Congratulations, corrosive, too! Yeah, August is really bringing 'em in. May be worth tracking the counts per month going forward. Could be interesting.
Trying to put together my own list of completed games to take part in the challenge. One question, do campaign-sized DLC like Freedom Cry for AC4 or Cold, Cold Heart for Batman AO count?
Alright, here's my list so far. I only recently found out about this thread, but I started keeping track of the games I played two years ago, so I fortunately already had this list ready.
I'm only including games I actually finished this year. If I started it but didn't complete it, it's not on here. Between brackets is the day on which I completed the game (but they are in order of when I started them).
My definition of completing a game is reaching the credits, by the way (by playing through the game, not by selecting them from the options screen obviously)
1. Mega Man 5 GB (1/11)
Definitely the best game in the Gameboy series.
2. Starfox 64 3D (1/15)
Got this for free for buying 2 3DS games in Japan. Excellent conversion of a great game, but woefully short.
3. The Stanley Parable (1/20)
Fun and quirky little title. Not very interesting from a gameplay point of view though, but I guess that's the point.
4. Guacamelee (PS3 and Vita version!) (1/24)
Excellent game. One of the better Metroid clones.
5. Kirby Triple Deluxe (1/30)
Probably one of the best Kirby games I've every played. Insane fun.
6. Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons (1/26)
Interesting little game. Can't say I like it as much as everyone else seems to, but still interesting.
7. Gears of War Judgment (1/30)
It's a testament to the Gears games that even a mediocre entry is still an above-average shooter.
8. Final Fantasy IV: The After Years (main game only) (2/11)
I fucking hate FF4 and this game doesn't fix anything, but it does look nice.
9. Castle of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse (remake) (2/2)
Hate it. Horrible remake of a Genesis classic.
10. Puppeteer (2/11)
Didn't like the demo very much, but I tried the game anyway since it was really cheap for PS+ users at the time. Ended up quite liking the full game. One of the most "epic" platformers I've ever played, even if the gameplay itself is not that special.
11. Donkey Kong Tropical Freeze (2/18)
Solid game, but can't see I love it as much as the rest of the world seems to.
Boss battles are horribly designed.
12. The Walking Dead Season 1 + 400 Days (Vita version) (2/20)
Already played this on PS3 last year, but it was free (or really cheap, I don't remember) for Vita owners, so I bought and played it again. Still every bit as fantastic as I remembered.
13. Tomb Raider Definitive Edition (3/8)
Great visual upgrade over the original, and still a great game in and of itself.
14. Nayuta no Kiseki (3/19)
Hands down my favorite Kiseki (Trails of the...) game. And that's probably only because it's basically an Ys game in disguise.
15. Knack (3/14)
Too long and repetitive, but hey, it came free with the PS4.
16. Final Fantasy Type 0 (4/6)
Is this what all the fuss was about!? Hugely disappointing.
17. InFamous Second Son (3/30)
Big fan of the series, and although this one felt a bit short, I still loved it,
18. Fez (4/13)
I won't go into what I think of Phil Fish, but this game is excellent in every way.
19. Thomas was Alone (4/13)
Cute, but very easy and overrated. I don't see how making the player care about a bunch of squares is that much different from making them care about a bunch of polygons or some ink spread across a page, so the "cleverness" of this title was lost on me,
20. Mickey Mouse's Castle of Illusion (Genesis) (4/16)
Still good, and much better than the remake.
21. Theatrhythm Curtain Call (4/28)
Love the series, and this is a HUGE improvement over the original. Probably my GOTY so far.
22. Ys Celceta (4/29)
Quite good, but too similar to 7 to really stand out.
23. Child of Light (5/11)
Really love Ubisoft's 2D stuff, it's always gorgeous to look at. Gameplay is just decent though.
24. Legend of Zelda: Link to the Past (5/12)
I try to play through this game at least once every year, because, geez, this is just one of the most insanely brilliant things ever made.
25. Stick it to the Man (5/18)
Hate the art design, but the game itself is surprisingly entertaining.
26. Remember Me (5/27)
Quite surprised at how much I liked this. Definitely underrated this one.
27. Mario Kart 8 (6/1)
Enjoyable, but man, I think I'm just done with racing games in general.
28. Mii Force (6/15)
I bought only Monster Manor when the new StreetPass games were initially released (which I loved btw) and I finally got round to the other ones this year, but none of them managed to tickle my fancy quite as much as MM. Mii Force is the best of the other games, but I still did not feel compelled to dig much deeper into it after finishing it.
29. Dishonored (6/28)
Strong BioShock vibe, but still a good game in its own right.
30. Mega Man 3 (PSX classic) (6/21)
Another game I try to play through every year. One of my all-time favorites in the series, and it never ever gets old to me.
31. Flower Town (6/26)
Jesus Christ, who okayed this!? What a boring piece of tripe.
32. Shovel Knight (7/3)
Decent platformer, that is slightly overrated if you ask me, but still good fun.
33. Dead Space 3 (7/13)
Not as bad as I had feared. It's definitely more action-oriented than the first two games, but it still has some of the appeal of the earlier games. It runs quite a bit too long though.
34. Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag (8/10)
The last AC game I played was Brotherhood before I got sick of the annual releases, but boy am I glad I picked this one up! Loved it to pieces, and it might just be my favorite entry in the series. And I don't even like pirates that much!
35. Bravely Default: Flying Fairy - For the Sequel (7/16)
Great game for the first half, downright lazy and insulting for the second half.
I hope they don't pull the same BS in the sequel.
36. Oboro Muramasa (7/24)
My favorite Vanillaware game so far. Great frantic fun.
37. Yoshi's New Island (8/3)
Extremely lazy and uninspired sequel to one of the finest platformers ever made.
38. Mutant Mudds Deluxe (8/6)
Quite enjoyable. I tend to look at retro indie platformers as "the easy way out" but this one was genuinely fun.
39. P.T. (8/16)
Can I count this one? It's only a playable teaser, but I poured a LOT of time into it and it's been one of the most enjoyable, unique, and significant experiences of the year for me. Love it. And scary as shit.
40. Phoenix Wright: Trials and Tribulations (8/20)
Still not as good as the first game, but I don't think anything ever will be.
It's much better than the second game though, so that helps.
41. The Wonderful 101 (8/23)
Already played this last year, but jeebus it's just SO GOOD.
THE most underrated game of last year, no question.
42. Mighty Gunvolt (8/25)
Came free with Azure Striker Gunvolt, which is nice, especially since, you know, it's really not very good. Very tame.
43. Strider (8/26)
This game kept reminding me of Shadow Complex out of all Metroid clones (probably because it has kind of a similar setting, visually), and it doesn't compare favorably.
Which is not to say it's bad, because it isn't, but it's just kind of... average. Nothing really separates it from its ilk.
44. Azure Striker Gunvolt (8/28)
Very satisfied with this. I hadn't even heard of this until the day before it was released, but Inti Creates = Instabuy for me, and this game did not disappoint.
I guess it's not as good as the MMZero games (except the first one) or the ZX games even, but it's still an excellent Mega Man clone that manages to scratch my itches.
A tad too easy though, unfortunately.
45. Fatal Frame (8/30)
In preparation for Fatal Frame 5 at the end of next month, I decided to play through the game that kicked it all off so many years ago. Graphics are obviously dated, although the frame rate is actually quite decent, but most of all I was shocked by how much damage every single ghost seems to do. That, paired with the fact that ghosts often warp straight behind or ON TOP of you made the game more of a fuss than necessary imho, but the combat is still very original and fun.
46. Apollo Justice - Ace Attorney
Probably my second favorite game in the series after the very first Ace Attorney. Klavier Gavin is totally dreamy.
47. Velocity 2X
Free for PS+ members right now, so I went in not really knowing what to expect, and I got a great little shmup/platformer hybrid out of it that is very replayable. Good stuff.
Trying to put together my own list of completed games to take part in the challenge. One question, do campaign-sized DLC like Freedom Cry for AC4 or Cold, Cold Heart for Batman AO count?
If I remember correctly as a general rule it is allowed just as counting individual episodes for games like The Walking Dead and The Wolf Among Us as a game is also allowed.
Trying to put together my own list of completed games to take part in the challenge. One question, do campaign-sized DLC like Freedom Cry for AC4 or Cold, Cold Heart for Batman AO count?
I'd count them if they're over 2 hours. Some games aren't even that long (dear esther for example) so if it adds up to more than that, it's fair play.
Ok, here goes my 52. Got all the hours played from Steam since that was easy enough but everything else was a bit much. They're in ABC order, divided by category:
Sony Platforms
1. Bioshock Infinite: Burial at Seas Episode 2
It's Bioshock meets Dishonored. It was fun, although the ending was kinda meh. Still, a fun experience.
2. Brothers
The end of this game hit me hard, even though i was prepared for it to be a downer from what i had heard. Great game! One should finish it in a sitting.
3. Fez
I finished it but didn't bother with NG+. It was fine. The platforming could've used some work and I didn't care for how obtuse it could be. Plays wonderfully on the vita.
4. Final Fantasy III
Love the simple, charming nature of the game. However, that last dungeon was an epic clusterfuck and having to replay 2-3 hrs of it because there aren't any save points and you got crushed by your 4th consecutive boss fight was fucking absurd. Youtubed the ending because no one's got time for that.
5. Final Fantasy IV Complete Collection
I always wanted to play FFIV. And it was exactly what i expected: a terrific JRPG with a soundtrack that ranks as one of the best ever. Highly recommended for anyone who wants to scratch that jrpg itch.
6. Final Fantasy X HD
you know those people who say that all of the problems that people had with FFXIII you could see the beginnings of in FFX?
Yeah, they're totally right. This game hasn't aged as well as i thought it would. Linear world map, not so great writing/voice acting, and WAYYYYYY too many random battles are among the issues this game suffers from. Still, I played it to prep for FFX2 HD and i'm glad i did: It makes me appreciate FFX2HD a lot more and now i can safely say that, while FFXHD is good, it's not as great as i remember it being.
7. Infamous Second Son ~8 hrs
Looks great. Shorter than Infamous 1 & 2. Side missions get tedious about 2/3s of the way through. About 8 hours long. It was good, but not great.
8. MGSV Ground Zeroes 1 hr 40 min
Great game but holy hell was that main mission short. I finished it at 100 mins and i was screwing around and playing terribly during most of it. Pretty sure listening to the audio recordings in the menu takes up almost as much time as completing the game does.
9. Proteus 50 min
Felt like what a FPS game made from That Game Company would play like. Surprisingly pretty given its look and very relaxing. Feels aimless at times, but it does have an ending. Recommended to anyone who enjoys something like Flower or Journey.
10. Sound Shapes ~ 3 hrs
It was fine. The Beck levels are FANTASTIC, though, so if you're even mildly interested in his stuff i would recommend you check that out.
11. Stealth Inc/Bastard
A fun 2d stealth puzzler. I didn't like that the alt costumes are only available upon replaying a level but i'm sure that increase the replayability for those who really are into the game.
12. Thomas Was Alone ~3 hrs
I liked the narrator, the music was pleasant, and the platforming/puzzler gameplay didn't overstay its welcome. Good time was had.
13. Unit 13
well, other than the BULLSHIT stages where you don't have regen health, it's fine. It's a never great, but also not terrible third person shooter. It's ok.
14. Ys I ~7 hrs
You bump into enemies to kill them, travel to a few towns, and the dungeons get more mazey as you near the end. Also, kick ass music. It was enjoyable.
15. Ys II ~11 hrs
You bump into enemies to kill them, travel to a few towns, and the dungeons get more mazey as you near the end. Also, kick ass music.
Sound familiar?
Well, it's not as good as Ys I. The last 1/3 of the game is spent in one dungeon and if you're not using a guide you're gonna want to hurt fluffy animals. I would only play this if you're an Ys fan, otherwise i can't recommend it. More frustrating than fun.
16. Ys Oath In Felghana ~12 hrs
Pretty good. No more bumping, now you're slashing fools. Wish it was at 60 fps because the game is too slow and the bosses too fast. Great music, again. I would probably start here if you're interested in the series.
iOS
17. 999: The Novel
Super fucking fun. If you don't know what you're missing, it's fine. If you can play it on the DS instead, i'd recommend it. If this is your only way of enjoying 999, though, then enjoy it. Just wish they had reworked it for iOS better.
18. The World Ends With You
Great game, one that was definitely reworked to make it play well on iOS. It's a cross between a VN and a Tales-like action RPG. Looking forward to a possible sequel.
Steam/PC
19. Assassin's Creed III 22 hrs
Doesn't deserve the shit it gets. Plays better than its predecessors (well, if you don't count what they did with the weapon wheel). Sure, Connor kinda sucks but Haytham is the best and i really like the setting. Truly feels like a sequel to the series, unlike...
20. Assassin's Creed: Revelations 21 hrs
If you asked me which game you could skip from the series and still be fine, it's this one. Nothing really happens in the overall story, and Istanbul might be the smallest map you explore in the whole series. recommended to diehards only.
21. Batman: Arkham City 18 hrs
I had crow and it tasted like AC. game is so much fun, zipping around the main hub and punching fools out. I couldn't get into it years ago but when i tried it out this year i just clicked. Enjoyed it so much that i also played...
22. Batman: Arkham City - Harley Quinn's Revenge 3 hrs
but this was just ok. Not bad, but i wish that they did more with it. Playing as another character was fun, sure, but this just felt so meh.
23. Breath of Death VII 5.3 hrs
It was ok. the humor didn't do much for me and it got a bit tedious towards the end. hope Cthulhu is better.
24. Bulletstorm 10.1 hrs
Loved it. Plays like Gears of War meets Vanquish, only in first person. Really recommend this to anyone looking for a FPS that mixes things up.
25. Call of Juarez: Gunslinger 6.9 hrs
Great piece of gaming. Loved leveling up my skills and how the narrative is set up. Would recommend it to anyone who has been left wanting more RDR. it's a great western.
26. Crysis 3 ~7 hrs
Plays great but looks even greater. Might be Crytek's last FPS, a shame really. This deserved more love.
27. Dear Esther 1.5 hrs
you walk around, someone talks, and then it's over. looks good, though.
28. Enslaved: Pigsy's Perfect 10 4.4 hrs
Great DLC for an underrated game. If you want more enslaved, play this. It's worth your time.
29. Gone Home 2.9 hrs
kinda ran like ass on my rig. was enjoyable. Missed some hints that i read about afterwards that make the story even better. Worth experiencing.
30. Guacamelee Gold
Great metriodvania. Challenging platforming, interesting visuals. I'd recommend you get the newer version now that that's out. a lot of fun.
31. Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light 5 hrs
Played it coop with my bro. Gltichy, would drop frames for stretches of time for no reason. We broke half of the games puzzles, hah. Would recommend it for coop, probably not that fun by yourself.
32. Metro 2033 13.9
FANTASTIC. possible the best single player FPS i've played since HL2 Episode 2. Worth it for the atmosphere alone. Highly recommended.
33. Papo & Yo 4.4 hrs
Good game. Enjoyed some of the world-bending stuff in the game. Solid puzzles. however, crashed 2-3 times and my save file got erased at the last save point in the game. Got so pissed, had to youtube the last minute of gameplay. Still bitter, hah.
34. PixelJunk Shooter 1 4.4 hrs
Might be my favorite Pixeljunk experience. Really fun and a shame that part 2 isn't on PC yet.
35. Renegade Ops 4.5 hrs
Played it coop, was fine. Wouldn't have enjoyed it as much on my own. Ran well, had a hilarious ending.
36. Resident Evil Revelations 11.6 hrs
Great RE game. Shooting feels like shit (sound effect is puny and no impact) but the rest of the game was so much fun. Had trouble putting it down. If you want a fun RE game then get this.
37. Sleeping Dogs: Year of the Snake ~3 hrs
Probably the best DLC for SD.
38. Sleeping Dogs: Zodiac Tournament/Nightmare at North Point
Put these two together because they're both pretty short. North Point is a lot of fun, you can skip Zodiac as it's just a series of fights.
39. The Witcher 2 ~25 hrs
HATED witcher 1, yet loved this. so good, you'll want to replay it as soon as you're done. The best WRPG of the last 5 years easily.
40. The Wolf Among Us 10.4 hrs
Played it when it was all out. I highly recommend it be played that way. Excellent story, thought the pacing could've used some work.
41. Titanfall
campaign is a joke, i have no idea what happened or why. It's just a series of MP matches. Game needed more meat on that bone. Fun for about a couple of days.
42. To The Moon 2.9 hrs
thought it was pretty dumb. I had no sympathy for the main character, did nothing for me emotionally.
43. Valiant Hearts: The Great War 6.9 hrs
Terrific game. Get this, listen to Hardcore History's ongoing WWI series, and enjoy. Fun puzzles, great art, and collectables that you'll want to seek out as they're rather informative. Highly recommended.
44. Zeno Clash 4 hrs
wonderfully weird. Father Mother is nightmare fuel. Can't wait to play ZC2.
Wii U
45. Mario Kart 8
it's probably the best mario kart. Can be finished quickly but you'll find yourself coming back for more.
46. Super Mario 3D World
beat the main game but those special stages are fucking tough. loved it.
GAMES I'M FINISHED WITH BUT DIDN'T TECHNICALLY FINISH
47. Battlefield 4 +24 hrs
Over a day spent playing online, had my save file deleted when i tried the single player. DICE never fixed this glitch, so i didn't bother with the campaign.
48. Crysis 1 ~3 hrs
Was frustrating and actually ran worse than Crysis 3. Found it to be thoroughly crappy. gave up after getting killed by tanks 6 times in a row.
49. Muramasa Rebirth ~3 hrs
tedious and repetitious. Did nothing for me. Supposedly a short game but i couldn't even be bothered to finish. Playing dragon's crown now and loving it, though, so not all is lost.
50. Pixeljunk Monsters HD ~3 hrs
TOO.FUCKING.HARD. spent over an hour at the end trying to finish one stage and couldn't. shit is stupidly difficult.
51. Velocity Ultra ~4 hrs
got to about Zone 43 of 50, game wanted me to go back and get better scores to continue. It became too much of a grind. Didn;t want to replay a bunch of stages just to finish the game.
52. Witcher 1 ~17 hrs
Got stuck in a boss fight halfway through chapter 3. Tried it for over an hour, downloaded a mod to drop difficulty, still couldn't beat it. Gave up. I wasn't really enjoying the game anyway. Played the Witcher 2 and LOVED LOVED it. W1 is too tedious and doesn't hold up that well.
So I try to remember which games I played, so I can participate in the challenge =)
Games so far Ive completed:
Game 1: Super Mario U
# Nice game, but it was a bit to much of recycling for me. I still like the 3D Mario games more.
Game 2: Diablo 3 Reaper of Souls
# The addon made the base game much better, was really enjoying it.
Game 3: Star Craft II Wings of Liberty
# I finally managed to play this and was really suprised about the quality. Thats how a classic addon should be made.
Game 4: Mario Kart 8
# Played all cups and a little bit of multiplayer.
Game 5: Borderlands 2 (199 hours)
# Finally managed to play all the addons.
Game 6: Dark Souls 2 (49 hours)
# I love this game, Dark Souls 1 is still a little bit better, but the series in whole is just perfect for me.
Game 7: Pinball FX2 (43 hours)
# I played all the tables for a good amount of time, does this count?
Game 8: Assasins Creed IV Black Flag (61 hours)
# My second favorite game in the series, after AC2.
Game 9: Psychonauts (12 hours)
# I want a sequel!
Game 10: Thief (15 hours)
# Not as bad as I thought, but not really good either
Game 11: Tomb Raider 1 The Original! (13 hours)
# I love the old games but I never finished them, so I finally played through the first one
Game 12: The Blackwell Legacy (3 hours)
# I love the series!
Game 13: Blackwell Unbound (2 hours)
# But they are very short.
Game 14: Blackwell Convergence (2 hours)
# But they are worth it.
Game 15: Blackwell Deception (4 hours)
# And the last two games are longer
Game 16: The Book of unwritten Tales (6 hours)
# Not as good as part 1, but good enough for a prequel.
Game 17: Broken Sword 1 (7 hours)
# Absolute masterpiece.
Game 18: Deponia (11 hours)
# I love the Daedalic games, especially the Deponia trilogy
Game 19: Chaos on Deponia (8 hours)
# Even better than the first one
Game 20: Goodbye Deponia (8 hours)
# Great finale!
Game 21: The Dark Eye: Chains of Satinav (8 hours)
# Daedalic again, was really surprised how good the game was, my favourite game oft hem so far.
Game 22: Lost Horizon (8 hours)
# I really played a lot of Point & Click adventures so far this year This was great, too.
Game 23: Runaway: A Road Adventure (7 hours)
# I loved it and started the second game, but somehow Im not really interested in the series anymore.
Game 24: Secret Files: Tunguska (6 hours)
# Loved it!
Game 25: Secret Files: Puritas Cordis
# This game was horrible, so much worse than part 1.
Game 26: Secret Files 3 (a little over 3 hours)
# It was ok, but extremely short, I dont know how I managed to play through this in a little over 3 hours.
Game 27: Syberia (7 hours)
# It was ok, too much walking and a strange story, but overall a nice game.
Game 28: Syberia 2 (6 hours)
# I liked it more than Syberia 1, but the story didnt really get me.
Game 29: The Wolf Among Us (9 hours)
# I dont like the comics, but I love games from Telltale. I wasnt disappointed by it.
Game 30: Yesterday (4 hours)
# Great game, but extremely short.
Game 31: Call of Duty: United Offensive (7 hours)
# Meh.
Game 32: Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon (5 hours)
# Didnt really like it, gameplay was a bit boring.
Game 33: Wolfenstein: The New Order (16 hours)
# Played it twice.
Game 34: DLC Quest (2 hours)
# Funny, but very short
Game 35: Hexcells (2 hours)
# Everyone should play this!
Game 36: Hexcells Plus (12 hours)
# I needed a long time to play every level in a perfect way.
Game 37: NaissanceE (Over 2 Hours)
# What a surprising game, the atmosphere is fantastic!
Game 38: The Room (3 hours)
# I didnt think I would like this game, but its great on PC.
Game 39: The Stanley Parable (2 hours)
# Well, you have to play it to understand it
Game 40: Stick it To The Man (4 hours)
# Strange artstyle, but it was enjoyable overall.
Game 41: Strider (7 hours)
# I havent played the original, but I enjoyed the remake.
Game 42: Trackmania 2 Canyon (7 hours)
# Played them all and enjoyed them all =)
Game 42: The Last of Us ( ca. 13 hours)
# Fantastic.
Game 43: Infamous: Second Son
# Infamous 2 was better, but overall it was good enough.
Game 44: Killzone Shadow Fall
# Fantastic design oft he world, the gameplay came a little bit too short.
Game 45: Entwined
# Didnt like this very much, the concept wasnt very great.
Game 46: Tales of Xilia (40 hours)
# I was really disappointed by this game, the story was just so bad written..
Game 47: Pikmin 3
# I love the Pikmin games, this was fantastic, too.
Game 48: Wind Waker HD
# It looked beautiful on the Wii U and I really enjoyed my time with it.
Game 49: Infamous 2
# The best game imho of the trilogy.
Game 50: Tales of Graces F
# Really good Tales game, but a little bit over the top sometimes.
Game 51: Jak and Daxter
# Didnt really like it :/
Game 52: Sly Cooper: Thieves in Tine
# Great game, I hope they will continue the series!
Okay I need to stop here, it's crazy that I already got the 52 games. I've played through a lot more of them, especially because I'm clearing my backlog of adventure and point and click games which don't consume that much time. I think I completed about 70 games so far.
So I will try to continue this list till the end of the year.
Game 53: Tearaway
# Expected more, was a little bit disappointed.
Game 54: Killzone
# This was horrible, I just played it because I wanted to complete the series and play the sequels.
Game 55: Killzone 2
# Great game, I really like the atmosphere in the Killzone trilogy.
Game 56: Killzone 3
# My favourite game in the series
Game 57: Killzone: Mercenary
# Was ok for a Vita game.
Game 58: Pullblox World
# This gets addictive really fast.
Game 59: Titanfall
# Played a good amount of hours and completed a generation
Game 60: Battlefield 4
# The worst gaming related money I've ever spent. I don't know how I could be so idiotic and pre-order this game together with premium...
Game 61: Broken Sword 2 (7 hours)
# What a huge disappointment after the great Broken Sword 1. One of the worst stories and maybe the worst ending in a point and click adventure I'v ever experienced.
Game 62: Hexcells Infinite (24 hours)
#Hexcells is the best puzzle series at PC for me at the moment and the new entry in the series got a random level generator!
Game 64: Dead Rising 3 (17 hours)
# Horrible PC port, but the game itself is great, had a lot of fun with it.
Game 65: Luxor Evolved (2 1/2 hours)
# Nice game, but they really need to add something to the formula in the future if they want to keep people interested.
Game 66: J.U.L.I.A. Among The Stars Remastered (5 hours)
# The only game I've kickstarted yet and I don't regret it. The story and the presentation is really unique but the quality of the puzzles is not always the highest.
Game 65: Nightmares from the Deep: The Cursed Heart (3 hours)
# Much better than I expected, maybe I will play more games from the series in the future.
Game 66: Time Mistery 3: The Final Enigma (3 hours)
# Not as good as Nightmares from the Deep, but it was ok for the price of 2€
Game 67: Enigmatis: The Mists of Ravenwood (3 1/2 hours)
# Not bad, I never thought I could like these kind of games.
Game 68: Disney Castle of Illusion (82 minutes)
# What? 82 minutes? I'm glad I didn't pay much for this game.
Game 69: Velocity X2 (5 hours)
# Fantastic game, and it was free with PS+! Even perfected more than half of the levels, the controls are excellent in this game.
Game 70: Time Mistery 2: The Ancient Spectres (3 1/2 hours)
# Bad story, mediocre puzzles.
Game 71: Abyss: The Wraths of Eden (3 hours)
#One of the best Hidden Object games.
Game 72: The Vanishing of Ethan Carter (3 1/2 hours)
# Fantastic game, beautiful landscapes and great story!
Game 73: Neverending Nightmares (68 min)
# Great atmosphere and design, but extremely short and the price is too high.
Game 74: Nightmares from the Deep 2: The Siren's Call
# Great casual game as the other games from Artifex Mundi.
Late start! I hope I'm not forgetting anything. In compiling this list, I learned that A) I replay games a lot, and B) I hardly ever finish games, except for the ~25 I replay over and over again. :X
Game #1: Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons
# Absolutely brilliant visuals with a touching story that required no dialogue. I LOVE this game.
Game #2: Super Metroid
# Slightly late to the party. An excellent game that hasn't aged at all. I loved exploring and completing the maps!
Game #3: Wizorb
# Gorgeous pixel art and a surpringly fun game for its price.
Game #4: Fire Emblem: Awakening (Hard)
# My third hard playthrough, going for a close-to-perfect stat run with, of course, no deaths.
Game #5: Portal 2
# Not as late as I was for Super Metroid, but still pretty late. I completed both the coop and main game; loved them both.
Game #6: Mark of the Ninja
# Possibly my favorite stealth game ever. Really fun game with amazingly tight keyboard and gamepad controls.
Game #7: The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
# All of the main quests for the DLC and the base game completed! I'm still playing Skyrim and I love it!
Game #8: Fire Emblem: Sacred Stones
# One of my least favorite Fire Emblem games, so I've only played it once or twice before.
Game #9: Fire Emblem: Awakening (Lunatic)
# Second Lunatic no-death run. Dat painful FE6-like RNG...
Game #10: Path of Exile
# I love this game on paper, but I don't like playing it that much. I'm not a big fan of the no-currency thing. This game has a mentally steep learning curve for some reason.
Game #11: Soul Calibur V
# By beat, I mean that I've unlocked EVERYTHING. I think I spent more time making characters than actually playing the game. This game's story mode is absolute rubbish, but the game is fun.
Game #12: VVVVVV
# Interesting platformer; I don't have much to say about it.
Game #13: Pokemon: Black 2
# Second time playing through it; just as surprised that it's better than B/W despite it seeming like a blatant cash-in.
Game #14: Roller Coaster Tycoon 3
# I completed all the scenarios, so it's beat in my book! I played this game when it first game out; it's still pretty fun.
Game #15: Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon (Hard)
# God knows how many times I've played this game. I did a Marth-only hard run with his disposable army, because why not?
Game #16: Fire Emblem
# I probably play this at least four times a year. I think I have a problem. Decided not to go down the One True Ninian route this time just to see what would happen...
ALWAYS CHOOSE NINIAN.
Game #17: FTL - Faster Than Light
# Finally beat easy mode. This game is awesome and I'm terrible at it!
Game #18: BIT.TRIP Runner
# Played the 3DS version, which is really good! This game is frustrating and addicting.
Game #19: Super Mario Bros
# Went at supersanic speeds, just to see how fast I could complete it.
Game #20: Fire Emblem 12 (Lunatic)
# I literally have hundreds
(maybe even thousands)
of hours in this game and am always doing a playthrough of it. GODDAMN, I'm obsessed this game. It'll probably never get officially translated. This playthrough was a mage-run.
Game #21: The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D
# Yet another replay! Sort of, since I've played the N64 one before. One of my favorite Zeldas.
Game #22: Final Fantasy VI
# Yet another replay of a game I've played a million times! Didn't use the Figaros this time, just to let the other characters have a go.
Game #23: Final Fantasy VII
# The Steam release version! This is one of those games that I think is annoyingly overrated, until I replay it again and remember how amazing it is. Still a bit overrated, but it deserves all the praise it gets.
Game #24: Rush Bros
# Absolute rubbish. Finished it for that sweet, sweet Playfire money.
Game #25: Giana Sisters: Twisted Dreams
# It was okay. Pretty average in terms of platformers, but I had fun with it.
Game #26: Fire Emblem
# ...yes, again. I was getting Eliwood withdrawl; don't judge. I forgot the exact words to the exchange between Pent and Louise during the final boss battle, and rather than looking it up, I just played through the entire game again, oops!
Game #27: Fire Emblem 6
# I feel like I've played this more that FE7 just because I remember it better, but I'm certain that I haven't. Said I wasn't going to use Clarine this time, but -- of course -- ended up using her. Managed to recruit Percival in that nightmare of a chapter where he first appears.
Game #28: The Wolf Among Us
# Amazing game! I was pretty satisfied with the ending and really loved that scene in the metalworks. The whole game was excellent.
Game #29: The Blackwell Legacy
# Technically played all of the Blackwell games twice; the second time to listen to Dave Gilbert's commentary, but I'll only list them once. This game was clearly made with a lot of love!
Game #30: Blackwell Unbound
# Possibly my favorite in the series! Prequels are the best!
Game #31: Blackwell Convergence
# My least favorite, but still really good. You can see all aspects the games improve a lot as the series goes on.
Game #32: To the Moon
# I was really impressed by this game! It had really strong writing and world building.
Game #33: Shovel Knight
# STRIKE THE EARTH! I really loved this game; it gives you an awesome feeling of nostalgia even though it's new. Brilliantly put together. I beat the 3DS version; on to the PC version!
Game #34: Blackwell Deception
# Second time playing this. I played Deception before any of the other Blackwell games a long time ago and was really confused, but still liked it. It's a lot better once you've played the other games and know what's going on!
Game #35: McPixel
# I played this with a fever and got 100% on everything. It's a good game to play when you're delusional and sick!
Game #36: Deponia
# People either love or hate this game; I really liked it! The art style is very distinct and the humor is ridiculous.
Game #37: Batman: Arkham Asylum
# I'm a huge Batman fan, but I missed out on the Arkham games. No Tim Drake; 0/10! In all seriousness, I wasn't a huge fan of the combat, but I liked the rest of the game a lot.
Game #38: One Way Heroics
# I've beaten the boss a few times now. This game is really fun! Probably my new go-to podcast-listening rouge-like over Rogue Legacy now.
Game #39: Heileen 3
# Got four endings; I'll probably keep playing it to unlock more. I love this game! It's above average in terms of dating sim visual novels and shouldn't be taken too seriously. I haven't played the first two yet and really want to play them now.
Game #40: Murdered: Soul Suspect
# I really liked this game, despite its bugginess and flaws! I posted my thoughts on it on SteamGAF.
Game 20: Bulletstorm - 5-6 hours, Aug 28th
Mechanically it's quite fun, though I don't think the weapon selection was all that great. I mostly stuck with the basic rifle + revolver, some more effective AoE weapons would've been nice. Having so much scripted stuff, like forced walk sequences and press button to jump down and all this shit, doesn't make sense for the kind of gameplay they have. In what's essentially an arcade FPS I don't need or want 1st person cutscenes. The scripting broke for me several times too forcing me to replay some parts. It's an enjoyable game but I think they could've made a better one with the same gameplay.
This is cool, and having truly made an effort to beat more games this year, here we go!
Game #1: South Park Stick Of Truth (Beat 100%)
I had been waiting quite a while for this, hoping it would live up to the show, well also being a great game in its own right. It delivered on both fronts, and the only negative is it left me wanting more
Game #2: Octodad (Beat Story)
Really funny game, never over-stayed its welcome, never got too frustrating. Its a game i'd like to go back and achievement pick someday
Game #3: Angry Video Game Nerd Adventures (Beat on Easy)
As a fan, i enjoyed seeing a lot of the games that he reviewed be inspirations for the enemies, stages, and bosses throughout the game. Its very much meant to be an ode to the super-difficult games of the NES, and i can see how people who aren't fans of the series wouldn't really enjoy it, but i dug it all the same.
Game #4: Card City Nights (100%)
I'm a big card game nut, and i dug this, though sometimes it was a bit too RNG, and the final boss is absolute bullshit, that took far too long just because of how luck-based the battle was.
Game #5: Dead Man's Draw (1-Starred every tournament)
Its not really that great of a game, its just a simple card game, but it was easy to play in the background while i was importing or exporting video, or waiting for clips to be ripped, or what have you. So i played it a lot.
Game #6: Fairie Solitare (Completed Adventure Mode)
It took me a while to actually push through this to the end. Its a nice little solitaire game, but it just gets boring and dull after a bit.
Game #7: Frederic - Resurrection of Music (Beat Story Mode)
This was a charming little music game where you play as Frederic Chopin, battling musicians for a reason you have yet to find out, and of course you use the keyboard like a piano to play notes that come down a highway. Lots of charm, cute story, solid music, all around good time
Game #8: Frederic - Evil Strikes Back (Beat Story Mode)
Its like the first game, but without a lot of the charm, the story is a mess and dumb, and the soundtrack isn't nearly as good. Pretty big bummer.
Game #9: Freedom Planet (Beat Story Mode once with Carol)
This may be my GOTY, the perfect mix of every excellent Sega Genesis game, well still being its own thing. If Shovel Knight:NES:, then Freedom Planet:Sega
Game #10: Gone Home (Beat game)
Arguably a game, i still enjoyed the story it was telling, and the way it conveyed it.
Game #11: Kickbeat
The game is alright, its just another beat-matching rhythm game, with nothing that really sets it apart. Still fun though, soundtrack has a lot of buttrock though.
Game #12: Noitu Love 2
This game reminds me a lot of Treasure games, and that's an awesome thing. Big, giant bosses, excellent 2D sprites, and a really fun gameplay gimmick, its a solid, and very cheap game.
Game #13: Shovel Knight (Beat Singe-player story, beat all levels/bosses)
Wow, just a phonemenal game all around. Very well could be my GOTY, but still have a few months for something else to change that
Game #14: Ryse: Son Of Rome (Beat Single-Player Campaign)
Forgot to add this, beat it back in Feb., very very bland. I couldn't really tell you any one moment that stuck with me, but somehow i got through it.
Game #15: Detective Case And Clown Bot
Nice little point-and-click game with really nice sprite art. Some typos and a few minor technical issues were my only complaints. The humor isn't for everyone though.
Game 61: Rayman Origins (Vita) - 30 Hours
(Started ???? / Finished 8/20/14)
After beating this went for the Platinum (my third) and yeah I liked this a lot better on the Vita BUT this game had a serious drought of checkpoints
Game 62: Radiant Silvergun (X360) - 10 Hours
(Started 8/21/14 / Finished 8/22/14)
God bless free play. Actually without it I could reach the final boss consistently.
I have already started a similar challenge myself but for only 50 games, so i will try to get to 52, well mu hidden goal is like 60 so its ok xD
Game 1: Bit.Trip.Runner - 7 hours
Very Fun game, really challenging rythm game.
Game 2: Deus Ex:Human Revolution - 24 hours
What a fantastic game, not much to say, best moment i remember was
saving malik, i had no idea if i could save her, at first i thought it was scripted and could not be avoided and i did not had internet that time to search. But i tried to save her, it was hard, and i did it, amazing feeling.
Game 3: Driftmoon - 9 hours
Charming rpg, fun and funny
Game 4: Gemini Rue - 6-7 hours
Great story, not much of a challence but i enjoyed it, the twist was really great.
Game 5: Medal Of Honor - 6 hours
Not that good, kinda enjoyed it, no regrets ;p
Game 6 : Saturday Morning RPG - 4 hours
Fun indie RPG, funny but not that great overall.
Game 7: Sine Mora - 5 hours
One of my favorite shmup's, not played much but this one was good
Game 8: Qube - 3 hours
A 3D puzzle game, kinda like portal, you use the enviroment to solve puzzles, a couple of those are really frustrating.
Game 9: Guacamelee - 6 hours
A fantastic metroidvania with great melee combat and fantastic platforming.
Game 10: Shadowgrounds - 6 hours
Guns + lots of aliens + mars = great fun! Its a top down shooter, a gem really.
Game 11: Shadowgrounds survivor - 3 hours
Different from the first one, kinda more serious and shorter, also less weapons (if i remember correcylty), but still really good, maybe even better from the first in terms of gameplay.
Game 12: dysfanctional systems :Learning to manage chaos - 3 hours
A visual novel, enjoyable but short, not many dialog options. I would play the sequel if it comes out.
Game 13: Antichamber - 7 hours
One of the best game i played in 2014, amazing puzzle game, fantastic level design and puzzles.
Game 14: Bejeweled 3 - 10 hours
One of my favorite puzzle games, probably my favorite after tetris. A classic.
Game 15: Duke Nukem Manhattan Project - 6 hours
Very fun old school action platformer, damn keys!
Game 16: Sniper Elite: Nazi zombie army 2 - 7 hours
I played this one with friends, it was great, so many headshots ;p
Game 17: 4 Elements - 8 hours
Another great puzzle game, why did they put hidden object scenes though?
Game 18: Nightmares from the deep: The cursed Heart - 4 hours
A hidden object adventure game, i actually enjoyed it alot, story was not something great but was well made.
Game 19: Major Mayhem - 2 hours
Worst game i played this year, a shooter, a mediocre one.
Game 20: The Swapper - 6 hours
One of the best games i played this year, a gem, great puzzles, amazing atmosphere and good story. A must play imo.
Game 21: Velocity Ultra - 5 hours
Great game, a mix of shmup, "racing" and puzzle elements. fantastic!
Game 22: Go!Go! Nippon! ~My first trip to japan~ - 3 hours
A visual novel/guide to visiting japan game, not much of a game of course, it was interesting though.
Game 23: Ofspring Fling - 2 hours
Kinda cool puzzle game, really short but had its moments.
Game 24: Dirt 3 - 13 hours
Really good racing game, i loved the first, i liked the third. The challenges with the tricks ruined it for me, but even if this frustrated me the rest of the game is really great.
Game 25: Tiny and Big: Grandpa's leftovers - 2 hours
A nice platformer with puzzling, you can cut rocks with a beam and you have a nemesis to beat, its good xD
Game 26: Batman Arkham Asylum - 11 hours
Best batman game, best super hero game, one of the best games ever maybe.
Game 27: Back to the Future: The Game - 11 hours
These are 5 episodes but i count them as 1 game. Its a telltale adventure game, with telltale storytelling but it has some puzzles to solve, not hard though. Story is really good, i enjoyed it and imo all thirsty fans of the movies should give it a try as it continious the story.
Game 28: Runner 2 : Future Legend of Rhythm Alien - 4 hours
Better than the first but easier. Good game.
Game 29: Dust: an Elysian Tail - 15 hours
What a great game. Fantastic fast screen filling action, rpg elements, metroidvania elements (i like these xD), the voice acting is superb, the characters are great, the story is good. One of the best i played in 2014, i loved it. You who read this, play it
Game 30: Tomb Raider (2013) - 12 hours
Not really a tomb raider game but it was a really good shooter with platforming. I liked the upgrades system and the story is good. The production values are great, the one thing it really lacked was some puzzles. It had some but were very scarce, and optional! Still it was really good.
Game 31: The legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past - 20 hours
Not much to say about this, a masterpiece, one of the best game ever made. 9.5/10 (because no game is ever perfect )
Game 32: Brothers: A tale of two sons - 3 hours
A great adventure of 2 sons on a quest to find a cure for their father. It had some feels, a unique control method (you control both simulteneously) and some good moments. Its art was great, not much of a game although it had gameplay, it was really easy but still it was a memorable adventure, an experience. It was good.
Game 33: Tomb Raider Anniversary - 12 hours
Classic tomb raider with heave platforming and puzzles.
Game 34: Bioshock Infinite - 14 hours
An FPS with a great story and great gameplay,i liked the gameplay a lot, its linear and the shooting is not great, but i liked the use of powers. Story was really good and gave soul to the game, the ending was great too. A minus for me was that it relied a lot on voxophones (audio tapes that you find in game and you listen), i did not liked those.
Bioshock was better though
Game 35: Batman Arkham city - 11 hours
Very similar to the first game, just a bit worse imo, i did not liked the city hub. Still was great.
Game 36: Magicians & Looters - 5 hours
A metroidvania (kinda) action platformer. Hilarious story, thats its best element, not that great gameplay wise but had really nice challenging boss battles. also you have 3 playable characters with diffrent abilities. Not bad at all but it lacked polish.
Game 37: Ys Origin - 12 hours
I love Ys series and this one is great. Amzing action, amazing music, amazing boss battles. Story was good.
Game 38: Astebreed - 4 hours
One of the best smups i ever played. Amazing action and the story is actually quite decent.
What an amazing game. The mansion is beautifully crafted, and every moment is incredibly tense. It is quite silly, but there's enough raw horror in the game that marks in it the echelon of horror with the likes of Silent Hill 2.
My last post is out of character space, so its time for a second home-base post!
Game 20: The Walking Dead Season 2 - August 29th, 10ish hours
I was looking at my game time for TWD1, and it was 15 hours. Now maybe I played through this season quicker, but man if it didn't feel short overall. I would say that until the finale, the season was hovering around "average" for me. The finale though (while some might hate it) redeemed it for me.
The campfire scene was one of the first times I genuinely smiled and laughed a bit during the game. It was sweet, nice characterization. And in the end, I chose to kill Kenny. Man did it hurt. But I did it. He had become deranged, even if he was usually trying to do what was best for me (Clem). Jane rocked my socks off. I dunno why, I just liked her.
All that said, I'm a bit puzzled as to where the next season goes. Telltale, shockingly perhaps, gave us diverging endings. Unless we somehow advance like 3-5 years, I don't see how we really can join all these very different endings together without it being contrived. Either that or Telltale would have to declare one ending "canon" which would further infuriate everyone who thinks their games lack enough choice.
I guess the real question here is: was it good? Yeah, I think it was. It wasn't TWD1 level of greatness, and wasn't even at TWAU1 level of enjoyment for me. But it was still a good, solid game. My complaint that I raised about TWAU still stands: I won't be buying a Telltale game early ever again. From now on, I'm waiting until it's all out. I'll miss out on some discussion and fun with the community, but I don't care. Playing episodically over a year is just idiotic. Another other major complaint is that Telltale really needs to step up the visuals. Their engine needs some updating and patching. The last complaint I've got is that TWD2 really needed some better writing. I felt much more attached to characters in TWD1. I felt suspicious and hated basically everyone in TWD2. But perhaps that was intentional?
Still, I'm glad I bought TWD and I'm still more than happy to support Telltale. Some people will always complain that the games "aren't really games" or that they "don't have enough gameplay and/or choice" or that "they're just visual novels." Well count me as a supporter of that. I love VNs and we could use more Western spins on the VN.
Game 21: Killer is Dead - August 30th, 7 hours, 6 minutes
What a weird, mess of a game. I don't even know where to start with my thoughts. I guess I should put the disclaimer out there that this is my first Suda51 game, so I'm completely unfamiliar with anything they do.
Now, before I bought the game, I saw all these reviews with accusations of sexism. Given Japanese media's usually controversial fanservice, I thought, "Oh boy, lots of pantsu shots huh?" Well, not quite. Now as I said, I've never played Suda51games before. So maybe their games are completely meant to be taken at face value (in which case the game would be much more arguably sexist), but when playing it, I really felt like it was more of a parody. Mondo's cliche and over the top macho-ness reminded me of a very mature Gurren Lagann-esque parody of anime and movies with manly characters a la, James Bond and Golgo 13 (among others).
To cut to the chase of the "sexism" debate: the gigolo missions. Now, if you're a socially repressed and inexperienced guy, I suppose you could look at the mini-game and really think that's how women are, and that objectifying women and peeping on them is alright. It might even fulfill some of your fantasies. Having been in a relationship before, the sections didn't effect me like that. I found them over the top, comedic and actually fairly poor in their writing. You look at their boobs and crotches to gain "guts" to talk to them. Then you give them a gift to win their heart and bed you... As if that's actually how life works! In fact the animation of giving the lady a gift is hilarious. So I'm still looking at those scenes as laughable parodies of dumb anime portrayals of women, not serious sexist representations of women. But I could certainly be wrong.
If anyone wants to complain about the objectification of women in the game, fine. But you should be complaining about the absurd amounts of blood, gore and violence in the game as well. I can't stand the Western double standards of complaining about eroticism but not violence. The dehumanization and normalizing of brutal killing in video games is just as much of a problem as any sexism is. Sexism will stop someone from playing a game but horrific and brutal violence won't? What a weird world we live in.
Looking at my writing on this game, it's kind of funny how this is my longest commentary yet. I guess I feel pretty strongly about it. Alright, now that I've attempted to defend the game from the sexist mantra, let's rip it to shreds:
In my opinion, the English VAs are terrible. I've heard some of the Japanese and I think it's a bit better, but not great either.
There's frankly too little gameplay. This is ostensibly a hack-and-slash game. Let me hack and slash some more. I have no problem with having cutscenes, but there needed to be more action. 7 hours, hugely made of cutscenes, is far too little for me.
The story doesn't make a lick of sense. I mean, I get what happened, but the writing was generally terrible and confused. In some cases, I actually had to look up what happened because it made no sense. Suda51's style? I dunno. Newb here.
Too many immersion ruining loading screens. This is in fact worse than the cutscenes. Fine, put in cutscenes. But find a way to not have so many loading screens, especially between cutscenes.
I think the graphics were terrible. Something about how they looked was just terrible to me. Maybe it's just my eyes, but generally I thought it looked pretty awful, and there was this weird blur that really bothered me. In the game's defense, the cutscenes generally looked nice (especially the Yakuza section) and the aesthetic overall was great, even if I don't think it was fully realized.
Even if you accept the argument that KiD is a parody of anime sexism, I still think it was fairly poorly done. Not only that, it was unnecessary. KiD should have stayed as a parody of macho-ness. It didn't need to add the sexualization in. Too many themes, too much to cover, terrible execution.
And here's my biggest problem with the game: I suck at hack-and-slash games. Now obviously that's a personal issue, but I just can't keep up with the combos and stuff necessary. That's why I've also always sucked at fighting games. I saw some complaints about the gameplay being shallow. Wasn't too shallow for me. If anything, I found the game massively difficult. First game in a very long time that I've had to play some levels on easy.
That's a lot to write for a game I paid $10 for. $10 for a limited edition of this game is steal. It's certainly a great value at that price.
Game 22: Catherine - September 2nd, 12ish hours
I know that Catherine came out over three years ago, but after finishing it, I'd have to say that this game is now firmly in my top three 2014 GOTY list (Behind P4G and FFX HD).
What an amazing, amazing game. Let's just talk boring stuff first: the puzzling is fantastic. I suck at timed puzzles, so I actually struggled with some levels even on easy. Yes, I know, I suck. But towards the end of the game, I had really gotten the hang of the puzzling, so I plan to go back and give it a shot on normal. The puzzling is satisfyingly deep and the game continues to throw enough challenges at you that levels never feel really repetitious or boring.
Now for what I really care about: the other stuff. First off, the aesthetic. It's gorgeous. The anime cutscenes are beautiful, and the "normal" cutscenes are quite nice as well. The general aesthetic of the game, not just in cutscene, is stupendous. I'll say that in terms of Persona 5, I'm hoping that they manage to pull something of a similar quality off. Second, the music. It's really quite excellent and I've enjoyed listening to some of the tracks now that I'm done. It's not shockingly good and it's no GOAT, but it really serves the game's atmosphere well. Which brings me to my third thing: the atmosphere of the game. I think the atmosphere of the game is really summed up by the Stray Sheep bar. What an awesome setting. You can talk with friends, acquaintances, get drunk, text your girlfriend, play an arcade machine and change the music. Again, this is something I'd like to see in Persona 5, the use of a dynamic environment where people who you want to talk to come and go.
More importantly, what makes the game really stick out to me is the theme and story. I've seen some posts accusing the game of sexism and such. I think that if sexism is what you get out of Catherine, you've missed the point. I will say two things about the game to be fair though. 1) Atlus should have toned down the "sexy" covers and advertising. I assume they did it to get people to look at the game, but I know that even I who am pretty open to Japanese games thought it was just some kind of pervy story. And it's not. It's an incredibly mature story. 2) The game is not geared towards women at all IMO. While a similar story could easily be written from a female POV, the game with its bar bros and Vincent's struggles is clearly targeted towards young men (20s-30s).
Back to the theme itself though. I found the idea of commitment issues, "growing up" and struggles with "freedom" to be highly relatable and poignant. Listening to some of Vincent's inner monologues worrying about committing to Katherine, I was reminded of past relationships where I felt the same. However, even for guys in stable relationships (I'm single so take my opinion here with a grain of salt), I think this game will still have something to say. It's something we all (male and female) struggle with at some point in our relationship. And I think what makes Catherine stand out so much (at least to me) is that it handles these ideas in an incredibly mature way. It has its share of cliches and silliness, but overall, I always found myself marveling at how well the game was tackling these issues. Now granted, there's always room for improvement, but this was one of the first games that I've really felt such a strong message from.
I got one ending
True Lovers
, and I do intend on going back to get the rest. I don't know when I'll do it (not right now), but I'll be returning to Catherine for quite a while
Game 23: Velocity 2X - September 23rd, 2014 - 5 hours, 30 minutes
I remember when Futurlab said this game was GOTY material, I was very turned off and irritated. I like to see Devs have confidence in their product, but that just came off as pretentious to me. Even so, I finally broke down and played the game, and a few nights ago, as I was at level 30ish, I mused on Twitter that this may indeed very well be my GOTY. After finishing it at midnight-ish, I can say that as of now, this is indeed my GOTY*. Of course, I must give the caveat that I have played very few games released this year. Even so, Velocity 2X somehow manages to take two genres I either suck and/or hate and meld them into perfection. I usually hate platformers because they are either too boring or too infuriating for me. Usually that's due to a lack of my skill. On top of that, I love shmups, but am terrible at them. All that said, at no point did I feel like the game was being difficult just to make a faux challenge. At no point did I feel cheated or burned by the game's design. If I failed, it was my own incompetence. And due to that design, getting a "Perfect" rank on a mission might very well be one of the most satisfying gaming experiences I've had in some time.
The graphical style is superb, the story is serviceable, Lt. Kai Tana is kick-ass and the pacing is perfection. I think the rate at which the game added mechanics and explained them was just phenomenal. Perhaps criminally underlooked is the soundtrack, which is just spot-on for the title.
The fact that this was free on PS+ is actually borderline criminal. I am going to be buying the DLC if only for the fact that the devs deserve my support. On top of that, I now need to go back and play the first game!
*I'd actually say Final Fantasy X HD is my GOTY, but since that's a remaster, I'll say that Velocity 2X is my GOTY at least in terms of original titles for the year.
Game 24: Proteus - September 23rd, 2014 - Around an hour
I guess I get why some people enjoy this game. It could be pretty calming and the soundtrack is pretty nifty. For me though? I didn't feel it. I was bored, there's not enough to see, and the soundtrack isn't enough to keep me interested. This felt like something that should have been a tech demo. Not a full fledged game, simply because there isn't enough substance. I "beat" it once, and that's enough for me.
Game 25: Long Live The Queen - September 24th, 2014 - 2.5 hours
"Anime fanservice bullshit." I remember that was what TotalBiscuit thought this game was when he started doing his livestream research video. When I saw the the store listing the first time, I too thought the same thing. But like TB, I quickly discovered that the game has...no fan service! Like they say, don't judge a book by its cover!
The anime-style graphics immediately bias one to think that it's going to be full of tentacle monsters, pantsu shots and all other kinds of nonsense. But there's almost none of that to be found! I would attribute that in part to the fact that Hanako Games, the publishing company, is in fact an American company run by a woman. How refreshing to see an "anime" game that didn't fall prey to overused and irritating tropes.
As for the game itself, it's a great effort by Hanako. One criticism I have is that the game seems very trial and error based. Once I figured out a pattern, it was pretty easy to figure out how to survive. Dying felt more less like my own fault than the game not telling me anything relevant to surviving. A second criticism I have is that this game kind of markets itself as a Visual Novel. It's hardly one at all, at least in the modern vein of text heavy VNs. It's more of a "character management" or "life sim" titles. I would love to see less trial/error based gameplay and more "novel" in the next Hanako title.
All those complaints aside, the game is competent and pretty enjoyable. Considering it's $10 on Steam, and currently $6.69 as of the time I write this recap, it's worth the money to mess around with. I like to employ the "movie ticket test," which means a game should try to equal or surpass the entertainment value a movie ticket provides ($10 for roughly two hours). Long Live The Queen does that, even if I managed to beat it once. I can tell from looking at the "checklist" and achievement list that there are many alternative ways to die and complete the game. Considering how quick the game boots up, I'll probably go back and mess around with those at some point as well.
Game 26: Hearthstone - September 24th, 2014 - 20-25+ hours.
I was going to wait until the end of the year to write this recap, but I just want to stick it in now before I forget.
Hearthstone is a game that has sucked considerable amounts of my time. I wrote 20+ hours, but that's a low estimate, and it could easily be over 30+ at this point. I've invested time because it is a F2P title that never truly feels "pay to win." Sure, people who buy oodles of cards may have an advantage with great legendaries and such. But really, as with any TCG, a competent deck and a competent player still wins more often than not, even when "out-classed" in card quality.
Besides the excellent payment model and balance, it's just plain fun. I've invested a lot of time and money into other TCGs (Magic/Yu-Gi-Oh), but this one has never made me feel bad about spending habits. I can just boot it up on my computer or iPad before bed, play a few matches and be done. No planning, shuffling, going to stores to buy packs, fighting with friends, or anything like that. It's just plain multiplayer fun. I can't wait for the first real card-based expansion to come out and make this game even better!
Game 27: Katawa Shoujo - September 30th, 2014 - Around 5 hours
I finished this game in the wee hours of the morning and have been debating all day whether to add it onto my list. I only finished one route, and have no intention, at least for the moment, of going back to the game. But it's been on my mind enough that I feel compelled to write something.
When I first heard about the game, I remember rolling my eyes at the "disability girls" theme. When I turned the game on for the first time yesterday, I still found myself rolling my eyes even more actually. A bunch of conventionally attractive "animu" style girls that have various disabilities? Oh boy. But as I read through the story, I found myself fairly compelled by the characters. And that was a great message. I ended up on Emi's route, purely by accident. And I actually really ended up liking her story and the way Hisao and her developed. Incidentally, the bad ending really reminded me of one of my past relationships where I believe (in retrospect) that I tried to hard to "help" or "fix" her problems for her. So that completely stuck with me once I finished. In fact, I've been dwelling on it all day.
Overall, the message that I took away from it was to not look at these girls as needing help, but to see them as normal human beings. And that was pretty powerful. I don't think it was revolutionary for my thought process, but it was a nice reminder that we all have problems. Just because a person is disabled or hurting doesn't mean they need a white knight swooping in to help. However, unlike many people, I didn't feel like I was on some massive feels trip. Nor did I feel that the writing was some kind of masterpiece. But the whole package was fairly compelling.
My major complaint regarding the title is the same as most VNs: the sex. Maybe I'm just a prude, but to some extent, the raunchy scenes just felt forced and out of place. I think a true masterpiece could have told the girls' stories without detailed and deeply erotic sex scenes. But I feel the same way about stuff like Game of Thrones. I think the game could have been just as compelling, if not more compelling with "fade to black" sex. To some extent like with the route I played, I get that the sexuality plays into the story. I understand that Emi's rampant sexuality is actually a facade behind which she hides her inner turmoil. And that's fine. But I didn't want three extremely graphic and detailed sex scenes in three hours. I guess that's to be expected, but for myself, it completely broke the immersion for me.
Overall, I enjoyed it. But like I said, I have no real intent of returning. At least not for a very long time.
Game 28: Gravity Rush - October 4th, 2014 - 6 hours, 27 minutes
I'm a huge baby and love to whine, so I'm going to complain a bit to start off. First, I understand that this is an open world game, but by God if some of the loading screens aren't terrible. I actually put the game down for a number of months because I kept dying on one section and the the loading was turning me off. Second, still understanding this is an open world game on portable, dear God, some of the textures are disgustingly bad. Third, the "costume" feature was transparently built for DLC. I understand Sony wanted to make some money off the costume packs, but it would have been nice to get more than two costumes without paying for DLC. Fourth, on the same note, it's disappointing that the cutscenes aren't real-time rendered. So even when you put a costume on, it jarringly disappears when you enter cutscenes. Sixth, what the hell was that ending?
When Kat landed after defeating the final boss, I was getting some feels and then...boom. Credits. Moment ruined. And then we're left on a cliff-hanger via the stills from the credits. Meh.
Seventh and finally, no new game plus. Boo. Give me a new difficulty challenge!
After all that complaining, it might seem like I hated the game. Quite the contrary, I loved it. One of the best things I've played this year, up there with Velocity 2X. The combat could be frustrating, but the gravity mechanic was just such a fun twist on everything that the game felt fresh. The RPG elements were honestly laughably simple, but just enough to feel like you had some control. The story wasn't particularly interesting until some twists
Cyanea
, but those twists more than made up for a pretty average start. The pretty average beginnings were also helped out by Kat's solid character. In fact, I thoroughly enjoyed the heavily female cast. It was a nice change of pace and the characters were very nicely presented. I personally adored the cel-shaded "comic-book" panel style scenes at the start of chapters. It made a great use of the touchscreen and also looked really nice. The general cel-shaded aesthetic for the game was an excellent choice.
The real MVP however, is the music. So. So. So good. It sets the tone throughout the whole game and draws you in perfectly. I can't say enough about it. I'm listening to it right now because it's just that good. Somewhat related to this on a sound design level, I loved the pseudo-French/Japanese dialogue. It's a shame there wasn't more of it because it was calming and neat to listen to.
I guess now I'll join the ranks of people waiting for GR2. I honestly still hope it makes it way to Vita. I enjoyed the portability, touchscreen and motion controls too much to want to see it move platforms. But I guess I'll take it however I can get it! Probably going to replay the game actually since I want to find the rest of that disappearing
Made it to 52!!! I've done a shitty job of updating (last post was in January, lol), but tonight I went through my list and added comments. Was kind of fun looking back in retrospect at all the games. I didn't track the times for all my games so I've just marked them as complete.
Highlights of the year so far: Strider, Shovel Knight, and Wolfenstein: The New Order
Biggest disappointments: Watch_Dogs and Thief (2014)
Here's the final list:
Game 1: DuckTales Remastered - COMPLETE
# A good game that dives into nostalgia and obviously a lot of care went into it with regards to the source material, but the remake exposes the game's weakness and it doesn't necessarily hold up to the high opinion I had of it when I was a kid. Wasn't a fan of the music arrangements.
Game 2: Metro: Last Light - 5 Hours, COMPLETE
# I thought the game was a little too restrictive for the first half, but around half-way the story and exploration open up a bit more and I was hooked until the end.
Game 3: BioShock Infinite Burial at Sea Episode 1 - COMPLETE
# This reminded me how much I liked the world of Rapture more than Columbia and the film noir treatment was icing on the cake. Since the game didn't seem as large, I also found myself exploring the world more and listening to every audio-log, which is something Infinite never inspired me to do.
Game 4: Aliens: Colonial Marines - COMPLETE
# Not as bad as I thought it would be, but by no means a good game.
Game 5: The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing - COMPLETE
# Fun game, and thankfully a bit shorter than Torchlight/Diablo III. I enjoyed both of those games, but I always feel a bit burned out by the end, reducing any desire to start again in hardcore mode. Van Helsing does have some pretty nasty bugs though. The most notable one for me was a collection quest that couldn't be completed. I watched a video walkthrough and searched message boards, and the fifth item I'm supposed to collect is just not there, which left me with an incomplete quest until the end of the game.
Game 6: Halo: Spartan Assault - COMPLETE
# Another mediocre game, and left craving a more competent dual stick shooter
Game 7: Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance - COMPLETE
# Had a ton of fun with this game. I kind of fell out of love with the Metal Gear franchise after 4, but that didn't matter for this game, since the gameplay was so tight and fun.
Game 8: Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor's Edge - COMPLETE
# Bought this near launch of the Wii U and it took a while to get around to. It was a bit disappointing after playing Revengeance.
Game 9: NES Remix - COMPLETE
# A solid collection of classics, but it had potential to be so much more.
Game 10: DmC: Devil May Cry - COMPLETE
# I thought I was going to hate this based on the popular opinion. However, I had a ton of fun with it, and minus a few issues, I liked the reboot of the story.
Game 11: DmC: Vergil's Downfall - COMPLETE
# After loving the main game, I immediately went and grabbed the DLC once I was done.
Game 12: Batman: Arkham Origins - COMPLETE
# Performance issues on the Wii U compounded by a city not that fun to explore and many forgettable encounters makes this weakest console game in the Arkham series.
Game 13: Sonic Lost World (Wii U) - COMPLETE
# Really disappointing game; I enjoyed a couple of worlds, but for the most part it was frustrating and forgettable.
Game 14: Strider (2014) - COMPLETE
# Fantastic game; loved every moment of it and one of my favorites for 2014.
Game 15: Muramasa Rebirth - COMPLETE
# I had beaten it on Wii back in the day, but I enjoyed taking a second dive.
Game 16: Plants vs Zombies - COMPLETE
# I had never played it and found myself hooked on the Vita. Ended up getting all achievements.
Game 17: Thief (2014) - COMPLETE
# Probably one of my least liked games of the year. Annoying and confusing world navigation and a weak story are only a couple of this game's problems.
Game 18: Bravely Default - COMPLETE
# It's been said a million times, but I loved this game until I reached Chapter 5, which at point I rushed to the end.
Game 19: Titanfall - COMPLETE
# Beat both "campaigns". Its a fun multiplayer, but definitely didn't meet the hype.
Game 20: Dishonored - COMPLETE
# Helped wash the foul taste of Thief out of my mouth.
Game 21: Bioshock Infinite: Burial at Sea Episode 2 - COMPLETE
# A decent installment; I enjoyed it much more than the first episode.
Game 22: Yoshi's New Island - COMPLETE
# Like the DS game, it's a competent game, but mostly forgettable.
Game 23: Dead Nation - COMPLETE
# Was looking for a quick action game and picked this up on Vita since it was on sale. Ok, but not great.
Game 24: Diablo III: Reaper of Souls - COMPLETE
# Enjoyed it a lot more than the main game due to the patches and fixes.
Game 25: NES Remix 2 - COMPLETE
# Much better than the first game, but I wish they got even more creative with the mix-ups and improved the speed of quickly retrying challenges
Game 26: Rogue Legacy - COMPLETE
# Fantastic game with tight controls. Would like to eventually try completing it again.
Game 27: Kirby Triple Deluxe - COMPLETE
# Not a huge Kirby game, but I really enjoyed this incarnation.
Game 28: Child of Light - COMPLETE
# Love the art style, but unfortunately the gameplay didnt do much for me.
Game 29: Guild Wars 2 - COMPLETE
# Reached level 80 with 2 characters and finished the personal story. Never got too far in an MMO before, but this one really clicked with me. Still playing!
Game 30: Transistor - COMPLETE
# Absolutely loved the art, but the gameplay didnt grab me as much as Bastion did.
Game 31: Wolfenstein: The New Order - COMPLETE
# One of the biggest surprises of the year. I absolutely loved this game, and I wouldnt be surprised if it lands in my top 10 of the year.
Game 32: Mega Man V - COMPLETE
# Glad I was able to finally play this after hearing so much for so long. Really enjoyed it, although the slowdowns are pretty nasty.
Game 33: Mario Kart 8 - COMPLETE
# My favorite Mario Kart since the Gamecube version. Really enjoyed it.
Game 34: Defiance - COMPLETE
# A pretty mediocre game that turned awful once when it went F2P. After that point, I had server queues and disconnects even though I had purchased and supported the game earlier.
Game 35: Sonic Generations (3DS) - COMPLETE
# I really liked the PC version, and picked this up while it was on sale on the eShop. Unfortunately, its nowhere near as good as PC, and left me rather disappointed.
Game 36: Double Dragon II: The Revenge - COMPLETE
# Was craving a beat em up, and this did the job nicely.
Game 37: Watch_Dogs - COMPLETE
# Pretty much forced myself to finish this game. A horrible plot and boring world. I seriously regret buying it at full price.
Game 38: Shovel Knight - COMPLETE
# Another one of my favorites of the year so far. Perfectly captures the NES look and sound, while feeling fresh and new with its mechanics
Game 39: Ikaruga - COMPLETE
# Never beat this on the Gamecube, and was happy to finally get through it.
Game 40: Resogun - COMPLETE
# Really enjoyed Resogun, and it was a great introduction to my new PS4.
Game 41: Castlevania III: Draculas Curse - COMPLETE
# Ill shamefully admit that I probably would never have cleared this without save states. Even with them, I really loved the game.
Game 42: Towerfall Ascension - COMPLETE
# Not really a fan, but thats mostly due to not have anyone to play locally with. I got through the quest mode, but probably wont touch it again.
Game 43: Double Dragon Neon - COMPLETE
# Got this on the Steam sale, and once I got used to the controls, I enjoyed it quite a bit.
Game 44: Killzone Shadow Fall - COMPLETE
# A pretty disappointing game and I kind of regretted picking it up after finishing the game.
Game 45: Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze - COMPLETE
# A solid game, but I think Im a bit burned out on platformers. It took me a long time to finish, mostly due to not picking it up for long periods of time
Game 46: Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon - COMPLETE
# I never got around to beating Far Cry 3, but the shorter length of this game appealed to me more. A solid game for the price.
Game 47: Infamous: Second Son - COMPLETE
# Im typically not a huge fan of open world games, but I really into this one to the point of getting the platinum.
Game 48: Fire Emblem: Awakening - COMPLETE
# Ive purchased every Fire Emblem game thats come out in the US, but had never beaten one until Awakening. This one clicked a lot more and I enjoyed the relationship building aspect.
Game 49: Lego Batman 2: DC Super Heroes - COMPLETE
# Got this off of a sale on the eShop. Pretty solid game, but I got tired of its repetitive nature by the end of the game.
Game 50: South Park: The Stick of Truth - COMPLETE
# I absolutely loved the writing and visuals of the game; they nailed the show perfectly. However, the gameplay did not do much for me, and I really only played it for the story.
Game 51: Might Gunvolt - COMPLETE
# The bonus game that comes with Azure Striker Gunvolt is a pretty fun time. Unfortunately, its a very short time as well. Due to the classic Mega Man nature, I actually think I enjoyed this more than than ASG.
Game 52: The Walking Dead Season 2 - COMPLETE
# While not nearly as strong as the first season, I still found myself hooked once I started playing.
Game 21: Killer is Dead - August 30th, 7 hours, 6 minutes
[*]I think the graphics were terrible. Something about how they looked was just terrible to me. Maybe it's just my eyes, but generally I thought it looked pretty awful, and there was this weird blur that really bothered me. In the game's defense, the cutscenes generally looked nice (especially the Yakuza section) and the aesthetic overall was great, even if I don't think it was fully realized.
What platform did you play the game on? I bought the PC version and upscaled to 1080p in 60 fps this game is a feast for the eyes, beautifull.
Oh and if you liked KiD you should try out No More Heroes. Also a hack an slash, but a lot more easy than KiD (IMO). That game is also a parody on something, which you'll find out if you ever play it
Gaffers who have met this challenge will be displayed in full glory here.
Please send a PM with a link to your post of 52 games with comments when completed.
Game 23: Broken Age: Act 1 - 5 hours, finished August 31, PC
Bought this over the Christmas sale and completely forgot it's still not complete. So I was already a couple of hours in when I realized this. That was the only disappointing thing about it. Apparently it was a pretty big deal of mismanaged funds on kickstarter. Act 2 seems to be getting there slowly.
The game itself is ridiculously charming, well-written and nicely witty. I might go into playing more point-and-click games to get this more often, frankly. It's probably too easy for people who've played a lot in the genre, but I can count the ones I've played on my fingers still. Replayability might actually be an option here, albeit maybe at least a year down the line, just for the sake of getting more of the same.
I'm not going to be super active on here, due to work, if you completed the challenge send a pm with the link of your 52 games and I will eventually add it to the hall of fame.
38) Ys: 1 6H
Started on my PC, but finished on my friend's PSP. Looking forward to moving on to Ys2 though I will most likely be a wimp and play Ys2 on Easy.
Game 21: Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter - 6½ hours, Aug 31st
It's been a while since I played it, but I remember liking The First Encounter a lot more than I did this game. The level design is quite frankly shit for most of the game and I don't care for how they handle some of the weapon progression. I only finished it for this list, otherwise I would've quit after the second level.
58. Resident Evil 6 (Finished 8/5/14 total playtime 26 hrs 30 min) - if you're interested in my thoughts on the game then read this post from my RE6/ORC LttF (Late to the Funeral) thread
59. Gone Home (Finished 8/16/14 total playtime 1 hr 59 mins) This game was really short and was at first really interesting, but towards the end I became really disappointed as some of the stuff early on hinting at something potentially creepy/scary going on didn't really pan out the way I thought it would.
60. Resistance 2 (Finished 8/21/14 total playtime 6 hrs) I never really got into the Resistance games, but since this game was $3 I decided to give it a go since I'm a big fan of FPS games. Imo this game is a average FPS at best with imo some really funky controls (they reminded me of the controls found in the PS2 version of Half-Life which at the time was my least favorite control scheme) that took me a little while to get use to.
61. Assassins Creed Revelations (Finished 8/23/14 total playtime 18 20) I had previously rented this game when it came out (but never beat it, got as far as Ch.4) and since it was now fairly cheap to get I decided it was time to revisit it. Having now beaten the game I can see why I didn't bother to buy it when it came out, it's a bit of a filler game in the series overall story arc and I didn't really care for the new game mechanics like the den defense/territory system or the Mediterranean mode.
62. Paper Mario: Sticker Star (Finished 8/29/14 total playtime 16hrs) I got this game cause it was dirt cheap (I only paid $4) and I had honestly never played a Paper Mario game before so I decided to see what all the hubbub was all about. Overall it was an okay game though it had some really frustrating moments (World 3 is the poster child for most of what I found frustrating about this game) that in the end really hampered my enjoyment of the game.
63. Murdered: Soul Suspect ( Finished 8/30/14 total playtime 7 hrs) I decided to rent this game cause I heard it was bad, but I also intrigued by the fact that it's set in Salem, Mass (one of my favorite places to visit especially in the Fall when the leaves are falling...also loved the EngineHouse pizza place downtown...mmmmm pizza......) and that you play a ghost detective. Overall the game imo was a bit meh, it had an interesting premise, a fairly decent story, and was for the most part pretty well made. Unfortunately a few hours in the game began to feel a bit repetitive to me (go to location, investigate, go to next location, occasionally hide from ghost enemies or help NPC get from point A to B by trying to distract other NPC's, repeat) and it had a lot of collectibles (some of which had to do with the Salem Witch Trials) that as far as I can tell were only there to artificially extend the game. Also I just couldn't get over the disparity between the game's version of Salem and the real Salem.
What platform did you play the game on? I bought the PC version and upscaled to 1080p in 60 fps this game is a feast for the eyes, beautifull.
Oh and if you liked KiD you should try out No More Heroes. Also a hack an slash, but a lot more easy than KiD (IMO). That game is also a parody on something, which you'll find out if you ever play it
I played it on PS3, so I'm not sure if that matters. However, it's also possible that I might have messed up my TV settings...or maybe I need new glasses?
I plan on getting NMH! Should I play it on Wii or PS3?
Game 9: Transistor - 10 hours (Platinum'd)
Game 10: Strider - 14 hours (Platinum'd)
Game 11: Pokemon X - 24 hours
Game 12: InFamous First Light - 7 hours (Platinum'd)
Game 13: FEZ (PS4) - 13 hours (100%)
Game 14: Towerfall Ascension - 20 hours
(Wanted to wait till a new page again, but then got so close to a full post size with the episodic games that just waited until the post limit. )
Games 1-25 (Hit the character limit for the post.) Games 26-42 (Hit the character limit for the post.) Games 43-63 (Hit the character limit for the post.) Games 64-81 (Hit the character limit for the post.)
Game 82 (August 16, 2014): NES Remix (Wii U) - 10:17
Was all ready to sing this game's praises for revisting so many great parts of so many great (and really not so great
Balloon Fight, Urban Champion
) NES games from yesteryear. Then the last level happened. Another game that can't leave well enough alone and just has to sour my memory of the game by making the last level of the game a gargantuan marathon of attrition. Beat it with continues, but after getting three stars on every OTHER level in the game, it sticks in my craw that this one is going to end with one star. And it will end with one star, as I'm not putting myself through that needless frustration one more time. Got to
43
out of
44
challenges in that level before needing to continue, which automatically limits you to one star. Screw you, indiezeros. Why'd you have to screw it up at the end?!?
Otherwise, it's a great game for those who have played many NES games over the years. Little bite-sizes of games, along with some classics, really make you long to play these old games again. Got all rainbow on Pinball (by accident) and Zelda (on purpose), but otherwise got just a minimum of one rainbow per column to go along with all three stars (except that last level). If you've never played NES games before, it may be a mystery why anyone would want games with so oftentimes poor controls, but this was really for those who played it or just want a taste of what all the NES game fuss was about. Highly recommended, other than that last level! :lol
Game 83 (August 20, 2014): The Mysterious Murasame Castle (NES, 3DS VC) - 2:41
Don't recall knowing about the game before, but I'm all for Nintendo releasing previously unreleased Japanese games on U.S. VC, if they're not text heavy. The game itself was very basic and played like a quarter-eating arcade game (which it may have been ported from). Lots of enemies and projectiles (some you can knock down and some you can't) flying around like crazy, bombs (sometimes enemies are bombs, too), surprise attacks, and gauntlet rooms around bosses. Definitely a game that's actively trying to kill you hard. Like a shmup in that regard. Got through it with save states but would've hated to try to play it to completion without. Would've been ridiculously too frustrating. Someone compared it to Zelda in reviews, but it's nothing of the sort, in case you were wondering. Good to have experienced it just to have gone through it, but not a game I would've gotten/enjoyed outside of 3DS VC.
Game 84 (August 20, 2014): Assassin's Creed Liberation HD (360) - 13:17
Having picked up ACIV in the Steam Summer sale, it gave the go-ahead to play Liberation. Will be skipping III, and like to have another AC lined up before completing the current one, if possible. Helps keep me on the back end of the adoption wave where the better prices are, since I'm not into the multiplayer. Quick note on near the end:
About threw up in disgust that the game forces Aveline to become a Templar with her stepmother in the end, but thankfully had gotten all the Citizen E stuff to unlock the real ending where she kills the Templar and stays true to the Assassin's. Was thinking "They did this after the shining example of Ezio?!?" Glad they turned it around, but hated that they tried to throw that rapid reversal in, at all.
Anyway, basic AC gameplay with a bit smaller scale befitting its portable roots. Thought it was fine, but wasn't nearly as drawn into the story as with Ezio. Kept being thrown out by things like a slave running around New Orleans pushing people out of her way and her not being put in stockades or something. Guess that's the danger of using more well-known historical eras in that gameplay vs. reality differences for the setup just glare so dang brightly! If you like AC and can get over the historical cultural miscues, it's still got the AC gameplay in it and a fair amount of collectables. Also really like Aveline
after almost hating the designers for making me loathe her for becoming a Templar
and really glad I held out to the the Gold pack of ACIV with the Aveline DLC in it. After the Unity uproar about lack of female options, was also glad to play an AC game as a strong female with strong female characters in it
that also aren't distracting me by walking around in form-fitting clothes all the time
. Really looking forward to ACIV whenever I get to it!
Games 85-89: The Walking Dead, Season 1 (PC) - 16.0 hours total
I've come to a weird thinking in regards to this episodic game compared to Back to the Future. To me, Back to the Future feels like one overarching movie that just happens to have little parts it focuses on at a time. Sort of like the Clone Wars CGI movie. It's all one story, though. TWD feels more like episodes in a TV show. Yes, there's some overall vague goal that gets modified, added to, changed completely through the episodes, like a TV season, but each one feels like a separate TV episode. Therefore for me, and, yes, I know it's weird, but I'll be counting The Walking Dead as separate "games" and BttF as one game despite both having separate episodes.
Episode 1 (August 21, 2014) - 2.3 hours
Have mentioned before that I played ~10 minutes of Episode 1 on 360 after getting it free, liked it so much, that immediately stopped playing and bought the Season 1 on sale for PC. Well after playing the rest of it, have to say that the full episode lived up to the high expectations that first 10 minutes gave! Going in, knew it was about zombies and the stories of survivors trying to make due in the world, but haven't watched the show, to this point. This apparently is based off a comic book, but I'd imagine the show is, too. Really like the choices that the game forces on you. People aren't faced with these kinds of choices everyday, so you can wonder how you would respond in that situation. This is just a video game, but I *feel* like I'm the one really making these choices, and I'm weighing the decisions internally the same way I'd imagine the real thing would be done. I like the ambiguity surrounding Lee's background.
Don't know for sure if he killed that State Senator and/or what the situation is around it.
It emphasizes that your old life is behind, and we have to make decisions from here on out based on what's going on now and not based on the way things were in the old world. Can either make a new life or try to carry old sins/prejudices from the past forward without the basis for them mattering anymore. Concepts of loyalty and trust also come into sharp relief more when your life is on the line. In short, this is really a game that can get into your head, as what's in your head is showing up in the game in front of you.
Episode 2 (August 22, 2014) - 4.1 hours
"Let me tell you something about hu-mans, nephew. They're a wonderful, friendly people as long as their bellies are full and their holosuites are working, but take away their creature comforts, deprive them of food, sleep, sonic showers, put their lives in jeopardy over an extended period of time and those same, friendly, intelligent, wonderful people will become as nasty and as violent as the most bloodthirsty Klingon." - Quark, Star Trek: DS9
Quark really had "hu-mans" down pat. So it's months later, the group is running out of food, and there's a pull in the camp between those who want to stay and those who want to leave to find something better. Reminded of the line from World War Z, "people who moved survived, and those who didn't, um ..." Also the old adage, "better the devil you know than the one you don't know" (also mentioned in WWZ). Two conflicting principles in the face of overarching danger being played out here in this game. But before that can come to a head, something else comes up, an aside, that tests just how far they'll go to survive in this new world. Once again the concepts of loyalty come up, loyalty to a person, loyalty to survival, or loyalty to an ideal. Which will you choose. Really loving this series. Graphics are comic book style which works really well. Voice acting is great. Optional side quests, non-annoying mini-games/QTEs, and as said with Episode 1, a really engaging game that will get into your head. Really highly recommended!
At the end of each episode, it breaks down how you choose in four major areas in the game and compares you to other players. Unlike the first episode where a lot of them were split down the middle, this one had more stark choices where a clear, if not overwhelming majority chose certain paths. This series could make for an interesting psychological analysis paper, if it hasn't been made into on already! :lol
Episode 3 (August 23, 2014) - 2.3 hours
Had to give myself time to think about this one. The game has really taken a poor turn as far as gameplay design. Whereas it tells you that your actions matter and it affect the future events, what actually happens in the game goes against that.
Heck, it even says "Carley will remember that" just before Carley is killed! Guess she won't remember that for long!!!11!
I guess it was inevitable as too open a game would be impossible to manage, so there had to be some contraction of storylines, but man, this is just ridiculous. The game has also become less about big moral decisions and more about "find a to use with b to allow the story to progress." Guess that's an expected change
since they're not in one place anymore
. Hope they get back to the more interesting decisions going forward, though.
Looking forward to Savannah and hope Kenny doesn't off himself like his stupid wife did with no way to make the story go otherwise!
Episode 4 (August 24, 2014) - 3.5 hours
Okay, I am PISSED at that doctor dude. Yes, he saved Omid and got us into Crawford, but he has the gall to claim I was lying when I said Clem was Lee's daughter? Like blood relation has more bearing than actual relationship at this point in the world? Clem is Lee's daughter in every way that counts except blood. So if I had lied and said she was just some girl to me, he'd have called me a liar, too? If there was a legal system remaining and Clem's parents were still dead, I'm pretty dang sure Lee would've adopted her by now. There's a children's book about a little spider being born and then looking for her mom. She goes everywhere, but it ends up being a beetle that keeps saving her and caring for her. Eventually they both agree that the little spider did find her "mom" because she found the one that cared for her, and that's what mattered. Maybe it was some racist thing where he disapproved of a white girl with a black "father" or something. There's no other indication of racism, and he certainly didn't mind coming to help when he apparently thought it was a black daughter, but I'm really just at a loss as to why he thought I was lying when I said that Clem was Lee's daughter. If anything, the way Lee and Clem interacted while he was around should've confirmed to him that I wasn't lying about Lee and Clem's relationship. His reaction just doesn't make sense. In real life, I would've said, "Yes, she's my daughter but just not by blood" when he asked back at the beginning, but that wasn't an option in the game. I'm just pissed that he thought I lied about Clem being Lee's daughter after everything Lee has done to be a real father to her. Clem is his daughter. Period.
Okay, don't like
them setting a timer to kill off Lee
, but overall this episode was another good one. Hasn't been a dragging episode, yet, on this trek. Wish there were some more options for some of the interactions to better reflect my own feelings in regards to the steps, but it's understandable. Maybe I should just choose silence more to compensate. Have to say
I'm not feeling bad about Kenny not coming with me. Dude cannot be counted on when it matters, as shown again and again during the game. He talks a good talk but does not back it up with action
. In this game, had one choice (the big spoilered section at the beginning) where I was in the minority of players. This game also gave a % for the group going with you at the end of the episode, and I feel pretty good about the group I took (
everybody BUT Kenny
). I like these % things at the end, as it's interesting to see
that so many people apparently attached onto Kenny and were apparently placating him with his paranoid decision-making to make him happy to go along with you
. Again, this game would make an interesting psych term paper or something, if anyone felt so inclined.
Episode 5 (August 25, 2014) - 2.0 hours
Okay, maybe the doctor was being stupid calling me a liar because he was secretly planning on robbing us and wanted to throw us off that track by throwing a red herring out there. Can sort of buy that.
Final episode thoughts:
Keeny redeemed himself in my eyes. He woke up and realized what Katjaa did was wrong, got out of his system what he felt about Ben, and eventually forgave him enough to be willing to die with him. Maybe dying was eaiser on him than living, but he still was willing to give his life to provide comfort to another.
The lack of Lee in the Season 2 episode pictures made me think he could be getting killed off, and I was upset about that. How they actually did kill him off made it much easier to accept. He cut off his own arm (*World War Z*) to attempt to keep living, never gave up on Clem, and wasn't going to let anything keep him from protecting Clem. He was her father, but it just stinks for her that she confirmed her own parents' death at the same time as losing her adopted parent.
Don't recall Christa telling anyone she was pregnant, even though it was clear, but they Lee just spouts out that she has to protect two. Okay! :lol
Usually with the end level stats, I'm mostly in the main group, but this time was different with 3 out of 5 me being in the minority. I am perfectly fine with my choices, though, and agree with each of them from that end level statistic.
Killing Clem's kidnapper was absolutely necessary. Dude was whack job insane, and you can't reason with or trust whack job insane. Like the end of Misery. You make sure they're dead before turning your back on them.
Others I can see the other side of the choice, even if I don't agree with it. That one, I think the people who took the other side might've made a mistake, though. Overall, enjoyed this approach to "choose your own adventure" storytelling (loved those books growing up) and liked the way the game adapted to your choices, even if there wasn't a lot of you in the final results of everything. Guess the thinking might be that the journey is as important as the destination. Lot of philosophical thinking in this game. (Might've said that before! :lol )
400 Days DLC (August 25, 2014) - 1.8 hours
Not counting this one as a separate game, since it's just some vignettes put together to form (maybe) some lead in to Season 2. Much easier to maybe replay this one, but not sure it's worth it. Got 3 of 5 to go
to the camp
, so that's not too bad. Wish
Russel
had gone, though, as he seemed like a good
kid
. If you liked S1, this is probably worth getting to whet your appetite for Season 2.
Game 90: Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Dual Destinies + DLC (3DS) - 40:24
Great Phoenix Wright game. Not too much Apollo Justice, which suits me just fine. 5 cases + 1 DLC case. Don't recall the previous Ace Attorney games being this long, and HowLongToBeat.com agrees with me. Woo! Still a great game. Worked out much better as a downloadable title, too, since didn't have to fill up the cartridge slot with it all this time. Wasn't a lot of extra gadgets to use like in the special cases for the DS games, so this was just a whole lot of classic Ace Attorney gameplay! Search for clues, interview people for more clues, present evidence to make 'em spill more info. Unlike the previous Ace Attorney games where you had to baby your life meter, because once it was gone, you had to go back to your last save (which might have only a miniscule life meter left), this one let you restart the last cross-examination/objection with a full life meter after "dying." Having babied the life meter in past AA games and lamented having to go to a guide to avoid finishing off my last bit of health there, I really liked this method better. It's a great game mechanic to introduce new Ace Attorney players to the series softly, and I hope they backfitted the Phoenix Wright trilogy with the same mechanic! Here's looking forward to AA6, even if it is download only.
Been playing this game for 10 months off and on. Was so close to the end and with Layton vs. Ace Attorney coming out Friday, figured I needed to buckle down and finish the last couple of hours of this before LaytonvAA came out.
Game 91: Back to the Future: The Game (PC) - 13 hours total Episode 1: It's About Time (August 22, 2014) - 2.9 hours
Love the introduction via
replaying the start of BttF, Part 1 in Marty's dream
. And the game just takes off from there. Mystery, some training to get you used to how things work. It's quite nice. It has mostly controller support, but have had to use the mouse for some more precise actions. Just wish there were clearer directions on how to use the controller. Having just come off of playing The Walking Dead also by TellTale, it's clear this is an earlier effort. However, the subject matter is much more light-hearted, so it's a nice contrast to the seriousness of TWD. Others have described this as BttF, Part 4, and that seems a pretty apt description. The game generally flows well with only a few of those "I can't find whatever obtuse combination of actions they're wanting me to do to progress the game" moments strewn about. In general, it's logical steps to get things done, which is nice, and the hint system is top-notch to overcome those few problem moments! Just an excellently designed game.
Episode 2: Get Tannen! (August 23, 2014) - 2.3 hours
As is usual for BttF,
an unintended action in the past causes ramifications to the future resulting in needing to go back to the past
. Can see that repeating for each episode. :lol This is still a fun episode, too, though. Sort of like
BttF, Part 2 where they replay the events from the first one from a different angle
. Like that they're continuing the tradition of the movies of using ancestors/descendents of the original movie characters for the main parts. Makes it a lot of fun!
While this may be an episodic game, it seems much more to be parts of a single game in the two episodes I've played so far. It's one overarching story, but maybe more laid out in a Saturday Morning cartoon 30-minute per week format (episidoes are 2-3 hours, though). Highly recommended for the BttF fans out there, for sure!
Episode 3: Citizen Brown (August 26, 2014) - 2.5 hours
Man, this episode dragged! Probably because there's just so much to read about in this
1984
version of 1986. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if you skipped a lot of reading, then. Once again, Doc and Marty make a change erasing the world as we know it. Shocking, I know, right! If you can get past all the reading about how each and every single thing seems to have changed, it's not so bad, though.
Punk Rock Jennifer
is neat, but it would've been nice if
her character was explored more in the movies so that this transformation would be more impactful
. Finding the hint system to be really useful when getting fairly stuck and not sure what to do (and don't feel like being stuck and wasting time around there), so way to go TellTale for having a helpful hint system! Episode ended
still in 1984 version of 1986
but hopefully that won't last long in the next one.
Episode 3 dragged so much, it drug into this one! :lol
Much better pacing than Episode 3, and brought to the front a lot of the danger of time travel, which was nice to see addressed. Not sure how they're ever going to completely unravel the mess of changes they've made. Still like the references to characters from the movies, though, even if it takes a bit to work out that the reference was from the movie. Looking forward to seeing how it all gets "fixed" in the last episode!
Episode 5: OUTATIME (August 31, 2014) - 2.6 hours
Man what a fast paced episode. Was like they had ideas for more episodes, and then compressed it all into this one. Don't mind, though, as it was still a good pacing. That ending definitely hinted at a sequel, but can't find any reference to one online. Come on, guys! Next year is the 30th anniversary! (Yes, it's been that long. )
Great episodic series to play, but wish there was news of BttF:The Game 2 somewhere.
Game 92 (September 1, 2014): Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES, 3DS VC) - 6:07
Played the All-Stars version on the Wii Mario Anniversary disk within the last few years, but hadn't played the NES version in a long time. Good to get back to the classic on its original system (sort of). Played through every level, but still got all
three whistles
. That joke at the end where the Princess says
"Sorry, but our princess is in another castle! ... Just kidding."
is so not funny.
Now have all four of the NES Mario games on 3DS VC. Nintendo better be letting us transfer those to their next system! :lol
I played it on PS3, so I'm not sure if that matters. However, it's also possible that I might have messed up my TV settings...or maybe I need new glasses?
I plan on getting NMH! Should I play it on Wii or PS3?
Yeah, it's known that the console versions run terribly, bad framerate and a lot of screentearing unfortunaly.
And since I only played the Wii version I can't really say which version is better. I think the PS3 version is basicly the same, only with some bonusses (and enhanced graphics of course)
My account got approved a while ago, so now i can finally enter the challenge.
Game 1: Sleeping Dogs (PS3): A fun sandbox game, nowhere near as great as GTA V, but some things like the melee combat, the interesting story, the scenery, and of course karaoke (lol), definitely make it worth playing.
Game 2: I´m Alive (PS3): Really suprised at how well some of the survival aspects were done, just a shame the game is so short, and the "combat" sucks. Also the ending was seriously bad and underdeveloped. Nevertheless a good game.
Game 3: The Walking Dead Season 2 Episode 1: All That Remains (PS3): A strong start to the second season of my GOTY 2012.
Game 4: Rain (PS3): Some beautifully done game mechanics involving the rain itself, but nothing really memorable.
Game 5: Brothers a Tale of Two Sons (PS3): Controlling two characters at the same time truly makes up for some cool gameplay sections, but there is just not much depth to it, and the ending sucked major ass.(At least for me
Game 6: Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker HD (PS3): The one big title I was missing from one of my beloved series ever. The core gameplay and story, are MGS at it´s best, but i really didn´t dig the short levels, and the boss fights are simply not good enough for the standards of the series.
Game 7: The Wolf Among Us Episode 1: Faith (PS3): I literally knew nothing this series, only bought it because of how much I liked Telltale´s TWD. I have to say I was really impressed, great art style, characters and a solid story.
Game 8: Assassin´s Creed IV Black Flag (PS4): Definitely a step in the right direction after the massive dissapointment that AC3 was. Yet, there is still a giant room for improvement.
Game 9: Journey (PS3): A second playthrough to get the remaining trophies for one the greatest gaming experiences I´ve ever had. Nuff said.
Game 10: Uncharted 3: Drake´s Deception (PS3): Just wanted to remember how this game was. May not be as great as UC2, but it´s a great game on it´s own.
Game 11: Contrast (PS4): Awful in every sense, would have never played if it wasn´t for PSPlus. Thank god is short.
Game 12: Thomas Was Alone (PS Vita): Cute game. The gameplay may not be anything special, but the story and narration definitely make up for it.
Game 13: The Last of Us (PS3): My GOTY, my GOTG, might even be the game of my life. Played it once last year, and in 2014 i did one playthrough in normal for getting all collectibles, and then two more in Survivor and Survivor+, I simply love this game, every single bit of it.
Game 14: Rayman Origins (PS Vita): Been a while since I played a platfomer, and this delivered significantly more than i expected. Started playing and almost didn´t stop until I got the platinum.
Game 15: Bioshock Infinite (PS3): A second pass for one the runner-ups for GOTY last year. Amazing game.
Game 16: Outlast (PS4): God bless PSPlus, this is by far the best horror game I have ever played. (Haven´t played a lot them though).
Game 17: Flower (PS Vita): Played the original on PS3, and while the controls are not that good on this version, still captures perfectly how beautiful this game is.
Game 18: Beyond Two Souls (PS3): A step back from Heavy Rain, but this is actually one the most unique experiences you can get on the PS3. Looking forward for the next David Cage game.
Game 19: TWAU Episode 2: Smoke and Mirrors (PS3): This one wasn´t as great as the first. Also felt really short.
Game 20: Left Behind (PS3): One of the best games ever, gets even better with the addition of the best piece of DLC i have ever played. Thought nothing could beat
Minerva´s Den, but this is just, wow.
Game 21: TWD S2 E2: A House Divided (PS3): Series still going strong, but i´m not really liking Clementine´s new role.
Game 22: Tomb Raider (PS3): A solid action game, with even some moments of true greatness. Uncharted beats the crap out of it though.
Game 23: Killzone Mercenary (PS Vita): An incredible acomplishment to get something like this on a handheld, story sucks as usual, but the game itself is pretty awesome.
Game 24: Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance (PS3): Relentless action like almost no other game out there, truly a surprise. Killer soundtrack too.
I have a lot more, but I don´t feel like writing anything else for today
After multiple tries on the PC version I bought the PS3 version. It clicked and can say this was one of the greatest games I have played, period. Man-Serpent/Smough's 4 lyfe.
Yeah, it's known that the console versions run terribly, bad framerate and a lot of screentearing unfortunaly.
And since I only played the Wii version I can't really say which version is better. I think the PS3 version is basicly the same, only with some bonusses (and enhanced graphics of course)
So I've been thinking to myself "I've probably already beat almost 52 games this year" so I decided to go back through everything and chronicle the games that I've beat and when. Sadly I don't have play times for anything (though I could probably provide estimates if that's a requirement) but going forward I'll be sure and track that.
I'm a serial "game starter" - I start playing new games all the time. Sometimes I finish them, sometimes I lose interest and never touch them again. These are games that I've actually completed - like either watching the credits roll or for some games that means I've got 100% achievements or "done everything". So here goes nothing:
GAME 1: Super Mario 3D World | Wii U | Completed Jan 1st, 2014
This is the first game I beat in 2014 - I stayed up late with my kids and we beat it after midnight. This is by far the best 3D Mario game since Mario 64.
GAME 2: Kingdom Rush | PC Steam | Completed Jan 12th, 2014
A wonderful tower defense game that I had previously played on Android. The Steam release included a lot of new stuff that wasn't in the original.
GAME 3: FATE | PC Steam | Completed Jan 14th, 2014
I'd played this game before way back in the day, but the Steam re-release included new achievements which for some unexplained reason I can't get enough of. Very solid Diablo clone.
GAME 4: House of the Dead: Overkill (in Typing of the Dead) | PC Steam | Completed Jan 18th, 2014
I had a blast with this game, even though I preferred The Typing of the Dead. The cheesy over-the-top B horror movie vibes this game has are just awesome.
GAME 5: The Walking Dead | PC Steam | Completed Jan 19th, 2014
I was pretty LttP on this one, but I finally discovered what all the fuss was about. The first of many Telltale Games I've finished this year. So many feels...
GAME 6: Torchlight II | PC Steam | Completed Jan 23rd, 2014
This was my second play through of Torchlight II, this time as the Engineer and on normal difficulty.
GAME 7: Defender's Quest: Valley of the Forgotten | PC Steam | Completed Jan 26th, 2014
A fairly average tower defense game with pixel graphics. Nothing too noteworthy or special except it had a pretty good "one more round" feel to it.
GAME 8: The Plan | PC Steam | Completed Feb 14th, 2014
This game was VERY short but had a really cool ending.
GAME 9: Hero of the Kingdom | PC Steam | Completed Feb 17th, 2014
I'm not really sure how to describe this game besides being a cross between a top-down point-and-click adventure and a resource management game. It was a lot of fun and I'm looking forward to the sequel.
GAME 10: Steamworld Dig | PC Steam | Completed Feb 17th, 2014
A sort of "Metroidvania-lite", this game was fun but entirely too short.
GAME 11: Plague Inc. Evolved | PC Steam | Completed Feb 28th, 2014
Although this game is still in Early Access, it's very playable since it's a port of the mobile game. I completed all of the available virus types (at the time).
GAME 12: Freedom Fall | PC Steam | Completed Mar 1st, 2014
Another short game, but I had a lot of fun with this one. The controls were tight and the gameplay was pretty good.
GAME 13: One Way Heroics | PC Steam | Completed Mar 1st, 2014
Definitely had that "one more round" thing going for it - I was finally able to defeat the boss after several attempts. The game was really hard at first, but got easier as I learned all of the game play mechanics.
GAME 14: Final Fantasy VI | Android | Completed Mar 9th, 2014
One of the best games of all time got a face lift! While most people disagree with me, I really liked the new graphics. I cannot overstate how much I like this game.
GAME 15: Path of Exile | PC Steam | Completed Mar 16th, 2014
I had played through the game before when it was in beta, but decided to take on the new Steam release with the new class and earn some achievements. The game has a great take on it's economy (there is no gold) and potions (your flasks have special effects) and passive skills (ginormous tree) and is an all around great example of the "right" way to make a Free to Play game.
GAME 16: Doctor Who: The Adventure Games | PC Steam | Completed Mar 23rd, 2014
I played the first two episodes a few years back, but once it came to Steam with achievements I had to play them again and finish the rest. Pretty crappy adventure game, but pretty excellent voice acting. The 5th episode "The Gunpowder Plot" was the longest and also by far the worst.
GAME 17: Goat Simulator | PC Steam | Completed Apr 4th, 2014
I basically played this for the Playfire rewards which made the game free. It was fun in a kooky sort of way. I had most of the achievements in this game before they added more (except the Flappy Goat one because fuck that).
GAME 18: Bioshock Infinite | PC Steam | Completed Apr 5th, 2014
I thought this game was pretty mediocre until I got about 2/3rds of the way through it, then it picked up greatly towards the end and finished off perfectly.
GAME 19: Yoshi's New Island | Nintendo 3DS | Completed Apr 11th, 2014
I've actually played quite a few games on the 3DS this year, but this is so far the only one I've beat. A lot like the SNES original (which I loved) and in this case more of the same is a good thing.
GAME 20: Bloons TD5 | Android | Completed Apr 14th, 2014
Another great tower defense game, although this one has much more charm than polish. The higher levels of each round would tax my Nexus 7 to the melting point. I consider it "finished" because I beat each available level at each available difficulty, bought every upgrade in the shop, and didn't really have anything else to do.
GAME 21: LEGO The Hobbit | PC Steam | Completed Apr 28th, 2014
Now my favorite LEGO game to date. I earned 100% of the Steam achievements, and I'm looking forward to the third movie's DLC later this year.
GAME 22: Unearthed: Trail of Ibn Battuta Episode 1 | PC Steam | Completed May 4th, 2014
I installed this kind of as a joke, but after playing for a while I realized that it's not nearly as bad as people say. Sure, it's terrible. But in a B-movie kinda way.
GAME 23: Bioshock Infinite: Burial at Sea | PC Steam | Completed May 6th, 2014
I loved the original Bioshock so when I heard they were making a Rapture-themed DLC to Infinite I was pretty stoked. I wasn't disappointed either - this DLC is arguably better than the whole of Bioshock Infinite.
GAME 24: Type: Rider | PC Steam | Completed May 10th, 2014
A fun take on the edutainment genre, you're a dot traveling through the history of typography. Sounds weird but I found it kinda relaxing.
GAME 25: Prime World: Defenders | PC Steam | Completed May 10th, 2014
Easily one of the best tower defense games on PC. It's kind of like a combination between a collectible card game and tower defense. I still play it all the time, trying to beat the challenge level and to unlock and upgrade new towers.
GAME 26: You Have to Win the Game | PC Steam | Completed May 11th, 2014
This game surprised me. With it's emulated TV screen interface and simple premise (and achievements) this is a great free game that I would have happily paid for.
GAME 27: Abyss: The Wraiths of Eden | PC Steam | Completed May 18th, 2014
A fairly generic adventure game with a Bioshock fetish. Nothing particularly noteworthy although the graphics were kinda nice for this genre.
GAME 28: They Breathe | PC Steam | Completed May 23rd, 2014
Winner of the 2014 "WTF Award". This game starts out cute but gets really twisted really fast. It's short, but worth experiencing at least once.
GAME 29: Transistor | PC Steam | Completed May 26th, 2014
So far this is my Game of the Year for 2014. The environment is fantastic, the story is superb and the music is haunting perfection. I even played through the NG+ and unlocked 100% of the achievements.
GAME 30: Mario Kart 8 | Wii U | Completed Jun 1st, 2014
A solid entry into the series, and a lot of fun to play with friends and family alike. I still play this all the time, but basically "completed" it over the weekend it came out after unlocking all of the characters and getting 3 stars on all of the grand prix races. The upcoming DLC has already been pre-ordered.
GAME 31: New Super Mario Bros. U | Wii U | Completed Jun 8th, 2014
I like this game a lot but I found the last world to be insanely difficult. I pretty much blew through the first 7 worlds in a couple of hours and probably spent 6 hours just trying to beat the last world (in co-op, no less).
GAME 32: The Simpsons: Tapped Out | Android | Completed Jun 14th, 2014
I'll preface this by saying I have not spent any money in this F2P game's bullshit donut shop. This game wasn't really "fun" but was kind of just a distraction. Wake up, click on my people and tell them what to do, rinse and repeat the next day. I'm not sure exactly why I stuck with it as much as I did. Reached level 40 which was the highest level at the time. Played some since but not much since upgrading to a Samsung Galaxy Note 12.2 and the game doesn't play nice with the higher screen resolution.
GAME 33: Final Fantasy X HD Remaster | Playstation Vita | Completed Jun 28th, 2014
Another great Final Fantasy game, and looked great on the portable console. The widescreen resolution was easily the best part of this remake. The touch controls were a nice touch too.
GAME 34: The Wolf Among Us | PC Steam | Completed Jul 8th, 2014
I wasn't really sure what to expect going into this, but I started right before the last episode was released and finished it shortly after. This is my favorite Telltale Game to date, and I thought it was better than The Walking Dead. It got me interested in the comic books and I've read about 15 of them now.
GAME 35: Broforce (Early Access) | PC Steam | Completed Jul 12th, 2014
This game is great and really captivated me until it ended abruptly without warning. I guess that's why it's Early Access. It only took me about 2 hours to finish the campaign.
GAME 36: Doctor Who: Legacy (Season 6) | Android | Completed Jul 20th, 2014
Another shinning example of "free to play done right" in my opinion. Season 6 was longer than season 7 (they go backwards because wibbly-wobbly-timey-wimey) but still had a lot of cool enemies and new characters. By the time I finished it I had a few level 41+ characters with dual colors which I think really kicks ass.
GAME 37: FATE: Undiscovered Realms | PC Steam | Completed Jul 21st, 2014
Even though this was an older game being re-released on Steam, I hadn't ever played it. I loved the first one which I beat earlier in the year so I decided to give this one a go. It's more of the same, but that really works well for this genre.
GAME 38: Final Fantasy III | PC Steam | Jul 24th, 2014
I played the original (well, fan translated) Famicom game way back in the day, but this was the first time playing through the 3D remake. The game was very much improved although quite a bit easier than I remembered it being.
GAME 39: Parasite Eve (PS1 Classic) | Playstation Vita | Completed Aug 3rd, 2014
A classic Square Enix RPG from the good ol days. Still excellent, still relevant, still playable. Having it on a heldheld was nice too. I finished the campaign but didn't replay the Chrysler Building levels.
GAME 40: Expendabros | PC Steam | Completed Aug 8th, 2014
This is a movie tie in between the Expendables 3 and Broforce. I mostly played it because I thought that Jason Statham was woefully unrepresented in Broforce.
GAME 41: Super Metroid (Virtual Console) | Wii U | Completed Aug 14th, 2014
One of the best SNES games ever made worked pretty well on the Wii U's tablet controller. This was a great game to play on the Wii U tab while my wife was watching TV. Probably my 100th play through.
GAME 42: Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls | PC Battlenet | Completed Aug 23rd, 2014
I played the game at launch and I felt pretty cheated. Playing with the new patch and new expansion pack felt like it was a completely different game and much much more fun.
GAME 43: The Walking Dead: Season 2 | PC Steam | Completed Aug 26th, 2014
Not as good as the first season (or TWAU) but still worth playing. Episode 5 was a really solid finale.
GAME 44: Disco Zoo | Android | Completed Aug 27th, 2014
Another free to play Android game that's littered with micro-transactions. I didn't fall for the trap - this was another kind of "idle" game for me where I would wake up in the morning, wake up the animals in my zoo, and repeat again the next day. Then I'd occasionally go on hunting missions to get more animals. Rinse and repeat.
GAME 45: Shadowgate | PC Steam | Completed Aug 30th, 2014
Another game in the running for Game of the Year, this remake of the NES classic was absolutely brilliant. Heavy on the nostalgia but also great for anyone who enjoys a tough-as-nails point and click adventure game.
GAME 46: Dragon Quest 1 | Android | Completed Sept 14th, 2014
I absolutely loved that they remade DQ1 with the same graphical style as the DS games. This game was cheap enough to be an impulse purchase and it's been a few years since I played the NES original.
GAME 47: Beyond Gravity | PC Steam | Completed Sept 25th, 2014
This game was short and sweet, but I really liked it. You jump from planet to planet and collect screws to upgrade your ship. I unlocked all of the achievements and finished the game in about 3 hours.
GAME 48: Hyrule Warriors | Wii U | Completed Sept 29th, 2014
I really thought this game was a masterpiece. I love Zelda, and I love Dynasty Warriors, and the merging of the two nears on perfection. The two player local mode (where one person uses the gamepad screen and the other uses the TV) was absolutely brilliant and made this game great for playing with my son.
GAME 49: Final Fantasy Theatrhythm Curtain Call | 3DS | Completed Oct 11th, 2014
While there really isn't a way to "beat" this game, I've done everything that can be done: completed all of the songs, unlocked all of the characters, obtained over 100,000 rythmia, beat a lot of bosses and quests. Wonderful wonderful game.
GAME 50: Marlow Briggs and the Mask of Death | PC Steam | Completed Oct 12th, 2014
This game was a lot of fun and usually goes on sale for $1. It's certainly worth checking out, although near the end the game gets pretty tough and repetitive.
GAME 51: Final Fantasy IV | PC Steam | Completed Oct 18th, 2014
This was my first time playing the 3D remake, but I've beat all of the other editions. I absolutely loved this game and will probably move forward and beat it a second time to unlock all of the achievements.
GAME 52: Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes | Playstation 4 | Completed Oct 18th, 2014
This game was a short ride, but the graphics were incredible. I really enjoyed the stealth action aspect of the game, even though it took me a while to get into the swing of things. This is the first Metal Gear Solid game I've played, strangely enough.
GAME 53: Castlevania: Symphony of the Night | Playstation Vita | Completed Oct 19th, 2014
I can't say how many times I've beat this game, but it's probably at least 10 now. This time though I played through the "newest" version from Castlevania Dracula X Chronicles which had the (in my opinion) much improved voice acting. I missed a few things, but still had 198% completion at the end.
GAME 54: Dead Rising 3 | PC Steam | Completed Oct 19th, 2014
I got this game as a gift earlier this year during a Modbot raffle. I was happy that this game came to Steam, because I had no plans on buying an Xbox One. The game was great, well paced, tons of zombies, and the combo weapons were amazing.
GAME 55: Hatoful Boyfriend | PC Steam | Completed Oct 26th, 2014
A lot of you watched me beat this strange game (I beat it during Extra Life 2014). This is easily the weirdest game I've played in a while.
GAME 56: Costume Quest | PC Steam | Completed Nov 1st, 2014
I played through most of this during the Halloween season but was about 1 hour away from beating it on Halloween night. Such a great game, looking forward to the second one.
GAME 57: Lili: Child of Geos | PC Steam | Completed Nov 11th, 2014
This game was a lot more fun than I thought it would be, and it was also pretty short (taking only about 3 hours to complete). There are a lot of additional challenges that seem like they would take an extensive amount of time to complete, so I may return to this one to clean up the 6 achievements that I missed. The game is a lot of mindless fun.
GAME 58: Knack | Playstation 4 | Completed Nov 16th, 2014
This was a pretty fun game actually, I was a bit surprised. The art style was similar to a Pixar film, and the gameplay (although at times repetitive) stayed pretty fresh throughout. I played between 1-2 chapters a day, and even unlocked a few things with the "companion app" on my tablet in order to get some extra gadgets.
GAME 59: Brothers - A Tale of Two Sons | PC Steam | Completed Nov 16th, 2014
This game was an interesting puzzle game in that each brother was controlled by one side of the controller and it sometimes got rather awkward controlling both at once. The puzzles were really good and unique, but the game turned out to be pretty dark and depressing.
GAME 60: inFamous: Second Son | Playstation 4 | Completed Nov 22nd, 2014
One of my favorite games so far on the Playstation 4. I collected 100%, including the paper trail missions online. I'll be playing this again at some point to grab the "evil" trophies.
GAME 61: Defense Grid 2 | PC Steam | Completed Nov 29th, 2014
An excellent follow up to one of the best PC tower defense games ever made. This is a great game - I loved the story line, and I loved all the variety of the towers and their upgrades. If you like tower defense games, be sure to pick this one up.
GAME 62: flOw | Playstation 4 | Completed Dec 6th, 2014
This game was pretty short and played out a lot like the first few levels of Spore. It was a fun distraction, but by the time I finished it I still had no idea what was going on.
GAME 63: Earthbound | Wii U Virtual Console | Completed Dec 13th, 2014
Still my all time favorite game of ever. For the last 10 years I've played this game at least once every two years. Prior to that, I played through it every year or several times a year. This game still surprises me and I'm still finding little nooks and nuggets that I previously didn't know about, which is insane given how often I've played through this game. Can't wait to play it again (maybe I'll play Mother 3 now...).
What I'm currently playing:
Final Fantasy Dissidea | Playstation Vita
Castlevania Lords of Shadow Ultimate Edition | PC Steam
Batman: Arkham Asylum | PC Steam
The Legend of Zelda Windwaker HD | Wii U
Doctor Who: Legacy (Season 5) | Android
Game 24: Assassin's Creed - 20~30 hours, finished September 2, PC
I remember playing this and the second one for a couple of hours from borrowed discs on the PS3, but decided to return them since I was going so slowly through them. I do intend to catch up on the main titles in the series on PC now though (possibly without III).
As for this first one, I loved the parkour, the atmosphere and actually assassinating. Which is why I went a bit heavy handed in the guards in the second half. The chases gave a good adrenaline rush and I ended up doing most of the missions (but didn't bother with the collectibles). It was incredibly repetitive, so it still took me more than a week to go through the game. It feels very nice for a while and then it's blah until the next day.
Big WTF at the final gameplay, my hands hurt at the end of it from all the utterly-not-assassinations, so that ended on a pretty sour note. Having to drag my feet to go unnoticed was a bit irritating too (I think the PC version had less obligatory riding in the Kingdom, luckily).
GAME 19: Yoshi's New Island | Nintendo 3DS | Completed Apr 11th, 2014
I've actually played quite a few games on the 3DS this year, but this is so far the only one I've beat. A lot like the SNES original (which I loved) and in this case more of the same is a good thing.
GAME 31: New Super Mario Bros. U | Wii U | Completed Jun 8th, 2014
I like this game a lot but I found the last world to be insanely difficult. I pretty much blew through the first 7 worlds in a couple of hours and probably spent 6 hours just trying to beat the last world (in co-op, no less).
Really glad you dug YNI. That game is seriously under-appreciated. Regarding NSMBU, did you get to spend any time with the delightfully difficult Challenge Mode? (Also, did you mean World 8 Peach's Castle or World 9 Superstar Road in your post?)
Game 63: Golf: Tee It Up (XBLA) - 2 Hours
(Started 9/1/14 / Finished 9/1/14)
So my buddy was having relationship woes and I didn't want to just sit there so I hammered out this mindless golf game while listening
Game 64: Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box (NDS) - 11 Hours
(Started: 2009 / Finished 9/2/14)
So I started this back in 2009 and then my DS was stolen with this game in 2010 from my bag while I was at college. So I finally forced myself to replay the entire game (and doing puzzles you did even 5 years ago is painful). I'm glad it's over and the story end was sweet. I hope I can get into the third now without feeling anxiety.
Wow, hall of fame, cool. May I be included if I didn't keep regular updates? I was silently carrying out the challenge and actually completed it last week. What a godsend to my backlog that was and the year is still far from over!
Game 64: Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box (NDS) - 11 Hours
(Started: 2009 / Finished 9/2/14)
So I started this back in 2009 and then my DS was stolen with this game in 2010 from my bag while I was at college. So I finally forced myself to replay the entire game (and doing puzzles you did even 5 years ago is painful). I'm glad it's over and the story end was sweet. I hope I can get into the third now without feeling anxiety.
Regarding NSMBU, did you get to spend any time with the delightfully difficult Challenge Mode? (Also, did you mean World 8 Peach's Castle or World 9 Superstar Road in your post?)
World 8, Peach's Castle. Maybe I'm just not as good at Super Mario Bros as I used to be, but for some reason I really struggled with it. I think I'll pass on World 9.
World 8, Peach's Castle. Maybe I'm just not as good at Super Mario Bros as I used to be, but for some reason I really struggled with it. I think I'll pass on World 9.
Oh, haha, World 9 is amazing! But yeah, it is much more difficult. That game in general is tough, especially to 100%. (I would say stay far away from Tropical Freeze though, it's much harder IMO!)