Tag Archives: PS5

Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy Review

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This is one of those games I sorta forgot existed for a while there. I think it was technically a big deal but yeah it really vanished. It’s one of those very cinematic games where you get to embrace the story over gameplay but there is still a good amount of gameplay to be had. It’s a fun title but as a result it is also one of those games where you won’t really have much to do if you want to just have fun playing it later on. The cinematic part also means the game will probably be moving a bit slower on a second playthrough although of course it’s all towards the goal of making the first playthrough as good as possible.

The story starts off pretty fast with the Guardians getting into trouble as per usual and now they owe the Nova Corps a whole lot of money. Star Lord gets them to give the Guardians a few days to pay off this fee but even then it will not be easy. We’re talking an incredible sum after all so now they are going to have to scam some folks. Perhaps the legendary monster tamer lady will be a good target. Meanwhile some dark forces are approaching the universe and seek to destroy the Nova Corps. This includes some people who are very important to Star Lord.

The story may start out fairly small in scale but naturally it is a classic save the universe story by the end. It’s a solid story all the way through and you should be very engaged. This is where the cinematic approach works well as there are endless cutscenes here as you go off on your quest. The combat gameplay that we do get is also a lot of fun. You have to really strategize on how you will use each member of your party as well as their various abilities. Particularly until you get to the final chapters where you learn the revive spell. Until then you always have to watch out because a few lucky shots can pull you under.

Personally I always tend to go with a few familiar options instead of trying everything. So I would use everyone’s super, then their O move which seemed to be the strongest ones. I wouldn’t even bother with the other two options. You always have quite a few methods of attack here so at least there is no reason to worry yourself. If something’s not working then try something else. None of the enemies should pose enough of a problem where you can’t figure it out after some troubleshooting. In some ways the platforming could be the toughest part like how I would end up falling more than once.

The graphics are pretty solid here. It’s going for a bit of a live action look but with enough colors where it still feels enough like a comic. The energy effects are nice and the whole time you really feel like a big budget was put into the title. Just look at all of the songs they were able to squeeze inside. You will hear a lot of music as the game goes on and they’re all fairly catchy tunes. You also have the ability to play a mixtape once per fight that completely restores everyone’s health and super attacks. It’s a rather broken ability I must say, but I like how it ties in with how much Star Lord enjoys a good tune.

The game also has a few different fake outs which was really fun. That always adds to a game and the plot twists will keep you guessing as well. I would definitely enjoy a game like this for the Avengers and X-Men at some point. I would say Spider-Man already has this treatment with the big two games that came out a while back. You can tell a whole lot of stories with this although I imagine it probably takes a long time to produce one of these games.

I ended up getting most of the trophies during my normal playthrough and I can’t say that I was really doing much out of the ordinary. It can be nice to play a game that is really generous like this one. There are also a lot of bonus elements and collectibles that don’t even relate to any trophy. This is an especially nice point because it means true collectors can have fun doing a lot of extra exploring while people who want the Platinum can still get that without too much hassle. It’s a win/win for everyone involved.

If there’s anything I would have liked to see, it would have been having more of a hub world. Letting you go back and forth to the different planets on a whim to have fun and of course grind out some levels with the minions. The game has a level up system but you actually max everyone out in the game fairly early and at that point the EXP just vanishes entirely. I suppose this is a decent way to control your level and make sure the player doesn’t get too broken but they probably should have added a wider range of abilities for you to power up. It’s super rare that you play a game where you reach the level cap with everyone like this.

Overall, Guardians of the Galaxy is definitely a fun game. It is a pretty decent length too and there is some replay value with all of the different dialogue options. I doubt you would really go as far as to try and hear them all but the game does deserve a lot of credit for just how many they put in here. It must have taken a long while to record every piece of dialogue. The Platinum seems relatively easy to get but will still take some work. If you like a good action title then you should definitely pick this one up.

Overall 7/10

God Eater: Resurrection Review

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This was my first God Eater title and I can definitely tell you that the length lives up to the reputation. I was playing this one for well over 50 hours and the game is quite difficult. If you’re looking for a big challenge and a lot of replay value then this is the game for you. Even after conquering it, there were plenty of extra levels left to complete. That’s how meaty this game is.

The general plot takes us to a world where monsters continually attack and do their best to crush humanity. These monsters can really show up out of nowhere and most humans are extinct at this point. We protect a final hub where scientists are trying to find a way out of this situation. There is a project ongoing that will supposedly allow humans to leave in safety but there are a lot of secrets about this project. Is it really for our own good? Well, time is ticking since the monsters are progressively getting stronger and stronger. One thing’s for sure, this is humanity’s final stand.

You play as a cadet who just joined the group and you get to see him quickly rise up the ranks. He is one of the super rare new types so he is able to command a powerful god eater weapon. Basically these are weapons which utilize parts of Aragami (The monsters) to eat the other monsters. You rise up the ranks as you clear missions and also begin learning new ways to use the sword. By the end of the adventure you are one of the highest ranking people around.

This version of God Eater basically brings 3 whole story modes within it. The final length of the story is 100 missions. Each mission can range in some from 3 minutes to around 20. You do have a timer of 30-40 minutes total but odds are if you haven’t won within 20 minutes, you’re probably dead. It’s not a game where it is easy or even practical to stall until the end. Aside from the 100 story missions, you’ve got another 100+ bonus missions. Even though they are “bonus” missions, you can expect that you will be playing through a whole lot of them. It’s not really much of an option because they will let you get the materials that you need to boost up your weapons and defense.

Without good weapons, you aren’t winning. Better weapons means better attack power and your shield controls your overall defense. If it’s too low then even taking one hit will one-shot your entire health bar. For the final boss that was happening to me quite a lot until I finally got a better shield. You can learn abilities that help to counter this like still having 1 health point left but it’s not something that you want to ever have to rely on. So better equipment is pretty much a must and since resources are scarce, be very careful which ones you level up. There are 4 elements, Blizzard, Fire, Spark, and Divine.

You will need all of them at one point or another so you want to level up 4 weapons minimum. Then you have slashers, crushers, and piercers. They come into play with each element and now you have a tough dilemma because you can’t feasibly maintain 12 different weapons. So pick your poison as they say. It will catch up with you at some point and that’s when you really find out just how skilled you are. Just how good are your fundamentals here? If they’re not good enough then you will definitely be in trouble.

Generally I would say the gameplay is that of a 3D brawler. You have your gun and your physical sword and you just swing away at your opponent. While using your blade you can also block with your shield. Blocking is incredibly handy because some shields like the tower shield will completely nullify damage. It’s incredibly handy and it’s just tough to get out of the habit of dodge rolling away from attacks. There is no invincibility in rolling here so that means trying to dodge that way is incredibly dangerous.

I didn’t really get the hang of this til near the end. So get into the habit as soon as possible. When using your gun, you are unable to block so you have to be careful or you can be caught in a bit of a death loop. Between that and my guns not dealing much damage, I mainly just used a blade during the game. I know most say that the gun is actually the best weapon to have but I just couldn’t get the hang of it. There’s a whole bullet game within the game on deigning guns and I was not particularly good at that.

Meanwhile you can customize your god eater on how it absorbs parts from your opponent. It’s a pretty important part of the game so you should spend some time here. I definitely focused on the quick dash which I found to be the most helpful. There are a ton of parts to buy and abilities to learn so just try not to get overwhelmed. There are hundreds and hundreds of options but of course they are not all equal. So just find the ones that you really like and ignore the rest. If you start losing a lot, then switch things up.

The game has a ton of variety so while you will get stuck, you will always have options to get around it. That’s why you absolutely need to do a lot of trial runs and figure out what it is exactly that you want to do. Once you have that in mind and a preferred fighting style, it all gets easier. If the sheer repetition gets to you, maybe just take some breaks. 50+ hours is a lot of time after all and the game’s got a fairly low amount of different enemies to fight. You’re mainly fighting the same 10 enemies in different recolors the whole time. There are also only around 5 level environments so the layout will look similar there too.

I do have to admit that this part felt a little lazy but the title is mostly concerned with getting you sheer amounts of levels to conquer. I suppose I can’t slam that too much. The graphics look pretty good for the game. It’s far from top end quality however there are 1-2 fully animated moments in the game which is cool. There is also an extended CG fight in one of the last cutscenes which was really cool. As always, a big benefit to a long game like this is the fact that you really get attached to the characters. That adds to the impact of the story and so overall there is definitely a lot of fun to be had here. Also seeing the credits 3 different times was intense.

Naturally there is a ton of replay value with all of the extra levels and weapons to obtain. It’s definitely a game that you will end up sticking with for quite a long while. You’ll probably continue to improve the more you play as well since you will start to notice enemy attack patterns and also be able to react quicker on your side as well. Never stop adapting and improving as you play the game. That is how you really get the long term victory and also clear levels a bit quicker. Every few minutes you save in a level really counts.

Overall, This was a pretty fun game. Definitely a long title that feels like it has a bit of padding at times but it was still fun. It’s clear that a whole lot of effort was put into this one. It is far from being any kind of cash-in. I’m sure developing the game took a really long time too. I’m interested in seeing how the sequel does. I would say a good story makes or breaks your enthusiasm with the title. If it’s anything like the first game then I’m sure we are in a good spot. If you like fighting monsters then you should definitely check this one out.

Overall 7/10

Castlevania Dominus Collection Review

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It’s time to look at the next Castlevania title. This collection brings 3 more main games as well as a revisited version of one of the classics. So you’ve got quite a lot of content in here, especially considering that the main games all allow you to play through them a second time with another character. Effectively a whole second story mode so that’s pretty crazy. It’s definitely one of the fun things about collections because you really get your money’s worth with them.

First up lets talk about the Order of Ecclesia. In this game you don’t play as one of the Belmonts and instead you are a spellcaster who is charged with absorbing 3 legendary spells inside her. If she can do this then she will prevent Dracula from coming back to murder everyone but she is betrayed by her good friend and gets amnesia. Now she has to regain all of her skills and get the spells but can she really stand a chance? It’s a very different kind of Castlevania game when it comes to the gameplay. You have to use a ton of spells and continually switch between them.

It’s a pretty interesting idea but one immediate drawback here is that because of how you actively need to switch abilities to use the new ones, you probably won’t even touch about half of them. Once you get the good abilities that you want then there is really no need to try out any of the others. They can be fun to switch around with but for the most part you just don’t need them. Still it does mean everyone’s playthrough will probably be a little different as you pick the play style that suits your needs the best.

The layout of the map is pretty smooth as you would expect and I also like the fact that they have little sub quests in the hub world. The missions are never anything that really puts you out of your way so it’s easy to complete a lot of them while exploring. It gives you extra incentive to look around thoroughly and the quests give you little rewards. I ended up completing a whole lot of them on my way to beating the game. As always I got the bad ending first but that also helps you appreciate the level of detail they put into the game. Putting in more than one ending definitely has to be difficult considering most titles don’t do that.

This is a very fun game and the story is engaging. Castlevania has really come a long way from the 2D platformer titles into the very iconic vania styled ones. As always I can also give the games a whole lot of credit for making this part fun as well. You really feel stronger as you absorb more abilities and level up. There are a few rooms that don’t appear on the map which feels like cheating to me but most of it makes a lot of sense as you just play through the game normally. The layouts are food and there are enough quick travel rooms to keep anything from being tedious.

Then we have Portrait of Ruin which is a little more traditional. You play as a guy who is distantly related to the Belmonts but has never been able to use the iconic whip. He’s still been able to defeat every vampire that he needed to though. Now he faces one of the most powerful vampires alive and may need some help. Will he be able to face up to his destiny and use the whip or will he fall? I also hadn’t been using the whip very often so this game definitely encourages you to do so. By the end of the game it ends up being one of the most powerful weapons even if you will probably be using the sword for most of the early game.

The game’s main difference from the last one is that there are a lot of little worlds instead of one big one. You jump into paintings which become their own worlds like Super Mario 64. It’s a fun idea and if anything it probably makes the game easier since all of the individual worlds are a lot smaller. The game also becomes a lot more linear this way since you very rarely have to go back to an old world. It is technically still a vania as there are optional power ups and such but don’t expect to get lost or anything.

It definitely makes things really calm the whole time. The bosses are all fun and getting good enough to beat them all is a real feat. This time you actually fight Dracula and Death as a combined tag team which made for a cool boss fight. I thought that was a really nice way to spice things up since that had never happened before. It’s a really smooth experience and it can hold its own as one of the stronger titles in the franchise. At this point it’s safe to say that the modern games all hold their own on a high level.

After that is Dawn of Sorrow which is a direct sequel to one of the prior games. Dracula is surprisingly still gone but a lady named Cecil has decided to work on destroying Soma so one of her proteges can become the new Dracula. Soma decides to stop her before she can hurt anyone but will he be able to resist the powers of darkness? The Belmont of this generation thinks this is definitely a bad idea and Alucard agrees but nobody is going to stop Soma. He figures this threat is too big to be ignored and must be dealt with effective immediately.

In this game you absorb the souls of enemies when you defeat them although it is part RNG. You have to defeat some enemies numerous times in order to absorb their soul while other ones will drop it on the first try. I didn’t really care about the souls initially but for the rue ending you have to absorb a specific three and this led to me having to enter and exit a room over and over and over as I farmed the same enemy until he dropped the soul. It actually took quite a bit longer than I expected so that surprised me. The actual final boss for the true ending is also quite difficult. I believe I went in rather under leveed which did not help. Still, those attacks were completely crazy. Dodging them is hard.

See, the final boss spams an infinite amount of minions at you while walking around the place. You have to destroy him in two different areas to win while not getting hit by anything else. Your best bet is to beat the minions as they come while also landing his on the weak points. Of course that’s way easier said than done. I recommend using Death’s scythe as your ongoing support attack since all of the weapons that it summons are enough to keep all of the foes busy at times. It doesn’t always work though, it’s a bit of give and take.

Finally you also have the arcade style remake. It’s a fairly short game with only 5-6 levels but this time you can’t rewind or use access points. The game does save what level you are on at least until you exit the game. So basically you gotta make sure you have a lot of time to invest and then do everything at once. If you can’t do that then it’s basically about time for you to throw in the towel. This is the one game I could not conquer.

The Castlevania games are really no walk in the park and beating it all without true save points would just be asking for a tad too much. With no way to grind EXP or anything, it forces you to try and just get really good. An admirable goal to be sure but one that would probably take too much time without much reward. For example there are no PS5 trophies for beating this one. I do aim to get the Platinum though as there are only 3 trophies left and apparently none of them are particularly long.

Of course the soundtrack is really good across the whole collection. All of the games sound really good and the graphics are also solid for all of the titles. These are all clearly well made games with solid fundamentals, stories, and gameplay. Now all we need is a big budget modern day PS5 title for the series and we would really be off to the races. There is just a lot of potential here and you have to assume that all of these collections are to build up hype for a new game. Hopefully that is the case at least.

Overall, This is a collection that was really fun to play through. I think that’s probably even the best word I would use for the collection. You really have a blast going through each title and exploring the maze. If every vania styled game was like this then I would be a huge fan of the genre. The level up system was handled very well and there is a whole lot of replay value to be found here. Whether you are a fan of the franchise or not you will definitely enjoy your stay here.

Overall 8/10

Bleach Rebirth of Souls Review

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It’s time to talk about an absolutely elite title! Bleach went above and beyond in terms of adding a ton of awesome content and easter egg for true fans. The presentation and story are absolutely first rate and of course this is a fighting game so you can’t go wrong there. Now granted, there is one aspect about the gameplay that I don’t love but barring that it’s all at an elite level here. The game is also surprisingly long so you’re guaranteed to have a satisfying time here.

The story begins with Ichigo having to gain supernatural powers in order to save his family. He is now a Substitute Soul Reaper, someone who stands on the edge between life and death. He has to fight powerful monsters and also save his friends from the corrupt Soul Society. Along the way he also learns of sentient monsters in Hueco Mundo who have big plans as well. Can Ichigo stop them all and save the entire universe from certain anhiliation?

One thing’s for sure right from the jump, the developers really paid attention to the manga. There are tons and tons of extra details here. A story mode doesn’t get much more detailed than this, particularly a fighting game one. There are hours and hours of pure cutscenes here even aside from the combat. There are also a ton of secret missions and also secret cutscenes that are triggered when you clear challenges during a level. So you really get rewarded for doing your best to follow the story beats.

The story is also handled pretty well on a difficulty basis. None of the levels are a piece of cake to get through, far from it! You’ve really got to focus here because if you let your guard down at all then it’s all over. Here’s where the gameplay becomes important. Unlike traditional fighting games where everyone has a normal health bar, this one is focused on reishi. That’s basically an aura. The only way to deal damage to your opponent’s life points is through final smashes. You can use these as soon as your opponent’s shield hits the red level but it will be one point weaker. Alternately reducing the shield to 0 means you can use your final smash at full power.

The downside to this of course is that you will be seeing the same final smashes over and over and over again. They each have a little pre recorded cutscene at the start but those do add up eventually. Some characters like Ichigo and Aizen also have longer than average cutscenes for the final smash. It’s definitely nice for the game to show off the top tier animation that they have but this is the only part that can get a little old. I’d have preferred a traditional health bar system but hey it is unique.

Naturally the graphics are completely top tier here. It all looks really amazing while playing through the game and they did a good job on the cutscenes as well. The soundtrack is also elite with a ton of great songs mixed in throughout the game. Whenever you are in battle and someone activates their Bankai, you can expect the game to really speed up. The game isn’t really focused on balance so some characters are super weak compared to others. That’s just how it goes, it’s a pretty fun approach that I can appreciate though. They’re trying to make every part of the game lore accurate even right down to the gameplay. You never really see that so it was impressive.

Naturally there is a whole lot of content here. The main story is almost 30 hours long and then aside from that you’ve got side missions, bonus levels, and lots of other stuff to do. Vs mode itself is naturally enough for infinite replay value as well. So when you mix the whole thing together then you have a winning formula. The Platinum trophy for the game definitely looks like it would be a really hard one to grab though. Definitely not one that I would aim for anytime soon at least. It is yet another way the game has a ton of replay value though.

After playing through a ton of characters for the story, I can safely say that the most satisfying character to play as is Ichigo. They did a good job of developing him as a really good all around fighter. He may not be the strongest but he has good reach and his attacks combo well. My least favorite would be Uryu. Spamming the arrows can be interesting but you just don’t get to play as much. It feels less active when you can’t just be swinging a sword the whole time and forcing the opponents to back off. That is when Bleach is at its best after all, when you can just take off the limiters and run in for action.

It does match Uryu’s fighting style though so it’s yet another good detail. Similarly Mayuri doesn’t run around, a scientist like him is too proud for that. So he has good reach and attacks that pull in the opponent. Of course while accurate, that’s why I wouldn’t play as him much. Grimmjow is a lot of fun with his savage attacks but they also hurt himself which makes him rough. Yeah I’ll stick with Ichigo. Also quick shoutout to the fact that the whole game is English dubbed. I can tell you that this makes a massive difference. You really feel the emotion and the passion in every fight. It further helps the cinematic feel of the story mode.

Overall, Bleach: Rebirth of Souls was a game that was getting a ton of hype for months and months and I am proud to say that it completely lived up to it. Every part of this game is completely satisfying and polished. I will be getting the sequel right away when it comes out as I’m hyped to see how the sequel goes. There’s definitely a lot more content to cover and now I can say with 100% confidence that this team will know how to handle it. If you had any doubts about the game you can definitely put them aside. This is the ultimate tribute to Bleach fans and I expect it to continue to be talked about for a very long time.

Overall 9/10