Log #3: July + August 2024

This game had been on my wishlist for years and it always seemed like something I would enjoy, but for some reason I was always hesitant to buy it. Luckily I ended up winning it in a ga.

While I really enjoyed this game (most of it anyway) and would recommend it, I have some mixed feelings about it. The setting being essentially a real life reproduction of an mmo was cool, but I didn't understand some aspects of it (there is a codex that might've answered my questions but I'm really not a fan of those). Additionally this game has the best implementation of a "silent" protagonist I've ever seen in a game (this is a trope I usually hate), Lea is so expressive despite only being able to say "Hello" at the start of the game and there is an in-universe explanation as to why she can't talk. Also this game's combat system is surprisingly deep, by the end of the game you have access to four different elements as well as a neutral mode, that you can switch to at any second in combat even mid-combo, this means that any given point you have access to five different movesets, however certain enemies, especially late game, can only be defeated in very specific ways which makes combat less dynamic than it can be.

I do have some other issues with the game like how nothing happens to progress the story in a lot of the chapters, and how the plot stops in chapter 8 (out of 10 total), so you can do three full length zelda like dungeons in a row, which up until this point, if you had to do one of these it was the only one in its chapter, and these also being the hardest dungeons in this game does not help. I also found some of the puzzles too hard, but that might just be a me being dumb and having limited experience with puzzle games issue, not a flaw of the game itself.

I played this game years ago on an emulator, finished what I now know was the second to last dungeon, and lost my savefile when moving devices. I bought the remaster in 2021 but I dropped it after 6 hours, don't remember why, I think I just got distracted by other games. Anyway, after 90 hours of SMTVV I decided that I had to finally return to this one, so I requested it as a PoP pick for more motivation.

I loved this game as much I did the first time playing, didn't die nearly as much since I knew what I was doing this time around. The ps2 SMT games have my favourite art direction in the series, and Nocturne specifically is the best when it comes to atmosphere, the world feels so lonely and hostile, and the soundtrack backs this up as well. Gameplay is great too, but I would've liked a run button or something. Also really liked the dungeons in this one, with the exception of the final dungeon, cause what where they thinking when they made a labyrinth with invisible teleporters everywhere??

Will definitely complete this one, I only have some endings left and I already made saves at each turning point so it shouldn't take too long.

One of my games for PoP, I don't think I would've bothered to finish it otherwise, it's ok for what it is but it's extremely repetitive and kind of bland.

It's a game that wants to be replayed, it gives you perks when replaying, and some characters lock you out of getting others so if you want to see everyone, you have to replay, but 90% of the game remains the same slow shallow turn based combat. Might've been better as a phone game.

Also I was planning to complete this one, and I've backed up saves for most endings that have been sitting on my desktop for over a month now, but I'm not sure if I want to anymore.

This one was a pleasant surprise, I love rougelikes, but I had never heard of this one until it got featured in choice. I liked the presentation and general art direction and also messing around in the desktop area between runs. Gameplay is really satisfying especially in higher difficulties, very solid game all around. Would like to complete it at some point, but not currently a priority