32. Master of Darkness (GG) - 1hr 53mins 

Shameless Castlevania rip of by SIMS released for the Master System and Game Gear by Sega in 1993.

It's the usual Count Dracula hunt, just like the games that inspired it. Its starts off abit more grounded in reality though. The first level sees you travel up the River Thames in Victorian London, with the first boss being none other than Jack the Ripper. After that it's the more common monsters/spirits that you fight.

The controls are tight, but the level design let's it down slightly when compared to the masters at Konami. You'll find yourself in situations where taking a hit is unavoidable a bit to often.

Graphics are very good for the hardware, the music is OK, not bad but forgettable. Basically if you like Castlevania you'll enjoy this, but at the same time your better off playing any of those over this.

6/10

On a side note the Game Gear version of this is very good compared to the Master System version. Every level is either resized or slightly redesigned in order to be playable of the systems lower resolution/smaller screen. Sonic 1 which I played earlier this year was another example of a Game Gear game being designed right, as oppose the the copy and paste unplayable Master System ROMs that it often got. Yes you Sonic 2.

My list

Yeah, I always assumed Master of Darkness would be a hidden banger.  Got round to playing it a few years ago - it's decent but not as good as the better CV games.

10. Splatoon 3 SP

It dat game. More Splatoon single level throwaway madness, more utterly wild inventiveness. Wanna paint a giant Easter Island head? Let's see you go. Pac Man but Splatoon? Sure. Super Mario Sunshine reference? Uh, why not.

Seriously though, on rails bastard levels aside, this is an absolute delight. Reminds me still of Galaxy at its finest with that formula Nintendo use of concept-> adapt -> twist -> finale or something similar. Each level is around 2-3 minutes long, some even shorter, and as well as introducing you to the mechanics and weapons of the game, they give you a playground to just mess around in for a short time before becoming too bored.

There's now a world map - well, 6 to be precise - and my first order of business each time was sniffing out every secret doodad, whether music tracks or bizarre pages of lore, before beginning each set of levels. My biggest complaint would be the bosses were pretty underwhelming, but that was somewhat mollified by the post game, Champion's Road style challenge.

It's the splat aesthetics dialled up, you'll know where you stand on that, and Nintendo style level design. I just want more of it, but thankfully I've now got the MP and the first Splatfest this weekend to start getting my teeth into - and then that card game too!

What a game.

That’s one way to live up to your username.

hylian_elf wrote:

I need to Spla2oon as well. Or shall I just go straight to 3? @regmcfly?

If you're going to play Octo expansion primarily, I still think its the best campaign - and it is nails hard. If you are even considering MP go straight to 3

Wariospeedwagon wrote:

43: Resident Evil 3 (PC) 9/10 Not sure why I waited so long to play this after loving the RE2 Remake.  This is more of the same to a large extent.  It's shorter but that's not a bad thing as it encourages multiple plays.  I'm not sure If I like it better than 2, (I definitely thought Nemesis was handled better than Mr X though (ie Nemesis popping in every now and then as kind of a set piece, as opposed to X just hanging around)) but I like the multiple routes of Claire and Leon than the combined Jill and Carlos layout of 3.  Either way they're both pretty great and the old survival horror template translates pretty well to a scary third person adventure. I think a sign I loved a game is when I beat it I'm keen to play everything else in the series (the feeling dims pretty quickly normally!) and that's how I'm feeling now.

Good write up this and I broadly agree.

The 3 remake was a weird one in that X in the remake of 2 kinda cannibalised what Nemesis did in OG 3, forcing them to make him more a set piece boss. As such, 3 feels like even more of an on-rails action ride than it felt before. I don't mind the length and actually prefer action Resi games to be short and replayable rather than too long (looking at you RE4). 

However, OG 3 had a few points where you could make a couple of choices - e.g. fight vs run. They didn't make a huge difference, really, but they did lead to some unique set pieces or weapons. The game was super short, but it did have variation on replays. The X / Nemesis switcheroo was one thing, but cutting the choices mid-game did go a step a little too far into the anaemic, imo, stripping pretty much everything away that made the original unique compared to the other games. 

I like it, I had fun, I think it's good at what it does. But...I also think it could have been a little bit better. 

Also, the dodge is a bit ripe.

Imagine OG3 is a bit rough to go back to now, but it's short enough that it's maybe not too bad. Would be curious to hear your thoughts if you do get round to it.

Great series, though - should probably copy you and do some replays soon. Enjoy RE0, if you continue.

I played that recently. Been meaning to catch up my game reviews here. It’s not a 10 for me but it’s really good.

136. Resident Evil Village - PS5 (7hrs 51mins)

I've got a strange relationship with the Resi games, in that I don't particularly like them - or at least I don't think I do - and yet I feel compelled to play one every now and then, either to a) test if I do actually like them all of a sudden, or b) because I secretly like them already and just won't admit it.  Told you it was strange.  For a series I'm not fond of, I've played a lot of them.  

List time.  I've played:

Resident Evil (Saturn)
Resident Evil 2 (Playstation)
Resident Evil Code Veronica (Dreamcast)
Resident Evil 4 (Gamecube)
Resident Evil 7 (PS4/PSVR)
Resident Evil 2 Remake (PS4)

...and now this.  I finished them all except Resi 4, which I only played 4-5hrs of (runs for cover) and Resi 7, which I tried in VR but got such extreme motion sickness I got rid of it in a fit of queasiness.  The first version of Resident Evil 2 is probably my favourite, and the only one I bothered to finish with two characters.  The remake was decent, but Mr. X can fuck off.  

I think my main problem with the series is the cumbersome combat/clunky controls.  It's a survival horror staple, but it's the rotten core of the franchise for me.  Stuck in a room with a shuffling enemy?  Slowly manoeuvre around a table to escape.  Missed a headshot on an enemy that's right up in your face?  Don't worry, there's a 180 spin now; the tank can about face on a dime *insert gif of zombie grabbing your back*.  Run out of bullets, or want to conserve the ammo in your...backpack?  Fear not, you've got a knife that's about as useful as shouting smell my cheese.  Survival horrific controls, amirite?  The series has supposedly come a long way - 4 was considered a giant leap, and now they're first person shooters - but the action still reminds me of having to avoid a Tyrant in an airplane cargo hold; fighting the limitations of the controls as much as the beastie itself.  Ray Tracing can bowl about all he likes, these are still PS2 or 3 games at heart imo.

And yet it's these restrictions and previous gen foundations that seem to be the secret of the immutable allure that I can't put my finger on.  Coupled with the bonkers set pieces/boss battles/well designed areas that gradually open up through unlocking doors locked from the other side, or ruby keys for head height gates, or finding cranks/inserting cranks/turning cranks and whatnot, it's hard to deny that the series has an appealing vibe.  I hated this for the first hour or so, but it gradually succeeded in chipping away at my nope.gif face and I ended up enjoying the whole crazy mess.  There are some cracking sections in this one.  The same thing happened with The Evil Within 2, which I played because at some point I must've been craving even more Resident Evil.  Gah!  

I'd happily rip it apart on paper (and I'd love the devs to tear up the template and have a proper crack at updating the franchise), but there's really no point in complaining as I've clearly convinced myself that I do quite like the series, warts and all, after all.  I see the Resi 3 Remake in my future. [7]

Verecocha wrote:

Resi R3make is a cracker. Short, action packed and beautiful. Updated for this gen now too.

On the flip side its the worst 40 quid I've ever spent. Short, tedious, boring.

If you like to set fire to money yes. It'll be about 3 quid per hour of entertainment.

Dark Soldier wrote:

Verecocha wrote:

Resi R3make is a cracker. Short, action packed and beautiful. Updated for this gen now too.

On the flip side its the worst 40 quid I've ever spent. Short, tedious, boring.

You shut up, you loved it, you just like it when we disagree as it heats you up.

138. Return to Monkey Island - Switch (5-6hrs)

*Minor structure spoilers below*

Massive sigh of relief for this one.  Hyperbolic sentence alert: there's nothing worse than waiting ages for a new version of something you're invested in that massively disappoints when it arrives.  I'll have Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Secret of the Ooze, Terminator 3, Shenmue III and the Netflix/BBC Watership Down adaptation on my list please.  On the flipside, isn't it great when something a long time coming lives up to lofty/fanciful expectations?  Blade Runner 2049. Doctor Sleep (ymmv), Cobra Kai (if your mileage varies you're wrong), Streets of Rage 4.  Hopefully John Fullbright's new album, due next month...  Everyone's lists are different, but the 'oh ffs'/'yay' feelings when crushed or relieved are probably similar.

Almost everything about this is a success, from the way it's deeply steeped in nostalgia to the wonderful streamlining of existing elements.  The hint system is superb, and works exactly as intended - it's only a solution system if you're adamant that you want to throw the towel in, otherwise it'll offer a succession of handy nudges and memory joggers.  Guybrush can zip around the screen with a run button now, and each point of interest of each island can be accessed without having to traipse through multiple screens.  Every little helps when you're modernising and outmoded genre, and all these elements help a lot.  

The wit, cheek and swagger are back, all of which were either AWOL or lacking from series entries post Curse imo (although retroking recently reminded me that I enjoyed the first Episode of Tales From, which I've somehow managed to almost completely forget about - I suspect we were drinking while playing).  Puzzles are never quite top tier here, but they're mostly in the upper range of 'good', which serves as a welcome foundation of consistency to the adventure.  Point & Click adventures do have a tendency to be a little all over the place in my experience, none more so than Broken Age, which started well but shat the bed then rolled around in it for a bit before wiping it on the fourth wall.  Return is far more assured for the most part.  Part V was a little disappointing, especially coming straight after the island hopping escapades of the glorious 4th chapter, but the ending made up for it.  

A worthy continuation that ruins nothing and tied a bow on some of my cherished childhood memories, while hopefully creating some for Tilly to remember - she's now played through the first game, part of the second and all of this with me, and walks around quoting dialogue/humming the tunes.  Watching references land for her at the same time as me was great, and she solved her fair share of puzzles.  Love it.  [8]

12. Shovel Knight: Plague of Shadows (3DS)
Hard to judge. Meant more as an expansion than a completely new game. I know I liked playing it. But it’s the same game as Shovel Knight with a different character. It had been long enough since playing the first one that it didn’t feel like a retread.

There’s plenty of clever tweaks to the setup to keep it interesting. The music and the levels are the toppest of top-tiers but those are (as far as I could tell) unchanged. You can’t get away from the fact that, in videogames terms, a spade beats a bomb. The powers Plague Knight has though, blasting himself through the air from one side of the screen to the other, are pretty fun. And suspending yourself in mid-air chucking death from above. It makes him slightly OP’d. 

I didn’t really need to experiment with the bomb combinations too much. And switching between them meant going into the menus. The bosses, like in SK, you can cheese through. Apart from the few at the end. It’s slightly mad here. They’re generally harder to hit with bombs. But then you can corner them, spam 6 or 7 bombs down their gob, and half of their energy is gone. 
I think I gave SK 93 or 94% so, dunno, 87% 

13. Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment (3DS)
Better than Plague. No more map, stripped down, reworked levels. Music now remixed so bit of variety but none of them improve on the originals. Really liked it though. Thought it all worked well. The best of the expansions. 90%

14. Shovel Knight: King of Cards (3DS)
Mixed feelings on this one, possibly too much of a good thing caning all three of these in a row. The card game adds nothing but it doesn’t force it on you after a point anyway. Levels are bite-size mix-ups of previous and, by the third expansion, well-worn assets and enemies. 

The shoulder-charge into spinny-bounce move is probably the best thing they’ve come up with since the original. This comes with the large qualification that I had a horrendous time with it. You can’t attack without flinging yourself about, and there’s lots of things going on that might damage you, and kill your momentum mid-air and see you drop like a stone. Lots of cheap deaths to be had. Some weird, pinch-points where I was dying over and over. I don’t remember getting quite so frustrated with the previous ones. Very much done with the world of Shovel Knight for the time being. The new one can wait a bit.
85%

15. Donkey Kong ’94 (Gameboy)
The quintessential take on the single-screen, get the things, get to the exit, repeat 100 times, platformer that the Gameboy specialised in. It’s pretty good. Although it’s in a bit of a bizarre place. They’ve intentionally not updated Mario’s movement to mid 90s platforming specs but added a load of tricks and moves on the original. So he can do a handstand and catch barrels with his feet but then he can’t eg grab a ladder mid air. Mostly this is in the realms of making a virtue out of the limitations and it all being part of the platforming / puzzling challenge of getting through each level. Key thing is that’s it’s fun. Bite-sized levels that can be cranked through quickly.  
86%

16. It Takes Two (PS5)
Played in stints of approx 1 hour over whenever I found myself round one particular mates house. It took months, which wasn’t the optimal way of playing this. This mate is also a cut-scene skipper. It takes two(!) people to skip the cut scenes but when one is pressuring the other, its not like you can sit there and enjoy it. What I saw of the story was pretty good. The game varies on whatever mechanical invention they’ve come up with for that level. Most of them work pretty well. Some of them are great (I think the space level was probably my favourite but difficult to remember), some of them not so great. The puzzles aren’t generally difficult but the different tools they give you keep it fresh.
90%

17. TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge (PS5)
Disappointing. The existence of SoR4 raises the bar for this sort of enterprise. And it doesn’t get very close. 

Played all of this in 2P co-op so no idea what its like in SP. It’s not a good game though. Which isn’t to say I didn’t enjoy it. The main problem is its very poorly tuned. Nearly all of it is easy. Other bits are tricky because of poor design. The bosses are abysmal until the last couple where things get a bit more interesting. Some of the challenges attached to each level seem horrible to attempt. 

The specials are completely fucked. You can get two special attacks whenever you’ve got the time for the character to do a little pose and say an irritating catchphrase. Which is between every wave of baddies. And even mid boss fight sometimes. None of these are catchphrases are funny and, if you’re maxing the specials out, you’ll hear it twenty times a level. And then you cane through baddies without even trying. You don’t have to use them that much but then you’re trying to even out the game for the developer because they didn’t. 

A lot of it works as throwaway fun. They’re very generous on deciding when the baddy hitboxes are aligned with your character. So even scrubs can get some satisfying stuff going. Did enjoy it. Not good. May play again.
72%

—. Boxxle (Gameboy)
Unnumbered because I packed it in 4/5ths of the way through. 
Push the boxes onto the dots. Repeat 106 times in increasingly complex and convoluted set ups requiring deduction, forward planning, trial and error and lots of shuffling a 2-frame character sprite slowly and labouriously around. All set to a single tune.  You have seen everything the game has to offer by the end of level one. 

It’s pretty severe by modern standards. Desperately needs a rewind feature and a run button. I’d even settle for a marginally brisker walk button. In fairness, it does let you undo your last move, as long as that last move was a box push, instead of pushing the wrong box and then turning and then realising you’ve made a mistake. You’re fucked then. Back to start. Even if you’re a thousand moves deep into the current conundrum.  
It dosn’t hang around for long before pushing your brain cells. But in the final fifth it gets into the fuck off zone. Not unfair or anything. But the complexity of the solutions, mixed with the tediousness of completing them, mixed with encroaching boredom with the game, meant it was time to can it. It was a good ride while it lasted though.  
69%

18. Boxboy (3DS)
I don’t know why I played two box-themed puzzle games in a row but here it is. The only issue I’ve got is it was too easy for too long into the game. New things would be introduced, not explored to their potential and the level is finished before you know it. But modern-Mario style, the more difficult post-credit content resolved this complaint. And all the previous stuff comes back in new combinations and done properly. Really strong. Will play more of these. 
90%

19. Return to Monkey Island (Mac)
Very similar thoughts to Moot’s above. 

A few things I’d add is the impressive way they use Guybrush’s narration to stop you going down unproductive rabbit holes.

The hint system is almost perfect. A couple of times I was just slightly off or didn’t execute the thing exactly how it needed it. And it stopped those problems from grinding everything to a halt. 
Once I was properly stuck (from a red herring the game threw me that I got fixated on) and would still be stuck if I hadn’t looked it up. 

But for the most part everything clips along. You’re never stuck for long. Hunches pay off. A silly monkey island solution I thought of turned out to be the solution.  

My settled position on the artwork is that all the environment work is brilliant. The character sprites and the animation are lame. 

It’s also funny. 

Story talk from part three (and possibly four).  90%

20. Donkey Kong Country (Snes)
It’s mostly good but patchy. Some levels are top-tier 16-bit platforming. Some of the graphics are still eye-popping. But there’s a lot of frustrating bits as well. Enemies that pop up out of nowhere. Not completely happy with the responsiveness of the characters through tricky sections. It feels unfair more than it should. Any complaints are neglible by 1990s standards. Holds up pretty well.   
87%

Box Boy games are good, the Switch one is similar but worth playing. Co-op too.