I also went ahead and knocked out the Majima Saga DLC or side chapters, whatever you want to call them. It was short and a little disappointing as far as the actual gameplay. However it actually provided a nice epilogue for Majima's story in Yakuza 0. So I'm glad I played it all the same.
Finished Lies of P and what an excellent game. Solid gameplay, fantastic atmosphere, cool twist on the source material, and a wonderful soundtrack. The hint of what their next game may be in the post credits cutscene has me very hyped. 9/10
Finished the Spider-Man 2, did everything and got the Platinum trophy. Took 37 hours for me. Fantastic game, better then the first one. Really good story, cool boss fights, great gameplay, and excellent graphics. In typical Marvel fashion there is a post credits scene meant to set up the sequel and it has me hyped for a Spider-Man 3. Also some cool stuff that has me hyped for potential dlc for this game.
Add another on to my list! What can I say? I loves me my Shin-spin-offs!
Cocoon - Xbone - 14/11 - An indy darling puzzler in which worlds are nested within marbles,which you can nest within other worlds and so on and so forth. It looks the part and the soundscape is well done too. Too bad the gameplay doesn't keep up. Described as a puzzle game, all you really need is a keen sense of observation as the game will most often subtly gate off all but one option to move ahead. The glacial pace of the protagonist means that once you've figured out how to move ahead, actually doing the moving ahead is slow and tedious. It's one of those game where the developer seems more keen on showing how clever they are themselves, rather than making the gamer feel clever as he solves the puzzles. There are a couple of bosses which are fun. - 5/10
Super Mario Wonder - Switch - 19/11 - 2D Mario platformers had gone a bit stale over the last years and Wonder solves this by tossing in everything the devs could think of and then some. Add to this a graphical style where more is definitely better and what feels like a new enemy design for each level and you get a unique experience, even for those like us who grew up with Mario. It's weakest point are the boss fights. They are few in number, and only the Baby Bowser fights are interesting. The final boss is pretty cool -and daft- but I would have preferred a more traditional Boswer to fight. Despite everything it gets right, I still felt like going through the motions during most of the game. - 8/10
SupremeAC said:
Despite everything it gets right, I still felt like going through the motions during most of the game.
I can agree with this. I had a fun time, more fun than I've had in years with a 2D Mario. However, there's certainly a familiarity that is hard to shake. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that we've been playing Mario games for around 40 years now.
SupremeAC said:Cocoon - Xbone - 14/11 - An indy darling puzzler in which worlds are nested within marbles,which you can nest within other worlds and so on and so forth. It looks the part and the soundscape is well done too. Too bad the gameplay doesn't keep up. Described as a puzzle game, all you really need is a keen sense of observation as the game will most often subtly gate off all but one option to move ahead. The glacial pace of the protagonist means that once you've figured out how to move ahead, actually doing the moving ahead is slow and tedious. It's one of those game where the developer seems more keen on showing how clever they are themselves, rather than making the gamer feel clever as he solves the puzzles. There are a couple of bosses which are fun. - 5/10
Wow I liked this a lot more but I cant really disagree with what you said. I did find the concept to be really interesting and I feel its impressive they turned a one solution puzzle into something with so many layers.
Dvader said:Wow I liked this a lot more but I cant really disagree with what you said. I did find the concept to be really interesting and I feel its impressive they turned a one solution puzzle into something with so many layers.
The concept is very interesting and I like how they've handled the traveling between worlds, both tactilely and visually. It's just a shame that they squandred the gameplay potential. About halfwah through the game the marbles are reduced from being worlds to being mere tools.
Super Mario Land 3 - NES, played on Switch - 09/12 - Played this again for the first time in decades, or so I thought. Apparently I started playing it about 4 years ago too. I think this is the first time I ever beat the whole game. When it first released I recall I only got through it by cleverly utilizing the wonder flutes. Giant land scared the shit out of me as a kid. Great game, often seemingly defying what the NES should have been capable of. I loved every minute of it. Still one of the very best games ever. - 10/10
Gears of War Ultimate is done, likely my last completed game for 2023. I'd love to do this in co op, only it was ususlly a ghost town in the lobby. For a guy that rarely notices these things, I did like the framerate boost that the Ultimate version provided.
Alan Wake 2 review is up, I thought it was good but nothing special.
The developers opted to make a "funny" Lovecraftian mystery game, and while some of the jokes definitely hit, most don't. So even though the game is pretty quick to play through, it still manages to be kind of a slog at times. There's I think two dozen different endings though, so there's always more incentive to play. I got two of them, and until I'm back home, I'll probably play through one or two more.
I'm committed to my absurd tradition of playing the first two games of a series during the year, then the first game I play and finish in the new year is the third. This year it's Silent Hill and I'm already done with the first one. The second one I started on Christmas. They should have got Eddy from Tekken in it, though. He's the true gordo.
By Miu Watanabe.
My final list is here . 42 games finished. Snuck in Toe Jam and Earl at the end which I played with my nephew, he loved it. Wait did I win?! Archy has 40 unless he didn't update. I don't see anyone else at that number?
Ok it's time for 2024. I ain't doing the thread cause I always mess them up.
Dvader said:My final list is here . 42 games finished. Snuck in Toe Jam and Earl at the end which I played with my nephew, he loved it. Wait did I win?! Archy has 40 unless he didn't update. I don't see anyone else at that number?
Ok it's time for 2024. I ain't doing the thread cause I always mess them up.
I have to update my list with 3 more games. 
Just kidding, my list is complete at 40. Damn you Vader! 
Woo! I completed nine!
Kirby and the Forgotten Land - Switch - I beat the game 2 days ago after having started it before ToTK and after only recently returning to it. It's a fun little game that doesn't really stand out in anything. It just calmly and confidently goes along doing what it does. The final boss at least was challenging, and I appreciate how the game is approachable and enjoyable to gamers from all levels of skill. My youngest beat the game, up to and including the final final boss. I'm sure he played it on the easy setting, but that's still pretty impressive. - 7/10