ZTGD

I could go on and on about how much I’ve fallen in love with the setting, the improvements to the core gameplay, and the way it feels like Ubisoft have breathed new life into the franchise. The year off and restructure of the game has done wonders for it, almost bringing Assassin’s Creed into the RPG territory rather than just being and action adventure game.

Need for Speed Payback is a victim of both progression issues and design choice. The driving and actual gameplay is still fun and well done. There’s actually a very good open world racing game in here, it’s just bogged down by level progression and needless grinding that is only there to extend the gameplay time and to get people to spend real money to potentially get upgrades for the cars.

It’s hard to recommend Doom to those that have played it unless they fit certain criteria. If playing Doom on the go is a huge factor, it gets no better than this. It doesn’t look the clearest or run the smoothest, but 90% of the time players can still enjoy one hell of a game.

Spelunker Party seems completely at odds with the type of game it is trying to be. Frustrating controls and poor gameplay design are the things you want to try and avoid when making a platformer. But it is the slow pace of both the game and the progression that feels most out of place and one that makes this game the kind you want to avoid.

Knights of Azure 2 was not an awful experience, just a thoroughly mediocre one. Combat is dull and simplistic; game performance lacks; many of its systems never amount to much and – its visuals are likely held back by the Vita, a device that westerners forgot about 5 years ago.

There are endless joys to discuss with Super Mario Odyssey. Being a huge fan of Mario 64, this game is a love letter for me. I enjoyed every minute I was playing it and cannot wait until I get some free time to return and continue collecting moons. Switch owners need this game, players without a Switch need to go buy one to play it. Nintendo knocks another one out of the park, and this may very well be their best year of games since the Super Nintendo.

Hand of Fate 2 is a well done sequel. It adds a lot more to the game while keeping things both familiar and fresh at the same time. The choose your own adventure aspects of it and the ability to tailor make your experience really add a lot to the overall package, and while repetitiveness can set in, it most certainly doesn’t happen until later on in the game.

It really all boils down to if you have nostalgia for these games or have a genuine interest in checking out the early days of point and click adventure games. Either way, you get three full games that are still fun in some instances even if some of the mechanics don’t hold up. Even then, there’s plenty of walkthroughs that have been made throughout the years that can help if you’re stuck. And all of this for the low price of eight bucks.

The return of Bubsy is a travesty. He was a remnant of a forgotten age that should have stayed in the past. Nothing about this reboot feels good and the criminally short play time is the final nail in the coffin. Very few people asked for the resurrection of Bubsy, and after his comeback, even less will want him to return again.

The release of .hack//G.U. Last Recode is a celebration of what I consider to be CyberConnect2’s greatest achievement in gaming thus far. It’s an excellent way for newcomers to experience one of the most underrated JRPGs in the lengthy and excellent catalogue of PS2 games. As for those like myself who loved the original- a chance to say hello to some old friends and finally erase that last bit of regret that’s been lingering all these years.