Recent reviews by E-Sarge

Va-11 Hall-A is a really chill game that gives you an emotionally resonant glimpse into the lives of a handful of bar attendees. It's a great character-driven experience that makes you care about not only Jill, but the customers she serves -- both regulars who come in on a regular basis and people who sparsely visit. The music slaps too, and the Jukebox function lets you pick your favorites and play them as you serve drinks.

(Also look up Flaming Moai if you want secret guests)

A cute and fun 3D platformer. It's on the shorter side, but if you've got $3 on hand and want to spend an afternoon or two feeling the joy of those old 3D collectathons, then this is a great choice.

absolute chaos, and the slight awkwardness with the controls makes it more fun. don't push the "don't push" buttons.

I mean, it's Bejeweled. You pretty much know the rules. If you like matching gems (which I do), then this game is for you. The various modes (zen, diamond mine, butterflies, etc) provide some decent variety, and the quest mode, while short, gives you some fun challenges to do.

Honestly, I've found that recently my taste in games has drifted away from platformers and more towards RPGs, but this game has definitely done a good job reminding me why I love well-crafted 3D platformers. The gameplay is as smooth as butter, and the dialogue, characters, and music all ooze charm. I'm sure everyone has already heard a ton of glowing recommendations for this game, so just add this review to the pile lol.

After playing games like Sin and Punishment: Star Successor, I felt right at home with this game. The shoot-'em-up gameplay in general is really fun, and the shifting camera perspectives help add some variety. It'll certainly challenge you, but it's quite the enjoyable ride.

After finishing this game, I can say with all certainty that I definitely enjoyed it. It's ridiculous in its own special way, but it's still a blast to play through. I haven't tried the extra VR missions yet, but after playing through the story, it's already a great game in my book.

STORY:
The story's probably the most ridiculous part of MGR. Without spoiling all that much, you're a cyborg soldier trying to stop an evil corporation filled with other cyborg soldiers from harvesting children's organs. However, when I say it's ridiculous, it's more ridiciulous in a good way - the kind of ridiculous where you're playing through the story, realize exactly what it is you're doing, and chuckle about it for a good half-minute or so. Despite the crazy concept, the story manages to tackle a lot of interesting points, like the moral ambiguity of war, and it manages to do so pretty well.

GAMEPLAY:
Ooh boy, was the gameplay a blast. As you can probably imagine, MGR is a fast-paced hack-'n-slash, so the battles are in your face, stylish, and really fun. Plus, there's a fun mechanic that MGR has called "blade mode," where time slows down and you can rapidly slash at your opponents from nearly any angle. The parrying system is rather hard to get used to, and the controls for blade mode can be a bit wonky, which is particularly evident in the final boss fight, but all in all, the combat is great.
MGR also has some stealth sections in it, taking a page from the original Metal Gear Solid games (complete with the option to hide in a cardboard box), but to be honest, I did just fine fighting the majority of the enemies in the stealth sections.

GRAPHICS:
The graphics were what I expected from an HD game. Everything looked hi-res, there wasn't any texture pop-in, and the game looked nice in general.

WRITING:
One thing I'll give the writers credit for is making the story not sound like the most ridiculous thing ever, which is a pretty hard thing to do. They take the plot seriously, and have some really interesting character development moments. There were only one or two lines that stood out to me as awkward, so in general, the writing was decent.

MUSIC:
Without a doubt, the music was one of the best parts of MGR. The regular level themes fit the atmosphere and didn't stand out all that much, but the real credit goes to the boss themes. This game has amazing boss music and knows full well how to use it. Not only are the themes high-energy rock songs that manage to fit each and every one of the boss fights they play in, but the game is able to time the music perfectly with the boss fight. Generally, the music is instrumental at the beginning of the battle, and whenever the fight reaches its climax, the music adds a vocal track and breaks into the chorus, which makes you feel like such a boss. Long story short, the music is MGR's highest achievement.