May 2023
I swear I am still playing games but man is the time just going by and almost no progress. What’s worse… my backlog has grown. Here’s hoping time begins to become free and I can revel in it’s passages.
5/10
Though I try to avoid adding more to the backlog this was published by Devolver Digital and free for a time so my hands were tied (plus it definitely seemed like a quick entry). It has that very weird, very grungy feel to the game that I would expect from this publisher. Neat little things like throwing the menu screen away when you leave it and weird little details are nice. Also the sort of isolated island in a sea of oil and cell shaded(?) art added to the sort of grunge aesthetic. The game is a little too simple for me as it just revolves around tagging buildings (with only a few variances in spray paint design) and getting to the end marker. Frankly, the game just lacks that little extra oomph to make it a genuinely decent game. As it is, it is just okay.
Recommend? Eh, for free or VERY cheap.
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Like A Dragon: Ishin
PS5
7.5/10
Finally getting this in the West I could play Yakuza but with Samurais focusing around my favorite group (thanks to Gintama) the Shinsengumi. Other than being based on the historical Edo period in Japan this game does not connect to the rest of the Yakuza series. So, though we do see A LOT of familiar faces, they are by no means ancestors to the Yakuza characters we know and love today. Instead, it’s more like a play and characters like Majima, Kiryu, etc. play a historical figure that more or less fits them quite well, in my opinion. Story, overall, is great and it’s always exciting to see who the next character we will see is in Like A Dragon fashion.
The game still has pretty standard gameplay beat-em-up style with a style system reminiscent of Y0. However, the gun stance feels REALLY broken and that a lot of challenges are a breeze just by blasting your problems away. There is also now trooper cards you can gain to use in battle which act as special powers. They trooper system is a bit overwhelming and trying to figure out what to keep, level, and combine is kind of a mess.
There are still a lot of great mini games and side stories which the series is known for. The only caveat for this is that there are also a LOT of side quests that require you to build friendship. This usually means you have to visit them every so often to give them an item. This creates an incredible slog and lacks any real connection or interesting sub plots. In fact, that is the one issue with this game. There is so much slog and GRINDING. To get better guns/swords/weapons/etc. you have to get material from enemy drops, purchase, etc. You’ll need the material, insane prices, and even then you have to upgrade the store by purchasing from them, donating weapons, etc. and it takes FOREVER. It is just not enjoyable and I will loathe when I get around to perfecting the game.
Recommended? Yes!
Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate
3DS
3/10
Pretty standard 3DS era MH game though it does lack the quality of life changes 4U and Generations will bring. The one big issue though… it has a underwater battle focus. I’m not sure if there has ever been a game where underwater movement/battle has ever been THAT enjoyable or even downright decent. With this being the first MH game to include it, it is everywhere. Nearly all maps are at least half water and most of the monsters sure as heck utilize it. The combat is just downright clunky with it and either end up getting hit a bunch, awkwardly dodge, or slide against the monster’s body instead of hitting the desired spot. There is also an 02 gauge but it never really seemed to come into play until the story’s final boss. Which, by the way, was pretty lackluster and boring. I also just found the overall threat and story pretty underwhelming and could not feel the threat or excitement of dangerous foes. There were also times I did not understand what or where I was supposed to do something.
Weapon of choice: Sword & Shield
Recommend? Nope, and I will be forever glad that underwater MH battles will ever be a thing again.