Games Whisperer

Resident Evil 3 Remake Review

In 2019, Capcom gave us quite simply one of the very best games of the year in the Resident Evil 2 Remake. It gave us a fresh new take on an absolute classic and putting together everything that’s great about the franchise into this one game. It was familiar, but so refreshing at the same time, and a game I feel is superior to the original.

But barely even a year later, they’ve already released a remake for Resident Evil 3. This concerned me at first, how could that have been enough time to recreate another game with as much love and care that they put into the RE2 remake? Well, read on to find out what they did with the game, and my thoughts on the overall experience.

A Faithful Remake?

The Resident Evil 3 remake is still set in Raccoon City and you’ll still visit many of the locations in the original. That being said, there’s also a lot of places and events that are actually taken out of the game. Remember the cemetery and awesome battle against the giant worm there? Gone. Remember the Clock Tower and all of its fun puzzles? Also gone.

It’s not even just locations that were stripped, but the decision-making feature and the Mercenaries mode you unlock post-game are just some more examples of these features not included. To be fair, a multiplayer addition “Resident Evil: Resistance” was included with the game, but I’m certain most fans didn’t exactly ask for this or want it (myself included).

As far as I can remember, the RE2 Remake contained almost everything in the original, and added more. For this RE3 remake, it was more of a case of taking AWAY from the original. This really baffled me, and I wondered had they spent more time on the game, that they could’ve included everything we loved about the original.

I will praise the game on a more open Raccoon City that you get to explore early on. Being outside, there were certainly a lot more zombie to contend with, and being able to avoid them easier and run made for more tense moments than just shooting everything down. Also because of the more open area, it made the zombie locations more unpredictable, as I had be careful every time I was back out on the streets to explore.

Nemesis Returns

I feel like I need a whole section just for Nemesis because, let’s be honest, he was the star of the show. Nemesis in this game is what Mr. X was to the RE2 remake. At least early on he is. Not too far into the game, you’ll be running from Nemesis much like Mr. X, but you have a bit more to contend with here. Nemesis is faster and has more tricks up his sleeve. Simply running away won’t cut it. He has weapons firing at you, can trip you up with his tentacle whip, and can even jump over and in front of you, blocking you off and forcing you to rethink your actions. Jill’s new evade actually made the action more fun and I hope future Resident Evil games have this feature.

While this all sounds awesome, I don’t think Nemesis had quite the impact that Mr. X had. When you were in the police station, hearing those clanging footsteps getting louder would incite fear in anyone. Plus being in a more closed off area meant you had very little room to manoeuvre, which increased the fear factor even more. I never quite felt this fear with Nemesis. There were jump scares of course, but that terror that this franchise is known for wasn’t there for me.

Plus Nemesis only really chases you a small handful of times and only in particular areas. One time he was chasing me and I ran into a shop to get away, and instead of chasing me in, I could see him just standing still and staring at me through the window. It was more creepy than anything, but was out of character for Nemesis, where normally he should be bursting through walls and doors. Apart from that, you’ll only ever be pestered by Nemesis during scripted chase scenes and boss fights afterwards, which again goes against what I thought he was there for.

Admittedly these chase scenes and boss fights were a highlight of the game for me. They were action-packed and thrilling. I loved how the boss fights were more than just a bullet-sponge fest (for the most part). You had to take different actions with each fight and were some of the more memorable moments. Nemesis’ design throughout the game, and his animations, were really done well and the developers put quite the effort into it.

Where’s The Puzzles?

Alright this was the biggest issue in this whole remake. With every great Resident Evil, you explore the map in search of ways to access more areas, solve puzzles, and eventually progress. This is usually the best part about the franchise for me. That progression you go through in terms of backtracking, accessing previously locked areas, etc. is what makes it addictive and satisfying.

Unfortunately there was hardly any of that here. For example, the first major puzzle that involves you collecting 3 gems to insert in a statue is OPTIONAL. There is still some backtracking to unlock doors using your lockpick and wire cutters, but it’s hardly a puzzle. It seemed like the vast majority of items you pick up is ammo and gunpowder, to create more ammo.

As I progressed further into the game, the more frustrated I grew with this realisation. It really showed a lot of laziness on the developers part, but maybe it was because of the lack of time they seemingly spent on the game. If they had spent maybe another year, this could have been a more fully-fleshed out game like the RE2 remake was. I will admit things do marginally improve by the time you reach the hospital, and the final two areas almost try to right the wrongs of the majority of the game, but it felt too little too late by that stage.

Resident Evil 3 Remake Review Summary

So my initial concerns about the Resident Evil 3 Remake development time came to fruition. The game was clearly rushed in some regards, and that resulted in some lazy game design. There’s a lot missing from the original game, and there’s a lot of puzzles missing too, making this game feel a little incomplete.

On the plus side, most of Nemesis’ appearances and boss fights were thrilling encounters, and I looked forward to each one rather than being put off them. The game also improves in roughly the last third because it was then I felt myself really getting into it, but if only that had happened from the beginning.

When I finished the RE2 remake, I was compelled to come back and play through it again and again. I’ve finished the game six times (and counting), but with this RE3 remake, I just don’t have the same desire to replay it.

I genuinely wish more time was spent on the game, and then we could have had a remake that is superior to the original. I know I’ve been pretty harsh throughout this review, but that’s only because of the high bar set by the RE2 remake.

Score: 7.9

Sea of Solitude Review

Video games aren’t always about simply having ‘fun’. Sometimes they’re used to tell a particular story, or convey a particular message. If you’ve played indie games over the last few years, you’ll notice a fair few of them have been used to teach and enlighten gamers about mental illness.

Video games are a powerful medium and can teach us better than what other mediums can. Sea of Solitude attempts to do just that as it tackles multiple issues such as depression, bullying, relationship breakups, and more. That’s quite a lineup of issues, but just how well does Sea of Solitude succeed with conveying its messages, as well as being a great video game at the same time?

Emotional Impact

Sea of Solitude has you playing as Kay, a girl who has taken on the appearance of a more monstrous version of herself. She finds herself in a rather awe-inspiring, but also at times depressing, world. During her journey, she encounters frightening shadow-like beasts that she must avoid as she makes her way through.

While it may seem like a minor spoiler, even though it’s clearly obvious, the game’s setting and characters/beasts are visual representations of Kay’s friends, family, and mental state. You’ll play through various key moments of her life that lead her to feelings of isolation and depression.

There are times where this is really impactful and made me pay attention. In particular the ‘bullying’ and ‘marriage problem’ scenes were done extremely well and it will get the emotions stirring in anyone. You can really tell how these impacted Kay and why she fell into her dark despair. The environments during these moments also greatly helped convey the emotion and impact of the situation. In fact, the scenery and environments throughout the whole game can be pretty spectacular at times.

As impactful as some moments were, it still wasn’t great as it could have been, and this is due to the awful voice acting. I’m not trying to be mean, but the voice acting is some of the worst I’ve ever heard. When you have a game where making the player feel certain emotions, a strong acting performance is essential to help the player really connect with the character(s). But this really took a hit because of the atrocious voice acting for pretty much all the characters, but most importantly, the main character Kay.

Even though the game ended fairly well, it lacked that emotional punch that some earlier scenes had, and a strong ending was really needed for a game like this. It’s fine as it is, but didn’t make that impact I believe was expected. I remember the game Gris and how powerful its ending is, all without proper cutscenes or dialogue. Sea of Solitude had those things, but I didn’t experience those same goosebumps and emotions a game’s ending like this perhaps should have had.

Sea of Solitude Gameplay

Usually with these type of games, the gameplay isn’t always the main focus, but there are rare exceptions. The 2018 masterpiece Celeste also tackled mental health issues, but gave us possibly the best platforming you’ll ever play! Unfortunately the gameplay in Sea of Solitude was a fairly big weakness.

During the game, you’ll be sailing around on your boat, completing some exploration puzzles, do a bit of platforming, and more. I’ll commend the game on its variety, as the game presents quite a few different ideas, and not too many of these ideas are repeated (though some are). The problem is that none of them are particularly exceptional and not too much thought went into them. They’re simply not that fun or enjoyable, and while this game was never meant to be ‘fun’, the gameplay side of things shouldn’t be boring either.

Also when you throw in the fact that the character movements and animations are fairly unpolished, it makes the game feel like it needed a bit more work just to refine those finer details. I know the game’s themes are meant to make you feel awkward and uncomfortable, but that doesn’t mean the controls and movements should too.

If you’re still compelled to give this game a go, wait until it’s very cheap because it’s extremely short, as I finished it after two short sessions. There are some collectables to find, but there’s not much motivation to do so apart from trophies/achievements.

Sea of Solitude Review Summary

There is a rise of games tackling mental health and many other heavy issues like Celeste, Gris, and Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice. These games not only did a great job of helping gamers understand these troubling issues, but had great gameplay to back it up.

Unfortunately Sea of Solitude doesn’t join that list of greats. It still does a great job of taking you on an emotional ride, as there are certainly some moments here I won’t forget, and I really did feel something for these characters. But the poor acting did detract from the experience where it really should have enhanced it.

The gameplay itself presented a few ideas throughout to keep things fresh, but none of them were implemented in any memorable way. It’s like the gameplay was there for the sake of being there. It’s true that it was never meant to be the game’s strong point, but we still have to playthrough it to get to the game’s highlights.

If you’re looking for a game about mental health and/or similar issues, there are plenty of better games out there that do a better job of showcasing it. I would recommend almost all of them over Sea of Solitude, even though you will still find some hard-hitting moments here.

Score: 6

Blasphemous Review

Blasphemous joins the growing list of games influenced by the Soulsbourne and Metroidvania genre. This game has you journeying through a large variety of stylised locations, slaughtering plenty of grotesque monsters along the way.

The combat is also what you would expect from a Soulsbourne-inspired game. It’s a little slower and more cautious than your usual retro 2D sidescrollers, but presents great challenge and satisfying kills. Speaking of kills, the death animations for Blasphemous are phenomenal! So much detail went into the animations when enemies die and it never gets old!

Enemies have their own attacks you’ll need to learn to get through unscathed as the game is fairly punishing. The same goes for boss fights, who were each a lot of fun to master. Unlike most Soulsbourne games, Blasphemous doesn’t have a level up system, but rather you grow stronger with relics, and many other collectables. This means no grinding, and also it relies more on skill than anything. There’s a fun parry system (similar to that of Sekiro) and each time you counter an enemy it bring great satisfaction.

The game’s tone and atmosphere is where it really shines brightest, as it is reminiscent of both the Dark Souls games and Bloodbourne, but I believe Blasphemous is even more disturbing and twisted. From the dialogue to the items, everything is so cryptic and full of mystique, and all of it helps immerse you into its world.

The game can be quite directionless at times, which may seem good for giving you freedom, but can very frustrating when it comes to backtracking because it takes a while go back to other areas with its very limited fast-travel system.
Other criticisms include a rather small skill tree, and most of the skills to learn feel rather pointless, which makes collecting ‘souls’ less motivating.

I still had a fun time with this game. If you’ve ever wanted to play a 2D Soulsbourne game, I’d recommend this right behind Salt and Sanctuary, but it’s still an enjoyable game regardless.

Score: 8

Darksiders Genesis Review

The Darksiders series has been around for a good 10 years now and have given us 4 games along the way. Most people will tell you it’s an underrated series, that it hasn’t received the popularity and success it deserves.

Having played them all so far, I would agree with this, but at the same time I can see why it hasn’t taken off like many other franchises. First of all, its visual style may be too dark and creepy for some people. I personally love the aesthetics but may not be everyone’s cup of tea.

The other reason I think is the most likely one. It’s never really established its own identity gameplay-wise. Every game in the series is a take on another franchise. The first two games borrowed elements from The Legend of Zelda and God of War, and Darksiders 3 was clearly a Soulsbourne clone. That trend doesn’t stop, as Darksiders Genesis takes on another tried and true formula, but most importantly, is it done well enough to still be a great game?

So for the latest iteration, Darksiders Genesis takes on the twin-stick shooter and hack and slash genre, all taking place on a Diablo-style isometric view. You play as the fourth Horseman we have yet to play- Strife. To me, Strife is a breath of fresh air compared to the other Horsemen. The other Horsemen were so serious all the time, but Strife is the complete opposite. He reminds me a little bit like Nathan Drake from the Uncharted series and I really enjoyed his company. To makes things even more interesting, Strife is paired with the first Darksiders protagonist- War. Seeing the two opposing personalities clash makes for one of the more enjoyable aspects of the game.

Having two Horsemen go along for the ride obviously allows for this game for co-op, and while I never played co-op myself, I can imagine it would be a heap of fun. But if you’re like me and like to play solo, you can alternate between the two for both combat and puzzles. Both characters have their own unique set of attacks, where War is better for melee, Strife is better for long range and I believe his other abilities are more interesting than War’s. I opted to play as Strife for the majority of the game as I’ve already played as War before, but also because his guns were the highlight of the combat for me.

Strife has a decent variety of ammo types and should be changed regularly depending on the situation. Some ammo types are great for crowd control, while others are better for single opponents. I really had a lot of fun with the twin-stick portion of combat, especially when you build up your hotshot meter and can fire more powerful versions of each ammo type.

The pacing of the combat is just right, not too slow and not too fast. You’ll face hoards of enemies at a time and you just feel so powerful when you rip right through them. Enemies are constantly dropping items and souls, and it’s always a satisfying feeling with each enemy you kill.

When you’re not in combat, you’re exploring a variety of maps, each with a decent amount collectables and puzzles. Well the puzzles aren’t the best we’ve ever seen, but for this game, they’re good enough. You’ll need to make the most of both character’s abilities to solve them. So while the puzzles could have been a bit better, there’s still some clever ideas implemented and it was a nice break from all the action.

Levelling up Strife and War is done quite differently in this game. Most games have you gain XP and equip new gear to raise your stats. In Darksiders Genesis, strengthening your character is done in one of the more unique features of the game. This is in the form of Creature Cores. When an enemy or boss is killed, they may drop a Creature Core, which you then equip to gain its benefits, whether it be stat increases or perks.

The whole Creature Core system, along with the board you equip them on, can be a bit confusing, and even a bit messy. Plus if you want to boost the effects of each Creature Core, you need to collect quite a few of them to level them up, and this can become quite grindy.

On the plus side of this system, there’s plenty of cores to collect and you have a variety of ways to alter your characters and their abilities. When you’ve placed cores in the correct places (for even more of a boost), it can be quite satisfying.

You may have noticed the word ‘Genesis’ in the game’s title, so obviously this implies an origin story. The story does take place before the events of the first Darksiders game, where you’re sent on a mission to uncover Lucifer’s sinister plot. The story in the first half of the game is very ‘game-y’, where you’ll be sent off to look for various artefacts that are supposed to help you on your mission.

There’s nothing particularly wrong with the story, it’s just not the most memorable one. I will admit though, the ending and twist that occurs really surprised me in a good way. The story up until that point didn’t really feel like much effort was put in, but I was very happy with the ending!

Once you’ve completed the story, there’s still plenty of content to play through. There’s a separate Arena mode, remaining collectables to find, secret puzzles and bosses to find, so there really is good value in this game. It didn’t cost a whole lot when it released, but I got a good 60+ hours out of it.

Now as much as I enjoyed this game, there were quite a few downsides that should have, and really could have, been fixed. Firstly, the game is buggy as hell. I always encountered multiple bugs with every session I played. Most were small and didn’t bother me too much, but there were times I had to quit the game because of them.

Sometimes transitioning from one map to another just didn’t work, sometimes I would get stuck in the environment, and sometimes I would fall through the floor. It’s not just technical glitches either that hurt this game. For example, subtitles in cutscenes would change way too quickly, and whenever characters spoke in the void area, their voices would echo so badly that I couldn’t understand them.

One major oversight that really annoyed me (at the time of writing) was the fact that the map you use for navigation, doesn’t actually show where you are on it! It was infuriating always having to look at the map and try and guess where I am. The best way was to look at chests and collectables nearby, then check on the map to work out where you are. I hope a fix gets patched in for it, but it won’t matter for anyone like myself who’ve already finished the game.

Darksiders Genesis Review Summary

Darksiders Genesis overall is a very welcome addition to the series. Even though there’s been many twin-stick shooters and hack and slash games in the past, this game manages to get pacing of the combat just right, along with plenty of variety to always keep it entertaining.

There’s more than enough content here too, especially for a ‘smaller’ game, and enjoyed the vast majority of it. Where action was its strong point (especially the twin-stick shooting), the puzzles could have been expanded upon further, but I think were just good enough for this type of game.

As much fun as I had, the game did suffer from a long list of bugs and areas that needed improving. Encountering a new glitch almost every time I played did hurt the game a little, but didn’t stop me from having fun still.

When this game was revealed, I wasn’t too keen on it, and wasn’t even sure if I would eventually buy it, but I’m very thankful I did and it was great to finally play as the fourth Horseman Strife. His humour and awesome choice of weapons (his guns) makes him possibly my favourite Horseman of the lot. It may be a very different Darksiders compared to the rest, but I think all fans should still definitely give Genesis a go!

Score: 8.5

Gris Review

Gris is a puzzle platformer that tells the story about the five stages of grief. We’ve seen plenty of great games tackle the puzzle platformer genre, we’ve also seen some games take on the idea of the grieving process (such as RiME), and now we have Gris which attempts the same. But does Gris manage to get the balance of fun gameplay and powerful storytelling just right?

Gris Visuals and Storytelling

From the moment you load Gris up, you know that visually you’ll be in for something special. The one thing most people notice about this game is its art style, which is why I wanted to bring it up first. It’s absolutely beautiful, but at the same time, its use of colour is very clever and well thought out.

You might be wondering why I grouped Gris’ visuals and storytelling together in one group. That’s because Gris’ entire storytelling is done visually. There’s no dialogue, there’s no voice acting, there’s only fragments of what the game is really about scattered throughout the game. As I mentioned earlier, the game’s main topic is grief and its five stages, and ultimately Gris is a visual representation of those stages.

Early in the game, there’s very little colour, and very little you can do in terms of abilities. As you move through the different stages, the representing colours are added to the game, not only adding more flair to the scenery, but also adding more to the gameplay. It’s very cleverly done and there are some truly jaw-dropping moments when more colour is added.

Of course, it’s not just pretty pictures and colours here, there is a very powerful story told. You’re only given bits and pieces of what is going on, but I do wish the story was more fleshed out. Just a little more context would have been great, and more insight would have made it easier to really connect and sympathise with the main character. If you manage to unlock certain secrets, more will be revealed to you, but I still wish for more. That being said, I still think there’s just enough to go on, and you’ll still feel the emotion this game is trying to evoke.

Gris Gameplay

Games like this that focus so much on their narrative can sometimes be a bit light on the gameplay. Games like Celeste are the obvious exceptions, and while Gris doesn’t even come close to the gamplay of Celeste, I still had a very good time with it.

Unlike Celeste though, you actually cannot die in Gris. It takes the approach of being stress-free and just enjoying the game without too much consequence. You might think this makes the game boring and easy. Yes, it is easy, but I was pleasantly surprised at how much fun I was still having.

As you progress and go through the different stages, you’ll learn new abilities to overcome new challenges. That might sound pretty standard but Gris manages to keep things fresh by throwing new ideas at you constantly. Nothing ever feels like it drags on, and the new ideas are implemented well before you eventually move on.

Like I said with the story, I just wish the gameplay and the creative ideas were more fleshed out. My main gripe is that because the game is so short, there’s simply not enough time for the gameplay and ideas to really be expand upon.

For example with Celeste, whenever a new mechanic or idea is incorporated, there’s plenty of platforming challenges that uses it and does it in so many different ways. Gris is just unable to do this because of the game’s length. Don’t get me wrong, I really did have fun with the actual gameplay, but I just wanted more!

Gris Review Summary

Gris is a game that does a great job of integrating unique visuals with a powerful story. The two aspects go hand-in-hand and is one of the major highlights of the game. The gameplay was better than expected, full of fun and creative ideas that left me wanting more.

But me ‘wanting more’ was the main criticism of Gris. The game was far too short to really expand upon both the great storytelling and fun gameplay. If the game was twice the length, the story could have given us enough to connect with it even more. But maybe more importantly, the gameplay and all the different mechanics could have been explored even further, and would’ve taken this game to even great heights.

Score: 8.7

Dragon Ball Z Kakarot Review

Since I became a Dragon Ball Z fan many years ago, I’ve craved an open world RPG Dragon Ball Z game. The thought of flying around as my favourite characters, levelling up and becoming stronger (just like in the show), and following the show’s storyline in this genre all felt like a dream to me and I’m sure many others. Dragon Ball Z Kakarot is the answer to that dream, but does it live up to expectations? Read on to find out!

DBZ Kakarot Storytelling

This game’s story follows the one we all know and love from the anime show. Yes, it’s great, and I could relive it over and over without getting sick of it. But for this review, I can’t exactly review the story itself because it didn’t originate from this game, but what I can do is talk about the way this story is told.

In previous DBZ games I’ve played (like Budokai), the story is told in a very compact version alternating between cutscenes and fighting segments. That makes sense, seeing as though that’s the only way to do it when it comes to fighting games, but I know I’ve wanted a more immersive way of experiencing the story. And that’s the very reason I’ve wanted DBZ in RPG format!

Thankfully the entire DBZ saga is recreated faithfully. While it doesn’t show absolutely everything, it doesn’t exactly need to. There’s plenty of cutscenes, but they’re all done so well and it feels like I’m part of the epic story. You’ll take part in all the major battles, and even many minor ones. In between the fighting, there’s other tasks you’ll need to do, but unfortunately most are nothing more than fetch quests.

This is one of the major criticisms I have for DBZ Kakarot, and that is the sheer amount of fetch quests you’ll be doing, both for main and side quests. It’s a shame because it’s such lazy game design and I don’t understand why developers feel the need to do this. It works for MMOs, but for single player games, it’s clearly just padding.

If you can get past the criticism of the fetch quests though, you can see where the developers placed their efforts, and that is creating the most authentic DBZ experience imaginable. The voice actors are back to reprise their roles which was a great move! Almost everything is very familiar, the visuals are exactly like the show but in 3D, the sounds effects such as jumping and flying, it’s all there and feels so authentic.

DBZ Kakarot Combat

For anyone who’s seen the anime, they know that the fighting and battles take centre stage. Obviously the same can be said about the game, and for the most part, it’s actually quite fun.

It’s fast-paced and frantic, just like you’d expect and want. As you learn new moves and transformations, you assign them to your controls and can then blast away, as long as you watch your Ki. It is a little limited though, as the entire melee is relegated to just one button, so expect to be spamming that button for many of the fights. There could have been a lot more depth to the combat if this wasn’t the case, but at least you’ll have a variety of abilities to pull off, like the classic Kamehameha and Spirit Bomb.

At various points, like many other RPGs, you can have a team of warriors at your side. Not only will they automatically fight with you, you can give them commands for what attacks you want them to do. If the fight is long enough, you can all engage Z Combo, which makes for a satisfying conclusion.

One major issue you’ll notice with the combat is the camera. Because you’re always in the air, and you’re always locked onto an opponent, the camera can cause a bit of grief. If you’ve been knocked down into the ground while your opponent in still in the air, the camera will try and stay behind you and make it very difficult to see what’s going on. I found myself spamming the buttons trying to get away but couldn’t see a whole lot, making it just a little frustrating at times.

So while the combat’s not perfect, there’s enough there to enjoy and is greatly helped by the RPG mechanics, which I’ll talk about next.

DBZ Kakarot RPG Mechanics

As I just mentioned, the combat in Kakarot is still fairly good, but I believe the RPG side of things is done better. Like in almost every RPG, you gain XP and level up, raising your stats and getting stronger in the process. Thankfully you really notice the improvements in this game. You as play through each saga, the jump in your overall power level rises greatly (to keep up with the story of course) and you’ll see your HP rise up from the tens of thousands, to the hundreds of thousands, to eventually the millions! It really makes you feel like your gaining so much stronger as an RPG character, and it feels like you’re experiencing that same growth the characters go through in the anime.

One unique mechanic I enjoyed was the Community Boards and Soul Emblems. Here there’s a variety of boards which represent different elements of the game, such as XP growth, cooking success, melee attack, and many more. You equip the Soul Emblems (represented as the many characters of DBZ), and you place them on which board you want to focus more on. At the start, there’s not as much experimenting to do, but later on in the game when you unlock a lot more Soul Emblems, it starts to get really fun strategically placing them on boards to get the most gain. You can even place them next to certain characters which may give a boost, ensuring there’s always more to think about when deciding where to place them.

You can even give gifts to these Emblems to raise their stats, so this just adds a little more depth to the whole process, and overall I really enjoyed this component of the game.

DBZ Kakarot Open World

I’ve been relatively positive about the game so far, but here’s where it gets a bit messy. On a positive note, the world (or regions) themselves look great, like they’ve been taken straight from the show. You’ll also notice heaps of collectables, and I mean HEAPS of collectables, scattered absolutely everywhere on every map. These range from orbs for learning skills, items, materials, etc, so there’s always something to pick up along the way.

But this game makes a habit of resorting back to unwanted RPG cliches, such as almost pointless mini games like fishing, racing, and others. As expected I spent the minimum amount of time possible on these because they never felt worth it, even though they’re required for some missions. There are some structures to destroy around the map, but again were just there for the sake of having more open world activities. At the end of the day, most of these inclusions felt shallow and shoehorned in.

Speaking of RPG cliches, I already spoke about the fetch quests earlier, but I feel the need to bring it up again because it fits nicely into this category. Whether it’s a main quest or a side quest, you’ll too often find yourself having to hunt down apples, materials, or taking part in some kind of unimaginative filler. Like I said before, it’s clear where the developers placed their efforts and where they did not.

Another thing to mention is that this game is not just one open world, but multiple regions you’ll have to fast travel to get around. The problem with this is the many, many, many loading screens you’ll be watching. I think I spent half my playthrough waiting for the loading screen to end than actually playing the game! Alright I’m exaggerating, and the loading screens aren’t that long but they are very frequent, so be prepared for that.

To end on a high note though, the post-game was handled pretty well. There’s plenty more side quests to do, and I actually enjoyed how some of them provided some sort of closure for a lot of the characters. Whether it’s canon or not, I’m not sure, but it was a really nice touch. The inclusion of another side plot, involving one of the main open world activities (Villainous enemies), was really appreciated and gave some meaning to doing them.

Dragon Ball Z Kakarot Review Summary

Dragon Ball Z Kakarot has some obvious highs and obvious lows. But I believe if you’re a big enough of a DBZ fan, you’ll be able to overlook the criticisms. That being said, if you’re not a DBZ fan, and looking for a new RPG to immerse yourself in, this will not be the game for you. The fetch quests and filler will only put gamers off as the effort was clearly in trying to create the most authentic DBZ experience possible.

If I was to rate this game as a fan of DBZ only, I would have scored this game higher. If I was to rate this as a game in its own right, regardless of the DBZ flavour, I would have scored it lower. So I have to meet it somewhere in the middle to be the most fair.

I still commend the developers on their efforts, it was a huge undertaking translating the DBZ universe to an RPG game, and if they could work on the game/mission design more, then we could see something special from them in the future.

Score: 7.8

Pokemon Sword/Shield Review

The Pokemon series had been going strong for over 20 years now. What’s not to love? An epic adventure to prove yourself as the best trainer in the region, stopping villians from doing bad things, and completing that collection of Pokemon. To me, the Pokemon games are the perfect handheld games. But these current games are different, for they are the first main series Pokemon games on a home console. The expectations are immense, as people have dreamt of bigger things for the series, and now it can finally happen! But do these latest games, Pokemon Sword and Shield, pull off those expectations?

The Gym Challenge

Every Pokemon game has you journeying through the region, battling gym leaders, acquiring their badges, and ultimately making your way to take on the best of the best to be named the Pokemon Champion. In Sword/Shield, this process actually has a name for it- The Gym Challenge. What I enjoyed about the story this time around, is how much focus was put on this challenge.

With previous Pokemon games, the main goal of collecting badges sometimes felt like an afterthought, like it was just something that’s assumed to do while the games emphasised another story. I didn’t mind the Pokemon games having these other storylines too, but the appeal of growing as a trainer and collecting badges was always what interested me the most.

In Sword/Shield, almost all the emphasis is placed on this very goal. It was made even better by having not just one, but multiple rivals who you meet up (and battle) with constantly throughout your travels. Even as you travel to the different gyms, you can see people talking about you more and more as you succeed. I think they’ve done a very good job of making this journey feel important, like it should always feel.

Speaking of the gyms, I loved how each one presented its own unique mission before the gym leader battle. Some gyms had you play some kind of mini-game, some had you solving puzzles, all the while defeating trainers along the way. I was always excited to begin a new gym because the missions added some variety to the game.

There are some ways they could have improved it though. I mentioned before that you have rivals, and I wish that the game could have expanded more on each of them. You get some backstory on them, but I wish more time was given to them, just so that rivalry can heat up even more and beating them towards the end would have even greater impact.

Like with every Pokemon game, there is a side story to bring in some extra drama, but unfortunately it’s done so poorly here. You can sense there’s another storyline going on, but its build up is almost non-existent, as it doesn’t even feel important or like it’s not building up to anything at all.

Even when something major occurs, you’re just simply told to “not worry about it, just continue your gym challenge”. But what irritated me the most was this side story decided to become important at the worst possible time! I don’t want to spoil anything, but all the momentum and climax for the main story was totally ruined by this poorly told and paced side story. It’s almost like they shoehorned it in just for the sake of having a villain, when it felt so meaningless all throughout the game.

Franchise Evolution

So now the main Pokemon games have arrived on home console, but is it the big evolutionary leap many were hoping for? Not really. As you travel throughout the region, you’ll head to different towns/cities, and all the routes in between. The thing is, each route is so short you’ll end up breezing through them, even if you pick up every item around.

As a result, the whole game feels much shorter than the previous entries. There’s hardly any dungeons or side areas along the way, so you’ll be making your way and collecting badges much sooner than expected.

Aside from all that, there is one particular area that would be considered that evolutionary step for the series, and that is the Wild Area! The Wild Area is a large, 3D sandbox where you can catch Pokemon to your hearts content. There are multiple zones where you’ll find different types of Pokemon lurking about. You can also spin the camera around, making it feel like Pokemon has finally ascended to open world gaming. My main problem though is that it feels more tacked on that anything. It’s almost like the developers were like “Uh oh, we need something to show we’re evolving the series, let’s throw in this large area”.

You’ll pass through the Wild Area twice on your journey, but spend most of your time away from it, at least while you’re progress through the main story. Now I’m not saying the Wild Area is a bad thing, if you’re wanting to build up your collection, or do some training, then the Wild Area is a dream come true. I just think if the series wants to move forward, it needs to have areas like this be more prominent, rather than just acting as a side attraction.

What will frustrate many though is the fact that you have no idea what level the Pokemon you encounter are, so one area they may be fine, but another area they could be far above you and destroy you. It’s not exactly the best example of good game design, and it’s something the developers should have thought of if they allowed you to explore almost all of the Wild Area early on.

But at least it’s a place that will keep you occupied for a while after you’ve finished the main story. There’s plenty of Pokemon here to catch, so for those wanting to fill up the Pokedex won’t want to leave. Apart from that, there’s the Max Raid Battles that can be done solo (with the help of AI), or with other players. Here you’ll combine your efforts to take down a dynamaxed Pokemon to earn some decent rewards- including TMs. It’s a pretty cool feature, but I’m not sure whether the novelty of it all will really last for most gamers.

Another way these games have tried to change things up is in the form of ‘dynamaxing’ your Pokemon. Whenever they’re in a ‘Power Spot”, which is usually during gym leader battles and the Wild Area, you can have your Pokemon grow to an extraordinary size and cause even more damage. When both Pokemon in the battle have dynamaxed, you really just need to pull off a couple of extra attacks in order to down your opponent. So ultimately, from a gameplay point of view, it doesn’t add a whole lot. But what it does add is spectacle!

When I’m battling a gym leader, and they’re down to their final Pokemon, having a full-on dynamaxed battle is just an exciting way to earn your badge. It just ends things in spectacular fashion, and that’s the main thing I enjoyed about this feature. Plus, the new music that plays is actually really good, so it all culminates to something special.

Apart from those changes, everything else is exactly what you would expect. The rest of the battle system has remained the same with its turn-based structure. Being on Nintendo’s latest console, I’m sure many gamers would have expected better visuals, but these aren’t too far off the 3DS games. The battle animations are fairly lacking too, with some attacks just showing little hops from your Pokemon instead of full on attack animations. It’s just a lot of little things like this you would hope more effort was put into because we know the Switch is capable of a lot more than this.

To round things off, I’ll briefly talk about post game. Pokemon Sword/Shield’s post game will providers gamers will some good content after the main story is complete. There’s a decent new quest to undertake involving the legendary pokemon, new items to earn from NPCs, and the Battle Tower. The Battle Tower is where trainers go to test their skills in battle, and earn rewards along the way as you rise the ranks. So post game has you covered depending on how you want to spend your time, whether it be battling (Battle Tower) or catching Pokemon (Wild Area).

Pokemon Sword/Shield Review Summary

I know I criticised a lot about this game, but I feel Pokemon should be in a different place by now. It’s not about completely changing it, it’s about making improvements and upgrades to match the modern era we’re in.

I still had fun with this game and it’s a good thing I skipped the last couple of generations which meant I avoided series fatigue. But even still, at this point in the Pokemon life cycle, I would have expected more from the first home console attempt. The Wild Area is fine in its own right, but it needed to be more part of the game, rather than just a side attraction.

I’ll probably still be coming back to this game over the months, trying to eventually complete my Pokedex, but I can’t help but feel like this was a missed opportunity. It’s funny how the Pokemon themselves can sometimes evolve fairly easily, but the franchise itself is struggling to do so.

Score: 7.5

AI: The Somnium Files Review

There’s a particular reason I was excited about AI: The Somnium Files. The developers at Spike Chunsoft were also responsible for one of my favourite series- Zero Escape. So with this game being their next venture, I was curious to see what new ideas they would bring to the table.

Storyline and Storytelling

AI: The Somnium Files starts off in dark fashion. A woman has been murdered, found tied up to a merry-go-round, with her left eye gouged out. You play as Kaname Date, a detective sent to investigate the crime. Date has a distinct advantage while investigating- he has an advanced AI built into his eye, which helps analyse data and many other functions, as well as getting sassy with him.

The game mainly takes place in two forms, the investigating and the Somniums. The Somniums are the gameplay portion which I’ll talk about later. The investigating involves travelling to different locations, interviewing different people, and learning more about the events of the crime.

Now this all sounds like a pretty standard crime game, but if you’ve ever played a Spike Chunsoft game, you’ll know to expect it to be anything other than ‘standard’. Like previous Zero Escape games, the story is visually represented on a flowchart, which can also split in different directions. Depending on how you do in certain Somniums, you’ll be taken on different story paths in which the story can change pretty dramatically.

Compared to flowcharts in other games, this game’s flowchart seems pretty small and limited. It definitely lacks the multitude of directions I’ve seen in other flowcharts, so it would have been nice to see more paths and more variations to the story. You’ll also encounter ‘locks’ in some story paths, meaning you can’t continue until you’ve progressed in other particular paths. But the fact that there really aren’t that many locks really shows the limitations in the flowchart.

Now onto the storyline itself. Being a visual novel, the game’s story is of utmost importance. Without a compelling storyline, games in this genre will fall flat and feel like a waste of time. As I played through AI: The Somnium Files, being a murder mystery, I was always compelled to learn more. Any new discoveries I made that helped unravel the case always made me want to continue.

Then it got to a certain point where any discoveries made just didn’t have much impact. Because each new story path contains different events, and they felt all so disconnected from each other, I started to care less and less about the twists that were revealed. Things started to not make much sense and I was starting to become more and more unsure as to where the story was actually leading.

I still persisted anyway because I know these developers and they have this uncanny ability of having everything make sense and feel cohesive, no matter how fragmented things may seem. Thankfully my faith in them paid off because the game’s biggest reveals completely changed the game’s storytelling, and almost out of nowhere, everything just clicked.

I can’t bring up any details for spoiler reasons, but in order to get the most out of this game, you must play it all the way to completion. I’ll admit I was losing interest for a while, but it’s not until very late that the story lives up to Spike Chunsoft’s reputation for great storylines. It may be a bit confusing, maybe even convoluted, but not enough to be put off.

Characters and Writing

Now every great story needs great characters and this game has plenty of them. Certain story paths you take will usually involve some characters more than others. The more paths you play through, the more you’ll learn about everyone. There’s the bubbly internet idol Iris, who seems to inject a lot of energy to the situation, but can get a bit annoying at times. There’s Ota, the young man who is fairly obsessed with Iris and is always wanting to protect her. And then there’s my personal favourite character- Mizuki, a mature but feisty 12 year old who is quite capable for someone her age.

There’s plenty more characters to get to know, and they’re all quite memorable. The voice acting is fine, nothing spectacular, but nothing too poor. The dialogue on the other hand can be a bit off at times. Sometimes you’ll wonder whether the writers were taking this game seriously. Plus there’s a lot of sexual innuendo…and I mean a LOT! It feels like almost every scene will contain it, and while it doesn’t bother me personally, it felt very excessive at times.

In fact, there were some moments where it was borderline ridiculous. Minor spoilers here, but using a porno mag to distract well trained soldiers just seemed really silly and unrealistic. Speaking of unrealistic, there were even some scenes of Mizuki, a 12 year old girl, somehow taking on a large group of armed men directly shooting at her, and her somehow winning the fight. I know it’s a game, but things like this irritate me because it felt so out of place.

The Somniums

Like I said before, the Somniums are the gameplay portion of the game. Throughout Date’s investigation he’ll be required to ‘psync’ with certain characters, which allows him to explore their subconscious dreams, in order to discover clues and secrets that characters might be reluctant to willingly give out.

In these Somniums, you’re given a ‘six’ minute time limit to complete it, but it’s not all in real time. Moving around makes the clock count down, and performing certain actions also reduces the time. There are also modifiers you can earn that you apply to these actions to cut down their time penalties, and are actually essential in later Somniums. This in a way becomes a game in itself, where you’ll need to manage which modifiers to use and when to save them. Once you’ve completed all the checkpoints (known as Mental Locks) and discovered the clues you need, you complete the Somnium and progress the story.

The main problem is that I just really didn’t enjoy these sections- at all. Simply put, they weren’t fun or enjoyable in any way for me. If comparing to the Zero Escape games, these Somniums would be the equivalent of the escape rooms which were actually fun. I’m not even sure if the Somniums could be considered puzzles because there was no real logic to the solutions. I felt a lot of it was guesswork, or trial and error.

At the very least, each Somnium looked unique and colourful. They looked like they were some kind of distorted dream (which isn’t far off from what they actually are), so they had that going for them. But I just never looked forward to actually taking part in them, and was more than happy when I was done with them.

AI: The Somnium Files Review Summary

Overall I still enjoyed this game. The story did at times fail to keep me interested UNTIL close to the end, so if you play this game, make sure you stick it out until the end credits (some of the best end credit scenes ever actually!). The characters were all memorable in their own way, even though some of their dialogue was a bit hit and miss at times. The sexual innuendo is quite over the top, so if you’re not into that, it may put you off.

I really do wish I enjoyed the Somniums though. They could have been amazing if they were actual puzzles, or just something that got my brain ticking. But they don’t require any real thought and the solutions are mostly illogical, and it really did ruin the fun I should have been having. If the Somniums were better, I would be scoring this game much higher.

Does Ai: The Somnium Files live up to the great Zero Escape series? No, not even close. Is it still worth a go? Yes, for sure. There’s plenty more out there that are better, but I would still recommend this, even to visual novel veterans.

Score: 8.1

Most Anticipated Game VS GOTY

Having just reached the start of a new year, I started to think ahead of all the great new games to come. I also started thinking about what my most anticipated game for 2020 is (you’ll find out later), but I then asked myself “Will that game be my GOTY as well though?”.

Looking back on some of the previous years, I remembered the games that were my most anticipated, and what I ultimately chose as my GOTY, that they didn’t necessarily line up. Starting from 2015, here’s a look back on the games I was most excited about versus the game that I considered the best for those years.

2015

Most Anticipated Game- Metal Gear Solid V: A Phantom Pain

Being a huge fan of the Metal Gear Solid series pretty much from the beginning (not including the NES Metal Gears), and learning that the fifth entry was going open-world, I had every reason to be excited about it more than any other game.

While it contains the best and most polished gameplay in the series, it was the main story, its story-telling, and awful mission structure that really let this game down. There was so much potential for this game, especially since I really enjoyed the game’s prologue (Ground Zeroes) that was released separately the year before. I ended up placing this game I think 5th or 6th in my top 10 at the time, but obviously expected it to be higher.

Game of the Year- The Witcher 3

For me, there was actually no anticipation for this game. I never played the first one, and while I did finish the second, I wasn’t super impressed with it. I didn’t buy The Witcher 3 when it was released as my time was currently then occupied by Dragon Age: Inquisition.

Once I finished that game, it was time to give The Witcher 3 a go…and wow what an impact it made on me. The further I delved into the game, the more immersed I became. The game’s story-telling was something of a revolution, especially when it came to open-world games. Stories in this genre were typically fine, but never as strong as other genres, but The Witcher 3 changed all that.

It set the bar so high, that most games just haven’t quite been able to reach it, even 5 years later. I still consider it one of the very best games of the generation as not many have come close.

2016

Most Anticipated Game- Zero Time Dilemma

For those who have never heard of this game, or wonder why it was my most anticipated, then allow me to explain. Years before, I experienced a masterpiece called Virtue’s Last Reward. It captivated me from start to finish, but the story didn’t actually conclude, as another game was planned to finish the story.

Due to lack of sales of VLR, there was a chance a new game would never happen, and therefore the brilliant story would never come to an end. I remember constantly looking online for any information for years, until one day a mysterious countdown was found from the game’s creators. Once the countdown ended, the new game all fans had been waiting for was announced, and it instantly became one of my most anticipated games I could remember.

The game (called Zero Time Dilemma) finally released in 2016 and I was so happy! While the game didn’t recapture all the brilliance and wonder of VLR, and the ending left me feeling kind of flat, I’m just happy this game saw the light of day!

As a side note, No Man’s Sky was a close second most anticipated, as it was for a lot of people. But I ended up returning the game back to the shops after like 3 days so…

Game of the Year- The Witness

I knew about this game from E3 trailers, and while I was very excited about it, it wasn’t my most anticipated. But it was still on my radar, as I did play the developer’s previous game Braid, back in 2008. Braid was an amazing side-scrolling puzzle game that actually left me with headaches, the puzzles were that good!

Once I eventually bought and played The Witness, I’ll admit I wasn’t too impressed initially. I didn’t realise the game was all about drawing lines on panels, and that the whole game revolved around that. But once I progressed further and saw just how creative and innovative the puzzles became, I realised just how amazing and clever the developers were. The sheer amount of work they put into this game is so evident for those who gave this game a chance, and to me The Witness ended up being the best puzzle game I’ve ever played.

Once I had finished The Witness, it became the clear standout game of 2016, and nothing else really came close.

2017

Most Anticipated Game- Mass Effect: Andromeda

Ok you can stop laughing now, we all know how this game turned out. But I had every reason to be excited as the Mass Effect Trilogy from the generation before was an experience like no other. I ended up playing through the trilogy three times, and it’s rare for me to replay big games more than once.

There were some concerns before the game’s release, such as facial animations and the look of the main characters, but I didn’t let it diminish my excitement! Once the game released, I wished those initial problems were the only ones. An uninteresting main story, so many filler side quests, and an ultimately soulless experience that was a shadow of its former self. I still liked it enough to finish it, but went no way near my top 10 games that year. A shame really.

Game of the Year- Persona 5

To me, 2017 was the best year of the generation so far. So many top quality releases in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Super Mario Odyssey, Nioh, Resident Evil 7…the list goes on. Despite the latest Zelda game pretty much winning most of the GOTY awards that year, which was well-deserved, I felt the best game for 2017 was actually Persona 5.

Persona 5 was already in my top 3 most anticipated games anyway because of how much I enjoyed the third and fourth entries, and I believe the fifth surpassed them both. Once I knew Mass Effect: Andromeda wasn’t going to live up, it was inevitable that Persona 5 would top my list. It was almost going to be tie with Super Mario Odyssey because to me, both of those games are perfection.

2018

Most Anticipated Game- Red Dead Redemption 2

I think this was most people’s most anticipated game for 2018. For a lot of people, it certainly was there GOTY, which was well-deserved too. The game was a revolution in open-world design, creating the most dynamic and alive gaming world we’ve ever seen. The detail and interactivity were something we hadn’t seen before, and was joy to be a part of.

Red Dead Redemption 2 ended up being my #2 game for 2018, so it wasn’t far off, and was the closest I’ve had to having my most anticipated also being my GOTY. The game’s main story didn’t have much direction or seemingly a lot of purpose, as it hinged on Dutch’s grand plan which he didn’t even really know what it was. The gameplay also felt just a little too slow which took away some of the fun, but it was all for the sake of realism.

Looking back on it, it was still an experience I’ll look fondly on, and that how it nearly became a masterpiece.

Game of the Year- God of War

This was the inverse of Red Dead Redemption 2, where it started as my second most anticipated game, but ended up being my GOTY. How good was God of War? It’s probably the most complete game of the generation. It contained thrilling combat, fun exploration, a captivating story and set-piece moments…there’s no way you could dislike this game!

I expected RDR2 to clean up at all the gaming award ceremonies, but to my surprise, it was actually God of War that took home all the top honours, which validated my choice over RDR2.

2019

Most Anticipated Game- Resident Evil 2

I’m huge fan of the Resident Evil series and I always have been since the Playstation 1 era. Resident Evil 2 was always my favourite in the series as I played through it countless times. So obviously I was always going to be excited for the remake, but little did I know just how well they would do it.

Not only was this my most anticipated game for 2019, it actually was my GOTY for the majority of the year. Unfortunately due to the brilliance of one other game, Resident Evil 2 sat a very close second in my top 10.

So we were very close to having my most anticipated game and GOTY being the same game, but it wasn’t to be for 2019.

Game of the Year- Outer Wilds

Considering I had no idea of this game’s existence before its release, there was no anticipation whatsoever for it. It wasn’t until it released, I started to hear really good things about it, and I knew I had to try it out. Little did I know how much of an impact it would have on me.

It’s really funny how a relatively unknown game can come along and blow your world away! It’s not the first time my GOTY ended up being a game I never had any anticipation for, but it does happen, proving that it pays to try out new things you never planned on.

2020

Most Anticipated Game- Cyberpunk 2077

There’s so many great games to look forward to in 2020. The Last of Us part 2, Final Fantasy VII remake, Nioh 2, Resident Evil 3 remake…I truly do believe that 2020 will the best year for this generation.

But there is no game I’m more excited for than Cyberpunk 2077! From the creators of The Witcher 3, I know just how much effort, care, and love they put into their games. It’s not just their reputation alone, but I’ve seen enough gameplay footage to see that this game will be something special.

Will this finally be the first year this generation where my most anticipated game becomes my GOTY? I have a good feeling that it will, but history is not on my side!

Top 10 Games of 2019

2019 was an interesting year for gaming. It started off with an absolute bang, and I expected great things for the year ahead, but then it just died off for a good portion of the year.

It wasn’t until late August/early September that things started to kick into gear and felt 2019 was starting to redeem itself. While this year still doesn’t come close to the 2 years that preceded it, there were still some truly great games released.

While I was able to play plenty of games this year, there were some I didn’t get a chance to. Games like Luigi’s Mansion 3, Devil May Cry V, and Disco Elysium- all critically acclaimed but unfortunately won’t be on my list as I didn’t play them.

Honourable Mentions

Let’s start off with some honourable mentions. These games were all good in their own way, and I don’t have a whole lot of negative things to say about them. Despite this, they didn’t make the cut, but I feel I should still give them a well deserved shout-out.

The Division 2 continued on in the same vein as the original and didn’t deviate too much from it. It excelled at third-person cover-based shooting and had a satisfying loot system, but lacked any kind of decent story and took away the awesome base building of the original.

Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night was the spiritual successor to the Castlevania games and provided plenty of customisation and fun combat. It was fairly slow to start and took a while to gain momentum, but after a while this game became more enjoyable as you dived further in.

Even though it’s ‘part 2’, Life Is Strange 2 doesn’t continue the story of the first season, nor do you play as any of the previous characters. It’s a fresh new story, and every episode is distinct and memorable. While the game did lack the gameplay elements of the original, it was a ride still worth taking.

Top 10 Games of 2019: #10- Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order

Games Whisperer Review Score: 8.9
Click here for Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order review.

JediFallenOrderMainImage — **Click for full review.**

To kick things off, we start with the most recent game I reviewed- Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. Overall, this game was a lot of fun. It wasn’t just reliant on one aspect of gameplay, as it involved combat, platforming, puzzle, and story.

All these elements were all done well in their own way, even though they were heavily inspired by other games, and generally done better in those other games too. Still, it was a joy destroying Storm Troopers with my lightsaber, making my way through some fun platforming sections, and watching a pretty decent Star Wars story unravel before me.

Top 10 Games of 2019: #9- Metro Exodus

Games Whisperer Review Score: 9
Click here for Metro Exodus review.

This game surprised me quite a bit. From all the trailers and gameplay footage, I dismissed this game as nothing more than an inferior Fallout attempt. I wasn’t overly excited upon release, and I didn’t even buy it straight away.

But when I finally gave it a go, I was pleasantly surprised! The story was actually pretty decent, but what I loved the most was the bite-sized open world sections. This allowed me to feel like I could explore an open world area, but without feeling overwhelmed. It also allowed for a more focused experience, both with the main story and optional extras, and I actually wanted to complete everything before I moved on.

There was also good variety with the chapters, with some being open world, some being linear, and some purely story driven. I’d recommend Metro Exodus to anyone who is after a different take on the post-apocalyptic genre.

Top 10 Games of 2019: #8- Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice

Games Whisperer Review Score: 9
Click here for Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice review.

SekiroMainImage — **Click for full review.**

FromSoftware are well-known for their brutally difficult games, and Sekiro I believe is their hardest to date. It’s also an extremely well-designed game, with a super polished combat system that is heavily reliant on your reflexes and ability to read enemy animations. It’s a very cleverly designed too, as you’ll find hidden items, abilities, and enemy clues in areas where you’ll actually require them.

It was a recent winner of GOTY at The Game Awards, but there’s a reason why I ranked it lower than that. To me Sekiro feels like another Souls game with a different combat system, but with less RPG elements and less customisation. There’s also very little relief, as at times you’ll face bosses and mini-bosses far too close to each other, which built up a lot of frustration. If these tougher enemies were maybe spaced out better, and the game retained the addictive RPG elements, I would have ranked it much higher.

Top 10 Games of 2019: #7- A Plague Tale: Innocence

Games Whisperer Review Score: 9.1
Click here for A Plague Tale: Innocence review.

This was a game that went under the radar for a lot of people. Those who found this gem were treated to an excellent story with equally excellent voice acting. It tells the tale of two siblings journeying through a dangerous, rat-infested France, to find the doctor to cure the younger brother of his illness.

Along the way, you’ll be avoiding the Inquisition, and more importantly, the plague-infested rats that love to raid the land at night. It wasn’t just the story and characters that were great, but the gameplay was surprisingly good too. There was a good amount of combat, stealth, and puzzle that impressed me more than expected. I still think smashing a soldier’s lantern, causing rats to swarm and devour him, was one of the great gaming moments this year!

Top 10 Games of 2019: #6- Control

Games Whisperer Review Score: 9.1
Click here for Control review.

Control-Game-PC-Full-Version-Download-2019-1000x600 — **Click for full review.**

Control was one of the more unique games this year. Not just in its gameplay, but also in its art style and atmosphere. You really won’t find anything else like it as it’s very reminiscent of Stanley Kubrick’s work. The action itself was some of the most fun you’ll have this year, which includes telekinetic powers that take the fun to new heights.

I don’t think there’s any better feeling than catching an enemy’s rocket that they fired at you, only to catch it and hurl it back at them. The destructible environments made every fight look like an epic battle once it was all over, which made it all the more satisfying.

The story at times was probably a bit too abstract, with all kinds of confusing terminology thrown at you with little explanation, which made it hard to enjoy at times. There was lore to explain some of it, but the ridiculous amount to read constantly pulled me out of the immersion. Even though backtracking was encouraged, given its open nature, the rewards never felt worthwhile. But thankfully the excellent side quests gave me something to look forward to when it came to exploring. I think the side quests were, at times, even better than the main story! Overall, playing through Control was always a blast, both figuratively and literally.

Top 10 Games of 2019: #5- The Outer Worlds

Games Whisperer Review Score: 9.1
Click here for The Outer Worlds review.

TheOuterWorldsMainImage — **Click for full review.**

According to many gamers, The Outer Worlds was the answer to what they wanted out of the Fallout games. There’s a lot of similarities here, but the game still differentiates itself with smaller, bite sized open world segments. Similar to Metro Exodus, each planet/location isn’t overwhelmingly big, and becomes more focused as a result.

This was a game where I wanted to complete every side quest, as a lot of them actually tie in with a bigger over-arching story, and helps make a complete experience overall. The decisions you make, big or small, feel like they really matter and play a part in one way or another.

It’s this kind of storytelling that really pulled me in and is why it’s one of the better games of 2019. I’ll admit even the main story wasn’t anything spectacular, but the side quests are what made this game. They made you feel part of each place you visit as you established relationships with the various factions. You can really see the effort and passion that developers Obsidian put into every facet of this game’s world(s), and the more you put it, the more you get out.

Top 10 Games of 2019: #4- The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening Remake

Games Whisperer Review Score: 9.5
Click here for Link’s Awakening Remake review.

LinksAwakeningImage — **Click for full review.**

I was questioning whether to include this game because it was more of a visual overhaul of the original, rather than a full-blown new game, but I had so much fun with it I absolutely had to include it. Throughout 2019, there weren’t many ‘top-tier’ games I felt, that is until I went back to this classic.

It’s not just the visuals that have changed here, but the gameplay has been polished up and is such a joy to play. There were more collectables and features added too, so at least long-time fans had something new to look forward to.

But the game progression is what got me hooked, as you actually had to work out yourself the best way to proceed with the game. Experimenting and exploring without much aid is such a refreshing concept with today’s gaming. Combine that with the fun and satisfying dungeons, and the Link’s Awakening remake really stood out for me in 2019, and I actually enjoyed it more than the original!

Top 10 Games of 2019: #3- Death Stranding

Games Whisperer Review Score: 9.7
Click here for Death Stranding review.

DSMainImage — **Click here for full review.**

This was one of those games that either you loved it or you hated it. At first, I had no idea how I felt about it, but I persisted anyway because there was so much intrigue, and I was compelled to keep going. It’s a good thing I did. I eventually loved everything about Death Stranding- its story, characters, complex gameplay systems, visuals, atmosphere…it was all something I hadn’t experienced before.

It’s very easy to dismiss this game as simply a ‘walking sim’ or ‘delivery simulator’, but that would be selling it short. There is so much complexity in every aspect you feel like you’re always learning something new as you go, and while it can be overwhelming at times, it all comes together to give one of the best and most unique experiences of not just 2019, but the whole generation.

Kojima’s vision of connecting people together was done brilliantly both in-game and out of the game. Working together with other gamers made me feel like I was contributing to something bigger than just the world I was playing in. Death Stranding may require a lot of persistence and dedication, but once you push past that barrier, I know I never wanted to leave.

Top 10 Games of 2019: #2- Resident Evil 2 Remake

Games Whisperer Review Score: 9.8
Click here for Resident Evil 2 Remake review.

Resident-Evil-2-Image — **Click for full review.**

Argh I so wanted this to be my Game of the Year! To me, this game stood far above all else for most of the year. I always considered the original Resident Evil 2 to be the best in the series, so expectations for this 2019 release were pretty high. But it’s not simply just a remake, it’s a complete re-imagining of the original.

What makes this game so amazing, is that it takes everything that’s been great about the entire franchise so far, and put it all into this one game. At the same time though, they manage to keep this game true to itself and what people loved about it in the first place. I believe this Resident Evil 2 remake is the definitive version of the whole franchise, and I’m more than happy if they kept it this way from now on.

I know that I’ll always be coming back to this game again and again. It has high replay value, plenty of intense moments (waves at Mr. X), polished gameplay, fun exploration…the list goes on. It’s a masterpiece that every gamer must play, even if you’ve never played the original.

Top 10 Games of 2019: Game of the Year- Outer Wilds

Games Whisperer Review Score: 10
Click here for Outer Wilds review.

OuterWildsMainImage — **Click here for full review.**

Now it’s time for what I consider the very best game of 2019! Is it a big blockbuster like my last year’s GOTY? Is it the next trendy AAA title? Nope. What it was though, is something so special that it completely took me by surprise and blew my mind, and that game is Outer Wilds. I’ve been gaming for many years now and I feel like I’ve seen it all. But then sometimes there’s a game that comes along and is brave enough to do something so different, you can’t help but become captivated. That’s what Outer Wilds did for me.

Set in a fictional universe, you are stuck in a time loop, always ending with the sun going supernova. The solar system is yours to fully explore as you’re not cut off from anything. Where you go and how you proceed is up to you. Regardless of what you choose, you must explore every nook and cranny if you want to uncover the larger story at play. Every time you discover an important clue, you learn more about the fascinating story and events. The whole time, I craved this knowledge, and even became addicted to it. It’s simply one of the very best storylines I’ve ever played through.

If you want to experience an absolute masterpiece in storytelling and world building, I insist you play Outer Wilds. It does a perfect job of capturing the joy of discovery, and it’s for this reason (and many others), that Outer Wilds is my game of the year for 2019.