Honorable mention: Spider-Man 2

I have always been more of a story person when it comes to games. I can put up with some jank if the story’s good enough! Spider-Man 2 is the inverse of this, where I think the story is pretty hollow, but playing the game is so sick I still ended up 100%-ing it. The more I thought about the plot, the more I felt bad for the weakness of Miles’ involvement, how hamfisted some of the character interactions felt, and how Venom was just kinda there. 

However! The web swinging. The combat. The missions. It was all very rewarding! This is an extremely well-made game that is bogged down by Sony’s desire to sand off any and all rough edges in their plots, with the compounding problem of having to focus on two Spider-Men with very different goals and problems. Miles, dude, just write the friggin paragraph. 

10. Fate/Samurai Remnant

I probably shouldn’t have played this on Switch. It wasn’t a disaster, mind you, but the towns ran pretty poorly! This is a great follow-up to Spider-Man, actually, because the gameplay got really tiring after a bit, but I powered through for the plot. Iori is a fun main character, and his dialogue with Saber is adorable and a massive highlight. Fate lore is vast and occasionally eye-rollingly frustrating, but Samurai Remnant keeps things breezy and fun, and I absolutely had to put it on my year-end list if only for Musashi and her shit-eating grin.

9. The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog

The folks over at Sega did something with Sonic that I didn’t expect, and that’s making an April Fool’s point-and-click game that isn’t a bad dating sim joke. It could’ve been another One Of Those, the horribly written garbage games that Western devs think are just the funniest jokes ever. Instead, The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog is a treat, tossing a new self-insert character into a locked room mystery involving the apparent slaying of Sonic. 

There’s fun character moments, adorable art, everything you need to showcase how great Sonic And His Friends actually are. I don’t play Sonic much, but it makes me happy to see him and his friends around, and this is a perfect example of what Sega should be doing with the property.

8. Octopath Traveler 2

This is only ranked as low as it is because I’m not that far! I think this will happen every year. I’m sorry. Anyway, Octopath! They fixed pretty much everything that was wrong in the first game, then built on that as foundation. The major issue with the original was how nobody’s stories overlapped, and the party only really interacted through combat. They weren’t a group, they were just…around each other, I guess. 

In the sequel, you actually feel like a cohesive unit, and the entire game feels like the incredible final chapter of Live a Live. That single big change turns Octopath into something truly special, and I can only hope the team in Creative Business Unit II can keep cooking like this.

7. Pizza Tower

Spiritual successors feel like a dime-a-dozen these days, and their existence often feels a bit unnecessary once the thing they’re aping off of actually returns. It takes something real special to be so obviously inspired by a dormant franchise, yet rise even further into its own sense of self, and that’s what Pizza Tower does. 

Pizza Tower is extremely Wario Land 4, but beyond its basic controls and a bit of its vibes, Pizza Tower is unlike any game I can think of. It’s gross, goofy, and overly animated in the best way possible. Peppino is a character who stands just as tall as Wario; both a bit bumbling, but still very capable. I love watching his expressions, hearing him scream bloody murder, and how the game warns you to not let Peppino get hurt…or else. Pizza Tower is never going to leave my brain, and it’s the new standard for fast-moving treasure hunting platformers. Wario’s gonna have to step off his pedestal. 

6. Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising

Granblue is an incredible fighting game, and it’s one I can see myself playing for a good long while. I love it so much, I even started doing commentary for it every month over at ArcadeUFO! I’ve learned a lot from Granblue, not just in gaming, but in speaking and my own talents. I loved the original version of Granblue Versus, but this one has rollback netcode so it’s automatically better. I don’t have much to say, since it’s a pretty standard fighting game package, but it plays so well and has a great community. I’d recommend it if you want to get into an anime fighter but don’t want to jump into the deep end of Melty Blood or…shudders Blazblue.

5. Metroid Prime Remastered

I got obsessed with Metroidvanias a few years ago, but I never got around to the Metroid Prime games. Boy, was that a mistake. This remaster is as basic of a remaster as there ever was, as it’s just a graphical upgrade without much other flair. However, the game is still really good, one of the better Metroidvanias I’ve experienced. And hey, that simple graphical upgrade is impressive, especially for a Switch game. I remember people saying it was awe-inspiring to see rain drip down Samus’ visor in the Prime games, and I think I was just as amazed looking at all the creatures and locales of Tallon-IV on the Switch. If this is how good they could get a game looking on Switch, I’m excited to see Prime 4 on the Switch 2, am I right folks?

4. Endless Monday: Dreams and Deadlines

Creating anything worthwhile in 2023-2024 feels almost futile. AI is seen as the answer to so many of corporate America’s needs, and both artists and writers feel the impending danger from this foolish, incorrect opinion every day. I’ve been trying to find writing work for many years now, and things haven’t felt this dire….ever, maybe? We’ll adapt, there will always be a need for human expression, and Endless Monday is all about that constant adaptation, fear of losing your artistic self to your work self, and everything that comes with those issues.

Artist and writer hcnone has expressed a lot of these anxieties in the zines they have released in the past, and Dreams and Deadlines expands on these troubles, telling a story about a woman who has the talent to live off her art, existing in a world that would rather she sand down her rough edges to be as safe as possible. The act of creating art for yourself these days is in itself something to be celebrated, and Endless Monday is all about that desire, that need that artists have. Check this game out if you hate your job!

3. Resident Evil 4 Remake

Those bastards did it. They remade RE4, one of the greatest games of all time, and didn’t just make it a retread! There’s a ton changed in RE4R, some of it slightly questionable, but overall as a new way to experience a bonafide classic. I love how they updated Ashley and Luis. I loved Separate Ways. Remakes to good games need to be reimagined, because even if you don’t like how RE4R treats what RE4 puts down, the original is still there and readily available! I’m so happy that one of my favorite games ever got such lovely treatment almost twenty years later.

2. Pikmin 4

We can’t make the joke any more. Pikmin 4 released, it’s available on store shelves right now, and it’s a very good game. Pikmin 4 smartly builds on the previous entries, Pikmin 2 more than anything, and crafts a tight experience that is consistently rewarding. Rolling back to two controllable characters instead of three, Oatchi’s new movement options (swimming, jumping, ramming into objects) breathe new life into puzzle solving instead of circumventing everything. There’s also plenty of extra content such as challenge rooms and a whole side-quest as Olimar to keep things varied. Pikmin 4 feels like a game that needed all that time in the oven, because it’s polished like a perfect pearl. Y’know, like the ones in the clams you gotta throw Pikmin into. 

1. Xenoblade Chronicles 3: Future Redeemed

Don’t even try to say anything!!!! They kept building on Xenoblade 3 and made its combat better, and wrapped up not only the entire Xenoblade story but also alluded to the other Xeno games? And they brought Shulk and Rex back in a way that wasn’t pandering at all? How could this not be my favorite thing I played in 2023? Xenoblade 3 has continued to rise in my “Pantheon of John Faves” as I continue to ruminate on all of its successes, and then Future Redeemed rolls around to completely lock it into the top five of all time. Every little aspect of revealed lore, all the new characters that fit snugly into the previously revealed information, it’s just…so good. So absolutely perfect. The scrumptious dessert after a full-course meal. My only gripe is that they didn’t release it as a physical Switch cart, so I can’t put it in the collection alongside Torna…

The post John’s Top 10 Games of 2023 appeared first on Gamesline.

Luckily, the companies behind some of the larger gacha series have started investing in more legitimate avenues of expression, allowing more to experience the writing of the talented groups who craft these worlds. Granblue did their Versus fighting game and Relink is coming soon, Girls’ Frontline is releasing a few spin-offs, and now, built off of the ill-gained spoils of the Fate/Grand Order gacha, Fate/Samurai Remnant is a solid, enthralling story with a few bumps throughout. 

The Fate series’ origins, the yet to be localized Fate/Stay Night, tells the story of a high schooler, Emiya Shirou, as he is dragged into a ritual conflict called a Holy Grail War, in which mages summon heroic spirits as Servants to do battle until one is left standing. The winner is granted any wish by a holy grail, and oftentimes schools of magecraft or other powerful groups will send their own representatives in order to use the wish for themselves. It posits an incredibly detailed, ever-shifting world filled with politics, magic, and fun representations of heroes both fictional and not.

Samurai Remnant stands out from other Fate series entries by taking things back to the 1600’s in Edo-era Japan. In this instance, the ritual is not over a holy grail, but instead a “Waxing Moon”, a weaker vessel that requires control of magical leylines to fill itself with power. Usually, Fate is all about the disparity between heroes of the past and modern characters interacting, as well as Servants from different times, places, and mixtures of fact and fiction fighting it out, so seeing the Master characters knowing first-hand of summoned heroes from the near past is unique. Hell, the main character, Miyamoto Iori, is Miyamoto Musashi’s student and adopted son, so having the girl Musashi from FGO as a character here makes for some fun interactions. 

Iori’s a strong lead, his dry but firm demeanor bouncing well off the often wild and weird participants in the Waxing Moon ritual. Being Just A Guy works when you’re butting heads with a mage lady from Europe who wears a hat that has no practical function and ghastly monk dudes that have talismans over their faces. These other Masters, who direct their own Servants to defeat others and claim victory in the ritual, each fight for their own goals, some more moral than others.

For example, Takao Dayu, Musashi’s Master, is a courtesan who wants to use the ritual’s wish-granting powers to give her fellow sex workers a better life. Meanwhile, Chiemon, the bloodsoaked loner who commands fan-favorite Jeanne Alter, wants to use his wish to sow chaos across Japan. You get a good idea of each Master’s motivation across the story, but I do wish there was a bit more interaction seen between them all. There’s a good foundation, and Iori’s conversations with them are good, but I suppose it’s good that I still want more.

Iori’s constant foil is his Servant, a Saber class who is easily the best main servant/Saber since the original from Stay Night. It’s unknown throughout most of the game what historical figure Saber is a stand-in for, but they are tied to Japan and regard the time period with slight awe, noticing that things have advanced since their time. They run around, trying to get Iori to buy them food, and absorbing the sights of a “peaceful” Japan they didn’t see in life.

Saber is a bit rude to Iori at first, only seeing him as a source of magical energy. Both are quite serious about battle; Saber finds him beneath them as a combatant, prepared to do all the fighting for him, as many contracts between Master and Servant go. As they train, Iori becomes an equal to Saber in combat, and they see him as an equal in all aspects once he does. Seeing Saber start out dismissing his successes, but gradually acknowledging Iori as a fellow warrior and a true friend after various fights, was great diegetic storytelling.

An unfortunate flaw in the game is its branching narrative. About ¾ of the way through the game, you are given a choice to chase after one of two villains. One of these options is pretty obviously supposed to be the “canon” route, but the events that take place in the alternate path could have easily been integrated into the main one. I know that alternate paths are important to Fate as a concept, but there’s so little that actually changes beyond a boss fight or two that it feels like the story could’ve handled it all in one route.

In order to properly experience both routes, you have to replay most of the game, and if you want to see the bad ending, that’s yet another run. The bad ending doesn’t even kick in until the last bit of the main route! You’re given the option to skip to chapter two, but that’s it. Not a skip to the split. Chapter two of six. They do this to pepper “changes” into the script, but all of them are so miniscule you’d have to be reading both versions of the cutscenes side-by-side to catch the additions. It’s all unnecessary padding! 

Samurai Remnant’s structure is very similar to how Fate/Grand Order’s story segments are laid out, for better and for worse. You’re consistently traveling to new locales, meeting new friends and foes, and fighting monsters that pop up thanks to the ritual’s magic seeping into the land. Main areas are bustling, with regular side quests and named characters to learn about through them, but several locations are designed solely for  combat, and those I could do without.

While it’s nice to always feel like you have something to do and somewhere new to go, there are a few times in the plot where you show up to a place, fight a few monster hordes, get sent elsewhere, and repeat two or three times before you get to an actual plot point. This kind of padding is necessary in a gacha game to allow for grinding points for levels and items, but here it feels pointless. Even though you can in fact grind for money, EXP, and crafting items, I was so often over-leveled and rich in both currency and craftables without even trying. Those extra runs only filled my coffers further, and a couple of these locales could have been trimmed without any issue.

Going from place to place is often interrupted by a map-control mode involving the previously mentioned leylines. Iori and Saber travel across these lines, taking over territory and fighting off foes if you run into them. This is occasionally fun, as you can pop spells to move further along routes and cut enemies off from their magic, split up from Saber to deal with foes separately, and even activate other Servants to add their skills to the fray.

This mode is a welcome addition, although the game uses it far too often. The segments are a bit lengthy, as you must move turn-by-turn, waiting for your opponent to take their actions as well. Doing multiple of these in a single chapter while you’re trying to get to the next story beat can be quite exhausting, and while the territory control aspect can be fun, you’re still often going back into the combat normally when you do run into an enemy, and there’s only so much of that I can take.

Combat is a bit mashy, as this is an Omega Force title (they make the Warriors games, you know the ones). They do a solid job of keeping things varied though, especially since you’re playing just Iori for much of the game. Basic attacks follow a “light-light-light-heavy” format, which can lead into different heavy attacks depending on when the opposite button is added into the string. As you progress, Iori unlocks new spells which can cause damage or buff his abilities, and Saber will gain access to new attacks that sync with Iori, doing huge damage or hindering opponents. Saber eventually gets their Noble Phantasm, an extremely powerful single attack which can oftentimes one-shot anything besides very strong bosses. 

You can also switch over to playing as Saber, albeit with a timer attached, or play as a variety of unlockable Rogue Servants, Servants without a Master who decide you’re chill and want to help. They have their own fighting styles and abilities, but often equate to similar gimmicks if you look a little deeper. Rogues also unlock their own Noble Phantasms, but a lot of them only unlock near the end of the story, or even exclusively in New Game Plus, making it so using some characters is far easier than others.

Getting to control the Servants puts into perspective how mighty they are, as you swiftly cut down human enemies in single strikes. This is a terrifying ritual, and at any moment, these legendary heroes can and will strike mere mortals down with a thought. I wouldn’t call this a deep game combat-wise, but there’s enough here to not get bored, and it is pretty cool to find different spells and abilities that combo well into each other. 

Boss fights against Servants are pretty much the same as fighting standard mooks, except they have a “shell” shield that keeps them from being stunned or taking large amounts of damage to their main health pool. If this was used occasionally, it’d be fine, but having to often fight servants in succession, it can be a bit draining, as they teleport around and shrug off your attacks. A few fights feel good in this set-up, such as the battle against the Rouge Berserker, but it’s frustrating against projectile users who can just float away while you’re getting glancing blows in.

Breaking the shell isn’t much of a reward either, as you just get to combo your foe for a few seconds, shave a huge chunk of their health off, and watch as they put another shell up. Some of the bosses are a genuine joy to do battle with, asking for quick reflexes and smart use of skills, but around half of them, mostly the projectile Servants, aren’t difficult to defeat as much as they are difficult to get through out of tedium.

It may be hard to see that I liked this game. I did, I swear; the moment to moment experience was engaging, and the characters are some of my favorites in the entire franchise. But the padding is so baked into every aspect of the game, just to inflate its length, just to say there’s More Of This Game, that it’s an active detriment. The best way to enjoy this game, in my opinion, is to look up how to do the main route, play through that, then look up the offshoots. I don’t feel the branching routes do enough to make that extra game-time worth it. This is a great 30-40 hour experience stretched to an okay 70-80 hour one. If this game either melded its stories together or had its splits easily accessible, it would’ve been an easy recommendation for anyone. Here, it’s great for the Fate curious and longstanding members of the fandom, but if you’re not accepting of a lot, and I mean A LOT of padding, cutscene skipping, and boss battles that can feel a bit overdrawn, this isn’t for you.

Despite the time dilation at play, this is a game I like! I will have fond memories of Fate/Samurai Remnant, and I’m sure anyone even remotely interested in it will as well. But having to say out loud, “you should probably only play like half of the game, or you’re going to feel exhausted” is not something I ever expected to do in earnest. It’s true, though.

I think Fate newbies and oldheads alike should hop on this game, but don’t 100% it unless you’re completely off the rocker. The sense of completion is not worth it when the additional content is so minimal. The story here is far more accessible than the gacha game ever has been, but trying to spread itself across a bloated runtime does it no favors. I would much rather pay the price of a game to experience it in full without worrying about the detriments games as a service brings to plot, but I’d also love it if Fate/Samurai Remnant knew how to use its time better.

The post Ay Yai Yai, Too Much Samurai – Fate/Samurai Remnant Review appeared first on Gamesline.

It’s time! Spencer is back on the pod to join John in talking about the week in games. John’s been playing more Fate/Samurai Remnant and Spider-Man 2 while Spencer has been living in the Pathologic games and Starfield. In the news, Microsoft is bricking third party peripherals and Nintendo patents are showing what the next Switch might be. Bungie was hit with a bunch of layoffs and then they talk about all the announcements coming out of Blizzcon.

We also celebrated the entire weekend with a marathon stream for Extra Life. Please help us reach our goal of $300 by hitting up our donation page.

You can support us on our Patreon, and follow us on Twitter @TheGamesline, @john_michonski, @MaverickDrifter, and @fkasocks.

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Our theme song is “Crush” by Melt Channel, from the album Magic is Real.

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Edited by Lorelai

The post The Gamesline Podcast Ep. 23: Goated With the Sauce appeared first on Gamesline.

Mama mia. This is quite the meat-a-ball-a of a podcast! This week, we discuss Super Mario Bros. Wonder, how much Redfall still sucks, an attempt at a Final Fantasy XIV news update, Scott’s feelings on the Final Fantasy gacha’s current meta, Maverick’s enjoyment of the previous Spider-Man entry, and John’s still Samurai-ing.

You can support us on our Patreon, and follow us on Twitter @TheGamesline, @john_michonski, @MaverickDrifter, and @fkasocks.

Also, don’t forget to rate and review us on iTunes, and tell a friend about the show! If you want to send in questions send them to our ask box at gamesline.tumblr.com/ask.

You can also join our Discord channel at thegamezone.zone!

Our theme song is “Crush” by Melt Channel, from the album Magic is Real.

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Edited by Lorelai

The post The Gamesline Podcast Ep. 22: John Italiano appeared first on Gamesline.

Solon joins John for a news-focused episode of the podcast. Twitter had a breakdown over how Cait Sith is pronounced, DidYouKnowGaming revealed new truths about Pokemon history, the Wii U and 3DS’ online functions are winding down, a half-a press has been shaved off, Bungie’s former HR rep is suing the studio, and Randy Orton paid to have his Elden Ring character leveled. Plus, John has been breezing through Fate/Samurai Remnant, and Solon has become a true gamer by obsessing over the NYT Crossword.

You can support us on our Patreon, and follow us on Twitter @TheGamesline, @john_michonski, and @ChorbySP.

Also, don’t forget to rate and review us on iTunes, and tell a friend about the show! If you want to send in questions send them to our ask box at gamesline.tumblr.com/ask.

You can also join our Discord channel at thegamezone.zone!

Our theme song is “Crush” by Melt Channel, from the album Magic is Real.

Subscribe via Apple Podcasts, Pocket Casts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or directly to our RSS feed.

Edited by Lorelai

The post The Gamesline Podcast Ep. 20: Randy Orton’s Competitive Pokemon Run appeared first on Gamesline.