Woo, get to make my first update, beat Persona 3 Portable. Really love that they've ported it to modern platforms. Played it originally on the PS2 but I'm 99% sure I didn't finish it. Probably got about 70% through the main story, I recognised a lot of it playing it this time. But it was great to actually get to the end and beat it this time. The gameplay was a massive improvement from the PS2 FES version. Turn based RPGs NEED full party control. WTF were they thinking with the original version? Really great story. I also really enjoyed the addition of a playable female character. All the slice of life things as a girl were great, kind of how I wish my real life was, but alas.

190 hours to 100% it according to Steam, got a bit grindy at times, but I thoroughly enjoyed it nonetheless!

Missed this thread somehow. Therefore, here's my first update of the year

(26 completed games):

Games I've finished in 2023:

DC League of Super-Pets: The Adventures of Krypto and Ace (Game Pass)
Soccer Story (Game Pass)
Super Sunny Island
Nobody Saves the World (Game Pass)
Rift Racoon
Genesis Noir (Game Pass)
Alveole
Explosive Candy World
Fluffy Cubed
Little Mouse's Encyclopedia
Chess Brain: Dark Troops
Can Androids Pray: Blue
Pukan, Bye-Bye!
SIGNALIS (Game Pass)
Dyna Bomb
Devoured by Darkness
Persona 4 Golden (Game Pass)
No Thing
The Pillar: Puzzle Escape
Infernax (Game Pass)
Before I Forget
The Legend of the Dragonflame Highschool Collection
Hot Wheels Unleashed (Game Pass)
Besiege (Game Pass)
Umurangi Generation Special Edition (Game Pass)
XIII

Currently working on:

A Plague Tale: Requiem (Game Pass)
Assassin's Creed Valhalla: Dawn of Ragnarök

Complete
- Celeste (grueling but super satisfying to finish)
- Assassin's Creed Odyssey (I'd put it in the top 5 or so games of the generation. I'd go back and delve into a lot more if my backlog wasn't so ridiculous still. I do feel I need to hit lvl 50 and finish the arena fights though).
- Donut County (fun little Katamari-esque indie)

Close:
- Inside
- Grandia 2 remastered (one of the best battle systems in RPGs)
- Mario 64 (from Mario 3D All-stars)

For Celeste did you finish the story or all the extra content too (B sides, C sides, Farewell)?

Finished Games:

1. Monster Hunter World (+Iceborne) (PS4) My rating: 9/10
   • I spent roughly 150 hours playing through MHW, and I never once got tired of hunting monsters and trying to find more materials to craft new weapons and armor. I'm not sure what else I can say. Very few games can hold my interest for such a long time. An excellent game, and without question the best game in the series I've played.
2. Superhot (PS4) My rating: 8/10
   • A fun puzzle game with a unique gimmick and a clever twist to its story. 
3. Control (PS4) My rating: 9 / 10
   • Remedy's best game so far. I love the setting, story, characters, and gameplay. The developer has created a world that is wonderfully twisted in various small ways, leading to a constant sense of unease as nothing feels completely right, from the way characters act to the Oldest House itself. With two very good DLC releases as well, Control turned out to be one of the better games I've played in a while. In terms of complaints, the Hiss end up becoming slightly dull as enemies by the end of the game, and the upgrade and mod systems don't feel as impactful as I'd like. Regardless, this is an excellent game.
4. Katamari Damacy REROLL (Switch) My rating: 8.5 / 10
   • A wonderful game to just lean back and relax for a while. Something delightfully cathartic to just roll everything in sight into a giant rolling ball of destruction. It's an utterly silly game, but the only other option would be sheer horror, so it's perfect.
5. Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice (PC) My rating: 8.5 / 10
   • Been on a really good roll when it comes to video games lately, and Senua's Sacrifice was another great game to add to the list. Ninja Theory have long been one of my favourite developers, but I didn't get around to this game until now for whatever reason. Still, I'm glad I finally did because it's great. The story is well-told and intriguing, but the true star here is Senua herself and her characterization as a person losing her grip on reality and suffering from psychosis. Melina Juergens does an exceptional job in the lead role. It's genuinely one of the best performances I've ever seen in a video game. I also love how the environment adds to this sense of lost control, as it shifts around Senua and makes her see things that might not actually be there. The puzzles where the player has to find patterns in the environment or align certain parts of it are also fitting considering Senua as a character. The weakest aspect of the game is definitely the combat, which while fun in small doses, gets really repetitive after a while, and fighting more than one enemy at a time can be exceptionally frustrating. That's the one aspect I hope the sequel improves upon.

Currently Playing:

• Axiom Verge 2 (PS4)
• Half-Minute Hero: Second Coming (PC)

Games in Queue:

• Persona 5 Royal
• The Witcher-trilogy
• Nier: Replicant
• Final Fantasy XII The Zodiac Age
• Tales of Vesperia
• Yakuza Kiwami
• Kingdom Hearts III
• The Legend of Heroes: Trails from Zero
• Odin Sphere: Leifthrasir 
• Horizon Forbidden West
• Fire Emblem: Three Houses
• Xenoblade Chronicles Remastered
• ...and too many others to list

Pokemon Violet
Fire Emblem Engage
Legend of Zelda the Minish Cap

Just finished Minish cap on NSO. It's the first 2D Zelda game I've played all the way through, and while I did find some of the puzzles to be a little obtuse, it's absolutely fantastic. I will definitely give Link's Awakening and a Link to the Past another shot. 2D Zelda just scratches a different itch that I didn't know I had.

I'm supposed to get Nier Autotomata and Metroid Prime Remaster in the mail in the next couple of days. I'll have to decide which one to play for my next game.

Nah pretty much just the core campaign, though I did complete that crazy Pico game or whatever, which was a feat unto itself. Tempting to knock out the extra content but not sure I have it in me ha.

Two games to add this time.

Finished Games:

1. Monster Hunter World (+Iceborne) (PS4) My rating: 9/10
   • I spent roughly 150 hours playing through MHW, and I never once got tired of hunting monsters and trying to find more materials to craft new weapons and armor. I'm not sure what else I can say. Very few games can hold my interest for such a long time. An excellent game, and without question the best game in the series I've played.
2. Superhot (PS4) My rating: 8/10
   • A fun puzzle game with a unique gimmick and a clever twist to its story. 
3. Control (PS4) My rating: 9 / 10
   • Remedy's best game so far. I love the setting, story, characters, and gameplay. The developer has created a world that is wonderfully twisted in various small ways, leading to a constant sense of unease as nothing feels completely right, from the way characters act to the Oldest House itself. With two very good DLC releases as well, Control turned out to be one of the better games I've played in a while. In terms of complaints, the Hiss end up becoming slightly dull as enemies by the end of the game, and the upgrade and mod systems don't feel as impactful as I'd like. Regardless, this is an excellent game.
4. Katamari Damacy REROLL (Switch) My rating: 8.5 / 10
   • A wonderful game to just lean back and relax for a while. Something delightfully cathartic to just roll everything in sight into a giant rolling ball of destruction. It's an utterly silly game, but the only other option would be sheer horror, so it's perfect.
5. Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice (PC) My rating: 8.5 / 10
   • Been on a really good roll when it comes to video games lately, and Senua's Sacrifice was another great game to add to the list. Ninja Theory have long been one of my favourite developers, but I didn't get around to this game until now for whatever reason. Still, I'm glad I finally did because it's great. The story is well-told and intriguing, but the true star here is Senua herself and her characterization as a person losing her grip on reality and suffering from psychosis. Melina Juergens does an exceptional job in the lead role. It's genuinely one of the best performances I've ever seen in a video game. I also love how the environment adds to this sense of lost control, as it shifts around Senua and makes her see things that might not actually be there. The puzzles where the player has to find patterns in the environment or align certain parts of it are also fitting considering Senua as a character. The weakest aspect of the game is definitely the combat, which while fun in small doses, gets really repetitive after a while, and fighting more than one enemy at a time can be exceptionally frustrating. That's the one aspect I hope the sequel improves upon.
6. Cadence of Hyrule (Switch) My Rating: 8 / 10
   • A fun, rhythm action game with a few shortcomings that keep if from true greatness. The Hyrule setting is great, and the gameplay is a lot of fun once you get accustomed to it. I played the game through with my wife in co-op, and for the most part it's a great for that. There are a few battles that feel a bit unfair in co-op, but otherwise no issues with the game.
7. Cosmic Star Heroine (PC) My Rating: 7.5 / 10
   • Basically a tribute to classic SNES era JRPGs with some modern concessions. The battle system is fast-paced and fun, the story moves at a very brisk pace, and the characters are instantly identifiable as separate people. However, the pace of the story is bit too fast, as very few moments get time to breathe, and as a result end up lacking in impact. It also leaves many of the characters woefully underdeveloped. The game could have taken a little more time to let the story develop. Now, even after doing most of the sidequests, I finished the game in little over 10 hours. It could have used just a few more hours for its story. Still, this is a fun game that definitely doesn't overstay its welcome.

Currently Playing:

• The Legend of Dragoon (PS4)
• Axiom Verge 2 (PS4)
• Half-Minute Hero: Second Coming (PC)

Games in Queue:

• Persona 5 Royal
• The Witcher-trilogy
• Nier: Replicant
• Final Fantasy XII The Zodiac Age
• Tales of Vesperia
• Yakuza Kiwami
• Kingdom Hearts III
• The Legend of Heroes: Trails from Zero
• Odin Sphere: Leifthrasir 
• Horizon Forbidden West
• Fire Emblem: Three Houses
• Xenoblade Chronicles Remastered
• ...and too many others to list

Just Finished: Star Fox (NSO)

I have never played a Star Fox game so I guess the original is the best place to start. Fox is one of my favorite characters in Smash Bros though I really did not know much about him as a character or his games. I played on Switch in handheld mode. I realize it is an early #D console game and for the time it must have been a technological marvel on SNES. Obviously the graphics haven't aged well and quite frankly neither has the game as a whole. I played with analog controls which probably made things smoother. I had to find a control scheme that I found comfortable. This is an on-rails shooter which I don't usually play outside of arcade settings. I had to get used to not being in full control of movement. The hit detection seems iffy especially for one annoying boss fight in particular. I can't deny that the core gameplay loop is enjoyable thought. Doing a barrel roll is quite satisfying. It took me about 4 hours to complete the game on all three routes. I finally understand some of the series references in Smash Bros now. Some obstacles and projectiles are hard to avoid and it can be difficult to know where you should aim to defeat certain enemies. This game is like Fire Emblem in the sense that if your support characters die they stay dead, which is a neat feature but it can be tricky to tell them apart from enemies when there is so much happening on screen so I engaged in friendly fire more than I'd like to admit. The music is good. The story and character work is bare bones. I can't say I'm a big fan but I would be willing to give some other games in the series a shot. Do a barrel roll.

Score: 6/10

Full Completed 2023 List:

• Super Mario World (NSO)
• Star Fox (NSO)

Ghost of Tsushima

Real enjoyed the game, I liked how it made me feel as game progressed becoming more powerful, not realising how OP the bow was until later. :P

Well rounded exploration and 'open world' stuff (if not a few too many) and a superb artistic style. Story was decent, combat fun. I really liked the mission structures, as many of them, of which there are a lot could be done in 10 minutes.