This has been an analysis long in the making... I've mentioned before that I never analyze a game unless I've beaten it. Well, it took me just over two years to beat this behemoth. I started playing December 25th, 2019. I beat the game December 31, 2021. This was without question my greatest gaming accomplishment ever. Forget being the best at mashing buttons, this game pushed … [Read more...]
Fire Emblem: Three Houses – When Innovation and Juice Get In the Way of Gameplay
I've always enjoyed the Fire Emblem series. Like many, I was fascinated by Marth and Roy when they were introduced in Super Smash Bros. Melee. I wanted very much to know who these mysterious characters were, and what Japanese exclusive series they came from. When Fire Emblem came to the West in the form of Fire Emblem (GBA) I was instantly hooked. And the series just kept … [Read more...]
Cadence of Hyrule: Crypt of the Necrodancer Featuring the Legend of Zelda – A Most Ridiculous Title for a Most Ridiculous Game
Let's get this right out of the way, first thing. I hate roguelike games. I just do. I absolutely despise everything about them. From the incredibly lazy level design of using procedurally and randomly generated levels, to the insta/perma-death conditions set in so many games of this genre. I absolutely and unequivocally hate roguelikes. I am also no fan of rhythm games. I … [Read more...]
Splatoon 2 – “Don’t Get Cooked… Stay Off the Hook!”
Splatoon 2 (S2), in fact, the Splatoon series on the whole, was never a Nintendo IP that I had the least bit of interest in. From the hideous design of the Inkling protagonists, to the idiotic Punk/Hip-Hop aesthetic, to the awful music, to the fact that it was (what I believed to be, until very recently) solely focused on PvP combat, this was not a game series for me. Or so I … [Read more...]
Marvel’s Spider-Man – Arkham Spider
About a month before news first broke about Insomniac's new ambitious Spider-Man project, I was talking with a good friend about how awesome it would be if Marvel made their own version of the excellent Batman Arkham games, but with Spider-Man, because he'd be such a great fit for that style of gameplay. Lo and behold, a short time later, the world was introduced to this latest … [Read more...]