Good evening, gaming fans! I hope you're still safe at home and practicing social distancing in public. Many people are still killing time at home by playing games and the new PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X are coming out in November. Most people can't preorder them yet, but at least upcoming and current game consoles can keep our minds off the pandemic. Also, the new game systems will play PlayStation 4 and Xbox One games, so that's a huge plus. In the meantime, I'm giving you a handful of short reviews to keep you entertained. Maybe you'll decide to play some of these games. Let's check it out! I'm beginning with the remake of MediEvil on the PlayStation 4. It's a zany comedy game that stars an undead knight who must battle an evil sorcerer and legions of evil. I would say it's kind of like Army of Darkness for younger audiences. It's quite funny with cartoonish humor and the gameplay has a fun hack and slash style. Also, Sir Dan is an entertaining and goofy protagonist in the form of an awkward skeleton. Along the way, the player obtains useful weapons that make the gameplay easier. However, this game is frustrating because it doesn't have checkpoints. That means you start at the beginning of a stage if you die at any time. What if you die during a boss fight? You start at the beginning of the stage again! This style of progression is outdated and many gamers will move onto something else. The combat system could use more refinement instead of flailing around randomly. It seems like I'm missing enemies more often than striking them. Ultimately, I would only recommend this game for hardcore fans of the MediEvil series. I don't think it's a good introducti0n for newcomers to the franchise and I can name better hack and slash examples. Devil May Cry, Onimusha, and God of War are much more satisfying hack and slash games. If you're searching for a mega challenge, try the Dark Souls franchise. Next, I'm taking a look at Mafia III: Definitive Edition. It's an action driven game that takes place in a fictional part of Louisiana during the Vietnam War. Mafia III's greatest strengths are the story and characters. The protagonist is a Vietnam War veteran named Lincoln Clay who turns to organized crime as a means of employment. Eventually, he works up the mob's ranks and becomes a powerful figure. The plot is engaging and fleshed out with the option for multiple endings. Most of the characters have interesting motivations, personality flaws, and nuances that are good enough for a live action film. Sadly, the gameplay is disappointing. The combat and missions are both repetitive and unmemorable. One would think New Bordeaux would be a fascinating location, especially because the game has good animation. Instead, it's generic, bland, and oddly devoid of life. The car chases are annoying, enemies have terrible A.I., and the overall gameplay becomes dull after a while. Even a long list of firearms can't give decent entertainment value to Mafia III. What makes this version the Definitive Edition? I'm not sure because it seems like the original game. It just has the extra DLC. Despite having a strong plot and characters, this game isn't worth your time. Frankly, the remake of the original Mafia game has the same problem, but I'll talk about that on another post. Mafia III is simply a tedious grind with forgettable missions. Just watch the cutscene movie on YouTube instead. Let's see if I had better luck with a Souls style game called Remnant: From the Ashes. Earth has been ravaged by Lovecraftian monsters that are trying to exterminate all human life. The protagonist is a warrior or mage who's going to hunt down these monsters and banish them from Earth. Remnant has a few perks over most Souls clones because it actually has firearms. Various types of guns and explosives make the gameplay easier and more entertaining. Additionally, the landscape is really cool with post-apocalyptic cities, spooky swamplands, and desert wastelands. I wasn't super impressed with the combat system, but the world building is inventive. Like most Souls clones, this game is very challenging with mobs of enemies that pack tremendous damage. The RPG elements aren't helpful enough and the story is pretty weak. I would definitely choose this game over similar titles, but it's still not making me fall in love with Souls style combat. It's a very difficult style of gameplay with sparse checkpoints. I would primarily recommend this game for people who are looking for a serious challenge. Remnant might be a decent game for players who are looking for an introduction to Souls type RPGs. However, it probably won't be a good experience for casual gamers. Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Rescue Team DX is the only Switch game on today’s post. You wake up as a pokémon in an animated world that’s inhabited by adorable creatures. Early in the game, you partner up with another pokémon and go on little missions to rescue lost pokémon. Perhaps, you’ll find a way back to the real world at some point. This game has many cute pokémon who you can recruit along the way. Quite a bit of the dialogue is witty and entertaining as well. Beyond that, Mystery Dungeon is a highly lackluster experience. Everything looks the same after a while. You just take a team of pokémon and wander around dungeon levels to fight enemies and rescue other pokémon. Wash, rinse, repeat. It lacks variety, creativity, and the true spirit of the Pokémon franchise. This game was tailored for younger players, so the gameplay was watered down significantly. In fact, most of the combat is automatic. The characters fight without your input. Unfortunately, the missions aren’t very much fun. I was incredibly disappointed with Mystery Dungeon. It lacks the charm and entertainment value that most gamers expect from the Pokémon series. By the way, games for kids don’t have to be awful. I thought Yoshi’s Crafted World and Cat Quest were pretty good. The LEGO games, Animal Crossing, and Minecraft are great for kids who enjoy building things. Definitely skip this one. Murdered: Soul Suspect is a mystery game that includes some horror elements. The protagonist is a detective who was murdered by the Bell Killer. Now he’s a disembodied spirit who needs to solve his own murder and find the killer’s identity. Soul Suspect has decent investigation elements with a variety of clues that require exploration. You can temporarily possess other character to read their thoughts and listen to dialogue. The protagonist can teleport to different areas and see supernatural clues that are invisible to the human characters. It has some interesting elements that aren’t typical to the mystery genre. However, this game has several problems. It’s easy to miss vital clues and I thought the solutions appeared random. The premise is interesting at first glance, but the game doesn’t flesh anything out. All of the characters are mystery archetypes with very little personality and unmemorable voice acting. You’ll also encounter demons who want to drag you into the netherworld. It’s a missed opportunity because the demon encounters are just a repetitive grind with bad stealth mechanics. Honestly, if you feel dedicated enough to finish the game, use a guide because piecing together the evidence has no rhyme nor reason. I appreciate the developer’s effort to bring something new to the mystery genre. Unfortunately, the finished product doesn’t come together very well. Murdered: Soul Suspect is just another disappointing game on this list. Maybe I found Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order more impressive. This game aligns with the original Star Wars trilogy through the perspective of a Jedi padawan who was trained in secret. After all, it’s best if the Empire believes the Jedi Order is extinct. Unlike most of the games on this post, Jedi Fallen Order has several positive elements. It feels like a legitimate Star Wars game that should make the fan base happy. This game follows the basic story, thematic material, and spirit of the original trilogy. It has excellent gameplay with smooth controls, great platforming, a fun combat system, and a great skill tree that unlocks useful abilities. The world building is impressive with well crafted animation, a plethora of alien creatures, and a combination of new and classic Star Wars locations. With that said, I noticed problems with the map. It’s really easy to get lost for long periods of time. I got lost several times for more than an hour a piece. The game provides a map, but it’s not particularly useful. In the end, I simply didn’t have enough patience to continue. This game also has a slew of bugs and glitches. The game crashed a handful of times and buggy hesitations occur frequently. I had issues with this game, but you might have a completely different experience. Jedi Fallen Order is a strong entry in the modern Star Wars era and it could open the doorway to more refined titles. It has excellent combat and RPG elements along with great visuals effects. I struggled with navigation, but that doesn’t mean everyone will have the same problem. Is this game accessible to people who don’t follow Star Wars? That’s a tricky question to answer. I believe Star Wars fans would have the best experience, but gamers in general would probably enjoy it. Finally, I’m reviewing Resident Evil 4. It’s a classic that was eventually released on modern consoles. Leon S. Kennedy is mowing down a new type of zombie in rural Spain that are controlled by a parasitic bio organic weapon. Truthfully, I can’t stand this game, but it has several interesting monsters. Resident Evil 4 has a new spin on the zombie genre with frightening creatures that have insect-like qualities. The player will also encounter a giant salamander and a chimera that’s a hybrid of many creatures. Even the new chainsaw wielding zombie is intimidating.
The rest of the game is nonsense. Many gamers consider Resident Evil 4 the best entry in the franchise. What am I missing? The gameplay is clunky and awkward. I could barely aim and shoot enemies, even though they walk very slowly. It retains the stupid tank controls that made gaming difficult back in the PlayStation 2 days. Like most Resident Evil games, this one has a laughably bad plot with goofy characters and lame dialogue. Also, this game is surprisingly low in scares, even though the monsters are pretty good. The environment is bland and uninspired with generic music that doesn’t help the ambiance. The game feels very small, even though you’re stranded in locations like vast woodlands, giant castles, and creepy marshes. This game doesn’t give the player any chances for exploration, although I might be giving an unfair assessment because open world environments weren’t the standard when this title was released. I don’t get it. Apparently, Resident Evil 4 is a masterpiece, even though it plays terribly. I’m certainly not going to recommend it. Even if you don’t like the action driven Resident Evil games, I can still identify better examples. If you want a super creepy experience, try Resident Evil: Revelations or the two most recent remakes. Well, I didn’t like any of these games! But that doesn’t mean you’ll have the same experience. I would say Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order has excellent gameplay and Remnant: From the Ashes is a good choice for Dark Souls fans. These games just didn’t work for me. Next week, I’ll probably talk about the chaos regarding the next generation of game consoles. Preorders were a mess and many retailers are cancelling them. Let’s see if anything changes next week. Take care of yourselves, practice social distancing, and find creative ways to have fun. Good night!
0 Comments
Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. Archives
May 2019
Categories |