Recent reviews by Michael

GAME NAME: Power Rangers - Battle for the Grid
Developer: nWay INC
Publisher: nWay INC

Introduction
==========
Having been a fan of the Power Rangers in my youth, I was kind of excited to stumble upon this game. Even moreso after having recently caught up on all the different seasons I missed back in the day. I only watched up to Alien Rangers as a kid, so I had a lot to catch up on, but now I can identify and appreciate every character on this game's roster, which definitely helps with my enjoyment.

Based on a storyline from the comics, Battle for the Grid explores the "What If" scenario of Green Ranger Tommy staying evil even when freed of Rita's control. If you are unfamiliar with this story, I highly recommend you read it or watch a video about it, it's very fascinating as a Power Rangers story.

Gameplay
==========
Battle for the Grid plays out like a standard fighting game, but most closely matched to Marvel VS Capcom with the Assist and Character Swap mechanics. You setup a team of 3 characters, and you can call your two backups to perform Assist attacks or outright swap to and control them. You can effectively treat them as extra health bars, and you'll need them - this game can be pretty difficult. There is a fairly large roster of Rangers and villains to choose from, with a unique playstyle for each. You can even summon zords for special attacks, or parts of them at least.

Graphics
==========
I didn't have any complaints with how the game looked. This is probably the best set of models we have for these particular characters, and a lot of them aren't in other Power Ranger games since only the team from Mighty Morphin tends to be used. Environments were fairly generic, even the ones based on actual Power Rangers locations. They didn't really stand out. They serve their purpose, and that's about it.

Sound and Music
==========
I honestly don't remember much about the game's soundtrack. Nothing really stood out, but I did enjoy the fight sound effects. When characters are hit you FEEL it.

Performance
==========
The game ran smoothly throughout my playthrough, and I didn't experience any crashes or graphical hiccups, or any other major issues. Netcode worked fine online, and I didn't lag or have any other issues. My controller (Logitech F310) worked flawlessly as a plug n play, and a controller is the recommended way to play.

Final Thoughts
==========
If you are a fan of Power Rangers, this game is definitely for you. It's very competent for a fighting game, and it can be very challenging.

Final Verdict:
==========
Recommended

GAME: Tales of the Shire: A The Lord of The Rings Game
DEVELOPER: Wētā Workshop
Publisher: Private Division


Introduction
==========
I'm a huge fan of Lord of the Rings, and everything associated with it. The world, the lore, the characters, the stories...all of it. Even the littlest of beings, like the Hobbits. I also like cozy games. Stardew, Moonstone Island, and everything like them are all fun and relaxing for me. And when I heard there was going to be a cozy game based on the Hobbits from LotR? Instantly shot to the top of my games radar for July. I have been looking forward to this game since it was announced, and now that I've had some time with it...I am sad to say that it left me very disappointed. At least in it's current state.

Gameplay
==========
You take on the roll of a hobbit, moving to the village of Bywater. Character creation is very hobbit-esque, even allowing you to choose what kind of hair patch you want on your feet! They top it off bu letter you choose a first and surname, from very lore-accurate lists. I went with Ferdinand Lightfoot.

You are very quickly shown to your new home, introduced to the relationship, fishing, and cooking systems, and how to navigate Bywater. You quickly meet your neighbors (most of them seem very mean!!), learn how to build relationships with them, and how the game works overall. They do a pretty good job easing you into things, but that's not where the problems lie. The problem is all of the systems are shallow and seemingly underdeveloped. It seems fine on paper, but in execution they feel very simple and lacking.

EVERYTHING revolves around cooking, and if you know anything about hobbits it's that they LOVE to eat, so this makes sense. However that's about all there is. Everything is done in service of cooking. Fishing? For cooking. Foraging? For cooking. Shopping? For cooking. Building relationships? For cooking. Growing crops? For cooking. What if you don't like cooking? What if you don't want to engage with that part of the game? Well then you miss out on almost everything. In other games, it's optional. You don't HAVE to cook to enjoy or even finish anything. But in this it's 100% required by design. I guess it's not a problem if you like cooking, but some people may not and I felt it necessary to point this out.

There's a nice looking decor system, and it seems very flexible, but I was so pushed into cooking that I didn't get to explore it much or get new decorations. You get a good amount of space to decorate, and I did play with moving things around a bit since your house starts in a state of some disarray, so I got a decent feel of how the system worked.

My biggest complaint is that there are only about 15 hobbits for you to build relationships with, but you see dozens of them roaming around Bywater. And you can't even talk to them until the game ALLOWS you to! Now I'm not really the type of player who uses these systems and romances their favorite, but I know a LOT of people who are really into that. You cannot romance anyone. Leveling up your relationships with the hobbits rewards you with more cooking recipes and some info about them. So from what I was able to see there's not much incentive to it.

Another big problem is a lot of cooking ingredients can only be bought with money in shops. But money is only gotten with quests. You can't sell any of the meals you cook or the ingredients you forage. As a result, making money is a CHORE.

Overall, there's a VERY basic skeleton for a good game here, but it feels half-baked. Undercooked. Not fully realized.


Graphics
==========
This is the highlight of the game. The vibes are immaculate. Very bright and colorful. Super cozy and very hobbit-esque. You FEEL like you're in the Shire. You FEEL like it's a nice place to live. The aesthetic is spot-on, and I don't think they could have nailed this any harder. Except maybe the character models. Some hobbits will make you scratch your head with some of their designs and how they look.

The homes and shops looks very nice and inviting, and absolutely draw you to them. You'll want to invade everyone's homes just to look around. And you can get a lot of decorating ideas this way!

Sound and Music
==========
I felt like the game was very quiet. There is a lot of ambient sounds, like the sound of the river, birds chirping, etc, but the background music was very low. And there is no voice acting, just the occasional "Ah!" "Uh huh", or begrudging grunts. It's better than nothing, but I feel like the game would improve a lot with even partial voice-acting.

Aside from that, what's here is very fitting, and felt very on brand. What music there is was very cozy, chill, and vibrant, but could use a bit of tweaking with it's volume. I had sound turned all the way up and it was still quiet.


Performance
==========
My PC specs are as follows:
Processor - AMD Ryzen 9 7900X
MOBO - ROG Strix B650E-F Gaming Wifi
RAM - 32GB DDR5

Not top of the line, but still pretty high, and plenty good enough to run the game on the highest settings. Everything ran smoothly, I experienced no major stutter or FPS issues, and I didn't have any random crashes. However I have read of others with stronger PCs than mine having a myriad of issues, so maybe I just hit the hardware sweet spot for this game. My controller worked well, but I played with Mouse+KB for the majority of my time with the game.

Final Thoughts
==========
I was so excited for this game. I really was. I wanted so badly for this game to be perfect and it was my most anticipated game for July. But ultimately I feel extremely disappointed. I ended up refunding the game, but I hope that with some time, looking at player feedback, and some updates...it'll be closer to what we were all hoping it would be. The price they are asking for the current product is much too high for what it offers, and if you REALLY want the game as it is now, I recommend waiting for a bit of a sale. Personally I am going to see if they plan to do any updates and wait to see what those add.

Final Verdict:
==========
Wait for a DEEP Sale and Content Updates

Berserk B.I.T.S:
Developer: BerserkBoy Games
Publisher: BerserkBoy Games

NOTE: This is for a demo, and as such this review will be much shorter than my usual full game reviews. You can expect a full review when the game finally releases!

Introduction
==========
First of all, you should go check out, buy, and play Berserk Boy! It's AWESOME!!!

https://steamproxy.net/steamstore/app/1561340/Berserk_Boy/

Second, Berserk B.I.T.S is a spin-off game heavily inspired by Rusty's Retirement, with the vibe of Mega Man Battle Network. You will notice a lot of similarities with it's style and presentation, and that's intentional. This game gives us what we've always wanted after playing Battle Network: our very own NetNavi! Well, sort of.

Gameplay
==========
You load up the game and a device pops up in your desktop's corner. Choose your BIT (only 1 available for now) and get started! You can pickup and move your BIT between areas, including the "Home" area, and the "Net". Home is your space, that you can decorate to your liking. It can be expanded later to add more space, and it's where your BIT hangs out when not adventuring on the Net. While on the Net, your BIT will automatically attack and defeat enemies, earning gold (to buy stuff in the shop) and XP (levels you up). You'll also get items and program eggs! Programs do a variety of things, like give you gold or HP (pick them up and shake them!) or make Battle Chips for your BIT to use in battle.

One thing I noticed that was locked in the menu was "Gatcha". I hope this is done right as a feature in the full game, and that's all I'll say.

Graphics
==========
The sprite work in this game is amazing! Everything is super detailed and you can easily tell what everything is. It's just such a pleasure to look at!

Sound and Music
==========
What really hooked me about this game initially and caused me to wishlist it was the song used in the announcement trailer. However, there's only one track that I heard in the demo, and it wasn't the trailer one! Still, I love what I've heard so far and can't wait to hear more in the full game.

Performance
==========
I had zero issues with this game. Ran perfectly, no crashes, no lock-ups, no framerate issues.
Everything performed as expected, and I ran into no bugs or glitches.

Final Thoughts
==========
The tutorial segments could use a little more work, as it was immediately clear how to feed your programs (I had to ask in the Discord), but otherwise this demo is pretty solid. It's a little content light, but that's to be expected with a demo. I can't wait for the full release!!

Final Verdict:
==========
Highly Recommended

Developer: Square Enix, Racjin
Publisher: Square Enix

https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3412084246

Introduction
==========
When I was a kid with my original Game Boy, one of the few games I managed to get ahold of was Final Fantasy Legend II. At that age, I was just BARELY getting into and learning how RPGs worked, but this title threw me for a loop with the systems in place. Experience Points? Nope! Those don't exist here! Your stats went up seemingly randomly after each battle, which more or less encouraged grinding. But as a kid, that wasn't fun. I don't know how, but I managed to get to and defeat the final boss. Maybe it was stubbornness, maybe it was luck in each and every battle, but I did it. That game taught me that some RPGs could be different, but still enjoyable. At least...back then. Nowadays, this set of games in particular are not all that fun to play, except for MAYBE Legend III.

Gameplay
==========
As I touched on above, gone is the EXP system, and in it's place it a somewhat random leveling system. The more you used certain things, the better you got at using them. Take a lot of damage? Defense and HP goes up. At least for some characters - some level up differently, like via items or eating monster meat). Generally you start with a set of characters and keep them the entire game, and their growth is entirely dependent on you and your choices. But like I said, grinding is very encouraged, and I think that's how I managed to get through Legend II as a kid under 10 back in the 90's. I went on to play and master other RPGs, but this set of games were always a little special to me due to what they taught me and exposed me to --- different approaches to game mechanics in my favorite genre.

Graphics
==========
If you've ever played old retro 8-bit titles, you know what to expect. Very little animation, limited color, and lots of sprite-based designs. Wasn't bad for the time, but by today's standards it's aged very poorly. You can setup a frame around your screen and choose the size, aspect ration, and more, but aside from that there aren't too many things to write home about.

Sound and Music
==========
As someone who grew up in the era these games came from, I'm used to the blips and beeps commonly used then, but for gamers today who did not grow up in that era...I don't know. It will depend on your individual preferences. It might be annoying or grating to some. The music isn't bad for what they had to work with, and the sound effects are OK. Nothing really stands out though, but that's okay.

I hope you end up liking the battle themes, as you'll be hearing them a LOT.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8MJGYCysdY

The boss theme of Legend II is my favorite, as it gives that building dread feel of impending defeat as you struggle against a boss. It's a short loop, but memorable...at least to me.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNi2G0oXTiE

Performance
==========
I didn't have any issues running this game, and I don't expect anyone to run into any either. I suspect the entire package is just an emulator with the games packed in, and you could run a Game Boy emulator on hardware from the late 90's very easily. I didn't experience any crashes, screen-tearing, framedrops, or have any issues setting up and using my PC controller (Logitech F310, yes the submarine controller!).

Final Thoughts
==========
I only played this long enough to 100% it and nab all the achievements, as I had this long-term goal of 100%ing all the Final Fantasy games available on Steam back in 2024. I included this one in the bunch even though it's technically a SaGa title, which is a completely different franchise. It was fun to relive some older memories from my childhood with Legend II, and experience the other two titles I didn't get a chance to play back then. Legend III is by far the best of the bunch, and if you pick this up I highly recommend you focus your time on that one. The other two are very rough and not particularly fun in comparison.

Final Verdict:
==========

Developer: Square Enix
Publisher: Square Enix


Introduction
==========
What can I say that hasn't already been said about this gem of an RPG? There's a reason it's considered one of the best, if not THE best, RPG of all-time. If you have not played this yet, you are in for one hell of a treat! If you have played it before but haven't recently, you need to play it again to remind yourself of how amazing it is.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8I45TYVHmc

Gameplay
==========
Chrono Trigger is a simple looking, but deceptively deep turn-based RPG. You have a lot of your usual RPG goodness here, such as leveling up via experience points, learning new skills, collecting items and equipment, and multiple party members. One of the main things that Chrono Trigger offers is how it allows you to combine individual skills from separate characters into dual or triple techniques. For example, the main protagonist Crono has a skill called Cleave (or Spincut if your old like me) that is a single target attack for big damage. This can be combined with 2 other party members for techs called Ice Sword and Fire Sword, enchanting Crono's blade to do big elemental damage to his target. Each party member has at LEAST 3 dual tech combos with every other party member, and some even have a triple tech they can use if you have the right party composition. The fun part is figuring out these combos and finding out what works best for you!

At it's core, this game is a sprawling time-travel adventure. You'll discover and explore about half a dozen different time periods, and complete dozens of battles in each to progress the story. You'll meet a huge variety of characters, both good and evil, and eventually end up with a very diverse cast of playable characters that each have their own unique strengths and weaknesses. And since the game involves time travel, you will discover a lot of cause-effect situations. What you do in one period will affect something in another period. You will see this most frequently in the side-quests, of which you should do ALL of them.

Graphics
==========
This game offers some of the best 16-bit graphics of the SNES era. Now of course this has been upscaled and improved a bit for the PC release, but there are options to have the original look and feel of everything. Honestly it doesn't matter which you prefer, as the game looks great either way. I came from the time period that the game originally released, so I am very used to this graphic style and the 16-bit look, and may be a tad biased. Watch some gameplay videos and decide for yourself if you like it! I know graphics can be a big deal for some players.

Sound and Music
==========
This game has one of the best OSTs I've ever heard in a video game, and I say this as a huge fan of video game music. It's basically all I like, and I listen to something from Chrono Trigger daily, in addition to a lot of other games. There are quite a few extremely iconic tracks in this game, mostly boss and character themes, but a lot of the town and ambient themes are amazing too. I'll link a couple of examples below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pGe9vsXu1V4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6MjRKKEWLE

The rest I will leave for you to discover on your own! I promise you'll enjoy all the thrilling battle themes and emotional scores from key moments of the story.

Performance
==========
I never had a problem with running this game, even when it originally released. There were a lot of reports of frame drops, crashing, and a lot of issues with the UI and such when it first came out, but all of that has since been fixed with numerous patches over the years. I would even go so far as to say this is the definitive and best version of Chrono Trigger. Highly recommend a controller.

There is only one glaring issue in the game, dealing with a password you have to input to open a door. If you explore the area you'll find the password X A B Y. However, the door doesn't accept it. Due to some weird glitch or perhaps an oversight with input programming for this particular instance, the password that is accepted is now [b/A X B Y[/b].

Final Thoughts
==========
Chrono Trigger is a masterpiece, and it should 100% be played by RPGs fans no matter how old you are. I'd even recommend it to players new to the genre. It's fairly short for modern RPG standards, roughly 20-25 hours for new players, so it's a great start for new RPG fans or for people who can't sink the time needed for other longer RPGs. Players who know what they're doing can likely finish it in about 15 hours. Compare this to something like Persona 5 Royal, which can take anywhere from 100 to 150 hours to finish, depending on the player.

PLAY. THIS. GAME.

Final Verdict:
==========

PowerWash Simulator
Developer: FuturLAB
Publisher: Square Enix


Introduction
==========
I had no idea what I was getting into when I got this game. I thought it was one of those dime a dozen sim games that started to flood the market when Goat Simulator came out, but I was so so wrong. This is so much more fulfilling and in-depth than every other sim I've played. Being able to sit down and just turn my brain OFF and still complete relaxing tasks is such a good feeling, and this game delivers that feeling like no other. If you're the kind of person who likes seeing the before and after of things, this is the game for you, and it will definitely scratch that itch!

Gameplay
==========
When you first load up the game, you are greeted with a couple of modes, the most important one being Career. There is where you unlock new things to wash, and the primary mode you'll be spending about....70% of your time in at first. You'll play through a couple of levels in a row, before you are given "branching" choices. This stage, or that stage. But you'll have to complete all of them no matter what. Once you're in a stage, you're given your equipment and set loose to wash to your hearts content. PC players can press TAB to highlight all the filth that remains to be cleaned, and this is likely the button you'll be spamming most.

As you progress, you'll be able to buy new Power Washer, new attachments for said Washers, new nozzles, soap, cleaner, and a few cosmetic pieces to change the look of your suit/washer. Prioritize your Washer and soaps, as you'll need them the most for progression. Your default washer isn't very powerful, but when you get towards the end of the game and get the best one, you'll notice a HUGE difference in efficiency and how long it takes to clean things. In my playthrough I found I didn't NEED any of the special soaps, but if you want to speed things up with it you can. I found it's more important in the Challenge Mode, especially in Timed Challenges.

You can also jump, crouch, use ladders, stepstools, and scaffolding. All of which you will be using generously in many stages. Get used to your tools, and which nozzles are best, because they will make your jobs easier. (That said, #YellowNozzleSupremacy).

Graphics
==========
There isn't much to say here. PowerWash Simulator looks nice enough, but the main thing you'll be focusing on is the flashing filth remaining on each stage as you spam the TAB key!

You'll definitely notice more love and care put into the DLCs if you decide to pick those up, as those are more intricate and detailed. That's not to say the base game isn't good enough....far from it. It's just this isn't the kind of game you play for graphics.

Sound and Music
==========
There's no music, only sound effects. While I can understand why, I'd have appreciated something like being able to use our Steam OSTs from our library in-game. Aside from that, the only thing important here is the DING you get when you completely wash an item in a stage. It is the most satisfying sound in the world, and you get to hear it hundreds of times as you play!

Performance
==========
I mean, it runs well enough. It's not an action game that requires precise inputs, so FPS isn't a big deal here. I never ran into any FPS drops, however, and never had any random crashes or errors. I play fullscreen, with mouse+keyboard, and the game looked and ran great. Definitely no complaints here.

Final Thoughts
==========
This was my go-to "chill" game for weeks. I platinumed it on PS4, then grabbed the entire collection (game + DLC) here on Steam and hyper focused it ALL in just over a week. Best week of gaming in recent memory!

When you finish the Career Mode there are plenty of Bonus Jobs, Challenges, and DLC to keep you going. Speaking of DLCs, I highly recommend the Final Fantasy VII pack, the Spongebob Pack, and the Warhammer Pack. The Tomb Raider pack was my least favorite batch of jobs in the entire game, especially the obstacle course and treasure room.

Regardless, get this game. It's great.

Verdict:
==========
A Must Play

Mega Man X DiVE Offline
Developer: Capcom
Publisher: Capcom

Introduction
==========
For several years, Mega Man X DiVE was available on mobile devices and here on Steam. But it eventually met it's end. Instead of letting it die completely, Capcom surprised fans by announcing an Offline version. Shockingly, it fixed every single issue fans had with the game --- which were the predatory practices seen in many Gacha games. You could buy "Metals" with real life money and spend it for a chance to get the character you wanted, with character availability rotating out every so often. To make it worse, they also did this for your weapons. While you could earn some characters and weapons through normal gameplay without spending money, they were nowhere near as powerful as the ones you could get through the Gacha system, so you were compelled to spend if you wanted to get anywhere near the higher end of the game without extensive grinding. All of that is gone in this release. Instead of gambling your money at the chance to get what you want, you can pay the price for this version of the game and have the ability to unlock everything through normal gameplay.

Gameplay
==========
If you're a fan of Mega Man...you really don't need me to tell you how this plays. It's much the same as literally every Mega Man title. Run to the right (sometimes left, oh my!!!), jump and shoot to destroy enemies in your path, with some light to medium platforming. Every so often you'll encounter a boss, who is much more of a challenge than the fodder up to that point. However, this is laid out like a mobile game, with several bite-sized stages in each area that culminate with a boss stage at the end. Clear each stage while meeting certain criteria nets you bonus rewards, but these are very easy to complete if you keep up with powering up your chosen character.

You'll be spending a lot of time in menus powering up your characters and weapons. There are also skills and cards to collect and powerup as well, which all add to your character's overall power rating. This is a very rough gauge to tell how ready you are to face stages, as each stage has a recommended power rating. This can *mostly* be ignored, as even if you are a bit underpowered a skilled player could cleanup the stage nicely despite being "lower level". But it's so easy to powerup and be over-prepared for each stage, you may as well take it unless you want to challenge yourself a bit more.

Graphics
==========
I'd say the overall graphics are fine. Nothing groundbreaking or to write home about, but you can tell this was a mobile game. On the bigger screens, backgrounds on the loading screens can look a little pixelated, but that's about the only complaint I have. Character art is gorgeous, and I found myself just scrolling through all the characters I hadn't unlocked yet just to look at their art and their "beam in" animations. Super detailed, somewhat anime-esque in style, but keeping that signature Mega Man design philosophy with all the different Reploids you can recruit.

Sound and Music
==========
This title uses portions of other Mega Man titles' soundtracks, which makes sense because it also uses different stages from other games. So suffice it to say, the combined soundtrack is awesome. Mega Man has never been a slouch when it came to the music, often having some very iconic tracks coming from many entries in the series.

Performance
==========
I didn't run into any issues on my rig (AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT + AMD Ryzen 9 7900X 12-Core), but I wouldn't expect many players to run into any glaring issues if they have a PC built within the last few years. The game ran fine, didn't see any screen-tearing, FPS drops, no random crashes, no lag, and my controller worked perfectly.

Final Thoughts
==========
Overall I'd say this is very much worth getting, but I also think $29.99 is a tad steep. Grab it if you're a fan, or wait for a sale if you're on the fence or never played a Mega Man game before! With how Steam is...that shouldn't be hard to do :)

Verdict:
==========
Recommended