Recent reviews by r0kle0nZ

Helldivers is just pure, democratic fun. Arrowhead knocked it outta the park with this.

If you liked Like a Dragon's gameplay, you'll dig it. If you like the Yakuza lore, you'll dig it.

Personally didn't think the minigames were as great as previous entries, but ya'know preference.

Dave is a diver who catches fish and runs a sushi restaurant. Game keeps you engaged with new mechanics and new areas all the way until the end. Not too long that it feels like it overstays its welcome, just long enough to be enjoyable and memorable.

While I didn't really care for the way aiming was handled, it was good enough. Loved the restaurant aspect. Would always have "one more thing" to do, whether it was one more dive, one more shift, or just some of the management.

Good game, would recommend for a more relaxed game. 8.3/10

If you've played at least 3 of the saga, you'll probably like this one.

Legitimately one of the greatest JRPGs ever crafted. Overflowing with style, charm, and intention. The characters and story are wonderful. The music was funky and never grew repetitive. Combat was mostly trivial save a few fights even at harder difficulties. Persona is truly one of my top tier games of all time.

This game is too damn big. 10/10.

While a short game, Inscryption is a labor of love that is hard to find in today's gaming industry. On the surface, seems like an atmospheric deck builder, however, the game quickly sucks you into the world it has created. The story of Inscryption is given in bits and pieces over it's three acts, but just enough to make you want to learn more about the mystery. It feels like there was far more to cover, but what it gives you leaves you more than satisfied.

The one con of this game, is that I can never play it again for the first time. Any fan of card games need to play this beauty of a game.

Context: I have only played Yakuza 0 in the series.

As the second entry point into the Yakuza series, Yakuza: Like a Dragon, is an excellent addition to the Yakuza franchise. With a new genre, new characters, and just enough Yakuza to remind you what world you are in, the developers really succeeded here. I loved this game!

I preferred this combat system even more so than Yakuza 0, and the characters/party really allowed it to shine. The more down-to-earth feel of Like a Dragon has a stark contrast to the literal gods that exist in the Yakuza universe. Seeing (and fighting) legends of the series really put into perspective how strong those characters are and how Ichiban's power struggles to compare to Kiryu and Majima. While I did find Ichiban annoying at times, I do believe it's because his personality is significantly different from every other Yakuza character, and that it's wild to see a somewhat normal person in this world.

Yet again, the game itself is a plethora of mini-games with a main story added for set dressing. Loved the mini-games, and felt they rarely fell flat. The best one in my opinion was Business Management (stonks). I did not do any grinding throughout the game, just accomplished what was set for me, however, I did struggle with some end game bosses. By the time I finished the game I was Level 60 with my main jobs rank 30.

Overall, I loved the game and I would love to see more of Ichiban and crew in future iterations. 9/10

Yakuza 0 is an excellent introduction to the series and world of Yakuza. The game has a little something for everyone wrapped around a core story that involves crime, mystery, and drama. It took me a long time to get invested into the story, as SEGA slowly creates the narrative. The twists and turns that take setup are satisfying and it was really great to see everything come together in the end.

The combat is suprisingly deep and found myself continually challenged until the end. It was highly repetitive towards the end, and some combat sections are just annoying with how they're setup. I am probably inexperienced in some of the gun play, but it was just frustrating getting stun-locked and shot repeatedly. However, the struggle makes it all worth it when I completed the game.

The minigames, however, are the key reason you should play Yakuza 0. Whether it's arcade games, management games, bowling, darts, pool, baseball, CABARET CLUBS, and so much more. I found myself constantly bouncing between games and activities leaving the story for later. There's a game for any gamer. Seriously though the cabaret minigame is the best minigame. I could play a standalone of that any day. Sega, please.

Graphically the game is impressive, and love the atmosphere of Japan. The sights and sounds are amazing. I wish the restaurants were a little more expanded on. For instance, in FF15 the campfire mechanic that is prevalent would fit nicely here.

8/10

Cyberpunk 2077, overall, is an amazing game. I think the fundamental game has an excellent game-play loop that is very enjoyable to play. While the special moments of the game are too few, and generally confined to the main story, it leaves a framework for CDPR to expand on in the future. For instance, it seems that many aspects of the game were cut in development (Braindances and customization being the predominant), but the base is there.

For combat, which you will spend a lot of time in, is average (if not slightly above). The smart and tech weapons are interesting, but I feel like they are not as flushed out as CDPR has intended. By the end of my first playthrough, I just ended up using a revolver and cold blood stacks to decimate every threat that came to me. I was able to switch it up at times, but the combat felt very "samey" towards the end. Stealth, is bare bones and doesn't work 100%. I did do many gigs stealthily to break up the monotony of the game-play loop. Quickhacks were more a novelty in my run, reserved for killing 1 or 2 enemies before switching to a firearm. Combat, overall, is a 7.5/10.

The Story is the game's best feature. While the endings had me wanting more, they all felt open ended enough to elaborate on with future DLC. The characters are all wonderful, and I thought the side-stories they crafted were entertaining and had me wanting more. Keanu Reeves' role in the game definitely shocked me, and was not as overwhelming as I thought it would be. Panam is my favorite by far. I wish for more Jackie, but eh. The story is short, but there's plenty to keep the longevity of it high. 9/10

The visuals of the game are incredible and the city does feel alive and breathtaking to witness. Love driving around Night City and seeing every nook and cranny out there. I had a GTX 1060 6GB and was able to run the game no problem. 10/10

The bugs, at least for me, were far overblown and exaggerated. I had few minor visual and audio bugs, but nothing compared to a Bethesda launch. The most glaring of which was my pants disappearing upon entering a cutscene or a vehicle. As patches came out, this seemed to be less of an issue. With time, hopefully everyone else will have as good as a time as I did.

I do look forward to the continued support of Cyberpunk with CDPR. I look forward to seeing what content is coming, as I think the game is incredible as is. I do hope they add a few things: player/vehicle/weapon customization (needed), transmog options, expanded gig choices (as opposed to run and gun almost everything), expand the perk trees, buying apartments/housing would be nice. Post-story game-play would be nice, especially the "Crystal Palace" teased in some endings.

ALSO, I think mod support for this game is almost a necessity. The game has an incredible FRAMEWORK for the creativity of modders to go wild with. There are so many stories possible in Night City, let the community create some. If this game had mod support, it would easily become one of the greatest games in recent history.

Overall, I would say Cyberpunk 2077 is a 8.5/10 game. If you are able to run it no problems, play it. I will definitely play through the game again. It needs optimizations, but I have faith in CDPR to pull through.