Reputation Leaderboard

#50 - The Wonderful 101: Remastered ______________________________ I'll have a lot to say about this game in my checklist, but this was the final PlatinumGames title I needed to platinum, and I had initially started it almost three years ago. You don't get games this special often, and I am going to miss it. It's weird, even though Platinum is still around and still makes games, there's a somber feeling knowing I don't have any of their other games available to earn trophies for anymore, even though I'm appreciative of the intermission. "Platinum maintains its luster forever." A phenomenal game with a draining platinum. But, it's done. Time for new games!

#286 - Hi-Fi Rush This is probably one of the most fun games I have played in a loong while. Actually, I don't think I EVER played a game where you could mix Devil May Cry combat with...Metal Hellsinger kind of rhythm game. In Hi Fi Rush, you play as an aspiring rock star named Chai who tries to defeat the evil corporation Vandelay. Due to some accident, Chai can hear the "beat" around him. With the help of a trash-made guitar and some other "music friendly" companions, you whack all manners of Vandelay robots and automatons and That's the main gimmick of the gameplay - the entire world of Hi Fi Rush is on a rhythm and if you attack on the beat you inflict additional damage and do some sick additional moves. The vibrant colorful world also helps you maintaining the rhythm, and if you truly are tone deaf (the same as me), the game even has a in-game metronome that helps you to keep up the pace with the combat. Honestly, words can't explain how fun this game is. It's definitely a one-of-a-kind game and it's one of the best games I have played this year. Unfortunately the developers Tango Gameworks have been shutdown, which is a real shame given how much care was put in this game. Regardless, if you want to have some pure crazy fun, pick up this game! P.S. The platinum might be a little tedious at least 5 playthroughs + some DLC shenanigans if you want that sweet 100%

It's that time again.... 🙌 It's finally happened! 🙌 🎉💃I have finally reached 400th in the UK Leaderboard rank! 🕺🎉 I have not had a Country Leaderboard Ranking position this low since, around 2010! From a high of around 60th in 2015, the long defeat had been raging, but it wouldn't be worth a warm bucket of spit, if I didn't take a moment to pause and celebrate the milestones! It feels like only yesterday I was revelling in my own glory, having finally climbed sunk to 350th place on my country's leaderboards... ...but in just 1 year, I have been able - through the hard work, determination and tireless efforts of my support team - to slide down another 50 Places!! 💪 Of course, an achievement like this cannot be accomplished alone, and I would like to thank so many people for this honour! Obviously, I'd like to start by thanking the usual litany... ...jumping in all forms, from Burrito to Gump, from Burger to Lump, from Fries to Qump - you are the engine that keeps others firing upwards, whizzing past me, and shoving me down at the breakneck pace I have been able to maintain! ❤️ ...the Runnerss - from Czech to Sushi to Taco to Ninja - the sprinters who carry folks past me like streaks of colourful lightning... an Aurora Borealis of shovel-shaped anomalies, reaching for the stars, as I scrabble in the dirt! I'd particularly like to dedicate this particular season of descent to four games in particular - Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, Balatro, Fights in Tight Spaces and Cities Skylines Remastered! Between your intense length, awesomeness and compulsive addictiveness, I've been able to plow down those Leaderboards faster than I ever could have dreamed back in those dull days of the early aughts! And finally, as always, I'd like to thank my own obsessive tendency to write massive reviews of all the games I play - you are the personal defect that has forced me to consider each game on its merits, and, as such, have pulled me away from playing games without any! You have kept me grounded more than anyone else - so take your well-earned bows! 💕 ⭐⭐Thank you all - and roll on 450th place!⭐⭐

#285 - Tekken 8 After a long while I caved in and bought Tekken 8 at a discount finally trying the latest iteration of Volcano Family Tossing Simulator. And...what can I say that hasn't been said before? Amazing game, fantastic graphics, a more brutal gameplay that might upset veterans but please the "ho ho, eat this punch Azucena" players like me. A story that shows the struggles of the Mishima family (and the rest of the world that have to deal with these pointy haired assholes). Although I didn't get as hyped as the Tekken fans about the ending, it was pretty goddamn epic in its own right ! A LOT of modes, finally a training mode hidden behind some Arcade Quest thing, FIXED online that makes sense, even a trial combo mode which again was hidden behind some training menus....Tekken 8 really outdid itself. Not to mention the roster: most of the characters that Tekken fans love, together with some fresh new faces that are really unique and fit well in this mad world: Victor, a French assassin gentleman that resembles Raiden from MGR, Azucena a coffee obsessed Peruvian who loves to dance and the fan favorite Reina who has a similar moveset of a certain absent grandpa from the game. Graphics do help also, man these characters look good. However...because there has to be a BUT...Tekken is not for me. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely loved the game, it's an amazing entry of an amazing series...but I can't play it I have been way too spoiled by the 2D environment, I simply do not enjoy the Z-axis dashing. This is a game that absolutely demands practice if you want to truly understand how it works and become somewhat proficient at it, and since I absolutely loathe practice mode...yeah, this is a game I will keep around to play a few matches for fun with friends and try to land one kick on Eddy players before calling it quits. But to get proficient at it...nah. I'm a silly Guilty Gear player at heart 😂 Still, amazing game. 10/10. It's annoying how good this game is. P.S. Well...I covered Street Fighter 6 and Tekken 8...only Mortal One Kombat remains....May the elder gods have mercy on my soul, I hope that one is better than MK11

#282 - Prince of Persia Lost Crown My god what am I gonna do with this game... I think the best description to give to this game is "fun game, definitely not for me". Like, the gameplay is absolutely top notch. Soundtrack, not too bad. Sargon is an actually GOOD protagonist, with a lot more depth than you'd expect (completely disregard the abysmal first trailer of the game where the focus was on rap music and Sargon's Killmonger haircut). Story - better than I would have expected. And that 50%-90% of the game was actually quite impressive in its design. But man..this game just could NOT deliver it to me. The start of the game was an absolute SLOG. And it's not linked to the fact that I had no abilities yet, but the game was simply NOT interesting for the first 4-5 hours, which is a crime in the world of Metroidvanias the enemies were the most pathetic run-of-the-mill stock enemies you could find in a graphical engine library. But nothing, NOTHING could beat the artstyle of this stupid ass game, which looks like a crossover between Fortnite, Overwatch 2 and that shitty mobile ad where some sucker is drowning and you have to save him. Every time I was trying to focus on the game, some lame ass Floss Dance loser showed up and did an anime powerup that has NOTHING TO DO WITH PERSIA OR PRINCES! Especially this fucker, whenever I saw him I was wondering if I'll get a discount for lootboxes . What this game made me feel, for lack of better words, was this: the first 50% of the game was made for the average consumers who would like to play a game that resembles whatever they're playing in their spare time. And then from the second half onwards, I think when I reach the Pit of Eternal Sands, it's like the developers were released from their cells and were left to do the game they intended in the first place. The second half of the game really felt like a Prince of Persia game. In conclusion, if you can get past the intro of the game or simply disregard the artstyle, the game will actually feel fun and it would be worth it. Unfortunately, since it's a matter of taste, I simply can't get past that, so I will have to say that I expected way more. One thing is for sure, the fact that this game is called PRINCE OF PERSIA is a definitive factor in my criticism. Maybe I would have loved it more if it wasn't named like that. P.S. Ending sucked ass. Way to make a lot of buildup with lore and princes, just to fast forward in a 1 minute cutscene, like "time to wrap it up guys". MEH is the word for this game from me.

#22 - Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus (PS3) My first platinum of the year, lol. Also, my fastest platinum at 5 days 6 hours and most common one at 48.98%. This series is listed in my interests on "About Me" alongside its genre counterparts - Ratchet and Jak. So it's nice to finally have it represented on my profile. Great game. Solid art style, nice mix of genres, cool story and tone. Favourite parts: - the boss battle with the rhythm mini-game - the "tun tun tun" sound Sly makes with each step while sneaking around and a faster "tuntuntun" when he's using a barrel - the cat and mouse game (or should I say raccoon and fox) between our character and the feisty latina cop who has the aim of an average stormtrooper 😁.

Platinum #209 - Honkai: Star Rail (PS5) Hopping aboard a spectacular starward journey like no other Second PS5 platinum in my collection, and would you look at that, it just so happens to be yet another game from HoYoverse. Given how much I enjoyed playing Genshin Impact, this platinum should come as no surprise. I had a deep interest in this title ever since it was first shown, and I was kind of expecting to play it on the PS4 when it came out. As luck would have it, though, that PS4 version would eventually end up silently canned, which I guess you could say was one of the reasons that made me prioritize getting a PS5. Back when it premiered in 2020, Genshin Impact sent a massive shockwave throughout the gaming industry. "A Free-to-Play gacha game that is crazy expansive, has one of heck an involving story, compelling characters, and just looks and sounds gorgeous? That doesn't exist." Or at least that's what we thought back then. 3 years later, and now HoYoverse presents us with one of their latest projects — a sci-fi, turn-based take on their already established killer formula. I may not have played Honkai Impact 3rd before (Star Rail here is, technically, the fourth game in the series), but this space-trotting experience has so far felt refreshingly new yet familiar at the same time. Considering the success of its big sister game, Genshin, there's no doubt this one is already on its way to becoming another gaming behemoth. Ready to hop aboard this interstellar travel? Without a shadow of a doubt, one of the game's strongest aspects is its captivating story, charming characters, and carefully crafted worlds. I say worlds, in plural, because each planet feels like its own microcosm, complete with its own unique inhabitants, culture, and problems. I'm hardly a connoisseur of RPGs, but the game does give me a feeling of Star Ocean, albeit delivered through an entirely different philosophy. To understand it better, it's paramount to know a few things beforehand. The sci-fi universe of Honkai Star Rail is one in which humanity and other sentient beings follow the Paths of deity-like existences known as Aeons. Those who follow these Paths are known as Pathstriders. More important than that is that each of these Paths is based on an ideal. So, in that sense, you have characters who follow the Path of Erudition, who admire thinking and logic above all else. Then, there are those from the Harmony Path, who are all about understanding, support, and cooperative behavior. Each one of these has a different relationship with one another. They may inhabit and co-exist in certain places throughout the cosmos, but some may have a clear antagonistic role, such as the Path of Destruction led by the Aeon Nanook, which seeks total annihilation. Others may have rivalries, like the Abundance and The Hunt. And then, there are other Paths that although may no longer have an Aeon, those who walk them still carry their ideals with conviction. You, as the Trailblazer, play as a character from this last group. Led at one point by the Aeon Akivili, the Trailblaze Path is all about exploring, establishing, and connecting different worlds. In this universe, not everything is particularly clear from the beginning. The game's prologue sets out with an attack on the Herta Space Station. During it, you see a group known as the Stellaron Hunters infiltrate the space station while it is under siege from monsters of the Antimatter Legion. They steal a Stellaron that was being held there and place it inside a vessel, whose name and gender you get to decide. After you awaken, they wipe out your memory, let you know what's ahead for you, and then leave while you fall unconscious. From there, you begin your adventure as a classic anime-like amnesiac protagonist. Not long into the game, you discover your first couple of friends: the always-bubbly and endearing March 7th and the stern, somewhat grumpy Dan Heng. They are both part of the Astral Express, a group of trailblazers that travel the universe on a large cosmic train along the eponymous "Star Rail." Your new friends inform you that the Stellaron you've been implanted with, often scarily referred to as the "Cancer of all Worlds", is a destructive MacGuffin known to bring entire planets and civilizations to ruin. With the aid of your new Astral Express buddies, you then set out on a universe-trotting expedition to discover more about these Stellarons and hopefully put an end to their threat. More or less a summary of what happens later in the story Right now, there are four major areas or "planets" to visit in the game: Herta Space Station, Jarilo-VI, the Xianzhou Luofu, and the recently added Penacony. The main story arc will take you on a trip through these four as you seek not only to explore the cosmos with your companions but also to find answers and contain the Stellarons. Genshin Impact already has a very strong narrative. There's no denying that that game's focus is squarely placed on its characters and story. So seeing that replicated, and maybe even enhanced, in Honkai Star Rail is a joy to behold. Well, maybe not exactly "enhanced" per se, as that will depend on the sort of themes and fantasy settings you favor in your games. Nevertheless, HSR is unapologetic in its story delivery and how well-written the characters you get to meet are. Each character's charisma shines through whether it is through their articulate writing or their top-notch voice acting. Sure, maybe the writing can be a bit too much at times, and a couple of them may come off as a little cliché, but the developers' strong sense of world-building is always there. The main story, much like its big sister game, is not finished yet and it is something the developers will continue expanding as the years go by. But from what I've seen so far, it is a superb narrative that really brings out the best of each character's personality while also playing with the intrigue of the current turmoil of whatever planet you've happened to land at the moment. Plot twists abound, and they are of the exceptionally good kind. So, it starts somewhat light with a solid, if only slightly predictable, predicament in Jarilo-VI. There, you'll see the political conflict and divide that exists between two worlds that were once one due to the deception of a single individual. Plenty of internal questioning as to the actions of this particular person is what carries the plot here, and this first arc culminates in a rather understandable and maybe even relatable realization. That said, how cohesive everything is and the intrigue of it all is what drives the player forward in their trailblazing. A look at Belobog, one of the first cities you'll get to visit during your adventure I don't want to spill the beans on the major plot points that come later, but it is the kind of story that gets its hooks deep on you. Whether it is through neck-shattering plot twists or the deep Doylean intrigue of discovering a murder inside dreams, the game always does its best to provide story bits that are impactful, thought-provoking, and above all, engaging. And regarding the "neck thing," those of you who've played it know what I'm talking about. I really hope she's alright... And that's one thing that brings me to my next point about the story. It has some dark undertones. They are not front-and-center and more like implicit at times, but much like Genshin's Fontaine chapter, there's an effort being made here to present more adult themes. Of course, they're all evenly balanced out with lighthearted jokes and the positiveness of some of our companions, but this elasticity is what sets the game's storytelling apart and keeps you engaged without going too far. This excellence is not only reserved for the main story arc, as several of the NPC's side quests and event quests have been just as enjoyable. Granted, not all of them. I really don't want to push any more mine carts in Belobog ever again, but many others were memorable and managed to carve their way into my heart. Although you may find quest-heavy characters like Oleg and unforgettably-named NPCs like A Man Who Wishes Not To Be Named, interesting backstories touching on a variety of complex subjects abound in Honkai Star Rail. If I had to pick a couple of favorites from the ones I've experienced so far, I'd go with: From Xianxhou With Love, which deals with the complexities of being a social outcast and the loneliness that comes with it in an advanced society. Blizzard Immunity, which delivers a bittersweet finale to Natasha's long-exiled brother. That quest that involved Clara and the possibility of sentient robots, which has an excellent dynamic with Svarog, Pascal, and her; Rarely Affectionate was its name. Unlike the quest where you move mine carts, Vessel of Mediocrity, the one where you move boxes is kind of morbid and involves a child having a tragic end if you dig deep enough. More recently in Penacony, Cocona's broken dreams and crippling depression quest put a heavy knot in my heart, especially by how it played until the very end. This quest was super sweet, too! The game's compromise to storytelling is undeniable. From the million interactions you'll have with NPCs to the wealth of details hidden in every nook and cranny, there's a lot you can get here. Hell, even the trashcans that adorn Belobog can elicit all manner of neatly written (maybe even overwritten!!) reactions. I swear, in addition to the truckloads of lore you get in the form of letters, books, and documents, there's also a whole hidden lore that has yet to fully surface from the trailblazer's love for trashcans, which is something that has become kind of a meme even. Word of advice, this is the kind of stuff you don't want to look for while you visit Gelbooru or other similar sites. Trust me. All jokes aside, I wish could talk more about how you also got a phone that's both a treasure trove of sidequests and a major source of amusement from all the inconsequential occasional conversations that occur there, but also about the significant addition that represents making major events a permanent addition to the game that you can tackle whenever you want. But really, let's move over to gameplay now because I already have like 9 paragraphs of story and that's just insane. Some of your answers to these conversations are just pure genius As mentioned over nine thousand words or so ago, HSR is HoYoverse's first turn-based RPG. Although simple, there's a reasonable amount of things to consider in terms of strategy if you wish to succeed in combat. Each character is a combination of two types: a class (the Paths I mentioned earlier) and an elemental alignment. So, in that sense, characters from the Preservation Path have great defensive abilities to protect their allies; folks from the Abundance are healers for the most part; The Hunt are your single-target damage dealers; while Nihility focus on debuffs and reducing the capacities of the enemy. Couple these with Destruction, Erudition, and Harmony and you have an interesting array of possibilities you can bring to the battlefield. Furthermore, you have also to consider their elemental affinity. Enemies often have 2 to 3 weaknesses. Dealing elemental damage that they are weak to causes their toughness bar to reduce, leading them to suffer extra damage whenever a weakness break occurs. Just as the days of the week count to seven (and the elements in Genshin, too!), gamers here will get to explore seven types of damage: Fire, Ice, Lightning, Wind, Physical, Quantum, and Imaginary. You, the Trailblazer, are the only character that can adapt their Path and damage type, but everyone else is, for the most part, stuck in theirs. Get mahjong'ed, you fiend! Now, each character has a basic attack, a skill attack, an ultimate, and a couple of passive talents. Compared to other more complex RPGs which provide multiple variables to consider and play with, one can say HSR falls somewhat short here. However, once you start reaching the endgame, you'll realize the game is more about character and team-building than anything else. More of that in a bit. For the main content of the game, the story and the vast majority of its sidequests, you can easily complete those with the free 4* characters you get throughout the story. Boss battles and some elite enemies may put you on your toes, but it is here where a rather careful approach to leveling and food buffs will help you overcome those. To see the whole story, so long as you level up carefully, you should be able to see it all. Yet, at the same time, for the later stages of the game, you will have to build a roster with great team synergy if you want to have the possibility of beating everything. Stuff like manipulating turn order with the correct speed stats, balancing skill point generation and consumption, knowing the ideal time to interrupt turn order and when to use your ultimates prove critical in clearing the harder content found within the game. That's without mentioning the necessity of assembling two teams of at least 8 properly leveled-up characters. For players who value optimization, strategy, and figuring out how to beat that dreaded boss that's been stomping you for days, there's plenty of meat here. My next play is going to ensure all my future moves hurt the enemy a lot~ So, in short, the combat may be simple and with a tendency to become repetitive, but for the later portions of the game, deep thinking and strategizing with your characters is still required to make it through. It's a careful balance of making things approachable for everyone and at the same time making things deep enough for those who wish to dip their toes further. And hey, the developers were still nice enough to allow for increased speed and automatization should you wish to go through the combat at a quicker pace. Personally, I used this feature a great deal for the small fights I was sure to win and only assumed control against bosses and certain pesky enemies. The AI works decently enough on its own, knowing when to heal and attack, but if you need to play defensively or deploy a specific strategy, then it's better to assume control yourself. Randomness also plays an interesting part in the game since, depending on what characters you get, some portions could become easier or harder for you. Regardless of this aspect, charting your own path and using the ample resources the game provides you with becomes integral to beating any challenging scenario. And for those who enjoy rogue-lite features, there's also the Simulated Universe, the true endgame content of the game where you can pit your carefully built characters and teams, bestow all manner of crazy buffs upon them, and then go against all manner of super-powered bosses for extra rewards and personal satisfaction. On the opposite side of good randomness, the game also decided to keep the same infuriating artifact system found in Genshin but with relics this time around. Anyone familiar with it on that other game will know what I'm talking about. Relics in Honkai Star Rail function as the gear you equip to your character to boost them up. Thing is, getting the desired stats and then having the desirable substats boosted the way you want them is all down to luck. Sure, the game has a feature that lets you craft your own relics by using some other resources, but you still get to waste time stressing over getting things the way you need them. This Propagation boss is a pain in the ass if you are not careful how you approach this fight When it comes down to presentation, the game does remarkably well. Obviously, the PS5 port is a treat to watch running at 60 FPS and 4K, and while some might argue that a turn-based game doesn't benefit that much from those features, there's no question as to how smooth the attack animations and everything look. Colorful, crisp, vivid, and attractive are adjectives that come to my mind when looking at the game. I can confidently say that HSR's visual theme and identity are always doing their best to pop out at you. From Jarilo-VI's frigid snowy wastelands and imposing Preservation fortress smack-dab in the middle of an early 1900s European-inspired doomsday city, to the Luofu's "future China" "silkmight" aesthetics or Penacony's Art Deco and bright neon reminiscing of a place that never sleeps (despite everyone being in a dream), HoYo's penchant for showing us truly marvelous locations remains unchanged here. On the audio front, I did something interesting this time around. While I might have grown accustomed to hearing Japanese voices in my anime-style games, I'm always open to trying out new stuff. So, for my HSR experience, I decided to go with the English voice cast. And talk about a surprise, but I've been feeling really comfortable with the talent behind the game. Whether through dialogue, narration, or inner thoughts, each character's voice is masterfully realized in the English language. It didn't take long at all for me to acclimate myself thanks to the talent, excellent pronunciation, and charisma of the cast. It's important to mention that lively voice performances make up for a ton of my enjoyment of certain quests. However, in many cases, be mindful that you'll have to come ready for plenty of text-only interactions as well. Fret not, though, as sharp, expressive writing will do its best to hold your attention as well. On the music side, I reckon this game's compositions haven't been as impactful or emotional as some of the stuff I've heard in Genshin, but they are nothing short of astounding either. The music on offer by the folks at HOYO MIX continues to be very potent whether it's headbanging boss battle themes, soothing, more serene space voyage motifs, or glitzy, yet somewhat unsettling dreamy tunes. They all punctuate the actions happening on the screen in a great manner, and best of all, there's an absolute smorgasbord of them to listen to. Standouts include: Star Rail Space Walk Flashpoint Dawn of Disaster Alternative Rock Braving the Cold Faded Sun (Great Mine) Frozen March Wildfire Divine Camaraderie Warden of Jade Blade Abracadabra Deerstalker Phantylia the Undying The Big Sleep Realitätsprinzip This Side of Paradise Chaîne Signifiante The Player on The Other Side Nevermore If I Can Stop One Heart From Breaking The color composition of the Divination Commission in the Xianzhou Luofu is stunning Trophy-wise, the game sits on the easy side. However, acquiring its coveted platinum is an effort in time and dedication. A large chunk of the trophies are simply awarded by taking part in what the game best has to offer, its story. Through completing side quests, clearing companion missions, participating in major events (now made permanent), and furthering your space exploration and Stellaron-thwarting efforts, you'll acquire most of the game's achievements. Even most of the DLC trophies that have been added since launch have been related to story content. Many of them are very creatively named, so I always looked forward to popping them out. That said, there is such an astounding amount of quests in the game and they have such high amounts of information that tackling them all simultaneously could feel like a chore. Therefore, I recommend trying to clear a set number of them per day to avoid feeling "quest exhaustion." Although, I reckon this could be hard because when you reach a certain level, you'll feel like you're being bombarded with quests left and right, especially if you do as I did and focus mainly on the main arc and leave the side quests for luego. Clearing both Jarilo-VI and the Xianzhou Luofu is a must should you wish to obtain the platinum. However, besides the myriad of quests (of which I still have a handful pending to complete), your most time-consuming trophy will be Don't Make This Too Easy (III), which requires you to max out your Equilibrium level to make enemies yield better rewards. Due to the live service nature of the game, you can expect to hop on the treadmill of having to spend time and resources to level up your characters enough until they can handle the difficulty. You need to wait for your "fuel" to recharge each day and, even though you can tackle the story to your heart's content, raising up your characters is limited to having to wait for stuff to recharge. Reaching this point took me about 200 hours, twice the amount mentioned in the guide here. However, take into consideration that I like taking my time with the games to enjoy them. That and I also tackled plenty of the story, DLC included, way before I started to make a clear effort on the platinum. You'll really be going places during your HSR adventure! Also, depending on which characters or light cones you get, things change. It's all set up in a way that remains fair, but if you get blessed with 5* characters early on, things progress rapidly. Unlike in Genshin, where I got a nice number of powerful waifus to accompany me from early on, my HSR playthrough instead blessed me with various 5* husbandos... And since I'm stubborn as fuck and my team MUST be of waifus only, I purposely limited myself during my playthrough. That said, my team of March 7th, Sushang, Qingque, Himeko, Herta, Pela, Tingyun, and Yukong were more than capable of carrying me throughout my adventure. They aided me to enjoy the story and to clear a good chunk of the game. I only have 1 DLC left to obtain, Silent Running, which is for clearing a certain advanced part of the Simulated Universe, the endgame content. It'll be obtained eventually after I run some more optimizations on my team and whatnot. It's mainly a matter of time. Should you wish to tackle HSR, remember that this is a live service gacha game, with a constant stream of new content and events coming out on a schedule. The idea here is that the goal is at some point where you want it to be and you need to strive to make progress toward that goal regularly. Fortunately enough, the more bite-sized approach and automation ease that HSR presents you is enough to make it very easy to keep up with. My gals are still waiting for me to finish this quest o3o TL;DR: HoYoverse already had a winner with Genshin, but now with Honkai Star Rail out, there should be no doubts as to the level of quality these developers can produce. HSR is an exceptional free-to-play game that offers a bevy of value, stellar storytelling, engrossing characters, out-of-this-world immaculate worldbuilding, and production values of the highest caliber. The turn-based combat system on display may be a tad simple at times, but it still manages to be accessible for newcomers and deep enough for those willing to go the extra mile with optimizations and team compositions. The grind is there, as it exists with every gacha game, but the developers have made sure to address almost every concern to provide a fair and straightforward approach for everything to progress in the smoothest of ways. It truly is a live service game done right in almost every regard. For those looking to venture into a universe brimming with possibilities and excitement, Honkai Star Rail provides the best seat for an anime-style journey into the stars like no one else does.

#62 RWBY: Grimm Eclipse Fun: 6/10 Difficulty: 6/10 Combat: 8/10 Story: 3/10 A character voiced by Barbara Dunkelman: 1/1 Red enemies that are very annoying: Yes "It takes a village to earn a platinum" is definitely the story of my experience with this game. With the shutdown of Rooster Teeth coming in what is ultimately less than 72 hours, there's no real guarantee right now on how long this game will still be available on the store or how long the servers will still function. As someone who has watched these fools through animation, gaming and podcasts for over a decade, I definitely wanted something to remember it all by on my trophy profile. Any person who's watched this group half as long as I have can take a quick look at my trophy profile and see how they've influenced me. I wanted to get this game done ASAP just in case anything does happen in the near future, and I just can't say thanks enough to all the people who came through to help me, but I really do appreciate every one of them. I feel like I'm gonna give an award speech lmao. Thanks to @EqualityEarth for reaching out and giving me a lot of valuable info on the game, huge help to say the least. Thanks to @CelestialRequiem for helping guide me to different people that would eventually form my boosting group. Thanks to @Kaos085 and @Yuber6969 for being willing to help me out with rank 10 grind in case I needed an extra partner. And last but definitely not least, huge thanks to the crew @ElfenLied2003@peranza1 and @Kiba_Lockhart for helping me through this absolute nonsense of a grind. As annoying as it was at times, I'm truly happy to have this one on my trophy list haha. Edit: Also I'm happy with the platinum screenshot. Mine always end up looking like forgettable garbage but this one is pretty cool to me!

Have more faith in yourself, 11-year-old me. 🤭

Platinum #158 - Tekken 8 Rarity: 40.81% Difficulty: 3/10 Enjoyment: 8/10 I'm a big Tekken fan. I've played every Tekken game except for the first one, the fourth one, and Revolution. Tekken is the fighting game series that I would say I'm by far the most skilled in (and no, I'm not good lol). Back in the PSP days, there was a time that the only two games I had were Crisis Core and Tekken 5. I had long bus/train rides at the time, so I had a lot of practice against the hardest AI in the game. My cousins are all Tekken fans too, so I had a lot of competitive play too back in the day. This is a very easy platinum, as is the case with almost every Tekken game. I got all of the online trophies legitimately, but they should be easy to get for beginners to the genre. You only need one win each in Player Match, Group Match, and Ranked Match. You also need to beat a player's ghost. They should all be boostable with the exception of maybe Ranked Match since the online is very active at the time of writing. But seeing as how you only need one win, you should be able to eventually win against another beginner. All trophies that involve beating the AI can be done on the easiest difficulty, and there's a new "Special Style" the allows you to input combos and special moves easier. I didn't do either of those things; I played on Hard Mode whenever I got to use my main (Bryan), and Normal Mode whenever I had to use someone else. There's a combo for completing five combo challenges, but it should be doable even for beginners. It should take most people ten hours or less to get the platinum. The game gives you plot summaries of all of the other mainline Tekken games. I've been following the plot since the beginning, and it's very stupid. However, as long as you aren't expecting a BlazBlue/Guilty Gear quality story, it's very enjoyable. Tekken 8 has by far the best Story Mode in the series so far. It's very cinematic, it nostalgia-bombs you hard, and is definitely entertaining. The final boss fight gave me Metal Gear Rising vibes. I enjoyed the game, both in terms of gameplay and story. The new mechanics added to the experience without making it feel like too different of a game. I wish that there was more of a challenge, or at least more content trophy-wise, but I do plan to spend some time playing this online. This was my first PS5 exclusive, and it was a good one.

#200 and the final stop in my Star Ocean 4 journey! I finished the final stack in a blazing 213 hours. Shoutout to @x410xDragon for grinding much of the game alongside me.

💯 No. 82 - KartRider Drift Had no idea Nexon did anything other than MapleStory and Blue Archive...anyway. I played this free to play (pay to win but not in this neighborhood) kart race for the A-Z non-plat event. Had no expectations for this game...but it was actually pretty pleasant. Online was smooth, always could race against AI if opponents weren't available, crossplay, silly karts and the ability to beat mobile phone players (yeah the game is on mobile and its crossplaftorm). Plus, I could flex my sick Garfield Kart skills here Also posting this just to shoutout @Yuber6969 because we had some silly races in this game. Never believe this guy when he says he sucks at racing!

Platinum #55 Hotline Miami Trophy Addict (11.46%) Hotline Miami is a really fun and exciting game. Even if it´s not an tripple A title It tells a really good story and also this game is a masterpiece and I'm very excited to see how Hotline Miami 2 will play. The platinum trophy wasn't too easy but not too difficult either, so I recommend you give the game a try even if you don't want to complete it 100%.

Gravity Rush Remastered #18 0.01% From all of the Sony series, this is the one that has the most personality, style and timeless feeling of them all. Yeah it's not knack it's GRAVITY RUSH! A visual novel, mixed with combat, touch controls since it was released on the Vita, and a mix of cell shading-anime style which does wonders. Not only that, but the Tim Burton-esque style suits it incredibly well, and makes it completely different from the sequel which uses the bright palette of colours from the 8th gen. The combat isn't stellar, but it works. Obviously, like every niche game, it has the worst most horrendous camera of all time, which is prepared to not let you see a thing at any given moment when you're in the air, but so do Shadow of the Colossus. It's the only notorious flaw of the game, and that's a good thing. You eventually get fast and comfortable with it, and can upgrade Kat to be faster and better. The story is good, and although you get a bit lost in what's going on (and it does so many jumps to other completely different storylines), the mystery behind it and the meaning of some characters makes it feel like an fan-fiction Lovecraft book. Had a lot of fun DESTROYING @GravityQueeen times in the time trials lol You can't go into GR waiting for a masterpiece to unfold in front of your eyes. What you see is traces, and an amazing idea and concept that sadly never turned into popularity, and made Sony abandon the franchise without many inconvenients. It shows the genius of Toyama, and some of those little stories and hints of the supernatural also present in Silent Hill, but now present in a completely different story. It's the originality we all love from older generations, present in a game from this last gen. Also, the soundtrack makes a wonderful job into FEELING like a Ghibli movie, nothing to envy to Hisaishi. It's really good and it fits with the overall mood of the game. I don't really have any more to write lol. Play the game. Seal of recommendation by me. "Jeanolt®" is a trademark owned by me. "Gravity Rush®" is owned by Sony. "Gravity Rush Soundtrack®" is owned by me since I can download it. Don't tell this to Sony®. "Sony®" is owned by Sony.

Just a FYI to those who haven't been here long, but the amount of followers you have on the forums literally means nothing. Back before the forum update, they were simply called "friends" and converted over into the verbiage of "followers" as if we all joined a cult or something... Anyways, I would bet money that a ton of people who follow others don't actually follow people and have their notifications turned off for that. I definitely have that turned off for sure. 😅 So, be yourself. Don't try to post to entice people to follow you or feel like you have to act like someone else to get people to follow you. The number of followers means nothing anyways. No sane person is going to judge you for having a low amount of followers, but people will judge you for coming off as disingenuous or fake. Just some friendly advice, folks.

Platinum #208 - SoulCalibur II HD Online (PS3) Transcending history and the world, a tale of an awesome fighting game eternally retold Back during the 6th generation of video game consoles, there were two fighting games I spent hours playing on my trusty Gamecube. One was Nintendo's then-budding crossover fantasy Super Smash Bros. Melee, while the other was an outstanding sequel of a weapon-based fighter I remember having a blast on the arcades. SoulCalibur II originally debuted in 2002 and was Namco's next step in the franchise's evolution — an evolution that resulted in arguably one of the best 3D fighting games ever conceived. I believe I'm not alone when I say SoulCalibur II was pretty much the pinnacle of the series at the time. From its unique cast of characters to its nuanced yet accessible mechanics and plethora of game modes, SC II proved that its blade had everything it needed to go toe-to-toe with the stalwarts of the genre. That and much more made it a game fondly remembered by those who had the opportunity to play it. But, does this fabled blade still hold its potential, or has time dulled its sharpness? Press the start button to begin your legend Let's answer that question right off the bat. SoulCalibur II's core gameplay still holds up fantastically well today. Some really minor balancing blemishes aside, its fast and focused gameplay remains undeniably fun. For those unfamiliar with the franchise, SoulCalibur is a series of weapon-based 3D fighting games set in a historical fantasy version of the late 16th and early 17th centuries. In them, players wear the shoes of various blade-wielding characters in their search for mythical weapons: Soul Edge and Soul Calibur. At the time, the games drew gazes due to their intuitive gameplay, 8-way run feature, solid production values, and pure, brilliant fighting with a standout cast of personalities. A major reason why its sequel was such a hit at the time was due to how Namco tried to distinguish each version of the game with a unique character for the home console release in 2003. So, if you went and got the PlayStation 2 version, Tekken's Heihachi Mishima was among the fighters. If Xbox was your platform of choice, then Todd McFarlane's Spawn could be found as part of the roster. And perhaps most outlandish of them all, if you had a Gamecube, then Link, The Hero of Time himself, would wear his blade against his foes in the game. Crazy to think about it nowadays, but this was a big feature back then. Since I had really enjoyed a couple of The Legend of Zelda games when I was younger, picking this one up on the Gamecube was a no-brainer for me. SC II HD Online manages to bring 2 out of these 3 characters together — Heihachi and Spawn. Safe to say that due to this re-release only appearing on PS3 and Xbox 360 in 2013 (and Nintendo being Nintendo...), this is the best devs could work with. Concerning the rest of the cast, all the series' favorites are here. You have tight-jumpsuit ninja Taki to wear you out with her bullshit speedy moves, hulking brute Astaroth who hits like a truck with his long-range attacks, swift pokey and dancing Xianghua, rage-inducing spammy Raphael, and ample-bosom dominatrix Ivy with her whip-like blade. Whatever your preferences, the game has something for you. Personally, my mains were always stern samurai Mitsurugi with his varied katana stances and cute babe Seong Mi-na with her heavy-hitting thrusts and pokes. Ahem. Other favorites of mine included cocky springy-shoes Yun-seong and loli wind priestess Talim. So, for an early 2000s fighting game, there's no denying the character roster is hella unique. And don't forget. For all you crazies out there, there's always Voldo, too! A quick look at a partially unlocked character select screen As for the gameplay, SC II is from a simpler time when knowing which attacks or techniques to use and pulling them out fast enough was crucial for succeeding. Unlike other fighting games that rely more on combo strings, or newer SC entries that feature meter-building and super arts, SC II is all about weapon-based fighting in its purest form, where focus and reaction time prove essential. Wit and tactics are the names of the game here! Fighters have access to an array of horizontal, vertical, and kick attacks, as well as a selection of throws, all of which prove effective depending on the situation. So, for example, if you're dealing with an opponent that likes to strafe around, then a horizontal attack is sure to catch them off-guard. Does your opponent go crazy with their horizontal moves? Then a vertical attack is sure to beat them to the punch. Wanna create some distance, cause a ring-out, or set up a more powerful move? Then kicks are what you want to use. Opponent likes to guard too much? Bypass their defense with a throw. Each character has a veritable array of moves at their disposal and it's up to you to use them effectively. In addition, there are guard crushes, soul charge unblockables, and the always-satisfying guard impact parries. Compared to other fighters, it's a very traditional setup with barely any unnecessary gimmicks, making fights feel focused and reliant on anticipating your opponent's moves and then countering accordingly. The best part, however, is that all these moves are easy to pull off with just a few button presses and a specific positioning of your stick, easing the entry barrier for everyone. Strikes feel suitably weighed and are satisfactory to pull off, making matches develop in a natural way. Fights can be over in a flash, though, when challenging a skilled opponent, so you need to stay on your toes as well. Sure, there are combos that can be learned and exploited, and some characters are always going to be more OP than others, but the game's mechanics still manage to remain both simple and accessible for newcomers yet deep and rewarding for those who want to invest time to learn the intricacies. Swords are not toys! When it comes to game mode variety, Soul Calibur II could easily give some modern fighting games a run for their money. You have your traditional Arcade, Versus, and Practice modes, but you can also find Time Attack, Survival, and Team Battle options. Time Attack and Survival are self-explanatory at this point, but for Team Battle, you have to assemble a team of characters to tackle a series of fights similar to Arcade mode, with Versus Team Battle being also a possibility. Furthermore, "Extra" modes can also be unlocked to add further variation and spice to each play session. The first thing these "Extra" options do is allow you to use any unlocked weapons instead of your default ones. But, in addition to this, you can also unlock Extreme and Death Match variations for Survival. Pretty much all the standard game modes have an Extra variation. Rounding up the game modes is a Museum option, which contains character artwork, exhibition videos to see each character's fighting style, a weapon gallery option, a battle theater to organize CPU vs. CPU matches, and a profile viewer. Finally, the Options submenu contains a comprehensive selection of variables that you can adjust to tailor your fights exactly the way you want them. An Online mode is also added to this release, hence, "online" being heavily featured in the title. And what this mode does is essentially allow you to take your multiplayer fights worldwide. Ranked and Player Matches are available, but there's definitely a lack of options (such as lobbies) compared to other games. I didn't fiddle with this mode too much since I am not an online gamer, but performance-wise, I had no trouble whatsoever boosting the trophies I needed for the platinum. It was tough finding a picture of the HUD to add here The main highlight of this title, though, is its addictive Weapon Master campaign. To this day, and despite its simple approach, it remains one of the most enthralling modes offered in the series. Weapon Master tells a text-based story spanning 16 chapters of YOUR search for the mythical weapon. You can use any character you want, but it's basically a mission mode accompanied by reams of well-written text of all your adventures and mishaps in a fantasy land while searching for a legendary sword. What makes it interesting, besides the archaic yet charming text-based storytelling approach, is how it augments each encounter you have by adding new rules and win conditions based on where the story is at that point. So, basically, for some fights, you may have to defeat enemies that can only be damaged while they are airborne or when you slam them against walls, other times you'll be poisoned or have to deal with strong gusts of wind that push you toward the edge of the stage, and other times you'll find "invisible enemies" or "floating weapons" you'll have to square up against. Simply put, it gives an interesting spin on each fight. All the while you earn gold and experience points that you can use to unlock new weapons and features and even discover various characters and stages to use in other modes — compelling you to continue your adventure. There are 16 characters in the game. With an extra 8 being unlockable, this takes the total to 24 characters. Except for 4 of them, the remaining 20 can all wield 12 different weapons: 9 standard ones, 1 legendary Soul Edge, 1 legendary Soul Calibur, and 1 joke weapon. The weapons themselves are not only for aesthetics as they add their own flavor to the encounters. Some will have better reach, others will increase your offensive or defensive capabilities, a couple will allow you to guard break your opponents more easily, and a few just flat-out suck and make funny noises. All these extra weapons can be unlocked or purchased in Weapon Master and used in other game modes as well. Finally, you can also use in-game money to acquire exhibition videos of your favorite characters and even a third outfit for some of them. Not all is perfect in Weapon Master as sometimes the AI can go nuts and play borderline unfair on you, and some of the dungeon-based missions can go on for a bit too much at times, but outside of these small details, Weapon Master manages to keep the gameplay fresh while giving you an excellent sense of progression. Simple yet charming storytelling approach that puts you at the center of it all The HD treatment of this release is much welcomed, but it's apparent that Namco did only the very basic to update the game. Outside of the upscaled resolution and full widescreen support, the menus are essentially the same as the original release. It is here where some re-touching and updated character portraits would have worked wonders. A few textures and backgrounds can appear blurry at times, but that doesn't really detract from the stage's creative designs. From libraries full of dusty tomes to pirate galleons, and evil underground caverns, the fantasy world of SC II is full of imagination and joy to look at despite its age. It looks exactly how it did back then, only cleaner due to the enhanced resolution. Character design continues to remain a centerpiece, and while some of their animations might look a tad bit dated compared to what we have nowadays, their personalities still shine through. Another positive point I always appreciated about this game's presentation was the flowy fabrics of some character outfits, which allowed for some subtle (and not-so-subtle) upskirt moments with the female fighters. Appreciated this as a teen and I still appreciate it now. Judge me all you want, I don't care. One negative point particular to this HD version is the lack of Japanese voices, which were present in the original releases. Personally, I played with the English voices as I always found them well done and suitable for the characters, but if you like your games in Japanese, you might want to be aware of this change here. On the opposite end, one aspect that deserves a hands-down acknowledgment is this entry's love for an orchestral soundtrack that's chock-full of grandeur and drama. Some will say that it feels cheesy and ridiculously overblown, but to tell you the truth, it is the right kind of cheese I feel this franchise deserves. I remember the OST being epic enough back when I heard it on my old CRT TV, but listening to it today with the surround system I have now, well, I can say that it is one of the game's greatest assets. The many tracks perfectly punctuate the intensity of each clash and set the tone for each encounter. We all love highlights! Let me share some: Unwavering Resolve Brave Sword, Braver Soul Destiny Awaits No One Eternal Struggle Confrontation Sword of the Patriot If There Were Any Other Way Hellfire Quest for Glory Healing Winds Cassandra is about to be sent to a world of hurt Plenty of chance for her to sidestep there, though Concerning trophies, Soul Calibur II HD Online is quite the quick, fairly balanced enjoyable platinum. At most, you'll be spending around 20-25 hours with the game, with the vast majority of these hours dedicated to its best feature: the Weapon Master mode. It is here where you will unlock most trophies through natural progression. Edge Master, Swordsman's Soirée & Master of Arms are some of the achievements you should be obtaining after you make sure to cover everything there is to Weapon Master. Other trophies like Comrade in Arms, Sturm und Drang & One Shot is All will have you trying out some of the different modes found within the game. Out of these, only One Shot is All could prove tricky, but if you choose Kilik and go with his longest weapon and focus, you should be able to obtain this one no problem. Bloodluster sounds like a grind, but you'll have so much progress accumulated toward it by the time you're done with Weapon Master that you'll barely have to grind anything. In my case, since I played mostly with Mitsurugi and Seung Mi-na, I only had to turbo-grind for less than an hour after I was done with everything. Importantly, there are a few online trophies you need to be aware of. The longest one is Battlefield Luminary, which shouldn't be hard to obtain in less than an hour with a boosting partner. One last note regarding the game's difficulty. It may feel a bit cheap at times on certain missions during Weapon Master mode, but take in mind that, if the game tries to cheap you out, what you have to do is to outcheap it back, and it gives you plenty of ways to do this. Just as elusive as the mythical weapons, getting this game today is a fable of its own. It was delisted for most platforms and regions between 2020 and 2022. However, legend says that if you travel far east, you may be able to acquire it in some Asian temples after an arduous trial. If I were you and wanted to play this superb classic 3D fighter, I'd make it a point to buy it today before Namco catches on the fact that it's still somehow available in certain markets. True legends never die TL;DR: So the online implementation and HD repackaging may be rather basic, and some minor balancing issues do give the impression of smudges on its surface, but it is impossible to deny just how timeless the combat system is. With an astounding amount of compelling and immersive single-player content, brilliant character and stage design, and a score fit for a grand undertaking, the tale of the legendary SoulCalibur II sword continues to shine brightly to this day. Time has not yet dulled its sharpness. Getting it today is quite a pain, but if you're serious about seeing this fabled fighter in action, then do your preparations accordingly before you embark on your quest to acquire it. I guarantee you won't be disappointed at the end of your journey.

💯 86 - Abyss Odyssey Another non-plat entry that I found by pure chance. Abyss Odyssey is a 2D roguelike set in Chile where you play as a woman's spirit who tries to defeat a powerful warlock. You descend into a hole with randomly generated floors (therefore the Abyss) and you try to reach the bottom. The interesting part about this game is the combat - it feels like a fighting game. You literally have combos, cancels and special moves and you can combo/juggle enemies. The game even offers you a training mode where you can practice on the enemies ,which is an interesting thing to implement. The enemies themselves are varied, ranging from regular zombies/skeleton warriors, to centaurs, bird people and weird...samurai...mimic skeletons. They are super vicious and hit very hard, so you really have to abuse all the mechanics the game offers you and equip yourself properly like in any roguelike game, from a pool of randomly generated weapons. The most interesting aspect of this game is your ability to capture an enemy. You have a mana bar which has only one usage and that is shooting a high damaging orb that can capture an enemy's soul just like a pokeball. If you manage to capture the enemy, you can transform into that enemy and use all of its movesets. You can literally capture anyone, including bosses, with various degrees of success rates. Some enemies are so ridiculously powerful and borderline broken that you'll end up only playing as the spirits instead of the actual character you are using. It's an interesting game...but it's kinda rough around the edges. Enemies can gang on you, some hits do not register that smoothly and the traversal is pretty iffy. It took 7 hours to complete it though so I can't complain that much

💯 84 - 911 Operator I knew paying attention to Safety Training would eventually be useful (aside from actually preventing real life situations of course ) In this game, you play as an emergency operator who has to handle various emergency calls. You are assigned to a city and it's your job to send various teams to emergency situations. You can handle police matters, send ambulances to accidents or deal with fires/ hazards by sending in firetrucks. You get promoted to bigger and bigger cities (starting from small Hawaiian cities to places like San Francisco or Chicago). Bigger cities mean bigger problems so, while you have to deal with stuff like pickpocketing or cats in trees at first, you end up handling drug busts, kidnappings or even natural disasters like earthquakes. What I enjoyed about this game is not only the realism in some cases (for instance someone calling for pizza as a cover for house abuse), but also the hints you get during the loading screen can actually help you in your cases (if the oil in a frying pan catches fire, do NOT pour water in the pan). Even more, if you solve some cases without sending a team to the place, you get extra points that will help you with your final reputation score. Honestly I enjoyed this game. Even if it's a manager kind of game, it's still rather alert and asks for quick thinking. Also it's one of those games where you might actually learn some lessons that can help in real life.

Platinum #159 - The Legend of Dragoon Rarity: 17.84% Difficulty: 3/10 Enjoyment: 7/10 The Legend of Dragoon is a PS1 JRPG that was ported to PS4 and PS5. The PS5 port (and presumably the PS4 port) has two quality-of-life enhancements built into it: the ability to rewind and the ability to save literally anywhere and any time. This is my first time playing this game in any way, so my opinion of the game is based on 2024 standards of gaming; nostalgia is not a factor. The story starts slow but gets really good. Without getting into spoiler territory, the story eventually does become a "save the world from impending doom" plot frequently found in the genre, but a lot of different themes are covered; namely revenge, regret, love, religion/mythology, and racism (the real kind). Most of the playable characters are very likeable and get a lot of development with the exception of two characters, one that joins very late in the game resulting in you not getting attached to them, and the other one who gets such little dialogue that you would think they were an optional character. I was fortunate enough to not have any of the plot spoiled for me after all of these years, and was genuinely caught off guard by some of the plot twists. Combat is far more unique in this game than in any of the many games that I've played in the genre. Your regular attacks have "additions" that can be levelled up, and they are executed by pressing X at the exact moment that your character lands their hit. Doing this successfully results in the combo continuing, and if you perform the maximum number of hits for that addition, you will do a finishing move. The timing is very strict, but with the rewind feature, there's no reason that you can't be utilizing your maximum damage potential during every turn. Each character can also turn into a dragoon after enough successful hits are landed, and in this form you have stronger physical attacks and can use magic. There are also items that do elemental damage and the damage is increased by mashing X. You have many different options for inflicting damage in this game. The game has voice acting in battles and in cutscenes. Both the acting and the quality of the recording are terrible, but I was pleasantly surprised to see voice acting in a game this old as I really dislike when a game has no voice acting. While graphics are not a priority for me, I'll mention that this looks great for a PS1 game. It has a platinum that easy, short, and not tedious. Almost every trophy in the game is awarded for beating mandatory story bosses. You only have to beat three of the game's many optional bosses for trophies, and all three of them are bosses that you will pass by in the final dungeon; you do not have to look for them nor are there any prerequisites for fighting them. There's a trophy for having 7000 of the game's currency in your possession (I forget what it's called), and many people including me got this naturally. There are 50 collectables in the game called stardusts, and you only need to get 30 of them. They are not in plain sight, but the excellent platinum walkthrough on this site makes getting them painless. My in-game recorded playtime before the final boss was about 37 hours IIRC, but my actual playtime was slightly longer as a result of the many times I used the rewind feature after screwing up additions. With no nostalgia to influence my enjoyment, I would have rated this game an 8/10. I subtracted a point because the encounter rate is SO FUCKING HIGH. Seriously, it IS that bad. To put it into perspective, I maxed out all of my additions and reached high enough levels to walk over all of the endgame bosses with zero grinding. That is the only major issue I have with this game, but it was a big enough issue that the game sometimes felt like a chore. Objectively speaking, if I compare it to other JRPGs of that era, I could see this being a 9/10 or even a 10/10. I would dare to say that this is on par with Final Fantasy 7-9.

Proudly Presenting... Platinum 227... STELLAR BLADE!!! My FIRST Platinum off a PS5 Exclusive AND my FIRST Hack-and-Slash Platinum! Another barrier broke that I never expected to break! GO ME!!! So much can be said about Stellar Blade by so many... on all sides. So let's get to it! Stellar Blade proves quite a few things in gaming. First and foremost, gamers will argue about anything and everything. Whether it's the appearance of a female protagonist, an outfit on said protagonist that's been "touched up" (steer clear for your own sanity) or plenty of discussions about the trophy list when first revealed that made absolutely zero sense, gamers enjoy a heated argument. Period. Now that we have that fact out of the way, there is much more to Stellar Blade than meets the eye... both figuratively and literally. Whereas most haters and many fans can't get past EVE's looks (and yes she is gorgeous), there is plenty more to Stellar Blade. Visceral and gory M-Rated swordplay and gunplay is the core here... and it's a rough time even on Story Difficulty. Learn how to Parry and Dodge, whether against mobs of small and medium-sized foes or 20-Ton bosses... or suffer the consequences. There are upgrades to buy and new moves to learn, "exospines" and "gear sockets" to give advantages in battle as well. Needless to say, strategy is essential. This all said, there is fanservice here. After all, a protagonist as gorgeous as EVE has to fight in style. There are over 30 "Nano Suits" (with some in alternate colors in NG+), so every fan will have a favorite. From classy suits (Red Passion) to full dresses (Keyhole Dress, Cybernetic Dress) to swimsuits (Ocean Maid, Blue Monsoon, Black Wave) to things more "slinky" (Black Pearl, Cybernetic Bondage), a Kill Bill tribute (Sporty Yellow) and even a "joke" outfit (Fluffy Bear), this game has it all. There's even a barbershop quest that unlocks alternate hairstyles and hair colors and an option for "short ponytail" or the default "long ponytail" in the options menu. (My favorite outfit is Black Wave, which is a cross between a swimsuit and wrestling tights... go figure.) The music is, in no uncertain terms, pulse-pounding. I suggest listening to the boss themes with headphones on! It was my favorite part of the experience (strange I know). The story is good (although sad to be honest). There is a good length to the main plot and plenty of side quests as well. But don't expect a lot of happy side quests... just not that kind of story. There are 3 endings and a NG+ feature as well. As for trophies, you will need to do it all: collectibles, skills, bosses, endings, "save camps", Nano Suits, exospine upgrades, upgrading your sword (Blood Edge), maxing out your HP... you name it, you have to do it. Be prepared! Many are expecting a "Game of the Year" for this... not that I care about such things. I don't know if it will do that. I sincerely hope Stellar Blade will rise above the haters and people can see the entire picture rather than just EVE's looks. At any rate, I'm absolutely thrilled at going outside my comfort zone and coming home with a Platinum Trophy! May we all be able to do so!

#423 - Devil May Cry 5 Yeah, i also did the ps4 version now, since i was already used to the game. This time i finished the game in 3 days, DMD and Hell and Hell were way easier this time. Another thing, turns out that bloodstained got dlc trophies, after like 5 years? Wann know what is funny? I did 3 stacks of this game lol. Now i have something to look forward to.

What the fuck guys? Seriously? 😡 I had made it to 400th less than a week ago, and I've barely earned any damned trophies! Could you please stop removing cheaters - or, at least, ones above me in the UK... ...you're really fucking up my ascent here.

- While I was away from the forums I managed to finish a lot of games in my backlog, I also managed to focus on each game at a time which is something I never managed to do but always wanted, that also helped me deal with anxiety and other thoughts, one more time gaming helped me out of a dark place. - Resident Evil 4 (OG) 💯 - Foxyland 2 - WB - Asha in Monster World - Fenyx Rising - Alex Kidd DX - Soul Hackers 2 - Demon's Tier + - Final Fantasy VII Crisis Core - Eiyuden Chronicles Rising - Final Fantasy II -Disney Afternoon Collection 💯 -Star Ocean Second Story R - Valkyrie Elysium - Nexomon - Ghost of Tsushima - Final Fantasy - Quake II - Grandia

After a few months away from the forums because of mental health I decided to come back to the forums, gonna start the backlog battle again ♥

When in doubt, start blowing shit up. #206, #205 Resistance: Retribution P.S. I'm currently the fastest achiever for the PS5 version of the game.

#100 Stardew Valley 💜

Mastered #9 - DOOM (PS1) Almost DOOM Time for another retro post, and this time, I'll be going through one of the most influential games of all time — DOOM. But not the original MS-DOS version of DOOM that was available for PCs at the time. Oh no. Instead, I'll be taking a look at its many console ports that were released back then. You've probably heard about the "It runs DOOM" or "Can it run DOOM?" meme at some point online. Simply put, the widespread success of the original game in 1993 meant that it would eventually see ports to all major consoles of the time, leading to a wide variety of "official DOOM flavors" in the gaming landscape. The meme mocks this aspect by porting the game to all manner of devices, even some that aren't clearly intended for gaming. And while DOOM on calculators and pregnancy tests is cool, my favorite has got to be that time it was ported to a printer because why not? Anyway, I digress. Around February, I decided that I wanted to take a look at some of these console versions of DOOM. I'm conversant with the PC original and, back then, the only other version I played a couple of times after renting it was DOOM 64. But the other ports? I have no clue. All I know is that there is a world of difference between them and the original. So, to start things out in a rather nice way, I decided to jump headfirst and play what's often considered one of the best of the bunch: The PS1 version. I feel DOOM needs no explanation. You move, you shoot, you collect keys and you press a switch to move to the next stage. There's actually a lot more to it than that, but for the sake of brevity, instead, I'll be focusing more on the differences of this version for this post. If you feel like you need a refresher on what classic DOOM and DOOM II are about, feel free to check my respective reviews of the PS4 versions. We goin' back in time! Released by Williams Entertainment in 1995, the PlayStation version feels almost like the perfect port of DOOM. Almost, being the keyword here. It contains a staggering collection of 59 maps. These maps come mainly from Ultimate DOOM and DOOM II (with some certain omissions), but the game also includes at least 7 original levels that were exclusively designed for the PlayStation. Even though this port contains several enhancements from the original games, it also introduces a number of limitations inherent to the tech of the era. Believe it or not, DOOM was cutting-edge at the time, so porting it to consoles meant that several sacrifices and adjustments had to be made in order for the game to run. This PS1 version here runs on a modified engine first used on the Atari Jaguar port of the game, which is the one most of these DOOM ports tend to use. As such, it contains extensive modifications to the map's geometry for many levels. For example, some staircases have fewer steps, sectors with a high number of vertices are reduced or omitted entirely, and tall sectors have their height reduced. In addition to that, rooms are kept with a small usage of textures, and the monster count is reduced and kept to around 60-80% of the original. All these limitations lead to a game that feels a little more constrained. Like, don't get me wrong, it's still DOOM, but if you are familiar with the PC levels, you'll be surprised by the changes to some of the maps here. The smaller maps are pretty much the same and feature almost no modifications, especially those that come from DOOM II since the ones in the first game tended to be larger and more explorative in nature. That means some stages had rooms or even large sections of them completely cut off from the game. If the room happened to have a key, then that key is either no longer needed to progress or it was moved somewhere else. As with all classic DOOM games, you still need to head over to the exit to complete the map Progression is similar yet different. Instead of the episodic nature of the first game, all 59 maps are lumped together and divided into two halves: one for The Ultimate DOOM and one for DOOM II. Upon starting on The Ultimate DOOM on a high-difficulty setting (Ultra-violence) you'll immediately notice that some of the exclusive monsters from DOOM II can now be found in them. The first half of the game plays as one continuous episode of 30 maps, and the intermission text only appears after you clear one of the halves. The Super Shotgun, exclusive to the 2nd game, can now be utilized via passwords in the maps of the first game, too. Concerning the monsters, if you hate the Arch-vile in classic DOOM, then I have great news for you because that bastard is nowhere to be found in this version. According to the devs, this freak hogged so much memory due to his high number of frames that they decided to scrap him altogether. Good riddance! Due to the very limited RAM on consoles, not only monster numbers were thinned but they also got shuffled as well. Larger and more complicated monsters like the Mancubus and Spider Mastermind are absent in certain levels and only reserved for special encounters. Hell Knights tend to replace them, so you'll see an overabundance of those. If you love Chaingunners and Pain Elementals, prepare to start seeing them on the original DOOM maps now. Oh boy. The Icon of Sin is no longer the final boss in DOOM II. Instead, you get to duke it out against one or two Spider Masterminds and their entourage of Hell Barons. No secret nazis here, either. Speaking of Barons, they can now infight with the Hell Knights, which is something they didn't do in the PC version. Hit scanners like the Shotgun Guy and the Zombieman seem to pack slightly more damage. The skellies! They got neutered badly. If you remember, the original Revenants have a 50/50 chance of firing either a slow homing missile or a faster straight missile. Here, they only fire homing missiles. Moreover, both the monster and the missile speed got reduced notably, making them super easy to deal with. Finally, there's a new enemy in the game — Nightmare Specters. They are like the regular Specters but have a dark cyan transparent color to them and a lot more health. They blend well with the environments and are tougher to kill but that's about it. Is that a transparent Cacodemon? O.O On the visual side, the game's graphics engine now features higher color depth, alpha blending, and colorized sectors. All of these are put to good use in several maps to create a more eerie and foreboding atmosphere. The use of colors in sectors, in particular, does a solid job of giving these scenarios a whole darker, sinister mood to them. Although this PlayStation version renders the maps brighter than the PC original and has better color depth, many of them were considerably darkened to provide them with a more shadowy look. Some animated wall textures were also introduced for decorations and there's now a whole animated sky fire texture that's used in many maps that looks pretty dang cool. The game is also presented in a high screen resolution for its time (whopping 293 x 240!), giving it a cleaner and sharper look compared to other ports. Despite these nifty enhancements, the weapon sprites were reduced in size and many had animation frames cut, making them feel a bit choppier than the originals. Functionality-wise, they still work the same, though. The status bar of the game also got a redesign, featuring a sleeker, darker color than the original and not listing the remaining ammo types you hold. As for performance, the game is capped at around 30 FPS. It runs smoothly, for the most part, but things can dip into the mid-to-low 20s when the action heats up or there are a lot of things the game has to draw in front of you. Fortunately enough, overclocking your emulated CPU solves this issue. However, I found this funny issue where overclocking made me fall faster, making some puzzles where I had to run over ledges impossible to beat, so overclock with caution should you do that. Bobby Prince's original rocking soundtrack is not in this version. Instead, you get Aubrey Hodges' dark ambient music to give the game a more threatening and dark atmosphere. Personally, while I think this choice matches the visual aesthetic they were going for, it doesn't feel as great as Hodges' same music in DOOM 64. Still, though, they are suitable tracks for the game and help cement the foreboding and oppressive horror atmosphere. The new main title theme is also freaking cool. Finally, while the sound effects of the weapons and monsters remain largely the same, the game does feature new sound effects for pick-ups and other things. Reverberation and echo effects are added to the game as well. The porting process wasn't 100% perfect, though, as this floating health pack here reminds us And that's about it! There are plenty of other changes to the game, such as Nightmare difficulty not being present (thank fuck...) and health and armor bonuses awarding the player twice as much compared to the original, but I believe I covered the most important aspects. To emulate this game, I tried to use the Swanstation core on Retroarch to upscale my image quality. However, I found that, due to how DOOM's 2.5D graphics and internal rendering work, the emulator pretty much told me, "Yo, we can't upscale your shit here," and I was like, "Oh, okay. o3o" So I had no choice but to play this one without the upscaling but with the texture warping correction, overclocking, and other benefits provided by the emulator. Another thing worth pointing out is that, since this is an early PS1 game, it doesn't have analog stick support. Therefore, your aiming is entirely digital and controlled with the D-Pad. Now, that sounds like a nightmare alright, but fortunately, I was able to tweak that and force it into my left stick. It still felt digital as all hell but way more bearable in my mind. For the achievements, out of the games I've completed, this one so far has the largest amount of them at 215. That's just an insane amount of achievements. The first thing you need to have in mind is that the game doesn't support memory card functionality. Since saving mid-map is impossible and I'm playing in Hardcore mode, which disables savestates, that means that the difficulty and tension of each map are significantly increased due to having to complete each in one sitting. Thankfully, though, you can continue your progress via short passwords should you die. Not only you can continue more or less with what you left with passwords provided by the game itself, but there are also plenty online you can use to either pistol-start or max-status-start your way into each level. Convenient. The use of colorized sectors really gives these maps a whole different tone As for what the achievements entail, most of them are obtainable by beating all maps on the hardest Ultra-Violence difficulty setting and getting 100% kills and secrets. Truth be told, I was actually struggling with the secrets because, at first, I was using a map guide from the PC version. Since some of the maps differ considerably, I often found myself humping a lot of walls and trying to guess just how much of the maps was cut off. Fortunately, I ended up finding the actual PlayStation maps with some advanced Google-fu like about 1/3 of my way in. Also, a few levels have bugged secrets and enemies due to the porting process, so I had to be aware of that as well. Besides those and racking up kills with your weapons, there were a series of other fun achievements. For example, I'm more about big guns! forced me to play pistol only until around level 11, Refinery, which is the earliest point where you can find the BFG tucked away in secret over some radioactive slime. All kinds of tastes & All kind of meals! both required me to password-start at a certain point in the game where I was sure to encounter all enemies to kill them. Take in mind that this includes boss enemies as well, so it's tough. Best friends is just hilarious. Just shoot the BFG and walk alongside the energy ball in a large open area for as long as you can. Better than Turkey Puncher 3, aside from the DOOM 3 reference, this one was best done in the first map. You need to kill all the enemies in the level while having the map always active. Using your third eye and memorization are essential for this one. This is like an overkill of achievements o3o Other fun stuff included: Sever the Kindness, for beating any of the levels from the original DOOM's hardest set of maps on pacifist. That is, without killing anyone or even doing your punching animation. Surprisingly, it wasn't as hard as you'd think it was. I can do this all day had me completing 20 maps in a row without dying. Since you can do this on the easiest difficulty setting, it's hardly difficult. The real highlights here, though, are Just another day, to save the earth & Born for this, for speedrunning both The Ultimate DOOM and DOOM II in less than 2 hours on Hurt Me Plenty or Above. The first DOOM wasn't so hard but it still had me freaking out at some points. The one for DOOM II is a lot more difficult since a lot can go wrong during that playthrough. And it actually did during my first attempt, which forced me to start all over again. For experienced doomers, this one can be kind of tough, so I can imagine it must be quite a challenge for someone without experience in the series. Finally, You're just big talk, for beating the Cyberdemon on map 23 using only your fists. Yeeeaaaahhh... This one IS tough. Or more than tough, luck-dependent. It took me a bit to figure it out, but essentially, what you have to do is play on UV difficulty and lure the Mancubus and Lost Souls enemies in the map for them to infight the Cyberdemon. There aren't too many of them and the big fuck can easily overpower them, so this one took several tries. A lot of the time, the Cyberdemon would just annihilate everyone. Other times, it would just annihilate me. Remember that this thing can kill you in like one or three rockets depending on the dice roll even if you're fully maxed out. All in all, I'd say this was a moderately difficult set of achievements for DOOM. Compared to the PS4 ports that had me playing on Nightmare with a reduced screen, I'd say that one is a lot tougher. I could swear I've visited this room already TL;DR: While I haven't tested the other console ports yet, I can confidently say that this version of DOOM does a great job at almost matching the original while bringing it closer to its horror inspirations. It may not replicate the original PC experience fully, but for a console port with its unique visual style and music, an expanded selection of maps, and the same sublime shooting experience the game is known for, I'd say Almost DOOM here is one port worth checking out. Now, I want to know, because this has been puzzling me for a while... who the hell is that guy in the cover art? No way in HELL that's Doomguy. They really took some liberties with the artwork there, didn't they? o3o The next two retro posts are going to be about DOOM games, so stay tuned for those! =D

100th platinum achieved! I chose Call of Duty: Black Ops III to be my 100th platinum, because my very first trophy on this account happened to be in that game. That combined with its platinum having an insane rarity of just 0.76%, made it the perfect choice. It was a massively painful grind to say the least, but so worth it! 😆

#51 - Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 (PS4) ______________________________ I wouldn't let my worst enemy play this comically boring game. Between liking the original, and loving the third game on the Nintendo Switch, I thought the second game would be fun, too. Nuh-uh. This game inflicts emotional terrorism with its monotony and absolutely despicable collectibles. Uninstalled this game from my PS5, and nearly uninstalled my life in the process, just so I couldn't use my agency to make the same mistake twice. Hyperbole aside, this game sucks. I'm ready for Team NINJA's Nintendo Switch entry to wash the taste of this bullshit out of my mouth.

#422 - Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition Got the platinum in Devil May Cry 5 and man was this was one annoying. The annoyance comes from beating the game 7 times...... which 5 of those runs had to be done with s ranks. Outside of that i enjoyed everything else about the game. Dante Must Die S Ranks and Hell and Hell S Ranks really tested my patience with bullshit. I died on mission 8 with nero many times for the most stupid reasons. And the moment i actually beat that stupid mission without getting hit i actually managed to also get the required 5500 Style points for that mission, meaning in that run i could die at least 2 times but of course i did not. And this happened a lot for some reason..... And of course after getting those s ranks you had to do bloody palace..... Bloody palace is basically a survival mode with 101 waves.... With 20, 40, 60, 80, 90, 98, 99, 100 and 101 being bosses..... Seriously why has every game i touch a survival mode, this needs to stop..... Not that bloody palace was hard, doing it 4 times however is tiresome. As for characters i like them a lot. With the newcomers nico and v the game got two new awesome characters. What also is funny is that some ideas from dmc devil may cry (the reboot with f u dante) were taken over to the new games. I mean just for an example nero looks is kinda similar to reboot dante. They even share some personality traits, nero however is by far not as bad as the reboot dante and overall the better character. Going away from the reboot my favourite character by far is vergil, with dante a close second. The dynamic and rivalry between the sparda brothers is the still one of the coolest and funniest things i saw in video games. With Vergil being more stoic and serious and dante being childish and playful, their interactions are most of the time hilarious. There is only one last thing to add. For anyone wondering how the hell vergil got a child (nero), those were the moves that made neros mom fall in love with vergil (source trust me bro).

Platinum #50 - Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed It's over. I'm done. Five years of this being my white whale Platinum have finally come to an end. I have it now. ...So where do I go from here, exactly? Let's just cut to the chase. This was HARD. Like, "pick a religion to follow just so you have a god to ask why you deserve such cruelty" hard. Easily my hardest Platinum of all time, and I don't see that being topped any time soon, if ever. This makes even the likes of Crash 1 seem like a complete joke in comparision. The level of precision, skill, practice and spite you need to see this list through is out of this world, and if you're considering going for this one, buckle up and prepare to be tested. This is a demanding, brutal game to Platinum that refuses to pull any punches and expects the world from you. First and foremost, there's much more to do here than in the original by a huge margin. You have to do the Grand Prix cups twice, the World Tour campaign trades out a small list of missions for a lengthy, multi-area career mode, and Time Attack is practically guaranteed to consume as much of your time as does your soul. Everything that can be done on the highest difficulty will require you to do so. You better be an incredibly skilled racer if you want to see the end of this game. Computer-controller racers will drive better than you, score requirements will barely be out of reach, and time requirements will be require shaving miliseconds. Yokozuna was the big roadblock here. Some of these Expert Ghosts are borderline impossible, and you will have to optimize your run to squeeze as much saved time as possible. I mean, for Christ's sake, you have to race better than the developers. I should not have to explain why this is so strenuously difficult. It is a ruthlessly hard game, one that does not let up should you choose to 100% complete it, but it's also such a fantastic experience. It's a gold-standard kart racer with incredibly responsive controls, excellent track design, impeccable presentation and a sick core gimmick. It is made with such love, care and reverence for the SEGA games it pays tribute to, and while some noteworhy series get left out in the cold (such as Puyo Puyo, which upsets me specifically), every character and location is stunningly, lovingly recreated, and it shows just how much they cared about the source material they were working with. As hard and frustrating as this game can get, it is through and through an outstanding racer and I don't at all regret the time I spent here. Next time I get a Platinum trophy, it'll be nowhere near as straining as this. I think I've earned a breather, personally.

Happy Friday, PSNP! Going to work more on Star Wars Episode I: Racer this evening. The plan is to platinum it tomorrow for Star Wars Day. Other than that, not real sure. What about the rest of you?

💯 No. 83: Xeodrifter Yet another 100%, but this one was a real treat. Xeodrifter is an indie 8-bit metroidvania where you play as a small astronaut trying to recover a warp core and get back home. In his travels, this astronaut fights on 4 different planets, collecting powerups and fighting various aliens including the bug monster that stole the warp core. What I liked was how enjoyable the game was, despite its length. Also the powerups that you get are quite interesting and not really metroidvania-ish. You have a power that teleports you between a background plane and the normal plane, you have a running skill that lets you run over lava, a rocket that propels you upwards, a plasma cannon that blows walls and a small teleporter. Your gun can also be upgraded to shoot small pellets, large pellets or pellets spread in a wave pattern. The one downside is that the game wasn't really that long, but I don't think it bothers me THAT much Again shoutout to @Yuber6969 for playing it first and giving me some tips regarding a certain speedy trophy Fun game, if you want an afternoon metroidvania to enjoy

Platinum #77- Arcade Game Series: Ms. Pac-Man OK I did most of this without the cloud save method. But for the last two trophies I finally gave in and used the cloud saves to my advantage. I'll probably do pacman soon. Maybe next but maybe not, as for what I thought of the game? It's ms pacman, it's a classic for a reason.

#284 - The Legend of Korra Well this was an unexpected surprise! Usually action games that are based on an existing cartoon IP kinda suck, but apparently not this one! Legend of Korra is based on the show with the same name (the sequel of Avatar the Last Airbender) and you play as the titular Korra, the current avatar, master of all 4 elements and sassy protagonist extraordinaire. I expected some light punch kick game with mild platforming and some silly grunts, but what I got was a proto-Metal Gear Rising/Devil May Cry where a sassy girl beats the everliving crap out of fascist chi stealers. Really did not see that coming...oh well, maybe I should have watched the show 😅 The highlight of this game was the combat for me. You have the 4 elements Water, Earth, Fire and Air at your disposal and each of them have their unique style. Water deals with long range, splashing those pesky out of reach enemies with mineral water. Earth is for the bigger grunts, slamming rocks and chunks of pavement towards anyone who dares sitting next to you. Fire is the "Fist of the North Star atatatata" kind of hits where you throw a ton of hits and end everything up with a barbeque and Air is...well...it's kinda the strongest element, you summon tornadoes and dragon punch everyone into oblivion. Paired with some sick dodge and parry buttons, you could imagine why I liked this one You also have 2 "minigame" modes - Pro bending where you have a 3v3 match and your aim is to knock opponents out of a ring, and Naga run where you run on the back of a polar bear...dog? in a Temple Run kind of stage. They were interesting...but honestly I couldn't wait to be done with them just so I can throw more fire hands at enemies. Unfortunately what lacks in this game are the enemy variety. You have the aforementioned Chi blockers, some ghosts, some mean robots, other benders like you (who are just punching bags really) and a final boss. This feels a bit like a wasted potential, because you have all those sick moves and nothing to really flesh the systems out. Also, if you haven't watched the show, you won't really know what the hell is going on. This game takes place between season 2 and 3 and considering that I couldn't get past the 3rd episode of Season 1...yeah, had to ask my wife explain to me why am I attacked by black frogs all of a sudden. Also the game is delisted so unfortunately getting this one is rather tricky, thanks to @CelestialRequiem for providing a copy and honestly pointing me in the direction of this game, because I didn't know a thing about this game in the first place. Still, it was a surprisingly fun time. It's fun to play a game where the elements actually have that oomph behind them.

#616#769 FFVII Rebirth (Review and Ranking will be included in a future Super Scientific Batch - HERE )

#418 - Wolfenstein II:P The New Colossus Finally did it. Almost a week worth of pretty constant attempts but I finally managed to do mein leben!

Platinum #267 Remember Me (PS3) This largely forgotten (ironic lol) action adventure platformer was DON'T NOD's first outing on PS3 and ended up being a pretty good time. It's a far departure from the Life is Strange games these guys are know for making. Instead of the point and click walking sim style games of LiS, this one has you platforming and beating up futuristic soldiers/mutated humans in the name of liberating people's memories from the corpos that want to suppress feelings all together seemingly. You play an 'Errorist' Mind Hunter named Nillan that's tasked with remixing key people's memories with this sort of mind hack power she has in order to rearrange events and change the outcome of certain things. The combat in this game is pretty unique in that it's all combo based. Hit enemies with just single blows and you'll get no where fast, but beating them up with certain combos you can arrange and customize will lead you towards the path pain and vengeance. The game holds up pretty well for being 10+ years old, apart from the controls feeling a bit stiff when you first start playing. Going back and playing older PS3 games is such a vibe, they really don't make them quite like they did back in that generation. I'm trying to show my PS3 some more love this year since I've still got a decent sized backlog for it. Hopefully I can keep sprinkling these older games into my rotation so I make a significant dent.

#618#771 Kentucky Route Zero (Review and Ranking will be included in a future Super Scientific Batch - HERE )

#147 Difficulty: 4/10 Enjoyment: 9/10 Grind: 5/10 Time: 82 Hours Rarity: [Very Rare 6.1% / Rare 20.17%] "Not exactly a fairy tale beginning huh." *I'll work on a more rich post after my 100% completion (if possible), this is only the first part detailing my journey to get the plat and my thoughts on the game (Royal Edition). It's finally time for my trip to Final Fantasy 15!!! This is one of my favorite looking FF games, I like a lot the mixture of modern times with fantasy, and how it's just the most casual thing haha. I finished FFXV story in 35 hours and I can say I really enjoyed it. I can't speak for FFXV vanilla since I've only played Royal Edition and I can say that Royal Edition is pretty good, but is nowhere near to other FF games in quality lets be honest. The biggest sin of this game is how the story is told, it's mandatory to watch the movie Kingsglaive and the anime Brotherhood to understand the game, and I did just that, so I could grasp better the story. So this FF game is a very special one for me, it's a very casual FF experience and despite the development hell it went through, this is still a fun game to play. It has some awesome freaking cool looking moments but it happens near the end of the game, the summons in this game look incredible. As for the OST well I can really say it's not that memorable, being honest I only remember like 3 tracks and one of them is Stand by me, (which btw I really liked the opening for this game, it is so simple but yet I like pushing a car while listening that song). The main cast is by far my favorite thing about this game. Noctis at first glance may look like the typical emo edge lord but he is nothing like that at all, that tittle is between Cloud and Squall haha. But seriously, the bond between Noctis, Ingnis, Prompto and Gladio has is so damn natural that they truly look like a group of friends going on a journey, I remember one part when someone gets mad at Noctis and you can really tell the tension in the air and go like "yep, that's how it is." If you are looking for a casual FF experience this is a great game, it has some "unique" things since is a open world and follows the formula but hey it is pretty good looking world to explore. So far all Final Fantasy games I played I always leave with some good memories and I remember all fondly and FFXV is no exception. Totally recommend it! And another FF platinum goes to the collection!!! I spent 82 hours doing this and oh boy it was pure fun and good moments! Despite this game being rushed and having the story told in a very bad way, that is in multiple media forms like the movie, anime and the dlc, I really enjoyed this game so far. The platinum for this game is really easy since the trophies are very simple, I played the entire game on normal and I've only got a game over once on Cerberus (which is a Royal Edition exclusive I believe) and that was only because I wanted my party to die so I had the chance to use a megaphoenix but I ran out of time hahaha, you can play on easy to speed the plat. One tip I can give is to using the car as least as possible and just run hahaha it will save grinding time later for the survival skill, it took me 8 hours to level it up in the endgame, but being honest running around from place to place is no fun and it can make your game experience worse, since going in the car has a lot of good moments, so if you don't mind throwing some extra hours for grinding afk don't bother running and use the car, other than that the fishing skill can take some time but nothing to hard, leveling the other 2 skills is pretty easy. And the big turtle can be instantly killed with the ring of Lucii so no big deal there either. There are a lot of trophies remaining, and a lot of work to be done but I'm so glad to have this plat. Totally love this guys!!! They truly are the best! *I played and am currently playing on the physical Royal Edition, which brings a code that access all dlc (except for the Ardyn dlc which you'll need to buy) content including comrades. This code expires on June 2028, I paid 40 bucks for my sealed copy. But be warned!!!! If you are looking to get the RE for 100% you must buy the physical copy corresponding to your region, if you buy another regions copy the code won't work, to my knowledge.

Just reached 13000 trophies, getting closer to the big 15000 which is the great milestone I'm trying to achieve, really happy 😸

Attention, PSNP! Just got my 200th day of having the highest daily reputation! Now you can go back to whatever you were doing.

May the 4th be with you! Platinum #119-Star Wars Episode I: Racer

#617#770 Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown (Review and Ranking will be included in a future Super Scientific Batch - HERE )

Platinum#79- Samurai Shodown: NeoGeo Collection Another platinum clean up, this game only had one trophy left to get. So I did it in under a hour once I stopped being stubborn and just did it the easy way. I had to fight and defeat a secret character in samurai shodown 2, the requirements to do this normally are really annoying. However you can just have a 2nd player connect, use it as a punching bag and it still works. The fight itslef wasn't too bad but I did use the games savestate system. Look if it's there I'm going to use it. 🤣 This collection of games is great and I highly recommend it, the trophy list is easy enough if your not too proud to use the provided savestate system it provides for all the games. The ps5 stack of slipstream was going to be my next plat. But I ran out of time last night with like 20 minutes of work left to do in it so that should be done really soon when I go on my ps5 later today. Right now I only had access to a ps4 hence the samurai shodown plat.

10 years today since I joined! Time flies.... I remember when this whole site used to be a field 😀

PlayStation 2 fishing rod controller (2003), a rarity. Almost no one knows about the existence of this control. Very niche!

#410 and 💯% Completion #462 BioShock Infinite (PS4) A Couple of Quick Thoughts!! So, with this game now complete, i now have the 100% in the entire BioShock series, which I'm pretty pleased about.... That being said - what did I think about the game? Honestly, I really like BioShock infinite, very much actually, but - and yes, this is quite a big but.... I think it's probably my least favourite of the three. I do think it's very good, but I also feel like the way this game plays out is probably why we've not seen a BioShock 4 yet, because they rather wrote themselves into a corner with Infinite. I feel like from a gameplay perspective it's the absolute pinnacle of the series, and that really can't be denied, yet, I also feel like something is a little lacking in the atmospheric department. Possibly this is down to personal preference though - I prefer the claustrophobic shut in feeling of Rapture, whereas others might prefer the openness, and almost reverie-like feeling that Columbia gives off. I don't know, some aspects of this just didn't really do all that much for me.... Booker Dewitt is a little bland, and a pretty bog standard Troy Baker performance, I understand that none of the previous BioShock protagonists feel that compelling either, but their silence sort of forces the issue of putting yourself in their shoes. Whereas Elizabeth, she's much more engaging, yes she's a pretty intriguing character... at least until the DLC makes a bit of a mess of her. It's a little up and down the state of BioShock DLC, I think Minerva's Den in BioShock 2 is incredible, whereas Burial at Sea sort of feels like some really poorly thought out fan fiction, written by someone who idolises Elizabeth as a character, and felt the need to anchor her to every foundation of the original BioShock games, and the world of Rapture. The irony is, it's very fun to play, and I very much enjoyed it, it's just the more I thought about the implications of certain developments, I kind of found myself wondering "okaaaaaaaaay then" or doing my best Phoebe from Friends impression and just out loud being like "Uhhuh.... yeah.... okay" I sound like I didn't enjoy it? But I did, I do think this is a very good game, and at times I found it incredibly difficult to put down and stop playing. I also really respect how dark Infinite went with some of it's thematic elements in both the story, and the various pieces of Lore in audio recordings that can be found around Columbia, this game does do world building in an incredibly efficient and clever way.

Proud to finally say it, for real this time! 29: DOOM (2016) What a journey this has been. Nearly 100 hours of ultra violence (and a short stint on Ultra Nightmare), enduring that abominable multiplayer, and more glory kills than I can count. DOOM is the pinnacle of high octane, in your face, unrelenting violence. Rip and tear, until it is done. I ripped. I tore. It is done.

#283 - Brawlout Finally putting my PS Extra to work and played this Smash clone. Unlike the mess that was Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl, this one had a little more personality, I liked the graphics and the gameplay more. However, most of the trophies were online only...online which is dead and buried. The one challenge was Arcade Mode, having to defeat every Arcade tower without losing a stock/life/whatever that line is when you fall off the screen and die. Also not sure why this game is so rare, but I'll take it for now, I have 2 Smash clones played without actually ever playing Smash Bros.