Lordhippos
Pokémon Master
Excellent! I had to reign in the evil a bit as it upset my party members and made one of them want to leave.
Shame!
What Games Are You Playing?
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Excellent! I had to reign in the evil a bit as it upset my party members and made one of them want to leave.
Shame!
Dai
Pokémon Master
Aliens: Dark Descent
I haven't felt so conflicted about a game since Returnal. In some ways, this may be my favourite game in the franchise. Alien: Isolation was the ultimate Alien simulator, giving the player the experience of being hunted by the xenomorph in all its trauma-inducing terror. As a result it was authentic, riveting, but absolutely not fun. I'm still not sure how I managed to get through that game without having a breakdown.
Alien and Aliens were tonally two very different movies. If Isolation nailed the essence of Alien, Dark Descent does the same for Aliens. It's tense, atmospheric and exciting, but it's not flat-out terrifying, making for a more enjoyable game. As a survival-horror RTS, its overhead viewpoint gives the player just enough abstraction from the marines' plight without sacrificing the atmosphere. Signature moments from the movie are turned into viable gameplay tactics, from keeping a shotgun handy for close encounters to laying down suppressing fire with the incinerators. The visuals, the sound effects, the music, the maze-like locations and the feeling of vulnerability despite all the military hardware are all spot on.
In the early missions, moving slowly and quietly is the order of the day. Make too much noise or fail to consider your surroundings and things can go south within seconds. The xenomorphs move startlingly fast once alerted. Unlike XCOM, additional recruits are hard to come by, and low-level grunts can't even equip the better weapons, so each marine is a valuable resource, making it all the more problematic when a bunch of acid-filled pinatas get up in your grill. I've lost count of how many times I had to resort to reloading a previous checkpoint because I couldn't afford to let my best marines get shredded. Even then, I haven't had a single deployment that didn't end with my whole squad being injured and needing a lengthy stay in medbay. Some end up with persistent mental trauma too, which affects their stats unless they're benched for even longer in the psych ward. The game has a whole system about managing your squad's stress and trauma, rather like the PS2 game of The Thing.
There's a pretty decent story that avoids the usual corporate greed angle in favour of something else. The engaging RTS missions are paired with some XCOM-style base management that adds a nice strategic layer. For the first 10-15 hours of the campaign, I thought this was potential Game of the Year material.
Then it all starts going wrong.
My first problem with it may come down to personal preference, but this game gets way too hard as it progresses, even on the so-called medium difficulty. As the campaign days tick along, the alien infestation level increases. When infestation hits level 3, the game balance feels like it goes out the window. The game is very procedural about the level of threat it throws at you. Restart from the same checkpoint a dozen times (as I've needed to in places), and there's no telling if you'll have to avoid two enemies or a dozen within the first minute. Increasingly the motion tracker gets cluttered with little whistling dots skittering all over the map though, even before getting detected sets them on an active hunt for you. The methodical, satisfying pace that works so well early on is replaced by a near-constant mad dash around the map, eyes locked on the motion tracker most of the time.
The campaign timer gets brutal too. A fixed time limit for completing it gets introduced halfway, and suddenly those lengthy injury recovery times start to look insane. I'm a little over halfway through what's looking to be a 40+ hour game, and I don't see how it would be possible to complete it without cheesing checkpoint reloads like I'm doing.
The other major problem is that the game is full of bugs, and not just the kind with two mouths. The early hours didn't seem too bad, just a few animation bugs here and there, but it gets more serious as the game progresses. There have been a bunch of times where objective markers haven't appeared or I've needed to reset because a character became unresponsive. It's crashed to the PS5 desktop twice too.
It's possible that some of my issues with the difficulty are down to my general lack of experience with RTS, but the game just feels less and less well tuned as it goes on. Annoyingly it doesn't allow you to change the difficulty mid-campaign, so I can't see if I'd prefer the lower setting. I'd be loathe to ditch 25 hours of progress and start over.
Given the relatively budget-ish price it goes for, I'd say it's still worth playing for Aliens fans. The early parts of it are excellent, and you may have better luck with the later parts if you play on low difficulty or are just better at RTS than me. I'd recommend waiting at least another few months for it to get some more patches first though.
I haven't felt so conflicted about a game since Returnal. In some ways, this may be my favourite game in the franchise. Alien: Isolation was the ultimate Alien simulator, giving the player the experience of being hunted by the xenomorph in all its trauma-inducing terror. As a result it was authentic, riveting, but absolutely not fun. I'm still not sure how I managed to get through that game without having a breakdown.
Alien and Aliens were tonally two very different movies. If Isolation nailed the essence of Alien, Dark Descent does the same for Aliens. It's tense, atmospheric and exciting, but it's not flat-out terrifying, making for a more enjoyable game. As a survival-horror RTS, its overhead viewpoint gives the player just enough abstraction from the marines' plight without sacrificing the atmosphere. Signature moments from the movie are turned into viable gameplay tactics, from keeping a shotgun handy for close encounters to laying down suppressing fire with the incinerators. The visuals, the sound effects, the music, the maze-like locations and the feeling of vulnerability despite all the military hardware are all spot on.
In the early missions, moving slowly and quietly is the order of the day. Make too much noise or fail to consider your surroundings and things can go south within seconds. The xenomorphs move startlingly fast once alerted. Unlike XCOM, additional recruits are hard to come by, and low-level grunts can't even equip the better weapons, so each marine is a valuable resource, making it all the more problematic when a bunch of acid-filled pinatas get up in your grill. I've lost count of how many times I had to resort to reloading a previous checkpoint because I couldn't afford to let my best marines get shredded. Even then, I haven't had a single deployment that didn't end with my whole squad being injured and needing a lengthy stay in medbay. Some end up with persistent mental trauma too, which affects their stats unless they're benched for even longer in the psych ward. The game has a whole system about managing your squad's stress and trauma, rather like the PS2 game of The Thing.
There's a pretty decent story that avoids the usual corporate greed angle in favour of something else. The engaging RTS missions are paired with some XCOM-style base management that adds a nice strategic layer. For the first 10-15 hours of the campaign, I thought this was potential Game of the Year material.
Then it all starts going wrong.
My first problem with it may come down to personal preference, but this game gets way too hard as it progresses, even on the so-called medium difficulty. As the campaign days tick along, the alien infestation level increases. When infestation hits level 3, the game balance feels like it goes out the window. The game is very procedural about the level of threat it throws at you. Restart from the same checkpoint a dozen times (as I've needed to in places), and there's no telling if you'll have to avoid two enemies or a dozen within the first minute. Increasingly the motion tracker gets cluttered with little whistling dots skittering all over the map though, even before getting detected sets them on an active hunt for you. The methodical, satisfying pace that works so well early on is replaced by a near-constant mad dash around the map, eyes locked on the motion tracker most of the time.
The campaign timer gets brutal too. A fixed time limit for completing it gets introduced halfway, and suddenly those lengthy injury recovery times start to look insane. I'm a little over halfway through what's looking to be a 40+ hour game, and I don't see how it would be possible to complete it without cheesing checkpoint reloads like I'm doing.
The other major problem is that the game is full of bugs, and not just the kind with two mouths. The early hours didn't seem too bad, just a few animation bugs here and there, but it gets more serious as the game progresses. There have been a bunch of times where objective markers haven't appeared or I've needed to reset because a character became unresponsive. It's crashed to the PS5 desktop twice too.
It's possible that some of my issues with the difficulty are down to my general lack of experience with RTS, but the game just feels less and less well tuned as it goes on. Annoyingly it doesn't allow you to change the difficulty mid-campaign, so I can't see if I'd prefer the lower setting. I'd be loathe to ditch 25 hours of progress and start over.
Given the relatively budget-ish price it goes for, I'd say it's still worth playing for Aliens fans. The early parts of it are excellent, and you may have better luck with the later parts if you play on low difficulty or are just better at RTS than me. I'd recommend waiting at least another few months for it to get some more patches first though.
ayase
State Alchemist
tfw you realise your failure to complete a seemingly unrelated babby's first shape sorter puzzle a couple of hours ago because "this is clearly just a boring side-quest for some loot item, I can do that later" has left you with no choice other than to commit genocide against your girlfriend's race.
Tying these two things together was an absolute dickhead DM move, I can't decide whether I love it or hate it.
Lordhippos
Pokémon Master
I've just kicked off Act 2 on BG3 after restarting, and spending a bit of time playing with my friend co-op on another character.
At the same time I am also playing Ratchet and Clank, not a game series I've ever played before. I kind of dislike the comedy/story stuff as it's clearly aimed at a younger audience than me, but the art style is good and the game play loop is fun, so that is keeping me entertained. Edit - just finished the main story on this as well.
Ratchet and Clank is basically like playing a pixar movie in real time, it's amazing how far the tech has come to make stuff like this play smoothly and look great!
FF16 was fun, the main story anyway, I didn't bother with the side stuff too much as it seemed the main story elements had the best stuff.
At the same time I am also playing Ratchet and Clank, not a game series I've ever played before. I kind of dislike the comedy/story stuff as it's clearly aimed at a younger audience than me, but the art style is good and the game play loop is fun, so that is keeping me entertained. Edit - just finished the main story on this as well.
Ratchet and Clank is basically like playing a pixar movie in real time, it's amazing how far the tech has come to make stuff like this play smoothly and look great!
FF16 was fun, the main story anyway, I didn't bother with the side stuff too much as it seemed the main story elements had the best stuff.
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Spark_Heal
Kiznaiver
Resonance of Fate (known as End of Eternity in Japan) released back in 2010 and then re-released in 2018. I tried this on the PS3 but dropped off early on so I felt like I should revisit it. It's JRPG that is turn-based in a very unusual way as it combines real-time combat elements and focuses on guns as your main weapons. Coordinating your 3 party members and figuring out the right approach to launch a finishing blow is the trick but it involves juggling two different attack types and various support items. Additionally there is a whole mechanic about doing these bold, acrobatic moves that let you sprint to a point on the map while firing at any enemies you decide to target which also comes with a bunch of options based around the distance and the angle of your attack.
But there isn't anything outside the combat. All the missions and side quests and side activities are just the combat. Every level is just a series of combat encounters. Chapter 4 is just a repeat of all the content in Chapter 3 but harder and backwards. And so far it hasn't opened up any new options or tools or even new weapons. So the strategies remain the same. It's fine for a JRPG to be combat-focused but Resonance of Fate really feels like they just didn't have the funding to make anything else. There's the combat system, a small hub area and a world map. So after 12 hours I feel like I need to take a break. It's all just the same stuff repeated over and over. And the core idea is solid but it needs to give me room to experiment and more customisation.
And it's a shame because I was enjoying its other charms. The setting and tone feel oddly like the anime Texhnolyze. Both deal with places at the bottom rung of a science-fiction society where the cast are scrapping by in a world that feels dead. It is charming. Especially the relationship between party members Zephyr and Leanne. After a beautiful and moving bit of heroism brings them together they realise they are broke losers and need to figure out how to pay the rent. With that in mind it's going quite well and feels like the slow pace is deliberate. The third lead, Vashyron, isn't up to much yet. But it's funny to have Nolan North dub a JRPG character because he does feel like Nathan Drake in a Final Fantasy and it's completely unexpected. But I need to play something else.
EDIT: I actually went back to this and played a bit more because it turns out I stopped 30 minutes before opening a mission to unlock a new weapon. It took until a third of the way through the game.
But there isn't anything outside the combat. All the missions and side quests and side activities are just the combat. Every level is just a series of combat encounters. Chapter 4 is just a repeat of all the content in Chapter 3 but harder and backwards. And so far it hasn't opened up any new options or tools or even new weapons. So the strategies remain the same. It's fine for a JRPG to be combat-focused but Resonance of Fate really feels like they just didn't have the funding to make anything else. There's the combat system, a small hub area and a world map. So after 12 hours I feel like I need to take a break. It's all just the same stuff repeated over and over. And the core idea is solid but it needs to give me room to experiment and more customisation.
And it's a shame because I was enjoying its other charms. The setting and tone feel oddly like the anime Texhnolyze. Both deal with places at the bottom rung of a science-fiction society where the cast are scrapping by in a world that feels dead. It is charming. Especially the relationship between party members Zephyr and Leanne. After a beautiful and moving bit of heroism brings them together they realise they are broke losers and need to figure out how to pay the rent. With that in mind it's going quite well and feels like the slow pace is deliberate. The third lead, Vashyron, isn't up to much yet. But it's funny to have Nolan North dub a JRPG character because he does feel like Nathan Drake in a Final Fantasy and it's completely unexpected. But I need to play something else.
EDIT: I actually went back to this and played a bit more because it turns out I stopped 30 minutes before opening a mission to unlock a new weapon. It took until a third of the way through the game.
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Dai
Pokémon Master
Exoprimal
Power armour vs dinosaurs is a concept that aims to appeal to a player's inner five-year-old. Capcom have built an unusual online shooter around that concept, and have done so with a good measure of success. Its party trick is the sheer number of dinosaurs it throws at you. They pour out of portals in the sky, sometimes hundreds at a time. Larger species take the concerted effort of your five-person team to take down, but the bulk of the enemies are tidal waves of cannon fodder raptors and the like, making it feel more like a musou game than a traditional run-and-gun.
The big wrinkle in the game structure is that it's PvPvE. You're competing against another team of five to complete a set of objectives the fastest. Most maps have infinite respawns, so it's not about defeating the dinosaurs, but doing so efficiently. Each map feels like a race, almost like the Xbox 360 game The Club, though not quite as literal.
Probably the game's best assets are the exosuits. They fall into familiar DPS/tank/healer roles, with a few varieties of each, and they're all fun to control. Attacks tend to lack a tangible sense of impact, but again this is a race so I didn't spend much time dwelling on that.
Where Exoprimal does suffer is in its overall structure. There's only one mode available until you complete the main story (which took me about 25 hours). Dino Survival throws you into random maps, and can feel very thin on content in the early hours. My first five hours or so were literally the same three maps over and over, with the same mission layout on each. Fortunately more content unlocks as you progress through the story, primarily new objective types, new enemies, and new routes through maps, but I only saw about half a dozen maps in the normal rotation (excluding the handful of boss battles).
Backloading the majority of its content presents another problem. The game does pad out teams with bots where necessary, but based my personal experience of the matchmaking, it seems to prioritise filling up teams with players rather than aiming for letting the player experience each map/mode an equal number of times. Consequently I found myself back in those early mission layouts a lot, even in the late game, since those are the only ones new players will have unlocked. That also meant that there was some late game content that I hardly ever got to try out, which became problematic when the final boss turned out to be based on a mode that I'd only encountered once previously. I've played a few more Dino Survival matches after completing the story today, and ended up in a mission I'd never seen before at one point, so I have no idea if there's anything else I haven't seen yet because of the game's matchmaking.
Beating the story unlocks a pure PvE challenge mode on a single map per week, and that's all the choice you get. No offline modes, no private matches, no custom matches. Considering that the characters, maps and gameplay that Exoprimal does have are all good, the dearth of options for playing that content is bizarre. Either they're holding more modes back for later seasons or (as I suspect) Exoprimal might have started as something very different and mutated into this project over time. The similarities to Dino Crisis are unmistakable, right down to a Regina lookalike tellingly called Majesty, so I wouldn't be surprised if the graphical assets were built for a cancelled project and repurposed.
It ends up feeling like a bit of a thin package for £50, at least in its current state. That said, what is here is all good fun. The highest compliment I can pay Exoprimal is that it feels like a Dreamcast-era arcade game from Sega or Capcom. It has that unhinged air of wild experimentation.
Power armour vs dinosaurs is a concept that aims to appeal to a player's inner five-year-old. Capcom have built an unusual online shooter around that concept, and have done so with a good measure of success. Its party trick is the sheer number of dinosaurs it throws at you. They pour out of portals in the sky, sometimes hundreds at a time. Larger species take the concerted effort of your five-person team to take down, but the bulk of the enemies are tidal waves of cannon fodder raptors and the like, making it feel more like a musou game than a traditional run-and-gun.
The big wrinkle in the game structure is that it's PvPvE. You're competing against another team of five to complete a set of objectives the fastest. Most maps have infinite respawns, so it's not about defeating the dinosaurs, but doing so efficiently. Each map feels like a race, almost like the Xbox 360 game The Club, though not quite as literal.
Probably the game's best assets are the exosuits. They fall into familiar DPS/tank/healer roles, with a few varieties of each, and they're all fun to control. Attacks tend to lack a tangible sense of impact, but again this is a race so I didn't spend much time dwelling on that.
Where Exoprimal does suffer is in its overall structure. There's only one mode available until you complete the main story (which took me about 25 hours). Dino Survival throws you into random maps, and can feel very thin on content in the early hours. My first five hours or so were literally the same three maps over and over, with the same mission layout on each. Fortunately more content unlocks as you progress through the story, primarily new objective types, new enemies, and new routes through maps, but I only saw about half a dozen maps in the normal rotation (excluding the handful of boss battles).
Backloading the majority of its content presents another problem. The game does pad out teams with bots where necessary, but based my personal experience of the matchmaking, it seems to prioritise filling up teams with players rather than aiming for letting the player experience each map/mode an equal number of times. Consequently I found myself back in those early mission layouts a lot, even in the late game, since those are the only ones new players will have unlocked. That also meant that there was some late game content that I hardly ever got to try out, which became problematic when the final boss turned out to be based on a mode that I'd only encountered once previously. I've played a few more Dino Survival matches after completing the story today, and ended up in a mission I'd never seen before at one point, so I have no idea if there's anything else I haven't seen yet because of the game's matchmaking.
Beating the story unlocks a pure PvE challenge mode on a single map per week, and that's all the choice you get. No offline modes, no private matches, no custom matches. Considering that the characters, maps and gameplay that Exoprimal does have are all good, the dearth of options for playing that content is bizarre. Either they're holding more modes back for later seasons or (as I suspect) Exoprimal might have started as something very different and mutated into this project over time. The similarities to Dino Crisis are unmistakable, right down to a Regina lookalike tellingly called Majesty, so I wouldn't be surprised if the graphical assets were built for a cancelled project and repurposed.
It ends up feeling like a bit of a thin package for £50, at least in its current state. That said, what is here is all good fun. The highest compliment I can pay Exoprimal is that it feels like a Dreamcast-era arcade game from Sega or Capcom. It has that unhinged air of wild experimentation.
Similar to the July batch we also have a game that I did finish in July but the completion part was not sorted until August. And I also played a Nintendo Switch game or two (though they didn't start on the Switch as they are Arcade titles ohoho).
#15 - Superdimension Neptune vs SEGA Hard Girls (PlayStation Vita)
Acquired: August 2018
#16 - Hot Wheels Unleashed (PlayStation 5)
Acquired: June 2023 (First Played July 2022 via PS Plus Trial)
#17 - DoDonPachi Resurrection (Nintendo Switch)
Acquired: August 2023
#18 - Espgaluda II (Nintendo Switch)
Acquired: August 2023
My backlog so far:
The 2023 '40' Games Goal:
#15 - Superdimension Neptune vs SEGA Hard Girls (PlayStation Vita)
Acquired: August 2018
Here we are, the final Hyperdimension Neptunia Vita game in my backlog and the most recent one as well for the device before the franchise moved to home consoles. So despite my time enjoying Hyperdevotion Noire, and having mixed thoughts on Action Unleashed and MegaTagmension Blanc, Superdimension Neptune is probably the best spin-off I have played to date.
To fully explain the idea behind Superdimension Neptune I will have to go into early spoilers because it's important to properly explain how this game works with that context in mind.
So, what exactly is Superdimension Neptune. It's a turn-based RPG once again but IF is now the main character. The story is a mix between the darker parts of Hyperdimension Neptunia and also two classic games Chrono Trigger and The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask. Somehow this idea actually works. What's happening is that IF teams up with Segami to revisit various parts of the world to fix history, because something is causing trouble that could wipe out their existence. During these visits, they encounter Plutia (from Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory), Neptune, Nepgear (from Hyperdimension Neptunia mk2), and Uzumi (from Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory II) going up against the SEGA Hard Girls, a group of individuals who are based on SEGA consoles and devices.
It is worth mentioning that a vast number of characters from the franchise are not included in this game, so Noire, Blanc and Vert who represent PlayStation, Nintendo and Xbox are not involved in the story. Because essentially what we have is a SEGA vs SEGA fight, as Neptune is based on the cancelled SEGA Neptune project for those who didn't know. Each person from each group are fighting each other and that causes problems for the world, so its up to IF and Segami to figure out how to stop this.
But this is where things get interesting. The game's structure is based on missions so you start one at a time to defeat an enemy, find an item or for story progression, and there's a number tied to each mission. Every mission you beat, the number will decrease and eventually it will disappear. In addition each mission has a star rank which determines how fast the number will also decrease. Eventually you will get to a point where certain missions can't be unlocked because they were eaten up and you'll be left with nothing. At this point is where you will meet a boss fight that essentially eats those missions that you didn't complete - and you will die.
But you don't die, because time resets. This is where the idea of comparing Chrono Trigger and Majora's Mask comes in, because what's basically going on is that every time you are killed by the boss fight, the missions that were eaten are now back and you have another opportunity to progress with the story and the side content. The twist here is that you are also free to fight the boss and finish the game at any point, but its recommended that you do that as soon as the time resets because the longer you leave it and complete more missions, the tougher the fight.
Another touch to the game's story progression is that you can actually start any saga at any order, but do note that difficulty spikes may occur. I went though the Game Gear saga, a brief bit for Dreamcast saga, then Mega Drive saga, back to Dreamcast saga, then wrapping up Sega Saturn's saga to get the right pace. Levelling up wasn't too bad but the True End route will be a challenge unless you use a special tactic with uses Dreamcast's special ability that was charged by Mega Drive.
The game also has three different endings. Bad Ending is by defeating the boss without experiencing the time loop which can only be done through New Game +, the Normal Ending which is after having enough power and progressed through the story enough to do so, and the True Ending which is fully completing the story and getting the context to what's going on. Normal Ending will allow you to reset time so you can continue without having to worry about starting over from scratch.
The gameplay is very similar to traditional Hyperdimension Neptunia where you have a turn-based RPG approach but you can walk around the battle circle to reach an enemy to attack. You can customise your skills and also classes, the latter of which are unlocked in the latter parts of the game. Despite Level 99 being the cap for your characters, the Classes Levels will also help improve your stats but it is capped at Level 20 until you find a mission that can unlock it to reach Level 50. I highly recommend you unlock those caps when the opportunity arises if you wish to defeat the Delphinus boss in New Game + because otherwise you'll be wasting time like I did.
A new inclusion to the game is Fever mode which allows your team to attack the enemies without having to see their turn appear. This window also allows you to use special abilities to cause tons of damage. The damages will be capped until you unlock more settings and formations. The settings, like the mainline games, adds more tweaks like weaker enemies, more EXP, and more. The formations is how you can build your lily ranks and each formation has additional bonuses as well like more strength or limit breaks.
The levels and monsters are assets re-uses from the mainline games, but each area has different variations of those levels which is a nice touch to the mix. Some places may have parts that are blocked off, but those will be unlocked when you find specific missions and random character discussions on the world map.
So the game's story up to the True End took me about 24 hours or so, but I didn't get the Platinum trophy until 29 hours 20 minutes, due to underestimating the difficulty of the Delphinus boss. I had the right tactic in terms of attacks, but I wasn't strong enough despite being Level 99 and the cause is due to not increasing the Class level, so I was able to do it at Class Level 44 despite the guides suggesting going to 50. Other than that, the Platinum trophy is pretty simple as long as you plan ahead.
There are some missable trophies in this game, like collecting the medals (which will pop-up on the area list with a hat that indicates it's all collected) and baseballs. Both the medals and baseballs will be missable for one area that's tied to the story and a Toypolis area where every time you build a new floor it resets the existing floors so you'll need to redo those again otherwise you'll have to wait for New Game +. That said, you won't be able to get the trophies for both the medals and baseball until you unlock the little room where Delphinus boss is located.
In terms of criticisms, Segami as a character is not very likeable at all due to her attitude which really isn't justified at all. It clashes a lot with IF and Neptune and it was too jarring. Her role doesn't get revealed until later into the story but it's the only issue I have with the whole ordeal. I also had an issue with each SEGA Hard Girl but the True End clears it all up so I was fine with it.
Overall, despite that one character, I found that Superdimension Neptune is the best spin-off released on the PlayStation Vita as it nails both the gameplay and the story part which other spin-offs struggled to nail down. The game isn't too long either and the Platinum trophy was tedious but not as long as some of the other games in the franchise.
From here on it's now time to check out the PlayStation 4 instalments (Megadimension Neptunia Victory II, Megadimension Neptunia Victory II Realize, Neptunia Virtual Stars, Neptunia x Senran Kagura: Ninja Wars, Super Neptunia RPG). This is exclusive to the Vita but you can also play it on PC.
To fully explain the idea behind Superdimension Neptune I will have to go into early spoilers because it's important to properly explain how this game works with that context in mind.
So, what exactly is Superdimension Neptune. It's a turn-based RPG once again but IF is now the main character. The story is a mix between the darker parts of Hyperdimension Neptunia and also two classic games Chrono Trigger and The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask. Somehow this idea actually works. What's happening is that IF teams up with Segami to revisit various parts of the world to fix history, because something is causing trouble that could wipe out their existence. During these visits, they encounter Plutia (from Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory), Neptune, Nepgear (from Hyperdimension Neptunia mk2), and Uzumi (from Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory II) going up against the SEGA Hard Girls, a group of individuals who are based on SEGA consoles and devices.
It is worth mentioning that a vast number of characters from the franchise are not included in this game, so Noire, Blanc and Vert who represent PlayStation, Nintendo and Xbox are not involved in the story. Because essentially what we have is a SEGA vs SEGA fight, as Neptune is based on the cancelled SEGA Neptune project for those who didn't know. Each person from each group are fighting each other and that causes problems for the world, so its up to IF and Segami to figure out how to stop this.
But this is where things get interesting. The game's structure is based on missions so you start one at a time to defeat an enemy, find an item or for story progression, and there's a number tied to each mission. Every mission you beat, the number will decrease and eventually it will disappear. In addition each mission has a star rank which determines how fast the number will also decrease. Eventually you will get to a point where certain missions can't be unlocked because they were eaten up and you'll be left with nothing. At this point is where you will meet a boss fight that essentially eats those missions that you didn't complete - and you will die.
But you don't die, because time resets. This is where the idea of comparing Chrono Trigger and Majora's Mask comes in, because what's basically going on is that every time you are killed by the boss fight, the missions that were eaten are now back and you have another opportunity to progress with the story and the side content. The twist here is that you are also free to fight the boss and finish the game at any point, but its recommended that you do that as soon as the time resets because the longer you leave it and complete more missions, the tougher the fight.
Another touch to the game's story progression is that you can actually start any saga at any order, but do note that difficulty spikes may occur. I went though the Game Gear saga, a brief bit for Dreamcast saga, then Mega Drive saga, back to Dreamcast saga, then wrapping up Sega Saturn's saga to get the right pace. Levelling up wasn't too bad but the True End route will be a challenge unless you use a special tactic with uses Dreamcast's special ability that was charged by Mega Drive.
The game also has three different endings. Bad Ending is by defeating the boss without experiencing the time loop which can only be done through New Game +, the Normal Ending which is after having enough power and progressed through the story enough to do so, and the True Ending which is fully completing the story and getting the context to what's going on. Normal Ending will allow you to reset time so you can continue without having to worry about starting over from scratch.
The gameplay is very similar to traditional Hyperdimension Neptunia where you have a turn-based RPG approach but you can walk around the battle circle to reach an enemy to attack. You can customise your skills and also classes, the latter of which are unlocked in the latter parts of the game. Despite Level 99 being the cap for your characters, the Classes Levels will also help improve your stats but it is capped at Level 20 until you find a mission that can unlock it to reach Level 50. I highly recommend you unlock those caps when the opportunity arises if you wish to defeat the Delphinus boss in New Game + because otherwise you'll be wasting time like I did.
A new inclusion to the game is Fever mode which allows your team to attack the enemies without having to see their turn appear. This window also allows you to use special abilities to cause tons of damage. The damages will be capped until you unlock more settings and formations. The settings, like the mainline games, adds more tweaks like weaker enemies, more EXP, and more. The formations is how you can build your lily ranks and each formation has additional bonuses as well like more strength or limit breaks.
The levels and monsters are assets re-uses from the mainline games, but each area has different variations of those levels which is a nice touch to the mix. Some places may have parts that are blocked off, but those will be unlocked when you find specific missions and random character discussions on the world map.
So the game's story up to the True End took me about 24 hours or so, but I didn't get the Platinum trophy until 29 hours 20 minutes, due to underestimating the difficulty of the Delphinus boss. I had the right tactic in terms of attacks, but I wasn't strong enough despite being Level 99 and the cause is due to not increasing the Class level, so I was able to do it at Class Level 44 despite the guides suggesting going to 50. Other than that, the Platinum trophy is pretty simple as long as you plan ahead.
There are some missable trophies in this game, like collecting the medals (which will pop-up on the area list with a hat that indicates it's all collected) and baseballs. Both the medals and baseballs will be missable for one area that's tied to the story and a Toypolis area where every time you build a new floor it resets the existing floors so you'll need to redo those again otherwise you'll have to wait for New Game +. That said, you won't be able to get the trophies for both the medals and baseball until you unlock the little room where Delphinus boss is located.
In terms of criticisms, Segami as a character is not very likeable at all due to her attitude which really isn't justified at all. It clashes a lot with IF and Neptune and it was too jarring. Her role doesn't get revealed until later into the story but it's the only issue I have with the whole ordeal. I also had an issue with each SEGA Hard Girl but the True End clears it all up so I was fine with it.
Overall, despite that one character, I found that Superdimension Neptune is the best spin-off released on the PlayStation Vita as it nails both the gameplay and the story part which other spin-offs struggled to nail down. The game isn't too long either and the Platinum trophy was tedious but not as long as some of the other games in the franchise.
From here on it's now time to check out the PlayStation 4 instalments (Megadimension Neptunia Victory II, Megadimension Neptunia Victory II Realize, Neptunia Virtual Stars, Neptunia x Senran Kagura: Ninja Wars, Super Neptunia RPG). This is exclusive to the Vita but you can also play it on PC.
#16 - Hot Wheels Unleashed (PlayStation 5)
Acquired: June 2023 (First Played July 2022 via PS Plus Trial)
Racing games have always been a genre that has intrigued me over the years. Burnout 3 is among one of my favourite racing games growing up and I did go through various others like LEGO Stunt Rally, Motorstorm Apocalypse, Sonic & SEGA All Stars Racing, and a recent one like Gran Turismo 7. I do own Ridge Racer Type 4 (PS1 via PS3 Classic) & Ridge Racer 7 (PS3) but the franchise as a whole hasn't been played enough.
And while there's been a lot of racing games produced, Hot Wheels Unleashed to me felt like a nostalgia trip. Its a very simple racing game that goes for the arcade approach and its aimed for younger audiences, but there's a lot of effort and care put into this game that has made it one of my favourite racing game experiences in a while. So what exactly is this game in terms of design? Well it's basically toy cars on a Hot Wheels race-track in various rooms, with each design ranging from loops, tight corners or a ramp where you fly into the air to reach the next path, and there's even zero gravity which adds more fun to the mix.
What's interesting about this game is that it's track editor is very well detailed and complex but rewarding with the outcome of your design. Want to go overboard with the ramps and complexity, you can do that. It definitely pays homage to those Hot Wheels racing tracks that you setup when you were younger. Also those custom tracks that you made can be shared online and have random users race on them like magic. I made a random short track and somehow someone has played them online somewhere in the world. It's weird but oddly satisfying.
The story mode is very simplistic but adds a good sense of challenge with racing in first place to hitting those time trials. The time trials can be very challenging and the developers had to nerf it a bit to address some of the issues, though if you want more difficulty the DLC packs are worth checking out. There are also blind boxes which is very similar to the gacha formula but there's no real money involved so you don't have to worry about that rabbit hole, and what's in each box is a car that ranges from the common ones to legendary status which can be a simple one or even a special licensed car from FIATs all the way to a Back to the Future vehicle. Warner Bros has provided a lot of IPs to the franchise including DC and Looney Tunes which have major DLC packs. There's even Capcom's Street Fighter V themed cars which is a bizarre but neat addition.
Each car can be upgraded to improve its performance, and this is handy for the better drift and speed experiences, especially if you want to tackle those timed challenges. The difficulty can also be adjusted from Easy to Hard, with no punishment or advantages at all so its down to you if you want to challenge yourself on the difficulty of the AI. There's also other settings but the game does support 4K and HDR like other PS5 titles. I have also been trying out the PS5 system software beta so this game also has Dolby Atmos. Outside of that, the game also supports private lobbies for multiplayer as well as local split-screen and quick races.
In terms of the trophies, they were originally going to be a long-wait due to the coins and gears that you receive but the developers tweaked the design so it's now doable within 21 hours playtime. I do recommend going for the Season Pass as not only will it help with the 100k coin and 25k gear but those levels add more fun and variety to the game especially for the level editor and multiplayer. There are online trophies for this game which require you to win 5 races at any point, and I will admit I struggled with this when it comes to the regular levels due to pro players but you're likely to get this through the custom tracks as they are random so not everyone would be familiar with these layouts.
Overall Hot Wheels Unleashed is a very fun racing game, and there's a sequel on its way which seems to be including outdoor designs so curious to see what else the developers have to bring to the mix. This game is also available on Nintendo Switch if you don't care about the best performance and graphics.
And while there's been a lot of racing games produced, Hot Wheels Unleashed to me felt like a nostalgia trip. Its a very simple racing game that goes for the arcade approach and its aimed for younger audiences, but there's a lot of effort and care put into this game that has made it one of my favourite racing game experiences in a while. So what exactly is this game in terms of design? Well it's basically toy cars on a Hot Wheels race-track in various rooms, with each design ranging from loops, tight corners or a ramp where you fly into the air to reach the next path, and there's even zero gravity which adds more fun to the mix.
What's interesting about this game is that it's track editor is very well detailed and complex but rewarding with the outcome of your design. Want to go overboard with the ramps and complexity, you can do that. It definitely pays homage to those Hot Wheels racing tracks that you setup when you were younger. Also those custom tracks that you made can be shared online and have random users race on them like magic. I made a random short track and somehow someone has played them online somewhere in the world. It's weird but oddly satisfying.
The story mode is very simplistic but adds a good sense of challenge with racing in first place to hitting those time trials. The time trials can be very challenging and the developers had to nerf it a bit to address some of the issues, though if you want more difficulty the DLC packs are worth checking out. There are also blind boxes which is very similar to the gacha formula but there's no real money involved so you don't have to worry about that rabbit hole, and what's in each box is a car that ranges from the common ones to legendary status which can be a simple one or even a special licensed car from FIATs all the way to a Back to the Future vehicle. Warner Bros has provided a lot of IPs to the franchise including DC and Looney Tunes which have major DLC packs. There's even Capcom's Street Fighter V themed cars which is a bizarre but neat addition.
Each car can be upgraded to improve its performance, and this is handy for the better drift and speed experiences, especially if you want to tackle those timed challenges. The difficulty can also be adjusted from Easy to Hard, with no punishment or advantages at all so its down to you if you want to challenge yourself on the difficulty of the AI. There's also other settings but the game does support 4K and HDR like other PS5 titles. I have also been trying out the PS5 system software beta so this game also has Dolby Atmos. Outside of that, the game also supports private lobbies for multiplayer as well as local split-screen and quick races.
In terms of the trophies, they were originally going to be a long-wait due to the coins and gears that you receive but the developers tweaked the design so it's now doable within 21 hours playtime. I do recommend going for the Season Pass as not only will it help with the 100k coin and 25k gear but those levels add more fun and variety to the game especially for the level editor and multiplayer. There are online trophies for this game which require you to win 5 races at any point, and I will admit I struggled with this when it comes to the regular levels due to pro players but you're likely to get this through the custom tracks as they are random so not everyone would be familiar with these layouts.
Overall Hot Wheels Unleashed is a very fun racing game, and there's a sequel on its way which seems to be including outdoor designs so curious to see what else the developers have to bring to the mix. This game is also available on Nintendo Switch if you don't care about the best performance and graphics.
#17 - DoDonPachi Resurrection (Nintendo Switch)
Acquired: August 2023
DoDonPachi is one of the few shoot em up franchises that I was familiar with over the years and that is likely down to the Xbox 360 getting a whole bunch of games from this genre, more specifically the bullet hell games. In recent years a whole bunch of shoot em ups started to get releases or re-releases on the Nintendo Switch and that included a few Cave games brought over by Live Wire like DoDonPachi Resurrection.
DoDonPachi Resurrection is the fifth game in the DoDonPachi franchise and was also released in English back on the Xbox 360. The Nintendo Switch release was brought over to the west but as a digital download, however it did receive a limited print run by Limited Run Games which sold out last year. Then VideoGamesPlus out of nowhere got more stock and I bought a copy from there.
What's interesting about DoDonPachi Resurrection is that it has multiple modes available to play from the start. The first mode is Version 1.50 which is pretty much the base game, and then you have Version 1.51 which adds some gameplay tweaks plus an extra final boss that will make your screen be filled with bullets non-stop (and you'll die a lot). Also included is L mode which is Version 1.50 with a different ship/character, a mode that lets you pick a ship and level to check out, and a novice mode for beginners.
Then if that wasn't enough, there's also Black Label mode which adds more bullets to the screens which is a addition that was first included in the 2011 Japanese Xbox 360 re-release. Black Label mode is more like Version 1.50 than 1.51 but you do have a special mode that lets you control a Ketsui (from the Ketsui franchise) and that is super OP.
In the main modes you can choose between three ships and three sub-weapon abilities which is bomb, power or a mixture of both. I found that the bomb does help a lot, whilst power mode I ended up dying a lot. That said the mixture one is pretty solid as well. The difficulty of the game is very challenging but thanks to the infinite lives that this game has you can keep playing all the way to the end for a nice chill experience. You do lose the high score points as they reset when you continue, but that's fine so there's a good balance for the casual gamers and the hardcore gamers.
Overall DoDonPachi Resurrection is a really fun and fairly addictive shoot em up game for the Nintendo Switch. It has a variety of modes and each of them have nice perks to the gameplay. The levels don't have much variety other than Version 1.51 but its a short game. The Switch during the handheld mode was decent but you're best playing this on the big screen due to the vertical presentation.
DoDonPachi Resurrection is the fifth game in the DoDonPachi franchise and was also released in English back on the Xbox 360. The Nintendo Switch release was brought over to the west but as a digital download, however it did receive a limited print run by Limited Run Games which sold out last year. Then VideoGamesPlus out of nowhere got more stock and I bought a copy from there.
What's interesting about DoDonPachi Resurrection is that it has multiple modes available to play from the start. The first mode is Version 1.50 which is pretty much the base game, and then you have Version 1.51 which adds some gameplay tweaks plus an extra final boss that will make your screen be filled with bullets non-stop (and you'll die a lot). Also included is L mode which is Version 1.50 with a different ship/character, a mode that lets you pick a ship and level to check out, and a novice mode for beginners.
Then if that wasn't enough, there's also Black Label mode which adds more bullets to the screens which is a addition that was first included in the 2011 Japanese Xbox 360 re-release. Black Label mode is more like Version 1.50 than 1.51 but you do have a special mode that lets you control a Ketsui (from the Ketsui franchise) and that is super OP.
In the main modes you can choose between three ships and three sub-weapon abilities which is bomb, power or a mixture of both. I found that the bomb does help a lot, whilst power mode I ended up dying a lot. That said the mixture one is pretty solid as well. The difficulty of the game is very challenging but thanks to the infinite lives that this game has you can keep playing all the way to the end for a nice chill experience. You do lose the high score points as they reset when you continue, but that's fine so there's a good balance for the casual gamers and the hardcore gamers.
Overall DoDonPachi Resurrection is a really fun and fairly addictive shoot em up game for the Nintendo Switch. It has a variety of modes and each of them have nice perks to the gameplay. The levels don't have much variety other than Version 1.51 but its a short game. The Switch during the handheld mode was decent but you're best playing this on the big screen due to the vertical presentation.
#18 - Espgaluda II (Nintendo Switch)
Acquired: August 2023
The first time I heard about Espgaluda II was during the Video Games Plus Limited Run Games sale. Turns out this was one of three Cave games that Live Wire brought over to the Nintendo Switch. It's a bullet hell shoot em up with a fantasy JRPG style theme to it, though there's no RPG elements it would fit with the genre if they went that route.
Espgaluda II was first released in Arcades in 2005 before releasing on Xbox 360, though only Japan got this game compared to DoDonPachi Resurrection. Mobile devices was the game's first appearance worldwide but the ideal version is either PC or this Switch release.
Like DoDonPachi, this game features multiple modes available from the start. Novice, Normal, Black Label, Arrange, Omake and Aracade modes. Each mode has some differences but the general structure remains the same. In each mode you can control three characters who have different abilities, ranging from having ghost characters pulling off an ultimate attack or a shield that protects you briefly. The game's modes also have various additional gameplay mechanics, like each weapon type will allow you to cancel out bullets of a specific colour, or a green shield will appear that absorbs incoming attacks to then unleash a super attack.
Also noteworthy is the gameplay itself, because each weapon attack actually changes the pacing. Mini-bullets will speed up time and incoming bullets, the laser attack will be at a regular pace, and the other slows down time to help avoid bullets in busy situations. This is a really cool set of mechanics as it adds to the game really well, and tests your patience during combat and boss fights.
While this game has a lot of interesting design choices, I am disappointed by the final boss as it felt like it ruined the pace despite its super difficulty. I also felt that DoDonPachi Resurrection was more impact with the boss fights compared to this one, though some bosses were interesting like the tank fight.
Overall, Espgaluda II is a pretty good shoot em up and is technically easier than DoDonPachi Resurrection. I do prefer DoDonPachi Resurrection but Espgaluda II holds up well on its own.
Espgaluda II was first released in Arcades in 2005 before releasing on Xbox 360, though only Japan got this game compared to DoDonPachi Resurrection. Mobile devices was the game's first appearance worldwide but the ideal version is either PC or this Switch release.
Like DoDonPachi, this game features multiple modes available from the start. Novice, Normal, Black Label, Arrange, Omake and Aracade modes. Each mode has some differences but the general structure remains the same. In each mode you can control three characters who have different abilities, ranging from having ghost characters pulling off an ultimate attack or a shield that protects you briefly. The game's modes also have various additional gameplay mechanics, like each weapon type will allow you to cancel out bullets of a specific colour, or a green shield will appear that absorbs incoming attacks to then unleash a super attack.
Also noteworthy is the gameplay itself, because each weapon attack actually changes the pacing. Mini-bullets will speed up time and incoming bullets, the laser attack will be at a regular pace, and the other slows down time to help avoid bullets in busy situations. This is a really cool set of mechanics as it adds to the game really well, and tests your patience during combat and boss fights.
While this game has a lot of interesting design choices, I am disappointed by the final boss as it felt like it ruined the pace despite its super difficulty. I also felt that DoDonPachi Resurrection was more impact with the boss fights compared to this one, though some bosses were interesting like the tank fight.
Overall, Espgaluda II is a pretty good shoot em up and is technically easier than DoDonPachi Resurrection. I do prefer DoDonPachi Resurrection but Espgaluda II holds up well on its own.
My backlog so far:
# | PC/Steam Backlog - Game Name: | Genre: |
|---|---|---|
1 | The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky | Turn-Based RPG |
2 | The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky SC | Turn-Based RPG |
# | PlayStation 3 Backlog - Game Name: | Genre: |
|---|---|---|
1 | 3D Dot Game Heroes | Action RPG |
2 | Bleach: Soul Resurrección | Fighting |
3 | Castlevania: Lords of Shadow | Action, Hack n Slash |
4 | Catherine | Puzzle |
5 | Drakengard 3 | Action RPG |
6 | Eternal Sonata | Turn-Based RPG |
7 | Folklore | Action RPG |
8 | Gran Turismo 5 Academy Edition | Racing |
9 | inFAMOUS | Action |
10 | inFAMOUS 2 | Action |
11 | Katamari Forever | Puzzle |
12 | Prince of Persia | Action, Platformer |
13 | Puppeteer | Platformer |
14 | SEGA Rally | Racing |
15 | Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time | Action, Platformer |
16 | Split/Second: Velocity | Racing |
17 | Stranglehold | Action, Shooter |
18 | Tears to Tiara II: Heir of the Overlord | Tactical RPG, Visual Novel |
19 | Way of the Samurai 4 | Action |
# | PlayStation 4 Backlog - Game Name: | Genre: |
|---|---|---|
1 | 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim | Tactical RPG, Visual Novel |
2 | AI: The Somnium Files | Adventure, Visual Novel |
3 | Black Clover: Quartet Knights | Action, Fighting |
4 | Bullet Girls Phantasia | Action, Shooter |
5 | The Caligula Effect: Overdose | Turn-Based RPG |
6 | Captain Tsubasa: Rise of New Champions | Sports |
7 | Catherine Full Body | Puzzle |
8 | Chaos;Child | Visual Novel |
9 | Conception Plus: Maidens of the Twelve Stars | Turn-Based RPG |
10 | CRYSTAR | Action RPG |
11 | Cyberdimension Neptunia: Four Goddesses Online | Action RPG |
12 | Danganronpa 1 Reload | Visual Novel |
13 | Danganronpa 2 Reload | Visual Novel |
14 | Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls | Action, Shooter |
15 | Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony | Visual Novel |
16 | Date A Live: Rinne Utopia (Rio-Reincarnation) | Visual Novel, Dating Sim |
17 | Date A Live II: Ars Install (Rio-Reincarnation) | Visual Novel, Dating Sim |
18 | Date A Live III: Twin Edition: Rio Reincarnation | Visual Novel, Dating Sim |
19 | Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth - Hacker's Memory | Turn-Based RPG |
20 | Disaster Report 4: Summer Memories | Adventure, Simulation |
21 | Dissidia Final Fantasy NT | Arcade, Fighting |
21 | Dragon Quest Heroes II | Action RPG, Musou |
22 | Dragon Quest XI S: Echoes of an Elusive Age - Definitive Edition | Turn-Based RPG |
23 | Dragon's Crown Pro | Action RPG |
24 | Fairy Tail | Turn-Based RPG |
25 | Fate/Extella Link | Musou |
26 | Final Fantasy VIII Remastered | Turn-Based RPG |
27 | Full Metal Panic! Fight! Who Dares Win | Tactical RPG |
28 | Gal*Gun 2 | On-Rails Shooter |
29 | Gintama Rumble | Action, Musou |
30 | GOD EATER 3 | Action Hunter RPG |
31 | Gravity Rush 2 | Action, Platformer |
32 | The Great Ace Attorney: Adventures | Visual Novel |
33 | The Great Ace Attorney 2: Resolve | Visual Novel |
34 | Gundam Breaker 3 BREAK EDITION | Action, Arcade |
35 | The Hong Kong Massacre | Top-Down Shooter |
36 | Is it Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? Infinite Combate | Action RPG |
37 | JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Eyes of Heaven | Fighting |
38 | Kotodama: The 7 Mysteries of Fujisawa | Puzzle, Visual Novel |
39 | Langrisser | Tactical RPG |
40 | Langrisser II | Tactical RPG |
41 | The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel | Turn-Based RPG |
42 | The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel II | Turn-Based RPG |
43 | The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel III | Turn-Based RPG |
44 | The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel IV | Turn-Based RPG |
45 | Legend of Mana | Action RPG |
46 | Megadimension Neptunia VII | Turn-Based RPG |
47 | Megadimension Neptunia VIIR | Turn-Based RPG |
48 | MELTY BLOOD: TYPE LUMINA | Fighting |
49 | Naruto Shippuden Ultimate Ninja Storm | Action, Fighting |
50 | Naruto Shippuden Ultimate Ninja Storm 2 | Action, Fighting |
51 | Naruto Shippuden Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 | Action, Fighting |
52 | Naruto Shippuden Ultimate Ninja Storm 4: Road to Boruto | Action, Fighting |
53 | NEO: The World Ends With You | Action RPG |
54 | Neptunia Virtual Stars | Action |
55 | Neptunia x Senran Kagura: Ninja Wars | Action |
56 | Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch Remastered | Turn-Based RPG |
57 | Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom | Action RPG |
58 | Nights of Azure | Action RPG |
59 | Nights of Azure 2: Bride of the New Moon | Action RPG |
60 | One Piece Burning Blood | Fighting |
61 | One Piece Unlimited World Red | Action |
62 | One Piece World Seeker | Action |
63 | One Piece: Pirate Warriors 3 | Musou |
64 | One Piece: Pirate Warriors 4 | Musou |
65 | Our World Is Ended | Visual Novel |
66 | Persona 5 Royal | Turn-Based RPG |
67 | Persona 5 Strikers | Action RPG, Musou |
68 | Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney | Visual Novel |
69 | Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Justice for All | Visual Novel |
70 | Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Trials and Tribulations | Visual Novel |
71 | Punch Line | Visual Novel |
72 | Raging Loop | Visual Novel |
73 | Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World-: Prophecy of the Throne | Visual Novel |
74 | Robotics;Notes DaSH | Visual Novel |
75 | Robotics;Notes ELITE | Visual Novel |
76 | RUINER | Action, Shooter |
77 | SD Gundam G Generation Cross Rays | Tactical RPG |
78 | SD Gundam G Generation Genesis | Tactical RPG |
79 | Secret of Mana | Action RPG |
80 | Sengoku Basara 4: Sumeragi | Musou |
81 | Senran Kagura Burst Re:Newal | Action |
82 | Shadow of the Colossus | Platformer |
83 | Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne HD Remaster | Turn-Based RPG |
84 | Star Ocean: First Departure R | Action RPG |
85 | Star Ocean: The Last Hope HD Remaster | Action RPG |
86 | Steins;Gate Elite | Visual Novel |
87 | Super Neptunia RPG | Turn-Based RPG |
88 | Super Robot Wars 30 | Tactical RPG |
89 | Super Robot Wars OG: The Moon Dwellers | Tactical RPG |
90 | Super Robot Wars T | Tactical RPG |
91 | Super Robot Wars X | Tactical RPG |
92 | Sword Art Online: Fatal Bullet | Action RPG |
93 | Taiko no Tatsujin: Drum Sessions! | Music, Rhythm |
94 | Tales of Berseria | Action RPG |
95 | Tales of Vesperia | Action RPG |
96 | Theatrhythm Final Bar Line | Music, Rhythm |
97 | Tokyo Xanadu eX+ | Action RPG |
98 | Trials of Mana | Action RPG |
99 | Utawarerumono: Mask of Deception | Tactical RPG, Visual Novel |
100 | Utawarerumono: Mask of Truth | Tactical RPG, Visual Novel |
101 | Utawarerumono: Prelude to the Fallen | Tactical RPG, Visual Novel |
102 | Utawarerumono: Zan | Action, Musou |
103 | Valkyria Chronicles 4 | Tactical RPG |
104 | Valkyria Revolution | Action RPG |
105 | WipEout Omega Collection | Racing |
106 | The Witch and the Hundred Knight Revival Edition | Action RPG |
107 | WORLDEND SYNDROME | Visual Novel |
108 | Yakuza 3 Remastered | Action, Beat em up |
109 | Yakuza 4 Remastered | Action, Beat em up |
110 | Yakuza 5 Remastered | Action, Beat em up |
111 | YU-NO: A Girl Who Chants Love at the Bound of this World | Visual Novel |
112 | Ys IX: Monstrum Nox | Action RPG |
# | PlayStation 5 Backlog - Game Name: | Genre: |
|---|---|---|
1 | Alan Wake Remastered | Action, Shooter |
2 | CONTROL Ultimate Edition | Action, Shooter |
3 | Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII -Reunion- | Action RPG |
4 | Cyberpunk 2077 | Action |
5 | Demon Slayer -Kimetsu no Yaiba- The Hinokami Chronicles | Fighting |
6 | The DioField Chronicle | Tactical RPG |
7 | DOOM Eternal | Action, Shooter |
8 | GrimGrimoire OnceMore | Real-Time Strategy RPG |
9 | Hades | Dungeon Crawler |
10 | Judgment | Action, Beat em up |
11 | The Legend of Heroes: Trails into Reverie | Turn-Based RPG |
12 | Lost Judgment | Action, Beat em up |
13 | Mobile Suit Gundam BATTLE OPERATION Code Fairy | Action |
14 | MONARK | Tactical RPG |
15 | Neptunia ReVerse | Turn-Based RPG |
16 | Neptunia: Sisters vs Sisters | Action RPG |
17 | Nioh 2 | Action Souls RPG |
18 | Quake | Action, Shooter |
19 | Record of Lodoss War: Deedlit of Wonder Labyrinth | Metroidvania RPG |
20 | Relayer | Tactical RPG |
21 | SD Gundam Battle Alliance | Action RPG |
22 | Star Ocean: The Divine Force | Action RPG |
23 | Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin | Action Souls RPG |
24 | Tactics Ogre Reborn | Tactical RPG |
25 | Valkyrie Elysium | Action RPG |
26 | Yakuza 7: Like a Dragon | Turn-Based RPG |
27 | Yurukill: The Calumniation Games | Shoot em up, Visual Novel |
# | PlayStation Classics (via PS5) Backlog - Game Name: | Genre: |
|---|---|---|
1 | Ape Escape | Platformer |
2 | Disney Pixar's Toy Story 2: Buzz Lightyear to the Rescue | Platformer |
3 | Everybody's Golf | Sports |
4 | Everybody's Golf 2 | Sports |
5 | Jumping Flash! | Platformer |
6 | Kurushi | Puzzle |
7 | The Legend of Dragoon | Turn-Based RPG |
8 | Syphon Filter | Action, Shooter |
9 | Syphon Filter 2 | Action, Shooter |
10 | Syphon Filter 3 | Action, Shooter |
11 | Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth | Turn-Based RPG |
12 | Wild Arms | Turn-Based RPG |
13 | Wild Arms 2 | Turn-Based RPG |
# | PlayStation Vita Backlog - Game Name: | Genre: |
|---|---|---|
1 | Bullet Girls | Action, Shooter |
2 | Freedom Wars | Action |
3 | Muv-Luv | Visual Novel, Dating Sim |
4 | Muv-Luv Alternative | Visual Novel |
5 | Valkyrie Drive Bhikkhuni | Action |
# | Nintendo Switch Backlog - Game Name: | Genre: |
|---|---|---|
1 | Cytus Alpha | Music, Rhythm |
2 | Final Fantasy | Turn-Based RPG |
3 | Final Fantasy II | Turn-Based RPG |
4 | Final Fantasy III | Turn-Based RPG |
5 | Final Fantasy IV | Turn-Based RPG |
6 | Final Fantasy V | Turn-Based RPG |
7 | Final Fantasy VI | Turn-Based RPG |
8 | Fire Emblem: Three Houses | Tactical RPG |
9 | The Legend of Heroes: Trails from Zero | Turn-Based RPG |
10 | The Legend of Heroes: Trails to Azure | Turn-Based RPG |
11 | The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild | Action RPG |
12 | Live A Live | Tactical RPG |
13 | Mario Kart 8 Deluxe | Racing |
14 | Metroid Dread | Metroidvania |
15 | Metroid Prime Remastered | Action, Shooter |
16 | MUSYNX | Music, Rhythm |
17 | New Super Mario Bros U Deluxe | Platformer |
18 | Senran Kagura Peach Ball | Pinball |
19 | Senran Kagura Reflexions | Simulation |
20 | Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury | Action, Platformer |
21 | Super Mario Galaxy | Action, Platformer |
22 | Super Mario Sunshine | Action, Platformer |
23 | Super Smash Bros. Ultimate | Fighting |
24 | Syd of Valis (SD Valis) | Action, Platformer |
25 | Valis: The Fantasm Soldier | Action, Platformer |
26 | Valis II | Action, Platformer |
27 | Valis III | Action, Platformer |
28 | Valis IV | Action, Platformer |
29 | Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition | Action RPG |
30 | Xenoblade Chronicles 2 | Action RPG |
31 | Xenoblade Chronicles 2: Torna - The Golden Country | Action RPG |
| No. | Game | Console | Acquired | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Shining Resonance Refrain | PS4 | 2018 | Action RPG |
2 | Wing of Darkness | PS4 | 2022 | Action, Arcade |
3 | Super Monkey Ball Banana Mania | PS4 | 2022 | Puzzle |
4 | Tales of Zestiria | PS4 | 2018 | Action RPG |
5 | RESIDENT EVIL 4 | PS5 | 2023 | Action, Survival Horror |
6 | RESIDENT EVIL 2 | PS5 | 2022 | Action, Survival Horror |
7 | RESIDENT EVIL 3 | PS5 | 2022 | Action, Survival Horror |
8 | Resident Evil Revelations | PS4 | 2022 | Action, Survival Horror |
9 | Resident Evil Revelations 2 | PS4 | 2022 | Action, Survival Horror |
10 | Resident Evil 6 | PS4 | 2022 | Action, Survival Horror |
11 | Hyperdevotion Noire: Goddess Black Heart | Vita | 2018 | Tactical RPG |
12 | FINAL FANTASY XVI | PS5 | 2023 | Action RPG |
13 | Hyperdimension Neptunia U: Action Unleashed | Vita | 2018 | Action, Musou |
14 | MegaTagmension Blanc + Neptune VS Zombies | Vita | 2018 | Action, Musou |
15 | Superdimension Neptunia VS SEGA Hard Girls | Vita | 2018 | Turn-Based RPG |
16 | Hot Wheels Unleashed | PS5 | 2023 | Arcade Racing |
17 | DoDonPachi Resurrection | Switch | 2023 | Bullet Hell, Shoot em up |
18 | Espgaluda II | Switch | 2023 | Bullet Hell, Shoot em up |
Lordhippos
Pokémon Master
I started (and finished) the Miles Morales Spiderman game on the PS5 today, apparently took me 8 hours, played it on the hardest difficulty and found that OK though did die and repeat a few bits here and there. I am not a completionist so skipped the side stuff mostly and the collection events, just beelined the main story bits.
Solid game, looking forward to Spiderman 2, which I pre-ordered recently.
My PSN Extra sub runs out soon so just wrapping up a couple of games on that, I won't renew immediately as Sony upped the price to £100/year, I'll instead wait and catch a deal at some point for a cheaper year subscription.
On the PC front, got new Cyberpunk 2077 expansion coming very soon which I will be playing, especially looking forward to seeing how the DLSS 3.5 works with the 2.0 update.
Lies of P is also launching on Game Pass soon and that looks like it will be good as well!
Spoilt for games to play at the moment!
Solid game, looking forward to Spiderman 2, which I pre-ordered recently.
My PSN Extra sub runs out soon so just wrapping up a couple of games on that, I won't renew immediately as Sony upped the price to £100/year, I'll instead wait and catch a deal at some point for a cheaper year subscription.
On the PC front, got new Cyberpunk 2077 expansion coming very soon which I will be playing, especially looking forward to seeing how the DLSS 3.5 works with the 2.0 update.
Lies of P is also launching on Game Pass soon and that looks like it will be good as well!
Spoilt for games to play at the moment!
Lordhippos
Pokémon Master
Uncharted Lost Legacy done, a fun little romp through some wonderful scenery. I think the combat of this game is largely detracting from the more fun puzzle/exploration stuff, but I think same is kind of true for the regular Uncharted series as well. Took me 7 hours to complete this.
Started Lies of P but only played an hour and did the first boss, feels very souls-like. Graphics are kind of disappointing but at least it seems to run smoothly and no major bugs so far. Looks like it's localised for Asia and then dubbed, lip sync is pretty horrific but at least we don't spend much time talking.
I'm most interested in Cyberpunk 2.0 update currently, but will try and push on with Lies of P alongside it.
Started Lies of P but only played an hour and did the first boss, feels very souls-like. Graphics are kind of disappointing but at least it seems to run smoothly and no major bugs so far. Looks like it's localised for Asia and then dubbed, lip sync is pretty horrific but at least we don't spend much time talking.
I'm most interested in Cyberpunk 2.0 update currently, but will try and push on with Lies of P alongside it.
RadFemHedonist
Cardcaptor
I had a crack at Celeste recently and it's challenging but I really was enjoying myself, def want to play more at some point 
Lordhippos
Pokémon Master
I had a crack at Celeste recently and it's challenging but I really was enjoying myself, def want to play more at some point
I've always struggled quite a bit with platform games to get into them, there are the odd ones I liked though. Things like Ori with it's nicely painted environments, Hollow Knight (that game had some real challenge to it) and INSIDE/LIMBO for their more atmospheric approach.
Hope you like Celeste though!
RadFemHedonist
Cardcaptor
Thankyou - I have Hollow Knight but it's not been updated for new macs so I can't play it without some bugs I think now, are you referring to Ori and the Blind Forest? Limbo looked amazing but too disturbing for me!
I'm also somewhat interested in Feist and Loco Roco which I have linked trailers for below - Feist is probs too violent for me but the OST sounds amazing and I've wanted to play Loco Roco for over a decade cuz it just looks sooo cute!
Lordhippos
Pokémon Master
Thankyou - I have Hollow Knight but it's not been updated for new macs so I can't play it without some bugs I think now, are you referring to Ori and the Blind Forest? Limbo looked amazing but too disturbing for me!
I'm also somewhat interested in Feist and Loco Roco which I have linked trailers for below - Feist is probs too violent for me but the OST sounds amazing and I've wanted to play Loco Roco for over a decade cuz it just looks sooo cute!
Feist looks like it has some influence from LIMBO in terms of art, definitely looks more my thing, think Loco Roco is a bit too cutesy for me, I like a gritty atmosphere.
Yes talking about that Ori, there are two of them out, I haven't played the 2nd one yet (been meaning to).
Cyberpunk 2.0 update landed and this thing is visually very impressive, I dare say that this game is the best looking graphical game on the PC if you have the hardware to power it at the top end.
Lucky_Deity
Stand User
Has been a while, I'm really bad at finishing stuff in a timely manner but I did play and finish some recent DLC releases for a few games.
Pokemon Scarlet: The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero - Part 1: The Teal Mask (DLC) (Switch)
I found this a lot of fun, the world of Kitakami was quite refreshing and real fun to explore. Was fun discovering what returning Pokemon were lurking out in the wild such as my beloved Sewaddle. The new characters Kieran and Carmine were great as well, really well written for PKMN and got quickly invested in them, surprised me tbh though tbf the characters have been a strong part for these games. The new Legendary PKMN this DLC focuses on had a fun little plot as well and Ogerpon is soooo cute, I love her. As the name suggests this is only part one of the story and has set-up what is to come along which won't be to far away now, really intrigued as to how this story will wrap up, both from the main game and the elements added in this DLC.
Though the elephant in the room is still that the game isn't up to scratch on the technical side, low frame rate at times, lots of flickering in the world etc. and though it should and I would much prefer it to work and run much better than it is in its current state I've had so much fun with these games it hasn't been a big problem for me like a lot of other people but I completely understand why it would put someone off.
Resident Evil 4 (REmake): Separate Ways (DLC) (PS5)
I'd been waiting for this since launch and I can confidently say it was worth the wait, this was fantastic. RE4R is tied with Persona 4 Golden as my all time favourite game and this DLC has reinforced that more so.
To start Ada's move set is real fun to play, her being able to grapple onto an enemy from a distance and pull herself to melee them is so satisfying and as you get through the game you can buy a charm to unlock a move where she can rip away enemy shields which is such a cool feature and adds to the combat experience. Grappling to areas is also a fun way to escape combat to get a better advantage.
Story wise the main plot for those who don't know is that this is the plot of RE4 but from Ada's perspective and her being in the limelight gives much more context to her character and really gets the time to develop, I especially loved her relationship to Luis throughout the story, they made a great duo. Seeing more of Luis as well was wonderful to see as he had the biggest comeback with this remake and get to see more of his character and motivations as well.
Though a good amount of the early areas are re-treads from the main campaign as you continue through we get some nice twists on existing areas and explore a number of brand new locations, a lot which had been cut content from this remake originally but is fortunately now not the case and this was a clever way to do it, has helped made Seperate Ways stand on its own more. Speaking of cut content, the infamous boss also returns with an expanded role and new lore to better fit the story which I think will make fans happy. There are a few more unique bosses as well not featured in the main game.
Outside of that we also get to see more from another certain character as well which I won't spoil but most players probably know who I'm on about already and really hints as to what the possible next remake may be. I have multiple thoughts on what I think the next remake should be and what I'd like to see.
Another thing I have to mention is that the type-writer music is fantastic in this DLC, really stood out.
Overall I adored this DLC and it was a good length as well, especially with its good price. This really makes me hope that eventually we can get an entire game focused on Ada as though she has had some notable roles (such as RE6) she has been sidelined more than she deserves. Even if not RE9, maybe a Revelations 3 seeing as Rev 2 let Barry get the spotlight along with Claire who hadn't been a main character since Code Veronica at the time.
Pokemon Scarlet: The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero - Part 1: The Teal Mask (DLC) (Switch)
I found this a lot of fun, the world of Kitakami was quite refreshing and real fun to explore. Was fun discovering what returning Pokemon were lurking out in the wild such as my beloved Sewaddle. The new characters Kieran and Carmine were great as well, really well written for PKMN and got quickly invested in them, surprised me tbh though tbf the characters have been a strong part for these games. The new Legendary PKMN this DLC focuses on had a fun little plot as well and Ogerpon is soooo cute, I love her. As the name suggests this is only part one of the story and has set-up what is to come along which won't be to far away now, really intrigued as to how this story will wrap up, both from the main game and the elements added in this DLC.
Though the elephant in the room is still that the game isn't up to scratch on the technical side, low frame rate at times, lots of flickering in the world etc. and though it should and I would much prefer it to work and run much better than it is in its current state I've had so much fun with these games it hasn't been a big problem for me like a lot of other people but I completely understand why it would put someone off.
Resident Evil 4 (REmake): Separate Ways (DLC) (PS5)
I'd been waiting for this since launch and I can confidently say it was worth the wait, this was fantastic. RE4R is tied with Persona 4 Golden as my all time favourite game and this DLC has reinforced that more so.
To start Ada's move set is real fun to play, her being able to grapple onto an enemy from a distance and pull herself to melee them is so satisfying and as you get through the game you can buy a charm to unlock a move where she can rip away enemy shields which is such a cool feature and adds to the combat experience. Grappling to areas is also a fun way to escape combat to get a better advantage.
Story wise the main plot for those who don't know is that this is the plot of RE4 but from Ada's perspective and her being in the limelight gives much more context to her character and really gets the time to develop, I especially loved her relationship to Luis throughout the story, they made a great duo. Seeing more of Luis as well was wonderful to see as he had the biggest comeback with this remake and get to see more of his character and motivations as well.
Though a good amount of the early areas are re-treads from the main campaign as you continue through we get some nice twists on existing areas and explore a number of brand new locations, a lot which had been cut content from this remake originally but is fortunately now not the case and this was a clever way to do it, has helped made Seperate Ways stand on its own more. Speaking of cut content, the infamous boss also returns with an expanded role and new lore to better fit the story which I think will make fans happy. There are a few more unique bosses as well not featured in the main game.
Outside of that we also get to see more from another certain character as well which I won't spoil but most players probably know who I'm on about already and really hints as to what the possible next remake may be. I have multiple thoughts on what I think the next remake should be and what I'd like to see.
Another thing I have to mention is that the type-writer music is fantastic in this DLC, really stood out.
Overall I adored this DLC and it was a good length as well, especially with its good price. This really makes me hope that eventually we can get an entire game focused on Ada as though she has had some notable roles (such as RE6) she has been sidelined more than she deserves. Even if not RE9, maybe a Revelations 3 seeing as Rev 2 let Barry get the spotlight along with Claire who hadn't been a main character since Code Veronica at the time.
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I finished up Hogwarts Legacy recently and it was alright but rather repetitive and the main story wasn’t all that engaging. I spent more time flying around the generic highlands overworld than actually exploring the castle itself.
Currently replaying the N64 Zelda titles and then I’ll see what titles I fancy tackling from there.
Currently replaying the N64 Zelda titles and then I’ll see what titles I fancy tackling from there.
DragoStark
School Idol
I finally finished God of War 2018 after a checks calendar 7 month break lmao. I really did enjoy it, and I'm very glad I did play the previous God of War games because understanding Kratos' backstory made the impact even greater. I'm just doing all the post story stuff now and then I'll move onto Fist of the North Star on the PS4.
On PC, I'm still playing Final Fanasty VII but I'm emotionally devastated by the end of act 1 (yes I managed to somehow avoid that spoiler for 26 years) so I've been on and off playing it. I'm also playing Tiny Tina's Wonderlands and going through it with a buddy. Great fun playing it with someone else is who is into finding all the extra bits on a map as I am.
But Cyberpunk 2.0 and Phantom Liberty DLC dropped so therefore everything else goes on hiatus and I'm diving back into Night City (and Judy, my LOVE) for the forseeable future.
On PC, I'm still playing Final Fanasty VII but I'm emotionally devastated by the end of act 1 (yes I managed to somehow avoid that spoiler for 26 years) so I've been on and off playing it. I'm also playing Tiny Tina's Wonderlands and going through it with a buddy. Great fun playing it with someone else is who is into finding all the extra bits on a map as I am.
But Cyberpunk 2.0 and Phantom Liberty DLC dropped so therefore everything else goes on hiatus and I'm diving back into Night City (and Judy, my LOVE) for the forseeable future.