Jonnas

So... remember that guy who posted humongous retrospectives on both Castlevania and Metroid? The mad lad moved on to... X-Men videogames. You know, just in case you have some 6 hours to spare or something (Of note, it doesn't seem to cover more general Marvel titles, like MvC or Marvel Ultimate Alliance)

Easy answer is, any game that changes a lot through time, like Fire Emblem Heroes. I literally cannot go back to the V1.00 version of a game that's currently on V8.09. What happened with WOW was a very unique thing. Better answers: Pokémon Red&Blue + Gold&Silver - My enjoyment of these nostalgic games is deeply tied to the friend group I had at the ages of 10-13. Outside of that context, outside of the link cable, the constant new things that people kept finding, the daily Mystery Gifts during recess/break, the various kids throughout the school participating into this social activity... The game just isn't the same. Every time I think "Yo, this would be a cool generation to pop back into the franchise!", I hold myself and realise that I'm never getting back what I once associated with this delightful series. I have never played HG/SS, and in fact, I have no desire to, despite how nostalgic it surely is. Medal of Honor: Allied Assault - A similar vibe, but in a different time period. As a teenager, my class would often pop into the computer room at the school and we'd all play some deathmatches in LAN. It is impossible to replicate the wild feeling of a dozen friends all playing the same match in the same room. Online ain't got shit on that. Outside of that one context, this game is worthless to me. Rise of Nations + Civilization V - On to a different mindset, these are games that I enjoyed a lot, and would surely enjoy again if I picked them up again. However, I no longer have much free time, and these are timesinks. Civ V takes like 7 hours per match (against the CPU), and any RoN match takes a few hours as well. Since these games lack any worthwhile campaign mode, I never feel any desire to fire them up again. (Curiously, Age of Empires II is in a similar boat, but since that game has an inventive campaign, I can see myself picking it up just to play that) Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance + Radiant Dawn & Three Houses - Oh snap! That's right, single-player favourites can be timesinks as well. I love Fire Emblem, but picking up their lengthier titles back again feels like such a daunting task. I don't think I'm ever playing the other 3H routes. Little King's Story - Same deal as Fire Emblem. Very good, very charming, very lengthy. Looks excellent in my memories, but I know I'm turned off from replaying it any time soon.

Stahp

Agreed. When each "Type" of character gets called exactly that (like it's a car model or something), that's a lot of potential worldbuilding that's just being needlessly sterilised. Like, the various designs for DQ3 HD are already known: each gender gets 4 appearances. And there's a world of difference between an "Old Fogey" and a "Male No.3". It's such a ridiculous naming convention, too. I'm sure the women of the world are thrilled to be described as "Gender Type-B" (Incidentally, I remember the Harvestella Demo in particular had gender options that... slightly made your character wider or thinner, but did not change the main character's design or costume. Non-binary was the middle option, btw) The female warrior in DQ3 is a curious case. It clearly reflects the aesthetics of the time - the "excessively skimpy lady" in fantasy & sci-fi settings was a popular trope for warrior princesses, damsels, and concubines alike throughout the 70s and 80s - but it did not reflect Toriyama's sensibilities at all. Toriyama was more of the type to use sex appeal for comedy, rather than design a skimpy outfit for serious female characters. Dragon Ball is an excellent example of this. Heck, DQ3 itself is an example of that (the male jester is a clown, whereas the female jester is playboy bunny-girl) In that sense, the Female Warrior actually clashes with the game she's on. None of the other female classes look like this, nor do they differ so much from their male counterparts. That said, the change they went with is laughable in itself. Skin-coloured under clothes? It just screams "we're technically complying with a highly-specific demand". It doesn't change anything meaningful (the bikini mail still looks like one), but it does get around a "maximum amount of visible skin" rule. In the end, it's just stupid age rating criteria wanting easy solutions: instead of looking to see if a character is sexually exploitative or not, they just measure the amount of technically visible skin. Meanwhile, the Japanese ratings seems to only look at whether underwear is visible or not. Incidentally, Zero Suit Samus bypasses both, regardless of how many sexually suggestive poses she might make.

On a more serious note, Soul Reaver is one of the best games of its era, and I'm stoked that it will be available on modern platforms. Between its dark atmosphere, its uniquely immersive game mechanics, its relatively open level design, and its stellar writing (with voice acting to match), this will be a gem for any modern player to discover. Soul Reaver 2... isn't as good in the level and gameplay department, but the narrative is still really good! It's nice that it decided to come as a freebie for the Soul Reaver remaster

Excellent character choices. Even lovelier when you remember that the Season 1 Pass is free for this game. Can't wait to see them in the colourful COTW style.

I don't... I... I don't...

Lost their opportunity to call these remasters "jaw-melting", ngl.

I played two distinct LEGO Racers demos back in the day (PS1 and PC), and I adored that one track I could play in. It's such a fun, inventive game, with a really creative power-up system (though like Cube said, green bricks were strictly better). Would love to see it rereleased.

Goldeneye devs went on to make a trilogy of some really fun, silly, arcade-y FPSes. I haven't played the first one, but I hear it feels mostly like a prototype for what TS2 would become. I did play the sequels, and they're both worth playing. No idea how they compare to modern offerings. FPS isn't my kind of genre, especially not on consoles... except for Timesplitters. It's really that damn good. I dare say it slaps.

Add Timesplitters 2 to the list! I don't know if that's the catalogue that it's on, but it's a PS2 classic for sure.

I get the tagline, really, but... did they really need to add a non-plastic woman (by the standards of the time, at least) in the middle of all these plastic men?!

Switch 2 being dual screen makes sense: it's one of the few features from older Nintendo consoles that the Switch can't easily replicate. With a dual screen, we can actually see 3DS remasters/ports. And a Nintendo DS NSO.

To give the benefit of the doubt to Capcom, the licensing for these games likely justifies the increased price compared to Street Fighter 30th. That's all that said benefit gives them, however. I got nothing that justifies the physical version being a code in a box. The whole selling point of a physical version of these games in particular is that they get to be preserved and distributed for far longer than digital. Insane that they got a true physical version in the US, but not in Europe. They keep finding ways to make PAL players into second-class consumers, even in 2024.

The first Teslagrad is a Metroidvania, yes, but mostly devoid of combat. It's very much a puzzle game first and foremost, just one where the puzzles are tucked away in traversable rooms, instead of separated by levels. The main character gains new moves/skills as the game goes on, too. I admittedly do not remember how often you're meant to go back to previous locked doors, but I do remember the game being quite light on exploration, for something so structured like a Metroidvania. Mind, I haven't played the sequel yet. And I will not take advantage of the discount, either, because I already bought it some time ago

Holy shit, that's hilarious That has to be the best Trump impression I've ever heard. Though this one comes close:

My experience with PS exclusive titles is scant, but taking a quick look at the catalogue... MediEvil is a fun romp; Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee is an excellent example of PS1 weirdness; I second Toy Story 2: Buzz Lightyear to the Rescue!; Siren is a cult horror game. In case you're in the mood; Natch, Resident Evil (PS1) seems to be there as well; Patapon is a PSP game, but the recommendation stays; Not really associated with Playstation, but Garou: Mark of the Wolves is a lovely intro to fighting games, if you're interested in starting here.

This 700$ monstrosity becomes 800€ in Europe??? That's not how that works! That's not how any of this fucking works! Taking into account the state of the industry and the economy, the mere thought of launching like this is absurd. The disparity in prices between regions is an extra disgusting cherry on top. Oh, and the fact that it doesn't even stand like in its own reveal without paying extra. Fuck everything about this. I was planning to ignore the PS5 Pro (more accurately, I wasn't planning to feel anything but indifference towards it), but this has now officially crossed my personal threshold of "I hope this product fails". Geez.

I tried starting it a long time back (the GOG version, the remaster didn't exist yet), but got stuck in this one boss that... I think you're supposed to lose in a specific way? Haven't returned to it since. It's marked as "Unfinished" on my backlog, and I definitely want to go back to it someday.

Japanifornia. Glen-i already explained it pretty well, but yeah, it's fitting a round Japan peg into a square California hole. It's hilarious. Incidentally, every reference to the United States from the JP version suddenly became a reference to "Europe" or "Germany" after localisation. It's wild. Funnily enough, the first game still contains one of my favourite instances of "this was clearly written in Japan". When the characters absentmindedly forget for most of the day that the 25th of December is a special occasion. Because it's such a minor holiday, you see. Another good one is when Athena only has a vague understanding of what Saké is, because she's too European. And then the entire American court berates her for her cultural ignorance.

It's great that you're discovering such a great series, but take care not to burn yourself out. I see you've played through two of these in a row already. ...That said, if PoR is next, I hope you enjoy the weirdest variant of Marco Polo ever: Charlotte Jonathan.

Huh, I hadn't noticed before that there was a thread for this game on N-E. I'll just say: I am 110% hyped. The 1999 Garou is one of my favourite 2D fighting games ever, and to see its legacy finally continued... what a sight to behold. Every reveal leaves me giddier and giddier with anticipation. In fact, here's my favourite reveal so far: Not only did it reveal that other classic FF characters besides Terry would return, but that those returnees would also see timeskipped redesigns. Billy Kane finally ditched his iconic bandana (just like Terry ditched his iconic hat), and he's looking pretty slick to boot. Me, on the other hand, I'm very happy that Marco finally gets to have a normal name. A snazzy character like him deserves to not be forever sabotaged by a localiser's whim. And besides, you just know they're going to reveal a character called Dong any minute now

Did someone say Freedom Planet 2? ...No? Well, that's a shame. Phoenix Highway is a fun, carefree level, with a funky track playing the entire time. Shade Armory is a sting operation on a terrorist base. Blood-pumping energy. Tidal Gate is the beach episode, and the music is feel-good in its purest form I'm not saying anything about Ancestral Forge. Just listen and enjoy.

So yeah, this announcement is friggin' awesome! I expected a Capcom vs SNK collection or remaster to come at some point (these two companies have been very chummy lately, right?), and I was kind of hoping that Capcom would do a "3D fighting games" collection at some point... But combining the two concepts? I did not expect that! Capcom vs SNK 1 is one I am not familiar with at all. I have heard about it, I have heard its presentation is fantastic, but I have never played it. I'm curious to try it out. Capcom vs SNK 2 is one of my favourite fighting games ever. Its Single Player content is basically non-existent (and this is the Arcade version, anyway), but what we do have here is an incredible roster, and one of the most unique concepts I've ever seen for a crossover: the Groove System, which essentially allows you to pick which game mechanics you want to work with (C-Groove replicates SFA 3 mechanics, K-Groove replicates Samurai Shodown mechanics, etc.). Oh, and a soundtrack that rivals MvC 2 as well. (Sadly, the one interesting console-exclusive feature is likely not going to be in this collection: the colour edit mode.) Street Fighter Alpha 3 Upper was a content-rich version of the game that was released for the GBA and PSP. Due to their handheld nature, I thought for sure we'd never see the best version of SFA 3 ever again... I got my hopes up with this announcement. Turns out, "Street Fighter Alpha 3 Upper" is also the name of an enhanced version of SFA3 released exclusively in Japanese arcades. Whelp. At least this version has Guile, T.Hawk, Fei Long, and Dee Jay. Power Stone 1 & 2 are worthy of hype. I never played them myself, but Capcom fans adore this series. Sounds pretty unique. Me, my only experience with this series is watching a few episodes of the cartoon Yes, there was one. Project Justice and Plasma Sword are fighting games I heard a lot about, but never played, so I'm looking forward to exploring these. I did find it odd that they're the 2nd game in their respective franchises (with the first entries being absent from any collection), but I guess that's a consequence of making a collection that's entirely based on the Dreamcast/Naomi systems. Capcom Fighting Evolution is an infamous Capcom flop, by all means, it's incredibly low-budget and unfun to play, and it's hilarious that it came back. A win for videogame preservation! Yeah, this is gonna be an awesome collection. CvS2 alone is worth the price of entry.