapon or item can be mapped to either A or B via the Start menu, and the world map can be brought up by Select. Somehow using all the various tools at your disposal feels pretty seamless with access to only two action buttons. The only criticism I can bring up here is in regards to the save system. For this, you have to press all four buttons, and you save at the nearest entrance/exit you walked in or out of. I found the save system to be a bit of a pain, and there are no save points in dungeons. However, you do get a warp point to the entrance after defeating a mini-boss in each dungeon.
Graphics wise, I think the DX version looks good for the handheld console and I like the look of the color upgrade in the game. I’m curious, how do other RBers feel about this? Does anyone prefer the look of the original GB release? I found the cutscenes and the photo images to be pretty impressive as well. Sound wise, there aren’t many different tunes throughout the adventure, but what is here is enjoyable. I especially liked the song that plays when Marin is singing in the Animal Village.
I also just want to take a moment to recognize the issue of Nintendo Power which covers Link’s Awakening, which is issue 50. I was lucky enough to have this issue as a kid and to this day I really enjoy the artwork used, which features the mysterious owl who serves as your guide. The illustrator did a great job here. I could even imagine this artwork being used on the US release of the game, as opposed to the use of a logo and type treatment.
Overall, I found Link’s Awakening DX to be a really fun and short adventure on the Game Boy. The developers did a great job of packing in a variety of challenges and an intuitive control scheme while working within the GameBoy’s limitations. Check this one out if you haven’t already!
2. OutRun 2 SP (PS2)
3. Dynamite Cop (DC)*
4. Soul Calibur (DC)*
5. Melfand Stories (SFC)
6. Lufia II: Rise of the Sinistrals (SNES)
7. Dynamite Cop (Arcade)*
8. Klonoa 2: Lunatea's Veil (PS2)
9. Kishin Douji Zenki FX: Vajra Fight (PC-FX)
10. Wild Arms (PS1)
11. The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX (GBC)
For my Summer Games Challenge I wanted to take on a Game Boy game or two that I've had for quite a while but never dedicated the time to sit down and finish. I originally received The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX for a Christmas gift and I played through a chunk of it but never beat the game back then. I was most likely distracted by the other 32-bit games I was into at the time. Anyway, with a new 3D printed GBA Gem SP courtesy of Anapan, I've been getting back into handheld gaming this past year.
Gameplay wise, Link's Awakening contains a total of eight dungeons and you'll need to collect the instrument in each of these dungeons to reach the final showdown. There is a good amount of challenges to be found here, from collecting all the seashells and heart pieces, finishing the trade sequence, beating the extra color dungeon, and collecting all the photographs. I managed to complete all these quests in the game, except for getting all the photographs. Unfortunately I missed a few in which you need an additional character with you to acquire. Also, Nintendo fans will notice an array of cameos from the company's other IPs, such as goombas, bow-wows, Yoshi dolls, and more.
In regards to the game’s controls, I thought the development team did a great job, as any weapon or item can be mapped to either A or B via the Start menu, and the world map can be brought up by Select. Somehow using all the various tools at your disposal feels pretty seamless with access to only two action buttons. The only criticism I can bring up here is in regards to the save system. For this, you have to press all four buttons, and you save at the nearest entrance/exit you walked in or out of. I found the save system to be a bit of a pain, and there are no save points in dungeons. However, you do get a warp point to the entrance after defeating a mini-boss in each dungeon.
Graphics wise, I think the DX version looks good for the handheld console and I like the look of the color upgrade in the game. I’m curious, how do other RBers feel about this? Does anyone prefer the look of the original GB release? I found the cutscenes and the photo images to be pretty impressive as well. Sound wise, there aren’t many different tunes throughout the adventure, but what is here is enjoyable. I especially liked the song that plays when Marin is singing in the Animal Village.
I also just want to take a moment to recognize the issue of Nintendo Power which covers Link’s Awakening, which is issue 50. I was lucky enough to have this issue as a kid and to this day I really enjoy the artwork used, which features the mysterious owl who serves as your guide. The illustrator did a great job here. I could even imagine this artwork being used on the US release of the game, as opposed to the use of a logo and type treatment.
Overall, I found Link’s Awakening DX to be a really fun and short adventure on the Game Boy. The developers did a great job of packing in a variety of challenges and an intuitive control scheme while working within the GameBoy’s limitations. Check this one out if you haven’t already!
Last edited by Note on Sun Aug 25, 2024 10:01 pm, edited 3 times in total.
Re: Games Beaten 2024
Previous Years: 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
1. Tormented Souls - Switch
2. Battlefleet Gothic: Armada II - PC
3. Fantasy Empires - PC
4. Vagrant Story - PS1
5. Might and Magic 7: For Blood and Honor - PC
6. Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown - Switch
7. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III: The Manhattan Project - NES
8. Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - PS5
9. Tomb Raider Remastered - PC
10. Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth - PS5
11. Unicorn Overlord - Switch
12. Mechwarrior 5: Mercenaries: Solaris Showdown - PC
13. Princess Peach: Showtime - Switch
14. Fida Puti Samurai - PC
15. Fallout New Vegas: Dead Money - PC
16. Fallout New Vegas: Honest Hearts - PC
17. Fallout New Vegas: Old World Blues - PC
18. Wrath: Aeon of Ruin - PC
19. Fallout New Vegas: Lonesome Road - PC
20. Super Buff HD - PC
21. SaGa Emerald Beyond - Switch
22. Blasphemous 2 - Switch
23. Trepang2 - PC
24. Homeworld 3 - PC
25. Blood West - PC
26. Marathon - PC
27. Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord - PC
28. Little Kitty, Big City - PC
29. Dread Delusion - PC
30. Alan Wake 2: Night Springs - PC
31. PO'ed: Definitive Edition - PC
32. Space Cats Tactics - PC
33. Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree - PS5
34. Balatro - PC
35. Afterimage - Switch
36. The Legend of Heroes: Trails Through Daybreak - PS5
37. Lords of Exile - Switch
38. Infernax - Switch
Infernax is a game that dares ask the question, "what if Casltevania II was good?" It wears its inspiration on its sleeve and provides an experience that's actually fun, even when you're getting dunked into lava.
You have just returned from the crusades to find your lands infested with evil. Wielding your trusty mace and shield you step forth to meet it, discovering that you need to visit five castles to break the seal on the one that has the big bad. In the process you will pick up some mobility upgrades and encounter various people in need; these quests form the basis of the moral choice system in the game. Each quest has a good and evil option, and if you go good or evil enough you unlock the ability to go to the true final dungeon that skips the normal final boss.
Gameplay-wise, the game starts with Castlevania II as the prime base, with Zelda II influencing how your character handles and your level up system (can level up attack, health, or magic, each tracking experience to next point separately). Enemies give experience when killed and sometimes drop gold which is used for weapon and armor upgrades, as well as spells. Some of the spells are required to progress, while others just provide solid utility.
The layout of the overworld is again, very Castlevania II. Much more horizontal progression with only a bit of vertical. There's even a section that reminds seasoned players of the cliffside you summon the whirlwind; you can summon it in this game as well. The dungeons take a few more cues from Zelda II; you generally need to find one or more keys to get the treasure (required for getting to/through this or the next dungeon) and to get to the boss. There's a lot more challenge platforming in this game compared to the other two, while your moveset is still extremely NES stiff. Those mobility options I mentioned aren't like a modern Metroidvania's that makes your life smoother; here it involves a lot of commitment and ill-timed use can get you easily killed from jumping off cliffs or just taking enemy hits.
Overall it's an extremely enjoyable throwback title that really nails a lot of the feel of old school NES games, even if the graphics are far more advanced than the NES could pull off. If you ever tried out Castlevania II or Zelda II and bounced off I recommend giving this one a try; it has the same base feel but just plays so much better.
1. Tormented Souls - Switch
2. Battlefleet Gothic: Armada II - PC
3. Fantasy Empires - PC
4. Vagrant Story - PS1
5. Might and Magic 7: For Blood and Honor - PC
6. Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown - Switch
7. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III: The Manhattan Project - NES
8. Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - PS5
9. Tomb Raider Remastered - PC
10. Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth - PS5
11. Unicorn Overlord - Switch
12. Mechwarrior 5: Mercenaries: Solaris Showdown - PC
13. Princess Peach: Showtime - Switch
14. Fida Puti Samurai - PC
15. Fallout New Vegas: Dead Money - PC
16. Fallout New Vegas: Honest Hearts - PC
17. Fallout New Vegas: Old World Blues - PC
18. Wrath: Aeon of Ruin - PC
19. Fallout New Vegas: Lonesome Road - PC
20. Super Buff HD - PC
21. SaGa Emerald Beyond - Switch
22. Blasphemous 2 - Switch
23. Trepang2 - PC
24. Homeworld 3 - PC
25. Blood West - PC
26. Marathon - PC
27. Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord - PC
28. Little Kitty, Big City - PC
29. Dread Delusion - PC
30. Alan Wake 2: Night Springs - PC
31. PO'ed: Definitive Edition - PC
32. Space Cats Tactics - PC
33. Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree - PS5
34. Balatro - PC
35. Afterimage - Switch
36. The Legend of Heroes: Trails Through Daybreak - PS5
37. Lords of Exile - Switch
38. Infernax - Switch
Infernax is a game that dares ask the question, "what if Casltevania II was good?" It wears its inspiration on its sleeve and provides an experience that's actually fun, even when you're getting dunked into lava.
You have just returned from the crusades to find your lands infested with evil. Wielding your trusty mace and shield you step forth to meet it, discovering that you need to visit five castles to break the seal on the one that has the big bad. In the process you will pick up some mobility upgrades and encounter various people in need; these quests form the basis of the moral choice system in the game. Each quest has a good and evil option, and if you go good or evil enough you unlock the ability to go to the true final dungeon that skips the normal final boss.
Gameplay-wise, the game starts with Castlevania II as the prime base, with Zelda II influencing how your character handles and your level up system (can level up attack, health, or magic, each tracking experience to next point separately). Enemies give experience when killed and sometimes drop gold which is used for weapon and armor upgrades, as well as spells. Some of the spells are required to progress, while others just provide solid utility.
The layout of the overworld is again, very Castlevania II. Much more horizontal progression with only a bit of vertical. There's even a section that reminds seasoned players of the cliffside you summon the whirlwind; you can summon it in this game as well. The dungeons take a few more cues from Zelda II; you generally need to find one or more keys to get the treasure (required for getting to/through this or the next dungeon) and to get to the boss. There's a lot more challenge platforming in this game compared to the other two, while your moveset is still extremely NES stiff. Those mobility options I mentioned aren't like a modern Metroidvania's that makes your life smoother; here it involves a lot of commitment and ill-timed use can get you easily killed from jumping off cliffs or just taking enemy hits.
Overall it's an extremely enjoyable throwback title that really nails a lot of the feel of old school NES games, even if the graphics are far more advanced than the NES could pull off. If you ever tried out Castlevania II or Zelda II and bounced off I recommend giving this one a try; it has the same base feel but just plays so much better.
Blizzard Entertainment Software Developer - All comments and views are my own and not representative of the company.
Re: Games Beaten 2024
Link's Awakening was the first Legend of Zelda game I ever played. Well, technically, my first LoZ was a Pokémon rom hack of Link's Awakening. I actually didn't know it was a hack until I switched it from GBC mode to GB mode and it booted as Link's Awakening. I think it was the one seen in this random Youtube video from NintendoFuse, which is the only information I've found so far. Not that I looked real hard. 