Recent reviews by Denn

I'm a bit mixed on this entry. Strive is beautiful and plays well, but there are some issues that keep me from enjoying it as much as I'd like. If you're here primarily for Online play (or you play together in-person), and can stomach the lobby system, then Guilty Gear Strive is for you. Otherwise, give it a pass unless AcrSys improves things.

Pros:
* Fantastic aesthetic
* Mechanics and Missions are great for newcomers
* Music is good
* Solid net code

Cons:
* Terrible online lobby system
* Single Player modes are limited and pretty bad
* Classic Guilty Gear music is too quiet
* No option to toggle different tracks for random

I love the way this game looks, plays, and sounds. But I also find myself getting bored pretty quickly. If you enjoy playing online, you'll have to suffer through the lobby system with way more waiting between matches than necessary. Once you're in a match, things go pretty smoothly though.

If you want a break from online play, then you're stuck with mediocre Single Player options. Endless mode is okay, but it takes too long to get interesting. The real problem is Arcade, which I find painfully easy on the Hard Route. Alternatively, the Extreme route feels like playing against an random number generator deciding whether or not to screw you over. All this is made worse by the dumb route system that encourages you to throw matches to stay on the Extreme Route.

But none of this matters, because the real hell is the boss of arcade, whom I've fought a few hundred times without a single match victory. So, at least at my skill level, I can choose between too easy, or insurmountably difficult. And apparently there's an even more difficult version of the same fight after that if you get past it without losing a round. I'm pretty sure that the inevitable heat death of the universe would happen before I could beat Stage 9.

If you're someone who does enjoy Single Player, you'll be disappointed by the lack of options and interesting gameplay. There's also no longer unique dialogue between all the match-ups, which makes me sad (at least I don't have to listen to May compare everyone and their grandmother to Johnny). Online could use some matchmaking improvements, but it's otherwise fine, so if that's your focus, you'll be happy.

Worth every penny. Wait, how much did I pay for this again?

Helltaker is a cute (sexy?) tactical puzzle game with very in-depth dating sim mechanics (make a choice, one is successful, one kills you. I'm pretty sure this is how dating works). The art style is good, the puzzles are interesting, and the humor is perfect.

There's a second later on with more real-time action elements, which may turn off some puzzle fans, so keep that in mind, but I enjoyed it. Kinda reminded me of Undertale.

Play the game, and then buy the art book, because the game is charming, and the artbook is also charming. And if you can't get enough, go ahead and close your blinds, lock your door, and search for the extensive fanart community.

Given the price, if you like twitchy frantic arcadey shooters and can stomach the visual, go for it.

Post Void is fun to pick up when you've got a little bit of a break. I honestly find the first few levels to the the most satisfying (running through with the pistol head-shotting all the... things, is very enjoyable). Although the later levels feel like they almost require the shotgun with specific upgrades. The Telehand (drone looking things) are a nightmare without a good spread shot and exploding enemies. I think my successful runs were mostly dictated by the upgrades I got.

Despite my frustrations with the latter half of the game, I still enjoyed the experience.

If you're interested in this, you'll enjoy it.

Best VR game I've played

If you like waiting, this game is for you. This game is garbage and not worth full price.

Enemies spend most of their time blocking, take very little damage, and force you to sit there and reconsider your life choices every time at the end of each combo where it takes twenty minutes before your character gets up. The battle system isn't quite deep or engaging enough to make the gameplay fun, especially between the copious loading screens.

The character creator is fun, and I only continued playing because my character was perfect. But most of the parts are pieces from OPM characters, and there's very few options for manipulating things (you can't move or rotate parts, only attach them to specific locations).

Also, the main campaign is just a mediocre rehash of the first season. I'd be okay with it if you could make any choices to influence how things play out, but nope. Even if I'm beating the crap out of Boros, the battle still ends with my character failing.

Ultimately, the game is somewhat cute, but absolutely overpriced for how low budget and unpolished it is.

Maybe it would have been better if we'd just let Lavos end everything in 1999... at least then, this mess would never have been created.

This is a garbage port. Nobody ever asked for poorly upscaled graphics where the tiles don't even align. Either do a direct port of the original, the PS1, or the DS version. Is that so hard to ask for? Why choose the phone version? It's immediately apparent that it's terrible when you first start. When entering character names, it literally popped up a separate window. I've played RPG Maker games made by 10-year-olds that adhere to a higher standard of quality than this.

Guess I've gotta find a copy on Ebay...