1. Sly 2 Band of Thieves HD (PS3)
2. Black (Xbox)
3. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (Xbox)
4. Super Mario Bros Advance 4: SMB3 E-Reader Levels (WiiUVC)
5. Galerians (PSX)
6. Shantae and the Pirate's Curse (WiiU)
7. TRAG / Hard Edge: Mission of Mercy (PSX)
8. Soul Blade (PSX)
9. Castlevania Circle of the Moon* (WiiUVC)
10. The Legend of Zelda Twilight Princess* HD (WiiU)
11. Mega Man 9* (PSN)
12. Mega Man 10* (PSN)
13. Dark Souls 3 (NG++) [PLATINUM] (PS4)
14. Mega Man 1* (PS4, MMLC)
15. Mega Man 2* (PS4, MMLC)
16. Mega Man 3* (PS4, MMLC)
17. Mega Man 4* (PS4, MMLC)
18. Mega Man 5* (PS4, MMLC)
19. Mega Man 6* (PS4, MMLC)
20. Doom [PLATINUM] (PS4)
21. Quake (PC)
22. Quake 2* (PC)
23. Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 (PS3)
24. Quake Mission Pack 1: Scourge of Armagon (PC)
25. Quake 2 Mission Pack 1: The Reckoning (PC)
26. Quake Mission Pack 2: Dissolution of Eternity (PC)
27. Quake 2 Mission Pack 2: Ground Zero (PC)
28. Quake: Dimensions of the Past (PC)
29. Bayonetta 2 (WiiU)
30. Wolfenstein The Old Blood (PC)
31. Dishonored DLC The Knife of Dunwall (PC)
32. Dishonored DLC The Brigmore Witches (PC)
33. Metro Last Light Redux (PC)
34. Doom 3 BFG Edition* (PC)
35. Metro 2033 Redux (PC)
36. Doom 3 Resurrection of Evil* BFG (PC)
37. Doom 3 The Lost Mission* BFG (PC)
38. Ninja Gaiden 3 Razor's Edge (PS3)
39. Ultimate Doom* (PC)
40. Devil's Third (WiiU)
41. SOMA (PC)
42. Doom 2* (PC)
43. Gone Home (PC)
44. Metroid Other M (Wii)
45. Deus Ex Human Revolution Director's Cut* (PC)
46. AM2R: Return of Samus (PC)
47. Call of Duty: Ghosts (PS4)
48. Metroid Zero Mission* (WiiUVC)
49. Alan Wake's American Nightmare (PC)
50. Odallus: The Dark Call (PC)
51. Deus Ex Mankind Divided (PC)
52. Resident Evil HD* [Chris & Jill] (PS3)
53. Resident Evil Revelations 2 (PS4)
54. Resident Evil Code Veronica X* HD (PS3)
55. Resident Evil 5* [PLATINUM] (PS4)
56. Resident Evil Zero* HD (PS4)
57. Resident Evil 4 HD* (PS4)
58. Titanfall 2 (PS4)
59. Another World: 20th Anniversary (PC)
60. Xeodrifter (PC)
61. Firewatch (PC)
62. Axiom Verge (PC)
63. Final Fantasy XV (PS4)
64. Layers of Fear (PC)
65. Condemned Criminal Origins* (PC)
66. FEAR* (PC)
67. FEAR 2* (PC)
* replay
Dropped:
1. Fear Effect 2 (PSX)
2. Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z (PS3)
Looks like that's a wrap for me. I was averaging about 50 the last few years, so it was a very productive 2016. Really nice to revisit Condemned and FEAR 1-2 again at the end there, still love them and FEAR holds up as one of my all time favorite FPS's.
Since it's so easy to track time with Steam, my howlongtobeat profile is starting to look like I'm super hardcore PC... when not really at all. haha
http://howlongtobeat.com/user.php?n=Xeogred&s=games
Games Beaten 2016
-
ElkinFencer10
- Next-Gen
- Posts: 8582
- Joined: Fri Aug 13, 2010 8:34 pm
- Location: Henderson, North Carolina
- Contact:
Re: Games Beaten 2016
Finishing off the year with a game in my favorite series. This review is dedicated the BogusMeatFactory GrumpyMeatFactory.
Games Beaten in 2016 So Far - 132
January (20 Games Beaten)
February (8 Games Beaten)
March (8 Games Beaten)
April (13 Games Beaten)
May (6 Games Beaten)
June (13 Games Beaten)
July (7 Games Beaten)
August (15 Games Beaten)
September (8 Games Beaten)
October (10 Games Beaten)
November (6 Games Beaten)
December (18 Games Beaten)
132. Superdimension Neptune vs. Sega Hard Girls - Vita - December 31
As everyone should know, I love the Neptunia series. It is my all time favorite video game franchise, and I will fight anyone who tries to tell me it's not great (I routinely fight large number of opponents...). Superdimension Neptune vs. Sega Hard Girls is - as the title suggests - a crossover game between the Hyperdimension Neptunia and Sega Hard Girls series. It's more accurate, however, to say that they shoehorned Sega Hard Girls characters into a Hyperdimension Neptunia game (kind of what they did with Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE by shoehorning Fire Emblem characters into a Persona game).
If you've played any of the three Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth games Megadimension Neptunia VII, then you know exactly what to expect in terms of gameplay. This one plays out exactly like the standard Nep JRPG. In my opinion, that's a great thing. However, if you're super hardcore about your JRPGs, it might not appeal to you. "Challenge" is one thing that does NOT describe a Neptunia RPG. Even if you don't buy the few $1 break-the-game DLCs, the game is NOT difficult, and you unlock some pseudo-game-breaking options just by playing normally (though you can, thankfully, disable or enable these at will). You don't play Nep games for the challenge, though; you play them for the lovable characters and shattered fourth wall.
So basically the plot is that you're the Doctor except instead of a Time Lord, you're IF (she's the protagonist in this one); instead of a companion, you have Segami; and instead of a TARDIS, you have a motorcycle possessed by the ghost of Neptune. As you travel through the four eras of Gamindustry's past, you'll encounter Plutia and Mega Drive, Neptune (again) and Saturn, Nepgear and Game Gear, and Uzume and Dreamcast. It's like a Sega fanboy's dream come true (so of course I loved it). It is HELLA goofy, though; steer clear of this one if you're wanting a serious plot with serious characters. FFS, the titular character spends the whole game possessing a god damn motorcycle. It's the best kind of goofy, but it's 110% goofy.
I'm not going to say too too much more about this game because it's essentially pure fan service. If you don't like the idea of a silly RPG with personified Sega consoles, you won't like this game no matter what I say; if you think that idea sounds amazing, you're going to like this game even if I say nothing. If you're unfamiliar with the Neptunia series, I don't recommend starting with this one. Go pick up Re;Birth 1 on Vita or Steam and start with that one. If you've put your foot in the water with Neptunia before, however, and are familiar with some of the characters and their personalities (and actually like it; I know I'm a minority on that), then you definitely shouldn't miss this one. I liked it a lot more than most people, and it's admittedly very niche game, but if you fall into the that niche, it's a pretty great experience.
Games Beaten in 2016 So Far - 132
January (20 Games Beaten)
February (8 Games Beaten)
March (8 Games Beaten)
April (13 Games Beaten)
May (6 Games Beaten)
June (13 Games Beaten)
July (7 Games Beaten)
August (15 Games Beaten)
September (8 Games Beaten)
October (10 Games Beaten)
November (6 Games Beaten)
December (18 Games Beaten)
132. Superdimension Neptune vs. Sega Hard Girls - Vita - December 31
As everyone should know, I love the Neptunia series. It is my all time favorite video game franchise, and I will fight anyone who tries to tell me it's not great (I routinely fight large number of opponents...). Superdimension Neptune vs. Sega Hard Girls is - as the title suggests - a crossover game between the Hyperdimension Neptunia and Sega Hard Girls series. It's more accurate, however, to say that they shoehorned Sega Hard Girls characters into a Hyperdimension Neptunia game (kind of what they did with Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE by shoehorning Fire Emblem characters into a Persona game).
If you've played any of the three Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth games Megadimension Neptunia VII, then you know exactly what to expect in terms of gameplay. This one plays out exactly like the standard Nep JRPG. In my opinion, that's a great thing. However, if you're super hardcore about your JRPGs, it might not appeal to you. "Challenge" is one thing that does NOT describe a Neptunia RPG. Even if you don't buy the few $1 break-the-game DLCs, the game is NOT difficult, and you unlock some pseudo-game-breaking options just by playing normally (though you can, thankfully, disable or enable these at will). You don't play Nep games for the challenge, though; you play them for the lovable characters and shattered fourth wall.
So basically the plot is that you're the Doctor except instead of a Time Lord, you're IF (she's the protagonist in this one); instead of a companion, you have Segami; and instead of a TARDIS, you have a motorcycle possessed by the ghost of Neptune. As you travel through the four eras of Gamindustry's past, you'll encounter Plutia and Mega Drive, Neptune (again) and Saturn, Nepgear and Game Gear, and Uzume and Dreamcast. It's like a Sega fanboy's dream come true (so of course I loved it). It is HELLA goofy, though; steer clear of this one if you're wanting a serious plot with serious characters. FFS, the titular character spends the whole game possessing a god damn motorcycle. It's the best kind of goofy, but it's 110% goofy.
I'm not going to say too too much more about this game because it's essentially pure fan service. If you don't like the idea of a silly RPG with personified Sega consoles, you won't like this game no matter what I say; if you think that idea sounds amazing, you're going to like this game even if I say nothing. If you're unfamiliar with the Neptunia series, I don't recommend starting with this one. Go pick up Re;Birth 1 on Vita or Steam and start with that one. If you've put your foot in the water with Neptunia before, however, and are familiar with some of the characters and their personalities (and actually like it; I know I'm a minority on that), then you definitely shouldn't miss this one. I liked it a lot more than most people, and it's admittedly very niche game, but if you fall into the that niche, it's a pretty great experience.
Exhuminator wrote:Ecchi lords must unite for great justice.
Re: Games Beaten 2016
1-50
51: Digital Devil Story: Megami Tensei II (FC)
52: Biohazard 2 (DC)
53: Biohazard 3: Last Escape (DC)
54: Biohazard Code: Veronica - Kanzenban (DC)
55: Lunar: The Silver Star (SCD)
56: Escape Goat (GOG)
57: Magicool (PCE-CD)
58: Hotline Miami (GOG)
59: Berserk: Millennium Falcon Hen Wasurebana no Shou (DC)
60: Dennou Senki Virtual On: Oratorio Tangram (DC)
61: Mr. Driller (DC)
62: Zombie Revenge (DC)
63: Fighting Vipers 2 (DC)
64: Frame Gride (DC)
65: Space Channel 5 (DC)
66: Space Channel 5 - Part 2 (DC)
67: Super Street Fighter II X: Grand Master Challenge (DC)
68: Street Fighter III: New Generation (DC)
69: Street Fighter III: 2nd Impact (DC)
70: Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike (DC)
71: Mr. Driller: Drill Spirits (DS)
72: Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together (Saturn)
I popped in Drill Spirits for the first time in nearly a decade. Finished the last two time attack stages, and that was that. Turns out, the one I hadn't finished (to open up the final stage) was "The Mansion" stage from the first game. So that was fun and easy. I like Mr. Driller as a concept, but I'm not a huge fan of this version. I'll stick to the original.
--
Tactics Ogre was like my white whale this year (I started it back in mid-June), and I'm quite happy to have brought it all home, just under the wire, before the end of 2016.
So, for starters, the Saturn version doesn't have many differences compared to the PS or SNES versions: Extra horizontal resolution compared to SNES (except for in some cutscenes), reworked soundtrack, voice over in a number of cutscenes (which is very nice), no jerky weirdness when casting spells and such like the PS version. Load times in general are pretty agreeable, with the only loading of note being on booting the game (or soft resetting, which I did a lot of), starting the game, and getting into and out of encounters / floors. It's a very inviting package, aesthetically, and plays without any hiccups.
I'll also get this out of the way: The story is absurdly good. It is easily up there with BoF: Dragon Quarter, the Suikoden trilogy, Chrono Cross, Legend of Mana, and Shenmue I/II in terms of story; Perhaps it's a little better than Terra Phantastica in that regard, also. The story is aided in part by being a narrative sequel to Ogre Battle, but is still in a completely different league entirely. From the start, it throws the player into the heat of political strife, and the plight of a Kosovan-esque people trying to make sense of recent events in their history. With the help of some characters from Ogre Battle, one gets to choose a path toward the reunification of the continent, with plenty of pitfalls, and alliance with a variety of different characters--either garnered through altruism and a common objective, or tenuously accepted out of fear or selfish motives--along the way. One rather unfortunate thing is that many of the allied characters don't play very significant roles in the story. I really liked Olivia, and was really happy that she was displayed so prominently in the ending I got, but despite always having her in my active group, she didn't really have any lines after I recruited her. Speaking of the ending:
Obviously the story and presentation is great, but sadly, I did not enjoy the gameplay. Battles (even extremely easy ones like a lot of the random encounters) are way too arduously plodding in pace, and generally drawn out. I had 70 hours clocked in either before or after Haym Castle, which is just before the final area: itself, a torturous place, that at minimum, is a gauntlet of 10 maps--and still not as bad as the 100 floor Temple of the Dead. That 70 hours also doesn't factor in the hours of resetting I did grinding the first floor of the bonus dungeon to farm for Glass Pumpkins and other equipment. I also spent a ton of time leveling units in Training, but there's just way too many maps, and too many of them are completely inconsequential (but required). Early maps tend to put an ally unit three turns away from any other ally unit's intervention, but about two turns away from being set upon by the enemy hoard. On the flip side, much later in the game, almost every map turns into a collection of candy-asses, that are really only a threat if one really made a mistake in deploying units. Speaking of "deploying units," one has to set up the load-out before seeing anything about the map, which could be chock full of zombies that can only be defeated by using Exorcism or Banish, or killing all of them before any reanimate. In other words, one could be completely screwed without certain abilities/classes. So the expectation is, what, go into the battle, see what's happening, then reload the save to pick a better load-out? If not that, then wipe and try again? The most annoying thing to me is the random battles, though. It's not possible to run from encounters, and random encounters take too long; So, I would constantly be moving one town at a time, saving every time I moved, and resetting the game whenever I got a random encounter, because it was ultimately much faster than wasting time on a bunch of useless encounters.
In terms of mechanics, it's pretty boring, as well. Classes are pretty uninteresting, with some really ham handed utility (I'm looking at you, healers). Most of them seem downright useless. Stats start to rack up by the hundreds later in the game, but new equipment is usually only affecting stat bonuses by single digits. By the end of the game, I had a gunner who could theoretically shoot at anything on the entire map, and Habolim, with a skill from the Temple of the Dead that let him turn his DEX into attack damage (got it up to ~350 damage on the final boss) which was mostly all I needed other than a couple mages. When it's not kind of boring, the game is usually a pain in the ass, in terms of its core gameplay. So, there's that. Also, the terrain ALWAYS fucked me when I would shoot a ranged weapon, but I never saw the same thing happen to the computer.
Ultimately I only really care about this game for the story. It can be fun, but I just don't really know what they were trying to do with the mechanics. Terra Phantastica is still my standard-bearer for SRPG mechanics. For that reason, I'm unlikely to really play this game again, but I can re-watch all the cutscenes in the Warren Report, so I don't really feel much need to, since Neutral is the only acceptable path.
I played enough of this game, and I've written more than enough about it. I'm ready to leave it behind me, back in 2016.
51: Digital Devil Story: Megami Tensei II (FC)
52: Biohazard 2 (DC)
53: Biohazard 3: Last Escape (DC)
54: Biohazard Code: Veronica - Kanzenban (DC)
55: Lunar: The Silver Star (SCD)
56: Escape Goat (GOG)
57: Magicool (PCE-CD)
58: Hotline Miami (GOG)
59: Berserk: Millennium Falcon Hen Wasurebana no Shou (DC)
60: Dennou Senki Virtual On: Oratorio Tangram (DC)
61: Mr. Driller (DC)
62: Zombie Revenge (DC)
63: Fighting Vipers 2 (DC)
64: Frame Gride (DC)
65: Space Channel 5 (DC)
66: Space Channel 5 - Part 2 (DC)
67: Super Street Fighter II X: Grand Master Challenge (DC)
68: Street Fighter III: New Generation (DC)
69: Street Fighter III: 2nd Impact (DC)
70: Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike (DC)
71: Mr. Driller: Drill Spirits (DS)
72: Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together (Saturn)
I popped in Drill Spirits for the first time in nearly a decade. Finished the last two time attack stages, and that was that. Turns out, the one I hadn't finished (to open up the final stage) was "The Mansion" stage from the first game. So that was fun and easy. I like Mr. Driller as a concept, but I'm not a huge fan of this version. I'll stick to the original.
--
Tactics Ogre was like my white whale this year (I started it back in mid-June), and I'm quite happy to have brought it all home, just under the wire, before the end of 2016.
So, for starters, the Saturn version doesn't have many differences compared to the PS or SNES versions: Extra horizontal resolution compared to SNES (except for in some cutscenes), reworked soundtrack, voice over in a number of cutscenes (which is very nice), no jerky weirdness when casting spells and such like the PS version. Load times in general are pretty agreeable, with the only loading of note being on booting the game (or soft resetting, which I did a lot of), starting the game, and getting into and out of encounters / floors. It's a very inviting package, aesthetically, and plays without any hiccups.
I'll also get this out of the way: The story is absurdly good. It is easily up there with BoF: Dragon Quarter, the Suikoden trilogy, Chrono Cross, Legend of Mana, and Shenmue I/II in terms of story; Perhaps it's a little better than Terra Phantastica in that regard, also. The story is aided in part by being a narrative sequel to Ogre Battle, but is still in a completely different league entirely. From the start, it throws the player into the heat of political strife, and the plight of a Kosovan-esque people trying to make sense of recent events in their history. With the help of some characters from Ogre Battle, one gets to choose a path toward the reunification of the continent, with plenty of pitfalls, and alliance with a variety of different characters--either garnered through altruism and a common objective, or tenuously accepted out of fear or selfish motives--along the way. One rather unfortunate thing is that many of the allied characters don't play very significant roles in the story. I really liked Olivia, and was really happy that she was displayed so prominently in the ending I got, but despite always having her in my active group, she didn't really have any lines after I recruited her. Speaking of the ending:
In terms of mechanics, it's pretty boring, as well. Classes are pretty uninteresting, with some really ham handed utility (I'm looking at you, healers). Most of them seem downright useless. Stats start to rack up by the hundreds later in the game, but new equipment is usually only affecting stat bonuses by single digits. By the end of the game, I had a gunner who could theoretically shoot at anything on the entire map, and Habolim, with a skill from the Temple of the Dead that let him turn his DEX into attack damage (got it up to ~350 damage on the final boss) which was mostly all I needed other than a couple mages. When it's not kind of boring, the game is usually a pain in the ass, in terms of its core gameplay. So, there's that. Also, the terrain ALWAYS fucked me when I would shoot a ranged weapon, but I never saw the same thing happen to the computer.
Ultimately I only really care about this game for the story. It can be fun, but I just don't really know what they were trying to do with the mechanics. Terra Phantastica is still my standard-bearer for SRPG mechanics. For that reason, I'm unlikely to really play this game again, but I can re-watch all the cutscenes in the Warren Report, so I don't really feel much need to, since Neutral is the only acceptable path.
I played enough of this game, and I've written more than enough about it. I'm ready to leave it behind me, back in 2016.
Re: Games Beaten 2016
January:
February:
March:
April:
May:
June:
July:
August:
September:
October:
November:
December:
159) Rise of the Tomb Raider - Lara's Nightmare (PS4) (DLC)
160) Titanfall 2 (PS4)
161) Soul Blade (PSX)
162) Axiom Verge (PC)
163) Owlboy (PC)
164) Nitro Ball (ARC)
165) Desert Breaker (ARC)
166) Dead Connection (ARC)
167) Crystal of Kings (ARC)
168) Crime Fighters (ARC)
169) Vendetta (ARC)
170) Super Contra (ARC)
171) Contra (ARC)
172) Sunset Riders (ARC)
173) Rastan Saga (ARC)
174) Growl (ARC)
175) Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (ARC)
176) Red Clash (ARC)
177) Dreaming Sarah (PC)
178) Crimson Clover WORLD IGNITION (PC)
179) Shantae: Half-Genie Hero (PS4)
180) Adventures of Mana (AND)
181) Double Dragon Advance (GBA)
182) X-Men: Children of the Atom (ARC)
183) Double Dragon (ARC)
184) Double Dragon II: The Revenge (ARC)
185) The Simpsons (ARC)
186) Double Dragon III: The Rosetta Stone (ARC)
187) Return of Double Dragon (SFC)
188) Exile: Wicked Phenomenon (DUO)
Hoo boy. I got in on the Exile II action. I've always wanted to give it a go. I beat the Genesis port of Exile years ago, and it was pretty cool. You know, Working Designs has re-jiggered some games before, but I don't know if they've ever outright broken one like this. Everything hits like a Mack Truck. Until you get past a certain level threshold, and then you will take piddling damage from most enemies... but a few still hit like a sack of bricks. You're gonna have to use lots of healing items, or abuse save states. Guess which one I did! (Actually, both, but not to the degree you'd think on the latter.)
The WD translation is pretty censored, too, with some obvious religious name stand-ins (Christians are "Klispins", "Fallah" instead of Allah, and so on. The restoratives are various drugs, slightly changed from their real world version (Coca, Hasheesh, a stand-in for cannabis, and more that I don't necessarily recognize). What's more, if you use two in a row, the effects can be "weird", reducing or increasing stats or health.
The game overall, even without the issues, is pretty janky. You almost have to be at the very edge of the screen to scroll, which gives little chance to react, often your attacks won't actually hit, and projectiles in particular have strange hit boxes that don't align with what's on screen.
On the positive side, there's some cool anime-style artwork. I reckon it's worth... 5/10, maybe. Potentially lower just because of WD's meddling. Actually, yeah, I'll go 4/10. I should have gone with the Japanese version as Exhuminator suggested, but I wanted to see how busted it was. (Ironically, the last boss is completely pathetic.)
EDIT: For better or worse, it looks like I'm done for the year. I'll never approach this number again. And really, that should be a resolution next year. I know it's shorter stuff, but I really should take everything I know and make my own game. I just know it'll be a lot of work!
February:
March:
April:
May:
June:
July:
August:
September:
October:
November:
December:
159) Rise of the Tomb Raider - Lara's Nightmare (PS4) (DLC)
160) Titanfall 2 (PS4)
161) Soul Blade (PSX)
162) Axiom Verge (PC)
163) Owlboy (PC)
164) Nitro Ball (ARC)
165) Desert Breaker (ARC)
166) Dead Connection (ARC)
167) Crystal of Kings (ARC)
168) Crime Fighters (ARC)
169) Vendetta (ARC)
170) Super Contra (ARC)
171) Contra (ARC)
172) Sunset Riders (ARC)
173) Rastan Saga (ARC)
174) Growl (ARC)
175) Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (ARC)
176) Red Clash (ARC)
177) Dreaming Sarah (PC)
178) Crimson Clover WORLD IGNITION (PC)
179) Shantae: Half-Genie Hero (PS4)
180) Adventures of Mana (AND)
181) Double Dragon Advance (GBA)
182) X-Men: Children of the Atom (ARC)
183) Double Dragon (ARC)
184) Double Dragon II: The Revenge (ARC)
185) The Simpsons (ARC)
186) Double Dragon III: The Rosetta Stone (ARC)
187) Return of Double Dragon (SFC)
188) Exile: Wicked Phenomenon (DUO)
Hoo boy. I got in on the Exile II action. I've always wanted to give it a go. I beat the Genesis port of Exile years ago, and it was pretty cool. You know, Working Designs has re-jiggered some games before, but I don't know if they've ever outright broken one like this. Everything hits like a Mack Truck. Until you get past a certain level threshold, and then you will take piddling damage from most enemies... but a few still hit like a sack of bricks. You're gonna have to use lots of healing items, or abuse save states. Guess which one I did! (Actually, both, but not to the degree you'd think on the latter.)
The WD translation is pretty censored, too, with some obvious religious name stand-ins (Christians are "Klispins", "Fallah" instead of Allah, and so on. The restoratives are various drugs, slightly changed from their real world version (Coca, Hasheesh, a stand-in for cannabis, and more that I don't necessarily recognize). What's more, if you use two in a row, the effects can be "weird", reducing or increasing stats or health.
The game overall, even without the issues, is pretty janky. You almost have to be at the very edge of the screen to scroll, which gives little chance to react, often your attacks won't actually hit, and projectiles in particular have strange hit boxes that don't align with what's on screen.
On the positive side, there's some cool anime-style artwork. I reckon it's worth... 5/10, maybe. Potentially lower just because of WD's meddling. Actually, yeah, I'll go 4/10. I should have gone with the Japanese version as Exhuminator suggested, but I wanted to see how busted it was. (Ironically, the last boss is completely pathetic.)
EDIT: For better or worse, it looks like I'm done for the year. I'll never approach this number again. And really, that should be a resolution next year. I know it's shorter stuff, but I really should take everything I know and make my own game. I just know it'll be a lot of work!
-
laurenhiya21
- Next-Gen
- Posts: 1115
- Joined: Tue Jan 28, 2014 11:20 pm
- Location: Wash-a-ton
Re: Games Beaten 2016
1/16: Diablo III (PC)
1/19: Picross e (3DS DL)
1/23: Baroque (Wii)
2/5: LocoRoco (PSP)
3/31: Picross e2 (3DS DL)
4/7: Stardew Valley (Steam)
4/8: Voices From the Sea (Steam)
4/10: X-Note (Steam)
4/11: To the Moon (Steam)
4/19: Atelier Totori: The Adventurer of Arland (PS3)
4/19: Aquapazza: Aquaplus Dream Match (PS3)
6/19: Steins;Gate (PS3)
7/11: Yoshi’s Woolly World (Wii U)
7/13: Muramasa Rebirth (Vita)
7/13: Strider 2 (PS1 Classics)
7/16: Planetarian ~The Reverie of a Little Planet~ (Steam)
7/16: Narcissu (Steam)
7/26: Crimzon Clover: World Ignition (GOG)
7/28: LocoRoco 2 (PSP)
7/30: Criminal Girls: Invite Only (Vita)
8/1: Pokemon Art Academy (3DS)
8/5: Gal*Gun: Double Peace (PS4)
8/8: Before the Echo (Steam)
8/9: Ironclad (PC DL)
8/9: Star Fox 64 3D (3DS)
8/14: Super Paper Mario (Wii)
8/15: Metal Slug (Steam)
8/17: Metal Slug 2 (Steam)
8/17: Metal Slug X (Steam)
8/18: Metal Slug 3 (Steam)
8/24: Earth Defence Force: Insect Armageddon (PS3)
8/25: The Typing of the Dead: Overkill (Steam)
8/28: Hatsune Miku Project Diva f (Vita)
8/31: Fable: The Lost Chapters (PC)
9/8: Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni - Ch.2 Watanagashi (Steam)
9/28: Hatsune Miku: Project Diva (PSP)
10/9: Gone Home (PS4)
10/28: Pony Island (Steam)
11/3: Dragon Quest Builders (PS4)
11/4: Life is Strange (PS4)
11/14: Skyrim Special Edition (Steam)
11/30: Lucy: The Eternity She Wished For (Steam)
12/30: Nier (PS3)
Total: 43 games
I'm not in a very good review mode right now, but Nier is really good. It's combat system is a bit basic (hit things with your sword and sometimes magic too), it's a bit ugly looking, and the plot doesn't really reveal too much until late in the game, but it does do a few things right that made me really enjoy playing it. The main characters are pretty deep but can often be funny to listen to as well. How the game shifts into different genres sometimes (like a bullet hell or text adventure) spices things up every so often. Plus, after a while the game starts revealing interesting things about the world that can also be pretty bonkers at times, which I really enjoyed for some reason.
Those things really make Nier stand out for me, and it's definitely up there somewhere as one of my favourite games that I've played this year. I still haven't even gotten the other three endings (which you get in New Game+ and are supposedly very good), so I'll definitely be continuing this game into the new year (and playing the sequal once that comes out
).
1/19: Picross e (3DS DL)
1/23: Baroque (Wii)
2/5: LocoRoco (PSP)
3/31: Picross e2 (3DS DL)
4/7: Stardew Valley (Steam)
4/8: Voices From the Sea (Steam)
4/10: X-Note (Steam)
4/11: To the Moon (Steam)
4/19: Atelier Totori: The Adventurer of Arland (PS3)
4/19: Aquapazza: Aquaplus Dream Match (PS3)
6/19: Steins;Gate (PS3)
7/11: Yoshi’s Woolly World (Wii U)
7/13: Muramasa Rebirth (Vita)
7/13: Strider 2 (PS1 Classics)
7/16: Planetarian ~The Reverie of a Little Planet~ (Steam)
7/16: Narcissu (Steam)
7/26: Crimzon Clover: World Ignition (GOG)
7/28: LocoRoco 2 (PSP)
7/30: Criminal Girls: Invite Only (Vita)
8/1: Pokemon Art Academy (3DS)
8/5: Gal*Gun: Double Peace (PS4)
8/8: Before the Echo (Steam)
8/9: Ironclad (PC DL)
8/9: Star Fox 64 3D (3DS)
8/14: Super Paper Mario (Wii)
8/15: Metal Slug (Steam)
8/17: Metal Slug 2 (Steam)
8/17: Metal Slug X (Steam)
8/18: Metal Slug 3 (Steam)
8/24: Earth Defence Force: Insect Armageddon (PS3)
8/25: The Typing of the Dead: Overkill (Steam)
8/28: Hatsune Miku Project Diva f (Vita)
8/31: Fable: The Lost Chapters (PC)
9/8: Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni - Ch.2 Watanagashi (Steam)
9/28: Hatsune Miku: Project Diva (PSP)
10/9: Gone Home (PS4)
10/28: Pony Island (Steam)
11/3: Dragon Quest Builders (PS4)
11/4: Life is Strange (PS4)
11/14: Skyrim Special Edition (Steam)
11/30: Lucy: The Eternity She Wished For (Steam)
12/30: Nier (PS3)
Total: 43 games
I'm not in a very good review mode right now, but Nier is really good. It's combat system is a bit basic (hit things with your sword and sometimes magic too), it's a bit ugly looking, and the plot doesn't really reveal too much until late in the game, but it does do a few things right that made me really enjoy playing it. The main characters are pretty deep but can often be funny to listen to as well. How the game shifts into different genres sometimes (like a bullet hell or text adventure) spices things up every so often. Plus, after a while the game starts revealing interesting things about the world that can also be pretty bonkers at times, which I really enjoyed for some reason.
Those things really make Nier stand out for me, and it's definitely up there somewhere as one of my favourite games that I've played this year. I still haven't even gotten the other three endings (which you get in New Game+ and are supposedly very good), so I'll definitely be continuing this game into the new year (and playing the sequal once that comes out
).
Re: Games Beaten 2016
First 50:
51. Ori and the Blind Forest - Xbox One
52. AM2R - PC
53. Total Annihilation - PC
54. I Am Setsuna - PS4
55. Planetary Annihilation Titans - PC
56. Deus Ex: Mankind Divided - PC
57. Dark Reign - Rise of the Shadowhand - PC
58. Dragon Age Inquisition - Jaws of Hakkon - PC
59. Dragon Age Inquisition - The Descent - PC
60. Dragon Age Inquisition - Trespasser - PC
61. The Witcher 3 - Hearts of Stone - PC
62. The Witcher 3 - Blood & Wine - PC
63. ReCore - Xbox One
64. Final Fantasy Tactics - PS1
65. Resident Evil 6 - PC
66. Knuckles Chaotix - 32X
67. Assault Suit Leynos - PS4
68. Might & Magic 2 - Gate to Another World - PC
69. Might & Magic 4 - Clouds of Xeen - PC
70. Might & Magic 5 - Darkside of Xeen - PC
71. Might & Magic 4&5 - World of Xeen - PC
72. Rise of the Triad - PC
73. Batman Arkham Knight - PC
74. Rise of the Triad (2013) - PC
75. Dishonored 2 - PC
76. TIS-100 - PC
77. Tyranny - PC
78. StarCraft II - Nova Covert Ops - PC
79. Raiden Fighters 2 - Xbox 360
80. Pokémon Omega Ruby - 3DS
81. Turok: Dinosaur Hunter - PC
82. 7th Dragon III Code VFD - 3DS
83. World of Final Fantasy - PS4
84. Ys I: Ancient Ys Vanished - TG-CD
85. Ys II: Ancient Ys Vanished - The Final Chapter - TG-CD
86. Duke Nukem 3D 20th Anniversary World Tour - PC
87. Titanfall 2 - PC
88. Final Fantasy - NES
89. Eradicator - PC
90. Final Fantasy II - NES
91. Final Fantasy III - NES
And with that the NES Final Fantasy trilogy is finished. FFIII is definitely the most polished of the NES games and the one that plays closest to its better known 16-bit cousins. This is the game I'd recommend to someone who wanted to play an NES Final Fantasy game and wasn't looking for doing them all.
FFIII ends up being a more refined version of FFI, getting rid of a lot of what FFII added in favor of building on the mechanics of FFI. You once again are using system of spell charges, though now you can have spell charges in the tens. At end game I had 50+ level 1 spells (which was great for healing between combats). This game fully implements dual wielding. FFII had it but it only functioned to increase your rate of leveling up your weapons; your off hand weapon was not used to calculate damage. This ends up being the ideal way to go because healing is pretty nerfed compared to other FF games. Multi-targeting really weakens magic (damage / # targets) so at end game I had an HP pool of 4k and my Cure 4 multitargeted only healed 500ish health. Given the final boss was tossing out 1.5k a turn to the party and other bosses would have a 2k+ attack in their move pool I ended up having to switch up my healing strategy of bouncing around single targeting Cure 4. So a good offense is the way to go to reduce the amount of healing you need to do.
The story has a similar structure to FFI's but is more fleshed out like FFII's. II still has the strongest story of this generation, but III at least has some real story points and characters between locations. The real selling point of III is the job system. This is a prototype of what we'll see in V, X-2, and Tactics. The only thing that carries between jobs is your HP pool, which grows based on your vitality at level up. Otherwise, if you're a Knight and then change to a White Mage you instantly become a weakling but can cast magic (though you won't have spell charges until you rest). The game has a wide variety of jobs, but only about half are actually useful. The less useful jobs end up showing up again in V and get buffed to the point of having a purpose (with some being incredible if you know how to use them). III is kind of weird about how it approaches the job flexibility. At times it really railroads you into certain jobs. A few dungeons require you to be under the Mini status, which means you need to be using spellcasters to do any damage. One dungeon pretty much requires you to use Mystic Knights to keep the enemies from splitting (and the game gives you a preview of that in the immediately previous dungeon so you won't argue with it). And one boss has a sky high defense and a shifting magic defense, forcing you to use a Scholar. But at the same time, the game doesn't let you change jobs willy nilly. There is a cost in CP (which is gained after battles and caps at 255) to switch from one job to another. It's based around your current job in a way that's approximately how close the job you're switching to is to your current job as well as later jobs requiring more. This cost is reduced if you've spent time in the destination job, to the point of being free if you've spent enough time in the destination job. The game also gets stingy with equipment at times, forcing you to switch up your physical attackers if you want them to still do good damage because the next weapon upgrades are for a different job.
The game also has a really brutal end game path. From the last point you can restore you have to go through one dungeon to get to the Sylx Tower (either the Maze of the Ancients or Eureka), traverse that long dungeon, fight a boss, then traverse the Dark World dungeon, fight four bosses, and finally the last boss. Fortunately, at this point the game gives you two amazing classes and high powered weapons and magic so you can work your way through as well as a lot of elixirs so you won't run dry of magic. Still, it takes about an hour from the last save point to get to the final boss, so I hope you don't die against her like I did the first time (bad tactics on my part and a slight underlevel that didn't give me much health buffer).
Unless I can knock out Pokémon Moon in the next two hours this is going to be my last game of the year.
51. Ori and the Blind Forest - Xbox One
52. AM2R - PC
53. Total Annihilation - PC
54. I Am Setsuna - PS4
55. Planetary Annihilation Titans - PC
56. Deus Ex: Mankind Divided - PC
57. Dark Reign - Rise of the Shadowhand - PC
58. Dragon Age Inquisition - Jaws of Hakkon - PC
59. Dragon Age Inquisition - The Descent - PC
60. Dragon Age Inquisition - Trespasser - PC
61. The Witcher 3 - Hearts of Stone - PC
62. The Witcher 3 - Blood & Wine - PC
63. ReCore - Xbox One
64. Final Fantasy Tactics - PS1
65. Resident Evil 6 - PC
66. Knuckles Chaotix - 32X
67. Assault Suit Leynos - PS4
68. Might & Magic 2 - Gate to Another World - PC
69. Might & Magic 4 - Clouds of Xeen - PC
70. Might & Magic 5 - Darkside of Xeen - PC
71. Might & Magic 4&5 - World of Xeen - PC
72. Rise of the Triad - PC
73. Batman Arkham Knight - PC
74. Rise of the Triad (2013) - PC
75. Dishonored 2 - PC
76. TIS-100 - PC
77. Tyranny - PC
78. StarCraft II - Nova Covert Ops - PC
79. Raiden Fighters 2 - Xbox 360
80. Pokémon Omega Ruby - 3DS
81. Turok: Dinosaur Hunter - PC
82. 7th Dragon III Code VFD - 3DS
83. World of Final Fantasy - PS4
84. Ys I: Ancient Ys Vanished - TG-CD
85. Ys II: Ancient Ys Vanished - The Final Chapter - TG-CD
86. Duke Nukem 3D 20th Anniversary World Tour - PC
87. Titanfall 2 - PC
88. Final Fantasy - NES
89. Eradicator - PC
90. Final Fantasy II - NES
91. Final Fantasy III - NES
And with that the NES Final Fantasy trilogy is finished. FFIII is definitely the most polished of the NES games and the one that plays closest to its better known 16-bit cousins. This is the game I'd recommend to someone who wanted to play an NES Final Fantasy game and wasn't looking for doing them all.
FFIII ends up being a more refined version of FFI, getting rid of a lot of what FFII added in favor of building on the mechanics of FFI. You once again are using system of spell charges, though now you can have spell charges in the tens. At end game I had 50+ level 1 spells (which was great for healing between combats). This game fully implements dual wielding. FFII had it but it only functioned to increase your rate of leveling up your weapons; your off hand weapon was not used to calculate damage. This ends up being the ideal way to go because healing is pretty nerfed compared to other FF games. Multi-targeting really weakens magic (damage / # targets) so at end game I had an HP pool of 4k and my Cure 4 multitargeted only healed 500ish health. Given the final boss was tossing out 1.5k a turn to the party and other bosses would have a 2k+ attack in their move pool I ended up having to switch up my healing strategy of bouncing around single targeting Cure 4. So a good offense is the way to go to reduce the amount of healing you need to do.
The story has a similar structure to FFI's but is more fleshed out like FFII's. II still has the strongest story of this generation, but III at least has some real story points and characters between locations. The real selling point of III is the job system. This is a prototype of what we'll see in V, X-2, and Tactics. The only thing that carries between jobs is your HP pool, which grows based on your vitality at level up. Otherwise, if you're a Knight and then change to a White Mage you instantly become a weakling but can cast magic (though you won't have spell charges until you rest). The game has a wide variety of jobs, but only about half are actually useful. The less useful jobs end up showing up again in V and get buffed to the point of having a purpose (with some being incredible if you know how to use them). III is kind of weird about how it approaches the job flexibility. At times it really railroads you into certain jobs. A few dungeons require you to be under the Mini status, which means you need to be using spellcasters to do any damage. One dungeon pretty much requires you to use Mystic Knights to keep the enemies from splitting (and the game gives you a preview of that in the immediately previous dungeon so you won't argue with it). And one boss has a sky high defense and a shifting magic defense, forcing you to use a Scholar. But at the same time, the game doesn't let you change jobs willy nilly. There is a cost in CP (which is gained after battles and caps at 255) to switch from one job to another. It's based around your current job in a way that's approximately how close the job you're switching to is to your current job as well as later jobs requiring more. This cost is reduced if you've spent time in the destination job, to the point of being free if you've spent enough time in the destination job. The game also gets stingy with equipment at times, forcing you to switch up your physical attackers if you want them to still do good damage because the next weapon upgrades are for a different job.
The game also has a really brutal end game path. From the last point you can restore you have to go through one dungeon to get to the Sylx Tower (either the Maze of the Ancients or Eureka), traverse that long dungeon, fight a boss, then traverse the Dark World dungeon, fight four bosses, and finally the last boss. Fortunately, at this point the game gives you two amazing classes and high powered weapons and magic so you can work your way through as well as a lot of elixirs so you won't run dry of magic. Still, it takes about an hour from the last save point to get to the final boss, so I hope you don't die against her like I did the first time (bad tactics on my part and a slight underlevel that didn't give me much health buffer).
Unless I can knock out Pokémon Moon in the next two hours this is going to be my last game of the year.
Blizzard Entertainment Software Developer - All comments and views are my own and not representative of the company.
Re: Games Beaten 2016
I've still got Nier in the backlog. I wonder if I'll ever finish it. 
Final Fantasy III is one of my favorites in the series. Definitely the best on NES, and a shining example of a great 8-bit RPG.
Anyway, it's time for a few metrics!
Unique titles (no DLC counted): 179
Genre breakdown:
Platform breakdown:
Beaten for the first time this year:
A lot more first-time beaten games this year than I thought! I've played a lot of them, just never finished them.
Final Fantasy III is one of my favorites in the series. Definitely the best on NES, and a shining example of a great 8-bit RPG.
Anyway, it's time for a few metrics!
Unique titles (no DLC counted): 179
Genre breakdown:
Platform breakdown:
Beaten for the first time this year:
A lot more first-time beaten games this year than I thought! I've played a lot of them, just never finished them.
Re: Games Beaten 2016
1. Epic Mickey: Power of Illusion (3DS)
2. Dragon Quest Heroes: The World Tree's Woe and the Blight Below (PS4)
3. Elite Beat Agents (DS)
4. Gunman Clive 2 (3DS)
5. Drawn to Life: The Next Chapter (DS)
6. Fallout: New Vegas (Steam)
7. Disney/Pixar's Monsters, Inc. (GBA)
8. METAL SLUG 3 (Steam)
9. METAL SLUG (Steam)
10. Toy Story (SNES)
11. Shovel Knight (Wii U)
12. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney (WiiWare)
13. Hot Shots Tennis (PS2)
14. Phoenix Wright: Justice for All (NDS)
15. Kero Blaster (Steam)
16. The Walking Dead: Season 1 (Steam)
17. Super Bases Loaded (SNES)
18. Dragon Quest Swords: The Masked Queen and the Tower of Mirrors (Wii)
19. Battle Clash (SNES)
In 2017 I should do write-ups on each game as I beat them (and try to beat more games, too).
2. Dragon Quest Heroes: The World Tree's Woe and the Blight Below (PS4)
3. Elite Beat Agents (DS)
4. Gunman Clive 2 (3DS)
5. Drawn to Life: The Next Chapter (DS)
6. Fallout: New Vegas (Steam)
7. Disney/Pixar's Monsters, Inc. (GBA)
8. METAL SLUG 3 (Steam)
9. METAL SLUG (Steam)
10. Toy Story (SNES)
11. Shovel Knight (Wii U)
12. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney (WiiWare)
13. Hot Shots Tennis (PS2)
14. Phoenix Wright: Justice for All (NDS)
15. Kero Blaster (Steam)
16. The Walking Dead: Season 1 (Steam)
17. Super Bases Loaded (SNES)
18. Dragon Quest Swords: The Masked Queen and the Tower of Mirrors (Wii)
19. Battle Clash (SNES)
In 2017 I should do write-ups on each game as I beat them (and try to beat more games, too).
Re: Games Beaten 2016
Yep, it's over now. I know I sure as hell didn't, but who all cleared the 100 club this year? 50 club? Would like to see a list made. If you did hit these milestones, I applaud your dedication.
-
PartridgeSenpai
- Next-Gen
- Posts: 2988
- Joined: Mon Dec 14, 2015 9:27 am
- Location: Northern Japan
Re: Games Beaten 2016
Those metrics are so cool, Sarge! I might do one of those just to see the cool pie-chart it makes 
Also, apparently I was/am much further from the end of Tales of Hearts than I thought, as the 8-10-ish hours I put in today were not enough to reach the end. I did JUST get the airship though, so that's a progress marker of sorts.
Also, apparently I was/am much further from the end of Tales of Hearts than I thought, as the 8-10-ish hours I put in today were not enough to reach the end. I did JUST get the airship though, so that's a progress marker of sorts.
I identify everyone via avatar, so if you change your avatar, I genuinely might completely forget who you are. -- Me