List of Games You've Beaten 2024

[Darashiva]

Been a few months again since I last updated my list, so here goes. Three games to add this time.

Finished Games:

1. Odin Sphere Leifthasir (PS4) My Rating: 8.5 / 10
   • I'd had this game waiting on my back log for ages, and I finally decided to give it a go. Turns out that Odin's Sphere is a great game. The gameplay is fun, and thanks to the five different playable characters, nicely varied as well. The music is great, and the visuals are gorgeous. The story is overall great, but because of the way the game tells it, focusing on one character at a time even though all of their stories take place at the same time, it means that you only get the full picture of what is going on after finishing all five characters' stories. As a result, especially with the first few characters, you can end up feeling a bit lost at times. Still, this was a great way to start the year off.
2. Final Fantasy VII Remake (PS5) My Rating: 9.0 / 10
   
   • Just decided to replay the Remake in preparation for Rebirth. Also played through the Yuffie DLC for the first. Still love the game, the only notable issue I have is the Sephiroth fight at the end. I think they should've saved it for later. Otherwise the game is excellent, even better than I previously thought.
3. Trine 5: A Clockwork Conspiracy (PS5) My Rating: 8.5 / 10
   • I've always been a big fan of the Trine games, in particular when playing them in co-op, and Trine 5 might be the best one yet. Solid, highly enjoyable puzzle platformers with a charming world and characters. Best played with three people, but even with two or just on your own these are always fun games.
4. A Plague Tale: Requiem (PS5) My Rating: 9.0 / 10
   • A sequel to one of my favourite games of the previous generation, and quite possibly an improvement over it as well. I love this particular setting Asobo Studio has created, and the story and characters are great too, carried in this game by a fantastic voice performance by Charlotte McBurney as Amicia. If I had played this game back in 2022 when it was release I would have probably voted for her as the best performance of the year in the year-end awards. I loved the character's progression over the course of the game, slowly becoming more and more accustomed to and accepting of the idea of killing other people, and simply being mentally torn apart bit by bit by the horrible situation they've been forced into and from which there doesn't seem to be any escape. I'm not entirely sure yet, but this might be the first game I've played this year that'll make it into my top 50 once that event rolls around at the end of the year.
5. Star Ocean: First Departure R (PS4) My Rating: 7.5 / 10
   • A solid old-school JRPG that effectively feels like a proof of concept for other, better games down the line. This was Tri-Ace's first game, and this definitely set up a template the later games in the series would follow and improve upon. This was an overall fun game, but it does feel like a first attempt at doing something. Still good, but every element found here would be greatly polished in games to come.
6. Asterigos: Curse of the Stars (PS5) My Rating: 8 / 10
   • An action RPG that takes some clear inspiration from Dark Souls, but far easier and lighter a game (a soulslite?). The limits of the game's budget are unquestionably a factor here, as just about every aspect of the game could have used one more pass of polish before release, the gameplay could use a bit more snap and better damage feedback, and the writing/translation needed one more round of edits to fix the various small mistakes and just make the game less verbose. I still liked it a lot, and it's one of those games that feels more than the sum of its parts. My initial impression upon starting it weren't great, but the longer I played the more I found myself enjoying my time with Asterigos.
7. Potionomics (PC) My Rating: 8 /10
   • I was ready to call this game one of my favourites of the last several years, all the way up until the end of the story, when I realized that instead of letting me continue playing in a free-play mode once the main storyline concluided, the game just ended. That meant that I basically missed at least a third of the game's content because I didn't know I had to do every extra piece of content on a very tight time limit while also making sure I met all the story requirements. I had purposefully left a lot of the extra stuff undone because I thought I could do all of it once the story was done, but that proved to be a poor decision on my part. I still think Potionomics is a great game, but it still left a sour taste in my mouth at the end. It could have been an all-time great title, now it falls disappointingly short of that due to a really odd decision to now let the player continue playing beyond the main storylines conclusion. For what is effectively a relationship/store management sim that's just strange.
8. The Legend of Heroes: Trails to Azure (PS4) My Rating: 9 / 10
   • The better of the two Crossbell games in the series, Trails to Azure brings things particular story arc to a very satisfying conclusion. Overall, I'd say the Trails in the Sky and Cold Steel sub-series are a little better, but the difference isn't huge. It also marks the 9th game in the series I've now finished.
9. Final Fantasy VII Rebirth (PS5) My Rating: 9.5 / 10
   • The Current frontrunner for my game of the year. An absolutely massive game that took me 90 hours to beat, with a lot of optional stuff still left to do. Excellent story, wonderfully expanded characterization for the main cast, further improved battle system, and a gorgeous audiovisual design. If the last part of this trilogy sticks the landing it might actually overtake the original in my estimation. The main downsides to the game were some of the minigames, which didn't really grip me and felt more like chores rather than something I enjoyed. On the other, there's Queen's Blood, which is one of the best minigames in the whole series. I also found the Zack focused sections somewhat superfluous and unnecessary, but I suppose we'll still have to see what the ultimate payoff for that part of the story is. I thought the game also did a brilliant job at expanding the various locations around the world from the original. Finally, I have to mention the way Rebirth toys with the player at times. Remake already established the idea that things can go differently from the original this time, and Rebirth uses that fantastically, never allowing the player to be completely certain if something is going to go the way it did on the PS1 original, or if they are going to alter something. 
10. We Love Katamari Reroll (Switch) My Rating: 7.5 / 10
    • Just like the first game, a thoroughly pleasant experience that just doesn't reach quite the same heights as the first game, at least to me. Still, it's always fun to just roll things into a big ball.
11. Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light (PC) My Rating: 7.5 / 10
12. Lara Croft and the Temple of Osiris (PC) My Rating: 7 /10
    • Played these back to back, fun little action puzzle adventures, the first game being slightly better as I felt it was a bit more focused and tightly designed. Both are still fun, especially in co-op.
13. Steelrising (PS5) My Rating: 7.5/ 10
    • A soulslike with a very intriguing premise and setting, taking place during the French Revolution in an alternate history France where highly advanced automatons have been developed and put to use in the army by King Louis.  You also play an automaton, the only one of their kind with a will of its own. One of the many B-tier soulslikes that doesn't quite reach the heights of the genre's best, but is still a very enjoyable time. One of the easier games of its kind too, and not a very long one either. Lacks in polish, but the core of the game is very solid.
14. Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree (PS5) My Rating: 10 / 10
    • Technically not a game on its own, but considering it took me nearly twice as long to finish as Steelrising did, I have to count it. Also, might just be the best expansion I've ever played. A lot more challenging than the base game on average, but for the most part it still felt fair. Incredible world design, greatly expanded gameplay options, and so much more interesting lore and backstory to discover. The only real negative for me is the final boss, which was the only time Shadow of the Erdtree felt like it stopped being fair. I beat the boss eventually, but I don't feel like I really mastered it. I just got one good run where everything happened to click, rather than my victory being the result of my me getting better at the boss. Still an incredible experience overall.
15. Kirby and the Forgotten Land (Switch) My Rating: 8 / 10
    • Played this one through in co-op. Not really much to say, Kirby platformers are almost always fun, and Forgotten Land is definitely one of the better ones. Fun powers to play around, well-designed levels and bosses, and a lot of charm.
16. Final Fantasy XII: Zodiac Age (PS4) My Rating: 9 / 10
    • An improved version of an already great game. The original had some odd design choices holding it back, and while some of those are still present here, many of them have also been ironed out. Great story, most of the main cast is really well written, very good soundtrack, and the gameplay has been significantly improved from the original.
17. God of War: Ragnarök (PS5) My Rating: 9 / 10
    • More or less on the same level as the 2018 God of War, with some improved aspects and some that aren't quite good. Feels a bit stretched out, and the game definitely holds your hand far too much when it comes to puzzles. Otherwise an excellent game just like the previous one.
18. Tunic (PS5) My Rating: 8 / 10
    • Wonderfully designed puzzle-action game in the old-school top-down Zelda style that had the genius idea of making pretty much every single gameplay element available from the start, limited only by the player's knowledge, or lack thereof. By finding pages of an in-game instruction manual out in the world the player realizes how to use skills the main character always had. The game does get a bit too cryptic for its own good at times, but I managed to complete around 90% of the game's puzzles and quests without any outside help, but the rest I had to look up.

Currently Playing:

• Theatrhytm Final bar Line (PS4)

In queue:

• Persona 5
• Demon's Souls
• Tales of Arise
• Tales of Vesperia
• The Legend of Heroes: Trails into Reverie
• Tactics Ogre: Reborn