Consume

I typically don’t write anything about games unless I finish them, but I’m compelled to write a quick blurb about Avowed, because I don’t know if I’ll be finishing it. I’ve played 25ish hours since launch and I do REALLY like it. But I’m also feeling a bit bored, almost done with the third zone? And there’s a little voice in the back of my mind that says it might come out in PS5 in a year and I’d rather spend more time with it there. So yeah, not sure. But on the whole, I think the combat is great (even if myself, starting to feel bored), the world exploration is fun and really rewarding, and the writing/companions/voice acting is all stellar. A home run for Obsidian, and I’m feeling optimistic toward the Outer Worlds sequel after playing this.

Before this, I hadn’t played through a Pokemon game since Red on the original Game Boy when it first came out. I’ve thought about it a few times over the past few years, but never been motivated enough. Then Emerald was the AOTM on RA and, well… it was time. After finishing it, I’m left underwhelmed. I definitely get the appeal, and at a different stage in my life I’d be way more into it. The gameplay is solid but the world/story/characters are barely there. Zero desire to go for the mastery, complete the Pokedex or anything like that.

This is excellent. The gameplay is basic but there’s just enough weapon variety and possibilities in the mod system it keeps it interesting all the way through, at least for the first playthrough which clocks about 8-9 hours. Story is breezy and well-paced, with only a few characters you need to keep track of. There’s a ton of made up science jargon but the game doesn’t try to overexplain it, just keeps moving. The aesthetic is excellent with some great pre-rendered backgrounds, and I loved the soundtrack. I’ll probably jump right into an EX game to hit the Chrysler building and see the secret ending. Really enjoying this one.

It’s a gnarly little non-linear narrative game. I heard a bunch of podcasters extolling its virtues on their GOTY lists and had to pick it up. Love the PS1 aesthetic and the writing is great, but it’s a pretty short experience at ~2 hours. Like reading a good horror short story.

What a ride. I still haven’t played through the PS1 original, so I should probably do that too because I know this remaster on GC takes some liberties. The game does some incredibly cool things mechanically, but it does suffer from the sometimes-way-too-long Kojima Cutscene Syndrome (KCS). Seriously, some of the dialogue, especially around the finale, is dumb and very repetitive. Had a pretty fun time with it anyway, and seems like if I wanted to go back in there’s a ton of extra stuff to unlock going for 100% completion. Which I won’t, haha. I do need to play through all the MGS games and maybe this is a good time to start, before this I only spent much time with 5.

Second time I’ve played this, first was closer to launch on PC. It’s basically a visual novel with some pretty rudimentary dice mechanics, definitely catches you with that “just one more turn” feeling. I wanted to replay it before checking out the sequel and I’m glad I did. Wonderful stories, super character-driven, in an interesting setting. The Eye has this great texture, a mix of warmth and industrial decay, filled with many intriguing paths to follow.

Throwback! This game came out in 1995. I wanted to play more Picross and I figured I would time travel back to one of the earliest games with an RA set. Had a lot of fun with this one, made it through all 3 difficulty levels of puzzles. Probably won’t mess with the time trials much beyond that, I have other Picross games to move on to.

I won’t describe it as a return to form, since Dragon Age’s “form” has been in flux since the first sequel, but ten years after Inquisition it’s pretty great to spend some time in Thedas again. Combat goes further down the action path, not unexpected and not bad, by any means, but not interesting enough to carry a game of this length. Good bones anyway, and I’m hopeful they’ll improve on it if they get a chance. The story ain’t bad. Some of the writing sucks, but there’s some great lines too. It’s just uneven. The cast of characters is pretty great, and I was invested in most of their stories. Overall I had good fun with it, even if it’s got a little too much padding. The question is: will it do well enough to justify making another one?

What a delight. If I told you there was a game where every time your character took a step there was a sound effect, and that sound effect was different depending on what surface you were walking on, it might sound annoying. But it’s lovely. This has been on my radar for a long time and finally played it. Great environments and conceit, exploring this house from the perspective of a tiny little robot. Fun story, really lively characters with their own sidequests, and not overly long.

It’s a solid B horror game, good cast of characters and decent gameplay that doesn’t overstay its welcome. I enjoyed the not-quite-campy 70s vibes.

Available to download for free on itch.io. This is my first picross game and wow, I’m a convert now. It feels like sudoku but less mathy. This game takes 200~ nonograms and wraps them in a fun little world to explore and solve different puzzles to unlock new areas. I ran across this because it got a RetroAchievements set, and honestly that’s a great way to find these gems on itch.

Hey, now I’ve finished them both. I played this one with the extremely popular restored content mod that fixes a bunch of stuff. I would assume based on the name it also restores some cut content, but since I never played all the way through vanilla… I’m not sure what that includes! Overall, I liked it okay. Probably about the same as the first one except it has a more interesting story and nuanced characters. Pretty uneven in the gameplay department. After playing both of these I think I really don’t like the combat system. Boils down to, at least for me, get your buffs up so you can survive and then either nuke groups with Force Storm, which is highly effective even though I went with the melee-focused prestige class, or destroy single targets with Force Speed, which at the highest level has you attacking like… four times per turn? Only challenging at times if I died really quickly and had to reload and buff up, otherwise it was a snooze.

Wasn’t expecting this to be so heavy before I started it. It’s a walking simulator in some ways; the gameplay is never complicated, challenging, or particularly engaging. But the vibes are there. I really love swimming or scooting through the depths in the submarine with the melancholy soundtrack in my ears. The story also hits with a surprisingly emotional punch, especially if you’re a parent.

Twenty years after this game came out, I’ve completed it. When I played as a teen on our old family PC, I remember hitting a bug toward the end of the game and never being able to complete it. I’ve finally finished that journey on the Steam Deck. Game holds up, with some solid writing and great characters. Even the combat still feels decent, and I felt a real sense of progression gaining new force powers that turned me into a beast. Last dungeon was a bit of a slog, I can’t believe just how many dark jedi Malak has to throw in your way. Anyway, really enjoyed finally finishing it. I’ll be curious to see if the remake they announced so many years ago ever actually comes out.

Been meaning to play this for a few years and finally got around to it. After beating Metaphor I feel like I need to cleanse the palate with some shorter games. This was really solid, even knowing a little bit what I was getting into it was still pretty creepy and executed well. Don’t really love the visual novel format so I’m glad it’s fairly short, enjoyed the story and writing for a few hours without any desire to platinum it or anything.

After 90 hours, it’s my game of the year. I absolutely love how they took the Persona loop and evolved it in a fantasy setting. I was invested in the story and characters, obsessed with the archetypes (class system), and just overall thoroughly enjoyed my time with this game. Really sticks the landing, too. There’s a part of me that want to jump right into NG+ and go for the platinum but I’ll probably wait.

Wow, I can’t wait for Control 2. Night Springs DLC was a lot of fun in a zany way but this matches the tone of AW2 better, and the FBC is just really fucking cool. Estevez is a great character, she brings a cool competence and familiarity with phenomena that Alan, Saga, and even Jesse don’t have. Special callout to the sound design, the music in the DLC is on point and I can’t believe how ominous they made a room full of typewriters feel.

I think this is the first Zelda game I’ve beaten besides Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom. I didn’t get into them much when I was younger. It’s a different formula for sure, the dungeons are a much bigger focus and each one feels like a giant puzzle. Combat is a little puzzle-y too but mostly not that interesting. I didn’t care for the world in Twilight Princess, especially compared to the newer games. I’ll probably play Wind Waker next since I’m on a Gamecube kick.

Another Gamecube throwback, but this one I’d never played. I liked the combo of deckbuilding and more active gameplay. Pretty basic elemental system of strengths and weaknesses. I goofed and did not realize until literally the last boss fight, that you can still cast cards when you run out of crystals and it will just pull from your health. Honestly the game was pretty easy and then that last fight was a huge difficulty spike. Overall I enjoyed it, didn’t overstay its welcome, and I’m looking forward to trying the sequel once there’s a Retroachievements set for it.

What a delightful combination of cute and demonic. This is a pretty addictive roguelike and I’ve been having a good time. The soundtrack is especially memorable. I hated the combat when I first started but it’s growing on me.

Blast from the past! I remember playing this 100 years ago, and some of the main story beats stayed with me, but it’s been long enough it mostly felt fresh. The first Tales game I’ve played in ages and while the combat does get a bit stale I enjoyed it. Better story than I was expecting too.

With the release of the DLC, I realized I needed to start a whole new character since it had been so long since I played. I’m glad I did. Revisiting the full game has only reinforced my belief this is one of, maybe the best, games of all the time. The open world is… absolutely insane. Build variety off the charts. I’m playing way different than my first character, playing str/fth with a greatsword and shield plus heavy armor. Loving the guard counter life. Shadow of the Erdtree so far is just more of an amazing game. Cake on top of cake. I’m taking my time and just enjoying seeing everything new.

Great to spend more time in this world, if only for a little one. Rose’s episode is just dumb action fun with a side character, great writing. Episode 2 is amazing vibes in Coffee World and nice to see Jesse from Control again. Episode 3 is probably my fave, big time Quantum Break references and a delightful little choose your own adventure at the end. I enjoyed these but I am hoping the Lake House DLC is a more substantial canon story.

I finally came back to this one for a platinum-seeking New Game + run. It’s so damn good. If the original release hadn’t been so marred by performance issues this would have been an easy GOTY contender. The performance mode runs great now anyway. I just can’t believe what a huge evolution from Fallen Order this is. That game was great, and then they layered on better combat, better traversal, a better map, much more rewarding exploration and a huge world… it’s just excellent. I hope we still get to see a finished trilogy even though Stig left Respawn.

I’ve been meaning to play Dredge since it released, and I finally got around to it. It’s pretty short, if you stick to the main quest, and it’s kind of all about the vibes. The music, the mood, the style all great. But the gameplay is generally repetitive and the upgrades never feel impactful enough. Like, now that I’ve seen the ending I have zero desire to pursue the platinum.

Damn, this is a long game. I rolled credits last night after 75 hours and there’s still a bunch of side stuff I haven’t done, not to mention a hard mode playthrough if I go for the platinum. It’s a killer game. The boss fights were the highlight for me, just like in Remake. I enjoyed the huge open world and a lot of the side content, even if I’m feeling a little burned out right now. I really don’t know how they’re going to top this for part three.

Yikes, what a slog. Mostly smooth sailing but needed a few hours of grinding before the final dungeon. I can’t imagine playing this game without a guide and map. If I had more free time maybe the exploration would be rewarding, but it feels like the game expects you to sail randomly around the world to every island and city looking for what to do next. I have no patience for that, these days. I’m looking forward to III, and I’m going to play the translated SNES version. I’ve heard III is the first truly great game in the series.

Is it time to play through all the Dragon Quest games? Maybe. I’ve only played through XI and IX, in that order. And I now, I guess. Extremely basic compared to modern RPGs, almost to the point of not really being enjoyable? I don’t know. I’m giving II a try but I might skip it if I’m not having fun, I’ve heard III is better.

What a solid little RPG. The gimmick mechanics add a lot of variety to the combat gameplay (and I won’t lie, I abused the Steam Deck programmable controls for some turbo button hax). Thanks to a fantastic translation this precursor to the Mario & Luigi RPG series is finally fully playable in English.

A roguelike based on poker hands. 100% perfectly nails the “one more round” effect. I love it, and maybe someday I will be good at it.

I wanted to play through this again before FFVII Rebirth comes out later this month. I liked it on PS4 but thought there was too much padding. I’m feeling more generous after playing through it on PS5; this game is fucking gorgeous, a technical showcase, and the “real-time with pause” combat is a great twist on the original gameplay. Really excited for Rebirth after this, it’s looking great. I’m currently playing through the DLC with Yuffie and they knocked it out of the park, her character’s a blast to play.

What a solid game. The combat is fast, fun and crunchy. The story is dumb and the voice acting is borderline terrible, but if you can look past that the combat and progression deliver a solid package.

Well I didn’t play the first three but Pikmin 4 is pretty damn great. More chill vibes over this strange holiday season, except for some of the not-so-chill boss encounters. But the main path of the game only has a few nailbiters, otherwise it’s smooth sailing.

Cozier than I expected. I enjoyed the loop of dungeon delving, simple platforming combat, and city building. Good pacing for the story but definitely grind-heavy if you’re going for 100%, which I thought I might at first, but maybe later down the road.

What a wild ride. Only my second Yakuza game—I played Yakuza 0 a few years ago. I enjoyed the turn-based combat more than the brawler gameplay of that and other entries, and the story actually held my attention through the end (despite some overly long monologues). I might be a Yakuza (Like A Dragon) fan now, could be picking up Infinite Wealth at launch.

A strong follow-up to the first two. They managed to fit some surprises into what is a very comic booky story. Best-in-class traversal.

I expected it to be good, but I wasn’t expecting a GOTY contender. Alan Wake II builds on the foundation of the first game, smashes in some Control, and boldly flips the genre for a horror masterpiece firing on all cylinders. I loved it, and it left me wanting more. Sam Lake and the rest of the team at Remedy just get better with every release.

It’s 1000x better than the game I played at launch 3 years ago. I don’t even recognize it. The skill trees are exciting, the combat feels chaotic and kinetic, and the game breaking glitches are few and far between. The storyline for the new expansion is fantastic, some great new characters with top-tier acting and animation.

Wonderful game. You could call it a love letter to SNES-era RPGs like Chrono Trigger, and that formula’s tweaked with the kind of QoL updates you expect from a 2023 title. The OST is killer. My only quiet gripe might be with the difficulty (lack of), but even that could be enhanced with some of the gameplay-altering relics. A great follow up to Sabotage’s first game, The Messenger, and I’ll be closely watching for whatever they do next.

I finished my first playthrough of Baldur’s Gate 3 at about 80 hours. What a ride. Act 1 was a little slow for me until the last bit, but after that it just got better and better through the end. I had fun with my Circle of the Moon druid, especially once I unlocked the owlbear, but I’m looking forward to trying a monk or paladin for my next run. There’s too much sweet gear that has no effect in wild shape, which was a bummer.

It’s Skyrim in space. Planets to explore, space pirates to kill. My current goals are mostly outpost related. I want to get some supply lines set up and build some cool bases.

It’s an improvement over the first in almost every way, but for some reason it hasn’t grabbed me as much as the first did.

God it’s glorious. Epic story moments backed up by solid combat. I started off as a druid and I’ve already been thinking about what classes to try out in my next few playthroughs. I’m really digging the way companion storylines are woven into the main quest, enhanced by top tier acting.

Revisiting this N64 classic with upgraded visuals thanks to MasterKillua. It’s delightful, a fun turn-based romp.

I started off pretty hot on this game but I’m feeling cool now. The combat’s fun and flashy but the side quests suck and the mechanics for the combat are too simple to sustain a game of this length. Got some slappers on the OST though.