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So tell us your thoughts on it.

marurun wrote:So tell us your thoughts on it.

Agreed. I’m curious to read your thoughts on the game.

P.S. Just so everyone knows...I don’t always reply, but I always read all of your reviews. They are incredibly informative and influence me more than other source regarding what I should play in my somewhat limited gaming time.

6/14: Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair (Vita)
I don’t know why it took me this long to get to Danganonpa 2, as I beat the original game a few years ago and really enjoyed playing it, but it’s better late than never I guess ha. I am glad I did finally play Danganronpa 2, since I had a lot of fun with it.

Danganronpa 2 is pretty similar in premise to the first game, but instead of a classroom of high students being trapped in their school, they are trapped on an island. The killing class trials are also back, where a student will be set free if they can get away with a murder and all of the other students need to find out who this killer is if they don’t want to be killed off themselves. The game is also just as bright and colourful as the first game, while also being pretty dark and depressing. The main differences between the first and second games are the story (of course) and some new mini-games were added to the class trials and one was revamped.

As far as the story goes, I really can’t go into much more detail than I’ve already explained. Throughout the game, the students will also be trying to figure out why they are on the island and who put them there, but the things they discover are pretty spoilery. This is definitely a case where you really should play the first game first, as many of the things they figure out would either be confusing if you haven’t played the first game, or they might just outright spoil some of the things that happen in the first game.

With the minigames, the only two that really stood out enough for me to talk about them were the revamped Hangman’s Gambit and the new Logic Dive. In the original Danganronpa, Hangman’s Gambit essentially was just straight up hangman, and you had to shoot at the oncoming letters in the correct order. In Danganronpa 2, it has been changed so that letters come from all sides of the screen and you need to match two of the same letter before putting them in the mystery word. If you combine two different letters or if two different letters collide, they explode and you lose time. It’s definitely a lot more hectic than the original, but I’m still not really a fan of it as it’s a bit too hectic for me to manage. As for the new minigame, Logic Dive, it’s interesting but I don’t care for it much either. You controller the main character on a snowboard, and you have to avoid obstacles while going on the right course to answer various questions. I do really like the idea, but the snowboard thing is pretty annoying to control. There were quite a few times where I was pretty sure I made certain jumps, but the game considered it a miss and I had to redo the jump again. Thankfully I never had to redo too much of it, but it was still a bit annoying.

After being pretty nit-picky, I should probably say that I still really like this game. It’s still got an interesting story, characters, and class trials. The music is also still super great and I still want to listen to some of the tracks outside of the game. Is it better than the first game? I’m honestly not sure. I know a lot of people like this one better than the original, but they are similar enough that I’m not sure I could place one above the other. If you’ve played the original Danganronpa, definitely play Danganronpa 2. If you like visual novels (or even if you haven’t played any but are interested), definitely play the first one before playing 2.

prfsnl_gmr wrote:

marurun wrote:So tell us your thoughts on it.

Agreed. I’m curious to read your thoughts on the game.

P.S. Just so everyone knows...I don’t always reply, but I always read all of your reviews. They are incredibly informative and influence me more than other source regarding what I should play in my somewhat limited gaming time.

We talked about it in Slack chat earlier yesterday when he beat it. I could just copy-paste his responses from then into here and that can function as a review if that's cool with y'all

6/15: Yonder: The Cloud Catcher Chronicles (Switch)
I love cute-looking games and I love exploring cool environments, so when I first saw Yonder, I knew I had to play it. Thankfully I was not disappointed.

The game’s premise is pretty simple: the world is suffering because of all of the murk polluting it and your job is to fix the Cloud Catcher and clear out as much of the murk as you can. How do you do this? Explore the world to find Sprites, which can clear out murk patches if you have enough of them (bigger patches of murk require more Sprites). The story doesn’t get more complicated than that until the very end of the game and it can be easily completed in one sitting, but honestly the story is not the main draw of the game. Instead, the main focus is exploring and just having a relaxing time.

Other then just exploring around, you can own and maintain several farms (where you can grow crops and raise animals you have tamed), complete (often pun-filled) quests for villagers, and craft various items. It may not be the most original of ideas, but I just love this sort of relaxing and light-hearted sort of game. Plus, it’s filled with a lot of beautiful landscapes and cute animals (especially the many cats you can find) that I couldn’t help but smile the whole way through. It’s even more impressive to me considering that the team behind the game is very small, with only three developers listed for the main development team.

Overall, I highly recommend this game if you want a solid, relaxing experience. It’s just a lot of fun as long as you’re not going into it expecting a deep and moving story.

Games Beaten 2018
The first 50:
Super Night Riders - PC
Slap City - PC
Ultraflow - iOS
Grim Dawn - PC
Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus - PC
Postal 2 - PC
Postal 2: Apocalypse Weekend - PC *new*

Total: 57

Previously: 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010

More Postal 2 goodness, this time without the open world setting. I can't say I liked it as much as the main game, but it is a serviceable addition to the main campaign. Also, this:

Partridge Senpai's 2018 Beaten Games:
Previously: 2016 2017
* indicates a repeat

1-20

21. Deadbolt (Steam)
22. Legend of Grimrock 2 (Steam)
23. The Witness (PS4)
24. Uurnog (PC)
25. Fire Emblem Warriors (Switch)
26. Hyrule Warriors (Wii U)
27. The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (Wii)
28. Magicka 2 (PS4)*
29. Tales of Phantasia (PSP)
30. BOXBOXBOY! (3DS)
31. Blossom Tales (Switch)
32. Wolfenstein: The Old Blood (Steam)
33. Shaq Fu: A Legend Reborn (PS4)
34. Jikkyou Oshaberi Parodius: Forever With Me (PSP)

35. Super Mario Odyssey (Switch)

I went into this expecting it to be good, and hooooooly damn it was GREAT. Definitely my favorite 3D Mario ever. I certainly didn't intend on it, but I started and this game just got its hooks in me SO good I 100%'d it over the course of about 3 days Xp. All 880 moons and the final-final level all in a little over 40 hours.

Mario's controls are once again familiar but a bit different. Of course the game is centered around how he can throw Cappy, his hat, to attack enemies, use it as a platform to jump on, as well as take over enemies. The only really weird part of how Mario controls are things like his dive move. Because both A and B are jump and X and Y are to throw Cappy, you have to press X/Y in the middle of a ground pound in order to do a forward dive, which takes some getting used to. If you wanna get ALL the moons, you're gonna have to get good at that kind of thing as well, because this game really doesn't mess around with making you get really good at throwing cappy and controlling your running jumps to complete time trials and platforming stages (but you don't need the large majority of the moons in the game, so you can just ignore that stuff if you really wanna). You also can't crazy wall jump to cheat up to places like in Mario 64 or something. If you two walls aren't parallel, you aren't getting much distance up them no matter how close they are together.

The other big control change is the use of Cappy to take possession of things, and even though it's a mechanic that could easily feel like a gimmick, but the levels just about always have a different main creature to possess (though goombas are fairly common), and it never felt like a cheap gimmick to me. They always felt fun and like a new, exciting way to get around the level rather than just some chore you need to do to progress, and they really make for a fun way to break up the pace of running around as Mario all the time (even though running around as Mario is quite fun).

The layout of the worlds is a weird formula of a series of open-worlds where instead of getting kicked out when you get a moon (instead of a star), you can just keep going. There are about 14 worlds with anywhere from just under 10 to over 80 different moons to collect in each, but you only need like 130-ish to actually complete the game. I just had so much fun collecting them I got WAY more than that before I even beat it the first time . Then, when you beat the game, you effectively unlock the last half of the moons, so you can't even get them ALL on your first playthrough anyhow. That didn't stop me from getting nearly all of them before I'd beaten the game anyhow, though

The personality to the worlds is just SO fun, too! They all feel very different thematically, with each one having different themes, aesthetics, music, and costumes to wear! The costumes are great fun and were always a fun surprise (especially the one in the world you unlock after you beat Bowser). Playing dress-up as Mario wasn't something I thought I'd care about at all but it ended up being a really fun part of the game for me X3

Verdict: Highly Recommended. This is an absolutely amazing Mario game. For me, it was to the level of "how the fuck are the ever going to top this," it was just that fun for me (after Mario Galaxy 2 was a bit of a slog, tbh). I cannot recommend it enough if you like 3D platformers and have a Switch, but if you fall into both of those categories then you probably already have this game

marurun wrote:So tell us your thoughts on it.

With Super Mario World, I have always (and still) feel like an outsider looking in. When I was a kid, I couldn't get over the differences between Mario Bros 3 and Super Mario World. Things like the way that goombas work, the inclusion of Yoshi, the lack of power ups, etc - it all added up to an experience that wasn't what I wanted a Mario game to be.

And the thing is - it's JUST Super Mario World. I've also never made any progress in Mario 64 but that is entirely due to my issues with the camera of 3D games during that era. But Mario 64 still feels right to me, even though I've had problems playing it. Even Super Mario Land 2, which borrows assets and ideas from Super Mario World, feels like Mario to me.

So where am I now? Exactly where I started, tbh. Super Mario World IS a good game. I can get why it is so highly regarded but I still feel a sense of apathy towards it. Time spent playing Super Mario World is time that I would usually rather spend playing almost any other decent Mario game.

229. Mega Man unlimited


I have been on a mega man kick as of late and after finishing 1-10 I decided to look into some fan games. Mega Man unlimited is probably the most popular of the fan games and is renowned for being incredibly well made and incredibly difficult.

MMU was initially made as a sequel to Mega Man 9, and is done using the classic 8 bit mega man graphics, the story is that there is a virus infecting robots and causing them to go insane. Dr. Wily goes to Dr. Light to express his concerns over the robots and also tells Light that his robots are now threatening him and he is fearful for his life. Being the gullible moron that Dr. Light is, he believes Wily and teams up with him to try and find a cure for the virus. A mysterious robot appears and kidnaps Wily and it is up to Mega Man to save him. The story is told through cutscenes and is about what you would expect from a Mega Man game, *****OBVIOUS SPOILER AHEAD***** as it turns out Wily is behind the virus, but is mystified as to why it doesn't affect Mega Man.

This is not a romhack and does not use recycled levels or bosses, all 8 of the robot masters are new, and this game features some of the best level design in any Mega Man game ever. The quality of the levels is superb and Capcom is going to have to work really hard to outdo this game when they release Mega Man 11 later this year. The levels are done in a very thematic and cool way, for example, Nitro mans level is riddled with exploding platforms, glue mans level is filled with glue that you can't walk on and have to hop around to navigate, yo-yo mans levels is loaded with platforms that spring up and down as you jump on them and so on. Every level is very fun to play and the levels are very challenging. When I heard about this games difficulty I actually wimped out and started playing it on easy, but I was breezing through the levels and then decided to start a new save on the default difficulty and it was a much more satisfying experience. This is a game where the difficulty is done right, you will die, but deaths never feel cheap and you will learn from your deaths and have a blast mastering these challenging levels. For all the hype the difficulty got I would say it is only a touch harder than Mega Man 9 so if you are a veteran of the series you should not have too much trouble beating the game, at least until the final level.

The robot masters themselves are very cool, like most mega man games, they all seem very difficult at first and as you learn their patterns and weaknesses they become a breeze. The weapons obtained from the robot masters are probably the best weapons in any mega man game ever, I really enjoyed using them and they are genuinely useful for both navigating the levels and overcoming various enemies. Examples are the comet charge, where mega man dashes forward, completely invincible, while shooting projectiles above and below him, also can be done in mid air to give your jumps extra lenght. The jet missile locks on to the nearest enemy when charged, making it perfect for dealing with awkwardly placed enemies, the glue gun can build platforms to get to hard to reach areas and help shortcut a few levels, the tank arsenal shoots 2 missiles and a bomb that can blow up barries and anything else it touches, the nail shield is like the leaf shield on steroids as it deflects bullets and rips into anything that touches you, the yoyo weapon can be thrown in 8 directions and rolls along any surface it touches, the rainbow beam is a small ray that you can detonate any time for a massively large and powerful blast, and the nitro blast is probably the only weapon in the game I didnt really use all that much. Of course you also have the trusty rush coil and rush jet.

After defeating all 8 robot masters you head over to Wily's castle, which is a series of 4 incredibly tough levels, that culminate in the series trope of having to fight all the previous robot masters, with a twist. The level starts out benign enough, and after a very short and easy stage you find yourself in the familiar room with teleportation chambers, and here is where things get nutty. There are 8 robot masters, but 9 chambers in the room, which means you have to fight a new robot master on top of fighting all the prior robot masters. To make matters even more difficult when you enter a chamber you do not go directly to the boss like in every other mega man game ever, instead you have to play through a very short level with obstacles and enemies unique to that robot master, after clearing the short level, you fight the robot master, repeat 8 more times and you can finally progress to Wily. When you do make it to Wily you are forced to fight Bass, then 2 forms of a Wiley machine before finally reaching the end of the level. All in all for those of you not keeping track the final level consists of: a short and easy jaunt to the teleportation chamber, 9 short levels, a rematch with every boss in the game + a new robot master, another short and easy Jaunt to Wily, and concludes with a fight with Bass and 2 wiley forms that must be done on one life. Fucking insane.

Luckily the game does provide options that make it much more bearable, the shop system is back and every time you lose your last life you can hit the shop before progressing into the stage, you can only hold 4 E tanks, but being fully stocked on them is pretty easy to do once you are a few levels in, you could also play in easy mode where the enemies do far less damage and the obstacles are easier to navigate(more platforms, less spikes, stuff like that). So as tough as this game is they give you enough leeway for anyone to enjoy, causal gamers will find a fair challenge in easy mode, but will probably be able to finish it, and hardcore mega man fans will love the challenge in the normal mode.

Overall, I think I found a new favorite mega man game, which is saying a lot given how much I love the series. If you have even a mild interest in classic mega man I urge you to play this game immediately, it is a free fan game and capcom is going to have to work really hard to make mega man 11 better than this.

1. Ducktales: Remastered (360)
2. Grand Theft Auto V (Xbox One)
3. Diablo III: Darkening Of Tristram (Xbox One)
4. Final Fantasy Type-0 (Xbox One)
5. The King Of Fighters: Neowave (Xbox)
6. Guardian Heroes (Xbox 360)
7. Puyo Puyo Tetris (Switch)
8. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (Switch)

My wife and I spent the past couple weekends playing through all of the courses in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and I might as well just cut to the chase... it rocks. Mario Kart 8 (I'll drop the "Deluxe" subtitle for the remainder of this piece because you get the idea) is such a massive refinement of something that has always felt damn-near perfect to begin with.

But let's rewind a bit. Yes, it's true that I've mostly been a Sega dude growing up, but I always had Nintendo consoles in my house as well. The original Mario Kart was in my Top 5 SNES games back in the day. I remember getting it soon after launch, and it was a staple of my after school gaming days into the late 90's. Eventually a friend of mine got a Nintendo 64 - a console that I hated - but Mario Kart 64 was the ONE game on that system that I adored. I remember one summer I'd sleep over his house and beg him to play Mario Kart 64 instead of Super Mario 64. And if he'd sleep over my house I'd urge him to bring the console and nothing but Mario Kart 64 over for the night.

Once I got to college it was all about Double Dash. Gamecube was my jam back then and Double Dash was one of the necessities. And much like the original Mario Kart, Double Dash became a staple for a long time. Like... over a decade. Like... me and my wife continued to play Double Dash religiously into the mid-2010's. And in that time I also picked up the GBA and DS editions. So my point is that I've been a constant fan. I don't think I picked up the 3DS game because eventually my wife took over the 3DS, and I KNOW I never played the Wii game because I got bored of Wii pretty quickly. But Double Dash remained incredible.

My wife and I talked about getting a Wii U pretty seriously in the summer of 2016. It sounded novel and all. And Mario Kart 8 looked fantastic (we demoed it at Target). But we just couldn't pull the trigger. The library was never quite there. But the Switch did sell me fairly early on. Which makes it weird that it took us so long to get to Mario Kart 8. It's been out for a year on Switch, y'all!

But it is AWESOME! The number of courses is incredible first of all. It's not only a new game but also a greatest hits. There's awesome shit like the Excitebike course or the Hyrule one. There's throwbacks to EVERY other game (unless you count the arcade one, which we did play in Disney!). It plays flawlessly, much like every other game in the series. It causes frustrations thanks to blue shells and near constant lightning. But dammit, I/we love Mario Kart.

If history is any indication then we are far from done here. We ran through the 50CC courses breezily in two weekends. We started 100CC tonight. I know us and I know Mario Kart and I promise that we'll be going through each CC and there's a good chance that we'll still be playing Mario Kart 8 when Mario Kart 9 comes out.