Most Recent Platinum

[Intoner_Zero]

#170: Zero Time Dilemma

 

 

Or in more relatable comparisons, how to establish extreme motivation coupled with "how I met your mother" master plans. (／ロ°)／

Solid 8/10, Uchikoshi~

Edited September 3, 2022 by Bittersweet

[RedRodriguez87]

 

 #413: Splinter’s Favorite

 

Actually thought about documenting my thoughts on each individual game, but at about the halfway point of my playthrough of fall of the Foot Clan, I realized I just wasn't having any fun with the rest of the collection, So I said screw it let's get it done.

 

Can't help but make comparisons to a more recent compilation release, Sonic Origins. From the outset they seem to have the same amount of contents going for them, but I guess I feel Sonic Origins did a lot better in his presentation than the Cowabunga Collection did, With their inclusion of an interactive menu and additional animated scenes. The CC did have a wider variety of games included As opposed to Sonic Origins, which I can list as a plus. Konami could have easily just had their more memorable and/or well-received arcade games in the list, but the fact they decided to dig deep into their portable collection I can appreciate.

 

At the end of the day, I would say about Both of these collections is to wait for at least one price drop.

[percy547389126yv]

#1,482 PS5 version of Desert Journey: Nitro

[LDCurtiss]

 Platinum #133 

Edited September 3, 2022 by LDCurtiss

[Lightsp33d1987]

 

[X_Wizi_X]

 #192 Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time

 

 

Prince of Persia
Obtain all other trophies

 

 

 

Returning to clear the backlog with some old Ps3 games starting with Prince of Persia series

[Merty]

 #59 - Assetto Corsa Competizione

Difficulty: 5.5/10

Fun: 8/10

 

Had a great time with this game despite the tiresome endurance events in the career mode.

 

[MrGarland]

Platinums #143 (PS4, EU version) & #144 (PS5) Cyber Shadow

 

 

 

Difficulty: 6/10

Enjoyment 8/10

 

Last time, I said I was looking for a challenge and mentioned this game would do it. Now that I got done, did I get it? Yes, and perhaps more than that, but now I'm getting ahead of myself. First, let me say a few words about the game first.

 

I discovered this game shortly after it was released. I read the review, as well as the interview, from a gaming magazine which got me interested. Since then, I've been planning to start it for more than a year. Once I got some of the games from my backlog done, I started planning to start this and finished it recently.

 

What about the game itself? It's done in 8-bit style which is nice. I haven't played those games for a long time. As for the plot, it was ok, but everything else was better. Gameplay, but most importantly, the music. Once I heard the theme song at the title screen, as well as the song on the first level, I knew it was going to be great. It even has some good boss battles, as well as some changes in gameplay, like that motorcycle ride. It's nice to have variety.

 

Unfortunately, as much as I enjoyed this, I do have something negative to say about the game. First of all, the invincibility frame is way too short. It only lasts about a half second. This wouldn't be a problem, except that there were so many moments that I ended up dying just because there were so many things trying to kill me and got surrounded which resulted in me dying in a short amount of time.

 

Another thing I really didn't like about was the fact how limited the checkpoints are in the game. At first, it's generous, but by the time you reach the last few Chapters, the distance between the checkpoints starts to become outrageous. You can try to play as carefully as possible, but sooner or later you're going to make a mistake and you're sent back. This was easily my least favorite thing about the game.

 

As for the challenge, you are tasked to do 3 playthroughs, in order to get the platinum. The main playthrough was all about learning everything, as well as getting a shitload of stage/boss related trophies. The no HP/SP playthrough was without a doubt the hardest part and that turned out to be more challenging than I thought it would. The speedrun wasn't that bad to be honest when compared to this. The main reason it's difficult is that most of the enemies/attacks kill you in 2-3 hits, so you have to be cautious. With enough patience and knowledge, I managed to do it.

 

Then there's the speedrun. Normally, this would be something I'm not very good at, but guess what? It wasn't. In fact, it was easier than I thought. Thanks to all the speedrun Titles I did in Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance earlier this year, the speedrun in this game was pretty easy for the most part. When I reached Chapter 6, I got there within one hour on the playtime (PS4 version). For the PS5 version, I made it in under an hour, with a few minutes to spare so I managed to be a bit faster than on my first run. You can see my speedrun records (as well as my deaths) at the end of this post. I also tried to do it without deaths, but because I messed up and forgot to backup my save before I jumped to it from one save file to another at some point, I decided to accept deaths, but ONLY if I died within a few seconds or so. Dying during a boss battle for example, was a no-no.

 

Also, in case you're wondering what my least favorite part in the game was, I'll tell you. Chapter 8. I picked that for two reasons. First off all, the starting area. You're standing next to a bottomless pit most of the time and there's a ton of obstacles standing in your way. To put it another way, it was impossible for me to rush through this part. Second, revisiting the robot factory and that goddamn cave. Want to guess why? The distance between checkpoints. Enough said. The only good part about that Chapter was the bike ride sequence. Shame that he got turned into scrap metal by a certain someone.

 

You might've noticed that I did the PS5 version as well. I don't know why I did it, but I got it done anyway. I guess I wanted to challenge myself and see if I could do it again which I did. And no, I'm not doing the NA version. Doing it twice was enough. Also, in case it isn't obvious, this is the hardest stack I've done.

 

As for how I did it, I decided to do things differently this time. Rather than jumping to another version after finishing the first one or starting another playthrough after completing one, I did it this way: whenever I managed to get a certain amount of trophies or reached a certain point in the game, I switched to a different save file and versions. The order I did that was: 100% > no HP/SP upgrades > speedrun. Version-wise, it was PS4 > PS5. This was for the following reasons. Not only to use my knowledge about the game and try to do section X better than the first time, but also to reduce the frustration.

 

Before I wrap this up, here's a little bonus. Included are my records from both versions, as well as some clips from my "awesome" gameplay clips. The battle against Tunnel Cleaner was my favorite boss in the game. If there's any reason for that, it's because it's fast-paced. The music says that much. And yes, that's how many times I died in the PS4 version.

 

Playthrough records (PS4)

 

Spoiler

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Playthrough records (PS5)

 

Spoiler

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By the way, when I started the first speedrun playthrough, I had a goal of beating the game in under 2 hours. When I reached the final boss, I honestly thought I wouldn't make it as I took my time with the final phase of that battle. To my surprise, I actually did it. Twice in fact. I knew I'd make it in the PS5 version, but the fact I got it done in the PS4 version as well is something I didn't think was possible.

 

And that's how I experienced this. Aside from all the negative things I've said, this game was surprisingly good, although quite frustrating at times. To sum up my experience, these platinums took me more than a thousand deaths, countless retries and reloading the backup save from PS+ way too many times. Not only that, but the platinums were somewhat exhausting. As a result, I'm going to take some time off before I resume my next project. It will be needed, as I don't want to push myself too much and the next game isn't going to be that easy. If it's not easy, it's very annoying. I am, however, playing some of the games I got the platinum from, just to take things easy. At least I'm proud of being Ninja Master (platinum trophy name).

Next project: What I'm going to play next? I'll say one thing:

 

Spoiler

Worst DLC ever. I probably don't have to say what game I'm referring to, right? I gave up on it once, so maybe this time I'll get it done. Hopefully I can finally bring this four year journey to its conclusion. The sooner, the better, though it's going to happen after my break.

[Kefka1986]

Platinum #139 - The sexy brutale

 

 

Difficulty: 1/10

Enjoyment: 5/10

 

I read some thing about this game a while ago and I only remembered it toyed with time-loops and puzzles to save victims, so after seeing that it was on sale for only 3 euros, I gave it a try. The game is short and has great ideas, but I guess the budget for the game wasn't high enough to perform them all with their full potential. 

 

Without spoiling anything relevant, the main plot of the game is saving people from some gruesome deaths. You will be repeating over and over the same day, trying to change things in order to save these people. After saving each one of them, you will get a new "power" which unlocks new zones or abilities and let you encounter other people to save. The problem is that the puzzles for saving them are usually very simple so there is no real difficulty, and the time-loop mechanic is only an excuse to learn the pattern of that death and find out how to prevent it. There are no consequences for saving anybody, as after saving someone, you get the new power, the day resets, and that person will continue doing the same thing that they did (and therefore, they will die anyway). Saving someone doesn't have any consequences for other victims, which could have been cool (i.e you save X, and because X is alive, Y now interacts with them and their actions for the day change)

 

I liked the story a lot though, and the ending was great. Even if this game could have been something better with a higher budget, I don't regret buying and playing it.

[percy547389126yv]

#1,483 PS4 version of Shapeu

[Biscoito18]

 #140 - Martha is Dead

San Casciano

Platinum in 3 weeks, 5 days

Rarity: 45.31% (Uncommon)

Difficulty: 2/10

Enjoyment: 7.5/10

 

Funny that in this version (PS4) the platinum tile is the same as another trophy. In the PS5 version the platinum has a unique art. Sigh.
I think LKA needs to improve its storytelling. It gets very convoluted towards the end and ends up lessening the impact of the constant revelations and insinuations made. That said, the art is gorgeous, the soundtrack is inspiring and the gameplay is better than their previous game (which isn't saying much).

 

Favorite song:

 

 

 

[percy547389126yv]

#1,484 PS5 version of Super Sunny Island

[Deluziion90]

#523 - The Last of Us Part I

 

It can't be for nothing
Collect all trophies

[percy547389126yv]

#1,485 PS5 version of Beaver Run

[Louis-Lewis]

I just got the platinum for Way of the samurai 4, took me 165 hours all up but the first 30 hours or so were just enjoying the town. It’s another game that I loved but the trophy list turned it into a chore. 

[percy547389126yv]

#1,486 PS5 version of Shapeu

[percy547389126yv]

#1,487 Windmill Engine

[Shivora]

 Platinum 172: Stray (PS5) 

All Done - 34,19% (Uncommon)

 

Fun levels:

Cica 10/10

 

I can't say I was invested in the story or the gameplay, but sometimes all you need to be happy is to look at a cat for a few hours. I have 2 of them so trust me.

 

 

 

Edited September 4, 2022 by Shivora
formatting

[Shivora]

 Platinum 173: Far Cry 4 (PS4) 

Master of Kyrat - 16,21% (Rare)

 

 

Fun levels:

Story 7/10

Gameplay 7/10

Soundtrack 8/10

 

Finished this up after 5 years. It has some good moments (I like that song from Punjabi MC and Pagan is fun to listen to) and none of the trophies are very annoying. The multiplayer ones can take some time to find a match, it took me around an hour in total on weekend evenings.

 

[Luckman]

#600 - Earth Defense Force 5

 

Difficulty: 7/10

Enjoyment: 9/10

 

My friend introduce me to this game and I gotta say this game is fun because of all the chaos and playing with other players. I asked my friend what name should I put in and he said to put "Colossal Aspex" and him being "PaleWing." This game is very forgiving than 4.1 because there are five difficulties (Easy, Normal, Hard, Hardest, Inferno) for over 100 missions and 4 characters, and completing a mission on Hard Difficulty will also count for normal and easy. Therefore, it can stack but not for Inferno and Hardest. The hardest part of the game as I mention is Inferno, especially in the 100s. I also decided to have this game as my milestone, as this game is time-consuming. Now up next is EDF 6 on JP.

 

 

Edited September 4, 2022 by Luckman

[percy547389126yv]

#1,488 PS4 version of Platty Bird

[DrBloodmoney]

  534

 672

 

 

Etherborn

 

A loosely narrative driven puzzle game from Altered Matter, Etherborn sees the player take the role of a semi-translucent, voiceless humanoid entity, born into a strange, ethereal world, and traversing a series of geometric, gravity-bending puzzles as the being seeks, and travels towards, its disembodied voice, seeking to become whole.

Mechanically, Etherborn is pretty cool. Playing as something of an amalgam of Echochrome, Shape of the World and Manifold Garden, it is a game far more concerned with challenging the player to chart a course through its labyrinthine structures, than with layering any secondary puzzle elements on top of that.
All its puzzles are essentially mazes, and each one is progressed through in the same fashion - by finding certain "keys" in the environment, and using these to operate simple locks, which in turn add, move or subtract elements of geometry to the 3D spaces. These changes open up new avenues of traversal, new pathways, and new keys, and continue the process, until the player is able to complete the structure, and move on to the next.

The crux of the puzzling nature, however, is that these areas are gravity independent - floating 3D structures -  and the gravity affecting the player themselves is fixed only by their own direction. Each area is home to significant numbers of curved geometric "half-pipes" connecting some surfaces to others, and when walked along, the gravity of the world will shift on an axis, to meet the player. If walking on a flat floor, and a curved slope connects to a vertical wall, walking towards and round it will shift gravity to turn that wall into a floor, thus allowing that wall to be traversed... or for the player to then fall off the edge of it, now falling perpendicular to the previous floor, to access new areas.

It's a simple premise, but one that is pretty effective - both in implementation, and in puzzle design. Etherborn is not a particularly difficult game - because each puzzle is essentially a maze, and because the camera is fixed - following the player loosely from preset positions - there is only so many potential places to explore or paths to take... however, the 3D nature of the geometric levels does require some logical and lateral thinking to identify the correct paths to take to access specific areas, and as small as some levels can appear, the six-sided nature of them is very well thought out. They make excellent economic use of the small spaces from all different gravitational revolutions, and the same structure, viewed upside-down, or side-on can have a whole different set of problems and conundrums to solve. 

The camera being on a fixed track is an important element of the game - it is used well, and does cut out the really confusing elements that some gravity-bending puzzle games can be prone to - but obviously also cuts the difficulty of the game significantly. In, for example, Manifold Garden, where the player is free to go anywhere, in anydirection, confusion is something of a draw - however, Manifold Garden is a puzzle game on a whole different challenge level, and a significantly larger game. I suspect there is actually a case for an Etherborn-like puzzle game that is much broader, and much more challenging, but I actually think in the case of this game, the fairly relaxed pitch of the challenge is appropriate, and fits the soothing vibe the visuals evoke... 
...and the narrative at least attempts to evoke.

I say "attempts"...
...so... 
...Etherborn has a narrative of sorts. 
As said, the player controls a human-like, but decidedly non-human form, traversing an ethereal world, in search of its voice. That is the broad plot. However, the colour - the details of that plot - are not told directly, but rather by way of some spoken voice-over, reading... something.
And boy-oh-boy... is it something.

The spoken elements of the narrative in Etherborn are - and when I say this, I assure you, reader, this is not hyperbole - I am speaking in the most literal terms - the mostbafflingly bizarre and stultifyingly nonsensical writing I have seen in quite some time.  
The language and tone feels like there was an idea there at the outset, but was written by a first-year poetry or creative writing student attempting to show off, then filtered through a rollercoaster of Google Translate around 15 times... then given a once over by Tommy Wiseau. 
The result is... unerringly peculiar.
It tends to waver precariously between faux-pretension, obnoxious over-writing and genuine mystification... and as a whole, ends up almost fascinatingly incomprehensible!

The narrative, of course, is not a make-or-break element to Etherborn. Being a relatively esoteric puzzle game, its strengths lie elsewhere, and a comprehensible plot or writing, while welcome, is not a requirement... 
...however it is something of a shame here, as the visual and tonal elements are there. Some well written philosophical or spiritual musings would be a boon to the game, and its failure to nail that effectively is disappointing. In some way, Etherborn's writing is actually bordering on the "so bad its good" category - I genuinely think it is worth seeing, just to gaze in bewilderment at how thoroughly it misses the mark... but that isn't fun in the same way as true markers of that questionable category are, because the other elements don't follow suit. 
The visuals, mechanics and technical aspects of the game are completely sound, and genuinely good and enjoyable... so the ridiculous writing simply feels unfortunate, rather than laugh-out-loud fun.

Speaking of visuals, this is the area where Etherborn gets closest to something like Shape of the World. 
Each of the 5 main levels - accessed from a primary hub area, a giant tree, up which the player is moving throughout the game - is visually distinct, and while mechanically similar, the variations in environmental detail and architectural design of each does give enough variety to the feel of the game, even while the nature of the puzzle solving remains the same.
The style is polygonal and blocky by design, but with a nice pastel-colour scheme, and while not particularly technically impressive, (Etherborn is a small game, and not home to any real graphical flair,) they do a lot with what they have, and the art design of the world is simple, but very good. 

Distant objects move in and out of focus as the distance closes, giving a feel of scope and scale necessary in an environment alien enough to lack it otherwise, and those effects, combined with some nice lighting, a keen eye for framing and the unusual and quite beautiful design of the environments, makes for some very effective, evocative visuals. These pop particularly well during more "transitional" sections, when the player is moving from one distinct puzzle area to the next.

Audio in the game is fairly good - the voice-over of the narrator is, of course, a little difficult to appreciate, given what she is actually saying, (I assume the voice actor must have been equally baffled!) however, she does a good job with what she has to work with. There is little foley, but what's there works well enough, and the score - an ambient, tonal medley - is pleasant and effective, if never stand-out.

Overall, Etherborn is a decent, if rather fleeting puzzle game, that plays well, looks nice, sounds fine, and has some quite clever, if rather simple puzzles over the course of its short run time. 
Its narrative is not particularly important - which is good, because that is the one area it really lets itself down. 

It's not a game that is likely to feature in anyones end of year lists, for ether good or bad reasons, and its relatively short run time does mean the good elements are perhaps a little under-used... but if one is looking for a fun, short puzzle game, one could do a lot worse than Etherborn.

 

 

(For original review and Scientific  Ranking see HERE)

[DrBloodmoney]

  535

 673

 

 

 

Best Month Ever!

 

An interactive drama developed by the Warsaw Film School in their Video Game Production Studio and published by Klabater, Best Month Ever! is a game small in scope, yet grand in terms of thematic and narrative ambition.

Taking place in 1969 America, the game sees Waitress Louise - a white woman with a difficult family past, and a recently diagnosed illness meaning she has only a few weeks to live - and her 8 year old black son, Mitch, embark on a cross-country road-trip to find Mitch a new home. Driving from California to the deep south, the game tells Louise and Mitch's story through 12 vignettes, as they meet with Louise's estranged family, search for her father, look for Mitch's estranged father, and Louise guides Mitch (through conversation, and her actions,) influencing how his future character might be shaped once she is gone.

The Era Best Month Ever! takes place in was, of course, a tumultuous time, one in which a white woman with a black son travelling alone would likely encounter significant issues - and they do. While there are a lot of complications they encounter on their journey, many of which are not directly race-related, the overall theme of the game is very much rooted in variations on the theme of tolerance v.s intolerance, and the institutional and cultural racism of the time. 

The game is not shy about showing examples of this, (well, not too shy - it does pull its punches occasionally in terms of language - "c*nt" is not censored, but n****r, for example, still is...)

...still though, the game is willing to stray significantly further into dangerous territory than most games will dare to.
Over the course of the 3-4 hour narrative, the game delves into some hot-spots like police corruption, the exploitation of performers and sex-workers, poverty, crime and the Ku Klux Klan, and the willingness of the game to dive into these areas is admirable...
...unfortunately, this particular game is not the best vehicle to do so. 

The game is pretty ropey in a number of areas, and they tend to detract from any real sense of tackling the issues it aims at. Charitably, Best Month Ever! could (and probably should,) be considered for what it undoubtedly is - an admirable attempt to make a kind of game the developers aspire to making... but are under-equipped to handle - however, because these issues are such hot-button ones, and ones that really need to be addressed in media with great care, the numerous ways in which Best Month Ever!fails to deliver become somewhat magnified, and stand out even more egregiously than they might in a less emotionally combustable context.

Mechanically, the game is very basic. The narrative is the main element to the game, and essentially the game works as an interactive visual novel, with 9 possible endings, (9 paths Mitch's life might take) based on how Louise and Mitch act. That, actually, is perfectly functional - and the game might well have been best keeping strictly to that and selling itself purely as a visual novel, but it doesn't. 

There is light interaction in the game - some sections where moving around is possible, and these are rough. The controls are very unresponsive and stiff, with characters often getting caught on the (sometimes flickering or outright invisible) geometry, and often having issues simply walking to the correct spots. 

Occasional "mini-game" type interactions (for example, short driving sections, or shooting) are pretty limited and very clunky, and do little to add to the immersion. More often than not, in fact, they actively break it. Every time Louise gets out of her car, for example, in EVERY location, she clips up on top of it. 
When Louise instructs Mitch on how to drive, she tells him to pass a truck. When the player does so (finally, once they get used to the pretty terrible driving controls,) the truck will then drive right through the car with Louise and Mitch in it - giving the player a full view of the geometry inside the truck, as it trundles past... then disappears right in-front of them. 
These kind of issues are not one-offs, they happen every time, and so must have been known prior to shipping. (I know this, because getting the S-Rank requires playing the game 9 times, so I had ample opportunity to confirm!)
That kind of lack of care really hampers the game's ability to immerse the player in the world. A Film School project or not, as a shipping product, that kind of haphazard issue is not really acceptable as the norm.

The visuals are very basic, character models and animations are quite poor, and what's more, there is an odd, peculiar "shimmer" to characters in motion - something completely unforgivable in a game this visually basic.

The actual vignettes, while sparse, are evocative of the locations - over the course of the game, there is a genuine sense of moving across the country - however, they are quite limited. In many ways, the set pieces reminded me of curious Swamp-Noir narrative game Knee Deep - there is a similarly limited selection of areas and set-dressings - however, Knee Deep accounted for this in its design, and cleverly used its limitations to its advantage, with its unusual "Theatrical Play" narrative device. In that case, the limited number of environmental objects was made to make sense. In Best Month Ever! though, there is no equivalent justification, and so the limitations feel... simply that. Limited.

There is some interstitial still-picture art, shown between the vignettes, and at the endings, and these are really nice - well drawn in a cool, comic book style, but these are limited in scope and in use, and not enough to really hang the games hat on.

The writing is a little odd in terms of consistency. While the actual plotting is actually pretty good, and the overall narrative concerning Louise's past, and Mitch's future is engaging, there are two serious problems. 

Firstly, the shortness of the game. The story is told in just the 12 vignettes, and because each of them is what would be considered the "major dramatic inflections" of their journey, with the player not privy to any of the less life-or-death or dramatic moments in-between, the effect is less of a road-trip, and more of a continual barrage of chaos. I would wager that a (better written) version of the same plot, fleshed out over the course of, say, a 12-episode television show, with ample time spent simply seeing Mitch and Louise bonding and talking in-between the dramatic high-points, would feel more natural, and emotive - but because the only things we see are the major plot points, it tends to feel heightened to the point of ridicule. 
Louise and Mitch stumble from an encounter with a serial killer, to a Ku Klux Klan lynching, to a snake-bite, to taking Peyote, to a town-levelling hurricane, to an alligator encounter so quickly, that the impact of these individual parts are neutered. Without any down-time between them, they just feel crazy... and the central premise - that this is the best time in Mitch's life - begins to border on the ridiculous. 
Which was the best part Mitch? 
...When you nearly died here? 
...Or when you nearly died there? 
...Or maybe when you nearly died this other time?

Secondly - and the more profound of the problems - is the dialogue. 
The written dialogue is very amateurish and on-the-nose. It is very clear that the writers are not native to the country they set the game in (even to someone like myself, who also is not!) and very obvious that the knowledge of the area and era is academic. That is not always a problem in terms of the tone of a game - but it is a major problem with the tone if this specific game, since it is very deliberately aiming to evoke a rich and specific feel of a certain time and place. 

As a contrast, consider the indie game Wheels of Aurelia. That game was set in a very specific time and place too - in that case, 1978 Italy. 
That game told a very specific story, about a very specific time and place, but because it got all its little details right, there was a feeling of verisimilitude, even for someone unfamiliar with the history. One could learn about the era, from the game, even if they had no knowledge of it. It was a very narrow-scoped story, told by people clearly steeped in that history, and did it well enough that its specificity bred universality - the story became broadly accessible, by deliberately not being so. 
Best Month Ever! on the other hand, is working only in broad strokes - and so while wanting to say something very specific, the creators don't have the depth of knowledge to do it effectively, and what is left is a rather imperfect and pastiche version of a history that far more people are already familiar with.
The result is a mildly interesting story, that doesn't have much to say about the time and place in which it is set - which makes it rather a missed opportunity.

All of these issues, it must be noted, are magnified to an extreme extent in the case of Best Month Ever!, by its biggest issue - the voice work.
There are essentially three tier of voice work on show.

The narrator is, in fairness, pretty good. The game is narrated by adult Mitch, and he feels like a professional (and American) voice actor was cast. 

Louise's voice actor is acceptable - occasionally veering towards good - though hampered a little by an apparent lack of voice-direction, resulting in some tonally dissonant reads, that feel out of place in context.

Other voices in the game though are horribly miscast and lacklustre, with most clearly not voiced by native english speakers. It is quite clear that many either lacked correct vocal direction, or were unable to account for it due to language barriers, and so tone is all over the place, and - for a game dealing in issues of racism - it accidentally gives birth to some pretty racist pastiches in the attempts.

This language barrier is a massive problem in a game like Best Month Ever!
There are language issues in terms of reading directly, without abbreviations - lines like "we are only scared because we do not know what they are hiding" are read very awkwardly - pronounced as written, with no abbreviation to "We're" or "don't" - which makes it feel very stilted and writerly, and very unnatural coming from an 8-year-old.

That is bad in terms of narrative immersion, however, the issues cause by the language barrier do also creep into the actual game mechanics at times too. When the main character is offered to be shown around their sleeping quarters by an NPC, for example, they are given two potential responses - "Thank You" or "Don't Bother". 
To any native English speaker, a response of "Don't Bother" clearly seems rude - this feels like a place where such a response can be used to lower the "social Relationships" stat... however, it doesn't. It actually raises it. 
Why? 
Because the intention, on the designers part, was a response along the lines of "Oh, don't trouble yourself". It's an understandable error - a simple translation of that sentiment could easily result in "Don't Bother"... but it fails to account for actual idiom use in English, and therefore has the directly opposite meaning colloquially.

That might feel like nit-picking, however, there are enough of these translation issues over the course of the game, that I felt it necessary to turn on one of the accessibility options - wherein the specific stat affectations are visible when choosing responses. That stat-indicator is - in fairness - a good inclusion in the game, and does alleviate the translation issues mechanically, however, it is rather immersion breaking. Turning it on tends to turn the game into more of a mechanical, nuts-and-bolts affair, as the player is "seeing behind the curtain," so to speak, and it is therefore a shame that the games language issues are such that it is a borderline requirement. 

Note - I will admit - there is likely some personal bias in this review, in the sense that I AM a native English speaker. I am fully aware there are games set in non-English-speaking countries, made by English-speaking studios, and in those cases, I am much less likely to notice the same issues going the other direction. 
That is, unfortunately, simply the nature of reviews. I am perfectly open to hearing that a game I thought well written, set in another country, sounded laughable to a native of that country... but I can only really identify the issue when it flows in one direction... and in Best Month Ever!, it IS undoubtedly a problem.

 

Overall, Best Month Ever! is a pretty underwhelming affair. It is not a game that should be derided - it is neither sinister nor ill-intentioned in its narrative and themes, nor is it the kind of effortless or artless fare that some budget games on PSN are - but the fact remains that is is a lofty premise squandered. It has many failings. It comes by them honestly - through over-ambition, as opposed to lack thereof, and it does have heart - but it has little else.

There is merit in the game, but unfortunately, it is built on a hopelessly misguided premise. As a Film School project, it is no doubt impressive, but as a commercial game is is sorely lacking, wildly out of the developers depth, and occasionally problematic - primarily because of the genre and setting chosen. 
I can't help but feel that - even had all other qualitative areas been the same - a setting different to the one presented, (one more in the developers (and voice casts') wheelhouse,) would have made the whole game considerably more palatable.

At some point, early in this project, someone really should have stepped in, and asked the question... "If we're going to make a game invoking real history... should we not set it in OUR history?"

There is scope out there for a game of this type. There is a place for a dramatic road trip through historical America, using the backdrop as both metaphor and tone. 
There is a place for Steinbeck in Videogames...
... and I look forward to playing it.

Best Month Ever!, unfortunately, just isn't it.

 

 

 

 

(For original review and Scientific  Ranking see HERE)

[DrBloodmoney]

  536

 674

 

The Solitaire Conspiracy

 

A curious take on an old classic, The Solitaire Conspiracy sees creator Mike Bithell, (as Bithell Games, creators of indie darling Thomas Was Alone, and Metal Gear VR mission-a-like, Volume,) take the classic game Solitaire, familiar to virtually anyone who has owned a Windows PC in the past 30 years, and apply some modern, stylish magic to it.

The Solitaire Conspiracy is, fundamentally, Solitaire. Or to be more specific, it is closest, in-fact, to an amalgam of Standard Solitaire, and its cousin -  the (also Windows implemented) variant, Spider Solitaire.

A deck of playing cards are shuffled into 8 random piles. Cards can be shifted from pile to pile, one-by-one, as long as cards are only placed on top of cards of a higher numerical value. The goal is to "free" the cards, allowing the player to create four separate columns of like-suited cards, in ascending order from Ace to King. 

This is a familiar enough set-up to anyone even loosely knowledgeable of Solitaire, and it is fundamentally, a fun game. Solitaire has, after all, stood the test of time for centuries. It is the premier solo card game for a reason. The Solitaire Conspiracy clearly knows this, and doesn't do anything too drastic to change the core fundamentals of the game - it wisely chooses not to overburden itself with complications to the core of Solitaire, sticking to a single variant, and working within those parameters...
...but what it does instead, is layer additional complexities on top of that - in 3 fundamental ways.

Firstly, stylistically.
The look of the game is really nice. The play area is constructed symmetrically, with the four "build columns" stacked vertically in the centre, and the 8 "shuffled" columns surrounding it, giving a much more pleasing, (and much more controller-friendly,) "Oval" nature to the playfield - something quite useful in some of the games, where speed-play is required. 
Art on the cards themselves is done well - there are different deck-types, based on different "special agent" teams, and the artwork on the Jack, Queen and King cards is in a style quite similar to that of Invisible Inc - a cartoonish, heavily geometric and stylised affair, that is both easily recognisable (as it has to be) and tonally fitting.

Secondly, in terms of secondary mechanics.
While the core fundamentals of Solitaire are maintained, there are specific "powers" associated with different special deck, (unlocked throughout the game,) which add a level of additional game nuance when used effectively... and an additional level of challenge when not!
These powers all work on the same premise - a deck is "activated" once the Ace of that deck is freed and the central "stack column" for that deck started. Once activated, moving any of the face cards (King, Queen or Jack) will activate that deck's power, once per face-card. Those powers range from "the next stackable card of the suit the card is laid on will be automatically freed" to "the stack the card is laid on explodes, moving all cards to random locations", but each can be both a benefit or a curse, depending on the application, and results in a level of advanced play exclusive to this particular Solitaire incarnation. 

Thirdly, there is the narrative.
Yes... you read that right. 
Let me just reiterate... the narrative of Solitaire!

The set-up of The Solitaire Conspiracy essentially posits that the Solitaire game being played is, a sort of metaphor for hacking communication elements. The game begins with the player (who assumes the role of "spymaster" - a hacker/spy, in the employ of a freelance intelligence agency known as Protega,) learning, via FMV video of his handler, Jim Ratio, (played, curiously, by former IGN editor Greg Miller,) that a villain known as "Solitaire" has managed to shut down all communication Protega has with it's field agents. 
Through playing the game, the player is able to re-establish these communications, restore Protega, re-enlist the help of these filed agents.. each of which provides a new set of special decks to play with.

The flow of the game is broken down into chapters, which are split up in turn by the players progression through a levelling XP system, with XP gained from completing assignments (games). With each chapter, a new FMV video of Ratio (or, occasionally, of other plot-critical characters,) is unveiled, and over the 5-6 hour campaign (depending, of course, on the players skill level and XP gain,) a fun, engaging, if slightly predictable tale of international espionage, betrayal and intrigue plays out, through these characters speaking directly to the player.

It's a fun idea, and one that has all the hallmarks of Mike Bithell's creativity. It's plainly obvious that Bithell himself liked Solitaire, and simply wanted to make a version of it that went above and beyond all previous versions - and the stylistic and narrative elements virtually assure that he has succeeded - but those elements are simply the dressing and the tertiary elements of The Solitaire Conspiracy. 
The majority of the game is still a variant of Solitaire, with some additional mechanics bolted on, and so the game would only really work if these were fun and engaging... and here they certainly are. The fundamental elements are all retained, and the extras are smart, well-implemented, and make enough of a change for Solitaire veterans to be somewhat challenged, without altering the core tenants of the game.

There are a couple of different variants to the game, though these are largely simple difficulty related, with some easier levels having fewer decks, however, there is one mode - Countdown - which adds an "endless" style speed mode, in which the player is racing against a ticking clock, adding time to it with each freed card that is very fun - and forms the basis for a global / friends leaderboard, and is the source for endless continual play beyond the campaign scope. 

Visually, as said, the game is stylish as all hell - far more than any previous version of Solitaire I have encountered (I've encountered quite a few!). Everything from the menus, to the UI, to the ways cards move, or the visual flourished upon special moves, to the nicely produced and well implemented FMV look very nice. It's not revolutionary in any visual aspect - far from it - but applying these kind of visual flourishes to a Solitaire game IS revolutionary in a sense.

Audio is really a highlight here too. The score in the game is great - a pounding, espionage-movie-inspired symphony of electronica that is really cool and fun, and heighten the tension quite a bit. Considering that Solitaire is, by nature, a solo, sedentary pastime, that tension is admirable, and the music is almost solely responsible for keeping that tone going during the main game. 
The snappy sounds of cards being played and moved, or of powers is well done, and the voice work (well, acting, given it is FMV) is decent. Greg Miller actually does a damned good job in his role as Ratio. The few additional actors are fine, but Miller is the clear star - he has by far the most screen-time, and makes use of it well.

Overall, Solitaire is, as said, a fundamentally engaging game anyways - but to be honest, virtually everyone already knows if they like it. While the narrative and style of The Solitaire Conspiracy are welcome and very good additions, in the end, they are not going to be enough to draw in and hold engagement with anyone who does not enjoy the fundamentals of Solitaire...
...but equally, given the quality and smart mechanical additions to the game in the form of the powers, I have a hard time imagining that anyone who does like Solitaire would not get a kick out of The Solitaire Conspiracy. 

Is is pure Solitaire? 
No... but it's pure enough not to turn anyone away...
...and the ways in which it is "impure" are all good!

 

 

(For original review and Scientific  Ranking see HERE)

 

[Biertje373]

Platinum 62

Bugsnax

 Bugsnax Master

 

Dificulty: 2/10

Fun: 7/10

Time: 5 hours

 

When this came out, I had a mild (very mild) interest in this game, but I also didn't really feel like spending my money on it and back then I didn't have PS+. So I kinda was like "Okay, maybe if I ever find a super cheap copy of it" but then they've dropped it on PS+ Extra/Prenium and I knew that it was time. And here I am, another platinum in the bag of a game that's better then I've expected.

 

As always I like to talk about the positives and the negatives, startiing with the positives:

+ The artstyle is pleasing to look at.

+ Really liked the sidequests.

+ Capturing all the Bugsnax was a lot of fun.

+ The island was fun to explore.

+ The bossy bugsnax were a lot of fun to figure out.

+ The finale was a lot of fun.

+ I loved how you could combine the tools, some ways were really creative.

 

The negatives:

- The story never really captured me.

- Can't say that I really cared about a character, some of them I liked, but they never captured me.

 

That's honestly all I have to say about the game, I probably have other things I can say about the game, but I can't think of anything and I'd rather not force it.

 

And as always, a platinum screenshot to add to it: