La5t Game You Fini5hed And Your Thought5

Metroid Dread looks class, one of the few recent Nintendo games that has had me yearning for a Switch.

Cappa wrote:

I’d have likely enjoyed Dread that bit more if I’d been able to spend longer playing as the fully-equipped Samus

This is a real pet peeve of mine. Spending hours building a character up, and then the game ends rather than lets you enjoy the powers. Can you play through the game with your upgraded abilities, or is that kind of pointless? I guess modes like New Game + are of less use nowadays, as people jump between games more frequently. I have no data to back this opinion up, mind.

A rare double post:



Horizon Chase Turbo

I know Cappa recently waxed lyrical about this retro-influenced racer but tough - I’m going to do it as well. This was a purchase based off of said review, and I’m glad I grabbed it as it’s brilliant. Some of my first games were Mega Drive titles like Super Monaco GP and Super Hang-On (everything was “super” that generation) and Horizon may not be directly influenced by those two in particular, but feels like the full realisation of what those games were trying to achieve on their limited hardware. The timers have been replaced with fuel, which you can top up on with a combination of skill and memory. The crashes aren’t disastrous to your race. The game actually requires you to brake (or ease off the gas). It's surprisingly fast with a leaning towards reactions and quick burst racing. Some races are 90 seconds long!

Most of the game is relatively straightforward, with difficulty spikes coming in the guise of night-time driving. Also known as, “I can’t see where I’m going” driving. I think there’s one course in Japan that I basically memorised the turns, which made me equal parts frustrated and feel like a God. I know some players weren’t keen on the whole stop-start collision detection, whereby if you drive into the back of someone you slow down and the car in front is smashed forward. I think that’s actually a key part of the game, as it rewards skill and punishes aggression. This isn’t Burnout Revenge, after all. The AI is pretty smart too and will block you off so it represents enough challenge and getting 100% on the campaign took me a good 20-30 hours.

Horizon Chase Turbo basically removes the frustrations of those old 2D arcade racers, packs it with content, and presents it with a colourful aesthetic. Oh, and the music is sublime! My one criticism would be that the actual driving isn’t as tactile or fun as perhaps SEGA’s best work, so I don’t think I’d say it’s perfect. If you removed the trophies and unlockable vehicles, would I play it just for fun? It’s less likely. I think that’s a combination of my taste leaning more towards 3D arcade racers, and the game world lacking a little personality. Either way, Horizon Chase Turbo is excellent and a great example of retro ideas being given a new lease of life.

9/10

Nice to see Cappa and m'self agreeing on something in the gaming sphere.

Jimbob wrote:

536/782 on the JBIndex

I'm looking forward to every Jim game being rated this way in the future, with accompanying Simpsons memes.

Jimbob wrote:

KIDS

I should really like it as it's a weird meta-commentary puzzle thing instead of an FPS or something, but this is too artsy even for me.[/b]

Jaster made a memorable post about “wannabe arts-y wan k pretending to be games” after a recent Nintendo indies Direct. That sounds like one of those, and now having looked into it, I can't run far away enough from it.

gjones wrote:

Horizon Chase Turbo

Some of my first games were Mega Drive titles like Super Monaco GP and Super Hang-On (everything was “super” that generation) and Horizon may not be directly influenced by those two in particular, but feels like the full realisation of what those games were trying to achieve on their limited hardware...

...My one criticism would be that the actual driving isn’t as tactile or fun as perhaps SEGA’s best work, so I don’t think I’d say it’s perfect. If you removed the trophies and unlockable vehicles, would I play it just for fun? It’s less likely.

I’d agree with that. Horizon Chase Turbo is an absolutely brilliant game right enough, and it’s nice to read that you enjoyed it off the back of my recommendation. But I think SEGA’s arcade racers are just more fun to casually play.

As a whole thing put together though, I’d say it’s only OutRun 2 (and maybe Namco’s Ridge Racer Type 4) that’s better than Horizon Chase Turbo in its genre.

Talking about direct influences though, you’d maybe not know that Horizon Chase Turbo is essentially a modern and full realisation of Top Gear on the SNES. Horzion Chase Turbo is to Top Gear what Bloodstained is to Symphony of the Night. Or Mighty No. 9 is to Mega Man, except neither game is shite.

Yeah I'd heard of Top Gear, and imagine Chase HQ would be an influence too (given the name). Haven't played either though. Horizon will stay on my PS4 hard drive for the foreseeable, given there are more content packs to play. There really is such a phenomenal amount of content!

Cappa wrote:

I’d have likely enjoyed Dread that bit more if I’d been able to spend longer playing as the fully-equipped Samus

Totally agreed. My favourite part of Dread was zipping across the map with all of my power-ups searching for secret missile tanks or whatnot. But, outside of the final boss, there's no actual setpieces or new areas to explore with all of Samus's abilities. A missed trick, there.

I rolled credits yesterday but late last night then this afternoon been doing the post-game missions, which all are done now. What would be left to do would be doing the Pokédex, even though I've enjoyed capturing Mon's whilst playing, I'm not going to try to catch them all because you've got the weird ones etc.

That out the way, the core story plus the bit on the end is great and think after this will be hard to go back to something that plays like BDSP with the battle system, Pokémon on the map etc if they kept that but put a gym in each area with a town of some sort then that would be ideal.

Now I'm thinking does this make my Top 10 Switch games or not hmm???

I'd also recommend Legends to people (Jas as an example) who don't like JRPG's.

Double Post for one of favourite threads


What I played after Pokémon Legends, as it is a short weird novelty game where you take pictures of dogs like a Pokémon Snap. Just unlike Snap, you can walk around to take the pictures, but lacks the charm and polish of Snap.

I would pass on it for the most part as last year had a few photography games and one of those might be better.


A real odd remaster as there is no native PS5 or Series version, so it is a remaster of a PS3/4 game for PS4, been improvements like lip-syncing for instance but not much. That if you've not played before, I would say just play the old version as cheaper (unless Square delist from digital stores, but physical version not that expensive) to experience this still great narrative driven game.

Not sure if I will jump on Life is Strange Remaster right away or give it sometime after a big game like Pokémon Legends again.

Edit

LoS is a neat little very Mas game on the eShop, which I heard a little about before it's release, then when I saw it was just £4 odd worth a punt. It won't be for many of you, just if you finish Pokémon Legends and don't want to jump into Horizon Forbidden West right after, then this a nice little game in-between.

Is Pokémon Legends Arceus the best Pokémon RPG ever?  That's not the silly question it sounds like, for me at least.  The most original games in the series, unquestionably Red & Blue, are dated in several ways, and I don't do the whole 'nostalgia' thing as much as many.  Every game after that has been an incremental improvement, apart from the likes of XD Gale of Darkness (dated-feeling due to predating the physical/special split and featuring no exploration at all).  PLA is probably going up against Heart Gold & Soul Silver, a remake, for me.  How does it do?

Except of course it's not a straightforward comparison.  Stop me if you've heard this, but apparently PLA does this whole 'open-world' thingy?  Out with the gym structure and most trainer battles, in with Pokémon roaming the wilderness and stealthing around them to make the capture.  It's new, it's bold, it's more interesting then anything Pokémon's done for at least a decade, and it mostly works.  I love exploration, I love a sense of world, and Pokémon delivers.  I like too how the rideable monsters slowly power you up, with 4/5 opening new swathes of the world and making you feel if not more powerful, then certainly more agile.  

With trying something outside your comfort zone comes areas of discomfort.  Not the graphics, those are absolutely fine and people making a fuss over the tree design should make a fuss over sexual assault in the industry instead, or anything else that actually matters.  Also though, I've had Pokémon glitch into trees, watched status remain after the 'Mon watching has long since left, grass jittering in and out of existence, The Amazing Uncatchable Cherrim - bugs that are absolutely understandable in a company trying to make something big and new in quicktime, but did spoil the experience somewhat.  It's got other flaws as an open-world game too, with the artificial inconsistent bordering of the map and the odd deeply irritating quest being the big ones.  (I'd still like to stuff the big Buizel down its owner's throat.)  Also: flaws as a Pokémon game.  The new monster designs are largely mediocre and their evolutions are daft, the battle system has been simplified too far, and systems such as the pastures and inventory are needlessly annoying.  Let me sort my Pokémon!

But.  Imagine going back from what Legends has done.  Imagine random battles coming back, or cordoned-off battle environments, or the dullness of the Wild Area in comparison to Hisui, or flat gridlike landscapes.  Imagine having to whittle each Pokémon down to catch it, rather than hurling a ball from fifty paces and the thrill of it clasping shut.  Imagine Pokémon losing all threat again, being relegated to battle mechanics, rather than wild creatures that live in a world and don't particularly want to share it with you.  I can't.  Mas can't either, apparently.  I'm sure we'll have to, when they remake Black & White à la BDSP with minimal imagination, but I'd rather not.  

I spent 70+ hours catching and completing the entire Pokédex, a first for me in any Pokémon game.  Over that time I've come to the conclusion: Pokémon Legends Arceus is not the best Pokémon RPG ever.  It's close, but it's too flawed, and the naff non-ending(s) have left a foul aftertaste.  HGSS are endlessly refined yet based in an era before everything grew too complex, and that weighs in their favour.  Instead, PLA is the most exciting Pokémon RPG since at least the GameCube days.  For a series like Pokémon, that's arguably better than 'best'.  Now, I barely care about the next remake, or even the next main series game.  Instead I really want Legends 2.

It is a difficult act to follow for sure and I don't really feel like going back to the grind of random encounters would be a good thing. This game could do with more polish, but continuing to flesh out the catching, sneaking, monster interactions etc., that's a winner winner chicken dinner right there.

Having the player actually share the same overworld as the pokemon has to be where the series goes. I say this having really enjoyed Sword and Shield but the biggest takeaway from this game is that it's life doesn't have to exist in multiplayer, walking around with an egg awkwardly taking up a party slot, or in doing some weird challenge run. You can still do those things, but there is so much vibrancy in the natural playing of this game.

The way they've simplified effort values, I think that's an amazing change as I can now make those Pokémon that carried me through the game the monsters they deserve to be in my head. Gone are the days of RnG eugenics if I ever want a competitive team that could hold its own against another player.

I feel like almost everything cut from the old games, the eggs, the random battles, the arcane effort value system, has been a welcome breath of fresh air. And it's all carried by that open world. Just fill it with more stuff, more pokemon, and more areas!

I wouldn't necessarily mind the return of those abilities, whatever you call them - stuff like "Pressure." I think there is room to add a bit more complexity to the battle system if they wanted to, but I would also want that to go through the same quality of life changes the effort values have done, make it easy to switch them up. But anyway, at least for the first rodeo, I think keeping things simple and focused on the big outdoors was the best decision they could have made.

Totally agree with your closing remark there Balla. This is what Pokémon should be moving forwards in my humble opinion. Funnily enough, the Breath of the Wild comparison rings true here as well in regards to what people want to see next as much like how the general wish was "this, but with proper Zelda dungeons" for BotW, I'd like to see "this, but with Pokémon gyms".

I'll put up my own extended thoughts on PLA once I finish the 'dex!

I hope there's more Legends, I don't want it to replace the standard franchise. Let the kids have their first RPG be the simple structure, sure it's not for me, but neither are nappys and dummys.

That's not what I've heard Andy.

Yeah have like 5 zones, four with two gyms instead of the trials and have the 5th zone as the league.

Replace the clan members standing around in zones with trainers and done.

I'm pretty sure kids would prefer Pokémon battles not being shut off in random closed rooms too, and wanting to explore is a desire that kids get pretty early on - see me and Mario 64. 'This, but with gyms' sounds good to me.

Muss wrote:

I wouldn't necessarily mind the return of those abilities, whatever you call them - stuff like "Pressure." I think there is room to add a bit more complexity to the battle system if they wanted to, but I would also want that to go through the same quality of life changes the effort values have done, make it easy to switch them up. But anyway, at least for the first rodeo, I think keeping things simple and focused on the big outdoors was the best decision they could have made.

I agree with most of this. The bits I want to come back are abilities, held items, weather, separated special and physical stat boosters, and multiple Pokémon battles. I don't want them to go exactly back to the way things were. And the EV changes are a big plus!

I have seen the credits of PL:A and I agree with Balla's review pretty much entirely (imagine!). Not sure if I'll finish the Pokedex or not - I have about 40 more monsters to catch - but I feel like I should because, you know, Arceus eh. Might write up more detailed thoughts in a while!

I think it depends what you're referring to as kids, I certainly played Pokemon before I was dextrous enough to be any good at Mario. Sure I'd play it, but Pokemon is the one I actually made meaningful progress with (once I worked with my Mum to figure out how to leave the house).
With Legends you already need to have a solid grasp on dual analogue use or you're going to have a bad time.

I get where you are coming from. I do think there is work to do in terms of making the throwing a bit easierin general as it's a bit clunky in Arceus. However, I'm sure they could put in an easy auto-aim system that let you cycle through targets at ease, something that doesn't really require any aiming. I wouldn't expect a mainline game to involve those actiony boss battles either, so there's that too.

But it is amazing how intuitive I find using duel sticks these days. My girlfriend is so much worse at moving a camera around, but for me it's second nature now. Not that she is bad, she just has not had the same amount of practice. It's definitely a big skill to learn that would precludes a lot of less dexterous/experienced folk from games.

That is a fair point from Crumpy. More generous auto-aim feels like a must going forward, if only as an option.

Crumpy Andy wrote:

...Pokemon is the one I actually made meaningful progress with (once I worked with my Mum to figure out how to leave the house).

I'm glad it wasn't just me. I was convinced my game was broken.

I won't say too much right now, as I have to finish off the game this weekend, get my thoughts in order and then record a spoilercast with Kate Gray and James Farley. I think there are elements of this which should be incorporated into the main series, but I feel like between Sun and Moon's trials, Lets Go's catching and Sword and Shield's Wild Area and DLC especially, this isn't as separate as people make out. Legends is a culmination of stuff they were already working on.

Crumpy Andy wrote:

With Legends you already need to have a solid grasp on dual analogue use or you're going to have a bad time.

Nintendo used to bring this up, but then:

Jimbob wrote:

Balladeer wrote:

Rum wrote:

The Cappuccino Kid wrote:

Chris Scullion recommends a game there that I've already got a review typed up for. A 2/10 review.

We want names!

This!  Don't let somebody blunder into a mistake!

I bet I know which one it is, but I'll grab the popcorn and wait to find out!

Sorry if you were expecting me to launch double-footed into something that, you know, isn't obviously shite.



Damn you, EnjoyUp Games. In Rally Rock ‘N Racing, you’ve developed an arcade racer that appeals to just about all my senses. With it’s fun and cartoony GameCube-style cel-shaded visuals, it’s poppy N64 ‘rawk’ soundtrack, lively sense of speed and varied course scenery, you’ve presented me with what’s pretty much my ideal budget eShop racing game. You just forgot to bloody playtest it, that’s all!

Not since the early days of the Wii have I experienced controls that completely hump a game like they do here. Simply put, the handling of the cars in Rally Rock ‘N Racing is atrocious. Turning round corners is nothing but torture. The physics engine is outrageously inconsistent, feeling like an utter p I s s-take at the player’s expense. It would be easier to guess the lottery numbers for the next five years than it would be to guess how your car is going to react to any of the terrain, or any ramp and chicane, or any collision. The AI of your opponent drivers is idiotic, just braindead, always doing things that would see you braindead in real life. Borderline unplayable, Rally Rock ‘N Racing’s gameplay can be ticked off on a checklist of all the worst things you could experience in a racing game.

Rally Rock ‘N Racing is deeply nostalgic, but for deeply wrong reasons. Above all else, that steering and those physics strongly remind me of Carmageddon 64 - and of its thorough mankiness. 2/10.

Ooft, the Major Minor's Majestic March of arcade racers. I can't say I've been saved from rushing out to buy it, but it's always grand to have another Cappa baw-booting to read.  (Maybe less so for Cappa.)

ASTROLOGASTER:

I thought Big Brain Academy: Brain Vs. Brain would be a useful way of starting my new year, to help me mentally refocus myself after three weeks of no work and doing hee-haw. I welcomed this surprise announcement in the latter stages of 2021; I think there’s lots to like about those games from fifteen years ago. I quietly looked forward to a modern reappraisal of Big Brain Academy.

Brain Vs. Brain features twenty minigames that are split into five categories: Identify, Memorise, Analyse, Compute and Visualise. These can be practiced individually, or randomly assorted into the form of a Big Brain Brawn test. Just like in the previous Brain Training and Big Brain Academy games, your results are presented to you in a pentagonal diagram, highlighting where you’ve done well and where you’re recommended to sharpen up. The presentation and methodology behind all of this seems to be pretty much the same as what you’d experienced on your 7th gen consoles. Unfortunately, so do most of the minigames: more than three quarters of them are taken straight from the Big Brain Academy DS and Wii games.

Apart from it’s obviously slicker production, the only thing that appears to lift this Big Brain Academy from the days of Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan is the Ghost Clash mode. In this, you compete against another player’s ghost data in head-to-head tests. I’d compare it to the Time Trail mode in any of the Mario Kart games, basically being included for you to fine-tune your own performance. It’s a nice addition for sure, and it can be quite moreish. Yet in the grander scheme of things it’s not an overly compelling reason to switch the game on, or enough of a justification to awaken Big Brain Academy from its fourteen-year sleep.

Over fifteen years after the brain exercise craze kicked off, Big Brain Academy has returned with too few fresh ideas and modes, and without enough new content. I enjoyed what’s here in Brain Vs. Brain well enough and I feel that it stimulated my brain to an extent. It’s a pretty fun game by the standards of the genre, all told. However, it feels massively unambitious, like its set up to do the bare minimum. I’d seen that Nintendo recommended this be sold at £24.99, but on launch day there were a handful of retailers that marked it down to £17.99. This is a more appropriate price, in my opinion. However, you might as well just save £17.49 and pick up an old copy of Big Brain Academy on Wii when you’re next in CEX. Comparing this Switch update to that old Wii one, they’re honestly not that different. 6/10.

I've not been much for the Xenoblade games, as you may know, but for some reason Torna always looked interesting, not sure why but has. Anyway, as you may have seen from recent pick-ups, I got the standalone version which I was planning to just get to at some point.

With the announcement of XC3 which looks, decided to start Torna right away and glad I did as it was a good little JRPG (I say little as only 18hrs) that has some things I didn't like such as the forced sidequests that aren't very good & just pad out time, yet on the other hand looks great, OST is decent, and I liked the combat system. VO is hit-and-miss, as I must have heard AREN'T WE INTREPID a million times when collecting things.

This has overall has got me more excited about XC3, sure could pick up XC or XC2 on Switch now, I just don't need that much seen Xenoblade in one year.

You can't really know a line until you've heard it thousands of times over the course of sixty hours.

'Flora heals an aching soul!'
'Tora dreamt that Tora was eating a sausage the size of Poppi!'
'THINK YEW KIN TAKE ME!?'

...none of these lines will mean anything to anyone here. Alas.

The Cappuccino Kid wrote:

Jimbob wrote:

Balladeer wrote:

Rum wrote:

The Cappuccino Kid wrote:

Chris Scullion recommends a game there that I've already got a review typed up for. A 2/10 review.

We want names!

This!  Don't let somebody blunder into a mistake!

I bet I know which one it is, but I'll grab the popcorn and wait to find out!

Sorry if you were expecting me to launch double-footed into something that, you know, isn't obviously shite.

I assumed Deponia.
My quick take - main characters can be arseholes of course, but the chap in Deponia is a complete selfish nobhead, and the writers don't seem to have realised that. Unbearable.