Recent reviews by SquishyNose

It's okay. Thumbs up because it was just fun enough for me to play through all the levels. But there's some problems:

- Movement is sluggish. If you're not in a double-tap sprint, you'll move like a snail.
- The different Rangers all fight exactly the same, but at least beating up putties still feels good.
- Jump and dodge buttons are unresponsive at times.
- The vehicle levels are a mess. Too much damage, hazards to avoid and too much activity on-screen to react accordingly.
- Megazord sequences: the Power Sword mechanic is lame.
- Replay value is meh. Secret items serve no real purpose. One additional unlock for finishing the story. Nothing else.
- Playing online has a micro-stuttering problem. ex: Time anomaly capsule explodes and the rewind mechanic takes place.
- Can't switch characters when you die or before stage select. You're stuck with whoever you chose at the beginning.
- $35 is too high a price for this game.

Most of these things could be patched, and I'm hopeful the developers will do so.

The negative reviews you see are mostly grievances toward the micro-transactions and the performance issues, which I'd like to address first:

Micro-Transactions: The micro-transactions are not needed at all. You can easily earn Rift Crystals (RC) and all the other items through regular gameplay. This is not new for CAPCOM. Devil May Cry 4 and 5 had micro-transactions too and those games were more than well-received.

Performance: The game could definitely use better optimization. You'll need a really strong PC to play this consistently above 60fps; especially if you're strolling through the cities. I have an NVIDIA RTX 2080 Super and I can get at least 60fps outside of the cities with the right settings applied at 1920x1080. Luckily CAPCOM announced they'll be applying fixes to the performance soon. So I anticipate this matter will be old news, eventually.

And now to why I give this game a thumbs up. I played about 1200 hours on Dragons Dogma: Dark Arisen (DDDA). Needless to say, I was stoked for this one. And save for the issues already addressed, it DOES NOT disappoint at all:

1) The world is larger. Lots of secrets to find, too.
2) The vocations are more refined. Warrior is especially a HUGE upgrade from DDDA. Augments are much better too.
3) More dungeons and more caves.
5) Inventory management, curatives, and equipment have been simplified more so from DDDA. Gear looks incredible, too.
6) RE Engine graphics are beautiful. The world has some of the most gorgeous vistas and natural beauty of any open world game out there now.
7) More Quests and they are more fun.
8) Voice acting is good (DDDA had pretty good voice acting, so I can't say it's better, but DD2 is definitely not worse).
9) The character creator is the most detailed and robust character creator I've ever seen any any game. If you spend enough time, you can make your character look almost exactly like ANYONE you know.
10) Pawn AI combat and interaction is enormously better, too. It's nice to see ranged combat pawns (Archers, Mages, Sorcerers) know to keep their distance from enemies while they attack instead of climbing enemies and doing senseless crap like in DDDA.

This game is the definitive Dragons Dogma experience that will keep you hooked and eager to jump back into the lands of Vermund and Battahl as often as possible.

NOTE: I have not completed the game yet. This is my review after about 50hrs of playtime and after exploring most of the Vermund landmass.
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EDIT: After 100+ hours of gameplay and upon completing the game once, there's a few additional things I'd like to add. [MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS]

1) Execution: There are plenty of things DDDA did better than DD2. For instance, DDDA had a Hydra fight at the beginning of the game, which was quite a spectacle that changed based on character action (or inaction). DDDA also had an impressive quest line that showcased a Griffin fight, and a Cockatrice fight, and a Golem fight and so on. The final fight with the Dragon in DD2 was also a big "meh" compared to DDDA. DD2 just doesn't deliver or introduce most of its major monsters the way DDDA did. And that was a bit of a letdown. The only major spectacle quest line in DD2 that showcased a major encounter was the Colossus fight, which doesn't appear until toward the very end of the story.

2) Adventuring: I often refuse to use fast-travel in my open world games. I never fast-traveled in Skyrim, either. With DD2, the movement from point A to point B can become REALLY tedious. This is because you'll be waylaid by combat on average every 5 seconds (no exaggeration) between encounters while traveling on any road or path. The Battahl region is especially bad for this. On top of this, you'll have at least one pawn in your party pulling you in every direction to "discover a new location of interest, Arisen!" at any point you're not being ambushed by goblins, bandits, saurians, etc. In Battahl, it's possible to enter a fight with a Drake, a Griffin, and a Minotaur all at the same time because of how close the monsters' physical proximity is in relation to each other. In summary, you won't get where you need to go, quickly. And this is just too much, even for players like myself who enjoy making the trek.

3) Escort Quests: They're good for a few small bits of RC, but so far I've noticed they're mostly annoying, unnecessary, and tedious. They make you experience my previous point even more often. I got to a point where whenever an NPC wanted to be escorted, I'd be like "NO! F-OFF!" and have to feel bad at their disappointment dialogue that always followed. They also usually appear right at your home and usually when you just finished a long and arduous trek and are definitely not looking to turn right back around and do it again so soon.

4) Mega Dungeons: DDDA also had a few quest lines that took you through some cool mega dungeons, like the Catacombs to deal with the Dragon Cult. The well underneath Cassardis. Or the Everfall (before post-game), the re-taking of the Shadow Fort from the Goblin King, etc. The temple of the Water God. DD2 just doesn't quite deliver on sending you on quests like that. With the exception of the sunken city quest-line, most of DD2 is spent in the over-world with a several non-mandatory smaller caves and dungeons scattered throughout the land.

5) Music: DDDA had a better soundtrack. Plain and simple.

6) Endgame: DD2 does have a fairly decent endgame, which I liked a lot. I don't wanna reveal too much, but my only grievance with it is how some of the endgame content is recycled. You have to go around and activate special encounters in various places and some encounters are just repeats of another. This is lame. They definitely could have done better here.

In Summary: While there's plenty of things DD2 does better than its predecessor (listed toward the top of the review), there are more things I noticed in my 50-120hr game time that make me realize DDDA is still a slightly better game. CAPCOM had 12 years to build something that either rivaled or all-out bested its predecessor, and sometimes it feels like this game was more rushed, less staffed, and less funded than even DDDA was. Plus, we're still waiting on performance fixes. My previous score was a 9, but now I'd like to amend that to an 8/10 based on these new realizations. I'm still hoping CAPCOM continues to patch the issues surrounding this game and eventually releases DLC or expansion content. After having sold over 10 million copies worldwide, this doesn't seem like a mere "option" to them anymore. Either way, it's still a great game and you'll definitely enjoy it.

The sequel to Remnant: From the Ashes takes the best aspects of the first game and improves greatly upon them. Better build variety with 4 ring slots (up from 2 in the 1st game), a variety of different Relics (Dragon Hearts) to suit your play style and the addition of 11 different archetypes. The number of builds you can create is almost infinite. Also, upgrades are restricted to guns and melee weapons only; no more needing to upgrade armor. Armor only provides defensive bonuses now and nothing else. These are all very welcome improvements from the first game. In addition to all this, the level design and boss design are all quite impressive. Lots of hidden secrets, too. You'll be finding new stuff all the time. If you enjoyed :From the Ashes, you'll really love Remnant 2.

Loved it. Good Game-Play. GREAT soundtrack. A must-have retro-style Metroidvania if you're looking for a good one.

The ONLY thing I have an issue with is the incessant number of ultra-fast and hyper-aggressive enemies on screen at once. This creates multiple frustrations that feel more like a trolling than a challenge:

- Enemies hit hard and have a huge knock-back. You'll be low on health often.
- You'll waste tons of ammo trying to take down small, fast enemies. You'll be low on ammo often.
- There are no i-frame dodge or block abilities. You WILL take damage AND knock-back.
- You'll find yourself having to re-climb the same vertical sections repeatedly as a result of this.
- Save points do not replenish health or ammo. Ammo points don't replenish health.
- You'll find yourself often having to grind weak, easier enemies to replenish health and ammo to continue onward.

The developers seem to know about these annoyances because during late-game, you'll obtain fun end-game weapons and equipment that mitigate every one of these frustrations. But those items aren't obtained until you've unlocked about 90% of the map. By the time you find every item, you're already on the last boss and about to finish. So, the mitigation of these inconveniences comes a little late for you to really appreciate.

One of the very best retro-style games out there. Fun, smooth, and responsive game-play. Little to no bugs. Multiple endings and secrets. Plenty of replayability.

One of the best games I've ever played (and still playing); Probably my #1 thus far. Even if the idea of immersing yourself into a 19th century "wild west" world doesn't interest you that much, this game will still provide hundreds of hours of excitement and entertainment. And you will grow to love it, either way.

Yes, this game has a few, very small drawbacks; particularly when it comes to the control scheme. These things come with a bit of a learning curve. But, once you get used to that, the rest is cake.

Play through the game SLOWLY and take your time. EXPLORE EVERYTHING and re-visit previously explored areas. Talk to people. Heed your surroundings and examine everything closely. The attention-to-detail the developers put into this game cannot be overstated. And this game doesn't hold your hand much when it comes to side missions. It's easy to miss out on some really good, non-mission-essential content if you focus too much on powering through the story...

...And what a fantastic story it is. The characters, the main story missions, the action, the drama, the humor, the game-play, the commentary, the decisions you make... Everything about this game coalesces into a multi-emotional experience you simply will not find in any other game you've played before.

Overall a 9.5/10. No game will ever be perfect, but RDR2 is about as close as you can get.

This is quite possibly my favorite video game ever made. The combat system is exceptional. If you enjoy smooth, fluid combat with chaotic action against gargantuan beasts of murderous rage, this is DEFINITELY the game for you. Also, if you enjoy collecting weapons and armors, upgrading them to achieve maximum combat proficiency, this is DEFINITELY the game for you. And if you enjoy delving into dark dungeons with only the light glow of a lantern to light your way, and the distant sounds of growling beasts in the deep waiting to ambush you, you'll DEFINITELY enjoy this game. It's not without its faults, however. But, the pluses far outshine any negatives noticed along the way.

If you think of this game more as a re-imagining, as opposed to a remake, you'll enjoy it more. Compared to RE2 remake, the dodge mechanic and boss battles make RE3 much more fun to play. The short campaign encourages speedruns and multiple play-throughs to unlock all collectibles. You can still get S ranking on the harder difficulties using unlocked weapons and items. For 100% completion, you'll probably be putting in about 25-35 hours of game time. If you're a serious RE fan, it's still definitely worth picking up.

If you plan on playing this game with an xbox 360 controller, then you have nothing to worry about in regards to controls with this game. Most of the negative reviews were made when the game first came out, before all the patches and bug-fixes were released. The game right now is pretty solid and I'm enjoying every moment of it. The price for it is a bit high, in my opinion. I would have thought $19.99 would have been a more suitable price for an HD remastered title. If it goes on sale anytime soon, I would definitely recommend getting it, then. Or if you don't mind paying the $34.99, then I would certainly grab it now.