Your Games Completed of 2020

Spoiler - click to showIt's fairly clear that you are both dead at the start and your goal is to be reunited with your sister in Limbo. That said though, I'm not sure what they were trying to say with the final title screen. The rope ladder is broken so maybe that's how you both died? Some people think the ladder represents the route to heaven and your sister has taken it but you can't because now it's broken, which seems like a stretch. Dunno. It's a sad story however you look at it.

while there's no big happy ending (which that screen reminds you), there is a hint at potential salvation in the ending.

Spoiler - click to showIIRC, the title screen after you finish it is a nondescript pile of something exactly where you land as the game finishes, with flies above it. I took that to mean you're dead too and everything is pointless.

Spoiler - click to showI originally assumed that the kid was already dead as the game starts (the bit where you smash through the glass (?) right before the end heavily implies something like a car crash), and that at the end he gets to where his sister (?) is tending what I assumed was his grave. At this point she seems briefly aware of his presence, and he finds peace and "moves on".

Of course, that title screen seems to debunk that, so…

Spoiler - click to showPerhaps they're both dead, and Limbo is you helping that kid get back to where they died (she beats him/you there, and is waiting) where, reunited, they move on together (but are still dead, hence the flies, etc)?

It's totally open to interpretation (still), of course, so it's for others to decide if I'm too naive, or you're too pessimistic, etc.

It's totally open to interpretation (still), of course, so it's for others to decide if I'm too naive, or you're too pessimistic, etc.

We both know the latter is true regardless.

Dishonored 2
Tales From The Borderlands
Star Wars: Fallen Order
Gris
Borderlands 3
The Last of Us: Remastered
Devil May Cry V
Dishonored: Death of the Outsider
Mortal Kombat 11
Virginia
Uncharted: The Lost Leagcy
The Last of Us Part II
Vanquish
Wreckfest
Gravity Rush 2
Limbo

Everybody's Gone to the Rapture
Super Mario Odyssey

EGttR is a fine example of a genre I enjoy, though I wasn't entirely satisfied by some of the finer details and, as always, spent more time than I'd like wishing there was a 'run' (or at least 'fast walk') button. The engine chugs a bit at times too. I liked it though.

Odyssey is a wonderful game, though as always I'm reminded that these games don't quite capture my imagination in the same way they seem to some people's. I finished the story (having thoroughly explored while playing, to the point where I'd generally gotten enough stars to move on to the next area without needing to fight the boss (though I always did)), started fooling around in the postgame, and then decided I'd probably had enough, at least for now.

Before someone shouts at me (mart), I will point out that I accept it's frequently magical, and the (Nintendo first-game library especially for the) Switch is generally reminding me that you don't have to have a lot of grunt to make a game very pretty, but I also have no interest in collecting all 600 moons, or beating mecha-Peach, or however people generally decide that this one has actually been finished.

Before someone shouts at me (mart)

How very dare you.

There is a run button in EGttR though the game never tells you about it. It’s R2, though your character heaves himself up to a gentle jog so slowly that most people don’t even notice it exists.

your character … himself

I always assumed that Spoiler - click to showyou were playing as a Kate/Light hybrid intelligence though I can no longer recall the particular lines/events that made me think that.

There is a run button in EGttR though the game never tells you about it. It’s R2, though your character
heaves himself up to a gentle jog so slowly that most people don’t even notice it exists.

Yeah, I found that. As you say, it made fairly little difference. In fact, it made just enough difference that I thought it wasn't really doing anything (as I was still very slow), but then noticed how much slower I was again when I let go.

your character … himself

I always assumed that Spoiler - click to showyou were playing as a Kate/Light hybrid intelligence though I can no longer recall the particular lines/events that made me think that.

That was one of my best guesses…

Spoiler - click to showThere's a recorded message where a near-ascended Kate says something about how she's standing near the front gate, which is where you start the game, and also, while there's generally not a lot of clues as to who/what you are, surely there's not a lot of other options, all things considered. Though, equally, if that were the case, the way you're watching the Kate/Light hybrid merge at the end doesn't make a great deal of sense, I suppose…

It also tied into something else I found mildly irritating about the game…

Spoiler - click to show…whereby the amount of time the game is implying has passed since it all happened, and how quickly some of the phenomena manifest, seemed a little inconsistent to me. It seems like it's trying to imply that it's (supposed to have been) mere hours, but then you seem to be there for multiple days,, and some details/recordings make it feel like it could've been weeks, all of which makes it quite jarring that everyone in the village seemingly smoked a brand of long-lasting, ever-lit cigarette.

Spoiler - click to showthe way you're watching the Kate/Light hybrid merge at the end doesn't make a great deal of sense

I figured Spoiler - click to showthat the light wasn't observing those moments between the human characters, so much as experiencing their memories after they'd been absorbed. At Stephen's moment of lighting the petrol towards the end, he sees the Light take the form of Kate, so it makes sense (kinda) to me that she's already been assimilated.

It also tied into something else I found mildly irritating about the game…

My interpretation on that was Spoiler - click to showjust that the Light didn't really perceive time the way humans do.

It’s been long enough since I played it that I’ve almost entirely forgotten the plot, but that was never the point for me anyway. I remember almost every inch of the village itself. It’s perhaps the most vivid sense of place I’ve ever experienced in a game, it really feels like somewhere I visited rather than something I played.

Completed ShadowRun returns yesterday and just started the expansion.

Hello BTW, this is my first post in over a year. I had lost the URL but just messaged Gar in Xbox and he sent me it, so direct any anger towards him.

Welcome back!

so direct any anger towards him.

Way ahead of you on that one

Completed ShadowRun returns yesterday and just started the expansion.

Hello BTW, this is my first post in over a year. I had lost the URL but just messaged Gar in Xbox and he sent me it, so direct any anger towards him.

Dragonfall's really good also Hi.

Carto - insufferably twee little game that has quite a decent central puzzle mechanic then ruins it with endless tedious villagers that you have to talk to constantly in order to progress. If you really love speech bubbles then this is the game for you.

Dishonored 2
Tales From The Borderlands
Star Wars: Fallen Order
Gris
Borderlands 3
The Last of Us: Remastered
Devil May Cry V
Dishonored: Death of the Outsider
Mortal Kombat 11
Virginia
Uncharted: The Lost Leagcy
The Last of Us Part II
Vanquish
Wreckfest
Gravity Rush 2
Limbo
Everybody's Gone to the Rapture
Super Mario Odyssey

Inside

Well, that happened.

Another great-but-dark-as-pitch 2D platformer from Playdead. I look forward to their next cheery delight.

Dishonored 2
Tales From The Borderlands
Star Wars: Fallen Order
Gris
Borderlands 3
The Last of Us: Remastered
Devil May Cry V
Dishonored: Death of the Outsider
Mortal Kombat 11
Virginia
Uncharted: The Lost Leagcy
The Last of Us Part II
Vanquish
Wreckfest
Gravity Rush 2
Limbo
Everybody's Gone to the Rapture
Super Mario Odyssey
Inside

Outlast

Tense. Atmospheric. A bit shonky. I quite liked it, but if I go back to play the DLC it'll probably be after a bit of a break.

Dishonored 2
Tales From The Borderlands
Star Wars: Fallen Order
Gris
Borderlands 3
The Last of Us: Remastered
Devil May Cry V
Dishonored: Death of the Outsider
Mortal Kombat 11
Virginia
Uncharted: The Lost Leagcy
The Last of Us Part II
Vanquish
Wreckfest
Gravity Rush 2
Limbo
Everybody's Gone to the Rapture
Super Mario Odyssey
Inside
Outlast

Little Nightmares

It has some issues (with perspective/checkpointing, primarily), but I liked that enough to look into the DLC, which happily it would appear I already picked up at some point. I might just jump straight into that later on, in fact. It's a fine (unofficial) companion to Limbo and Inside (that could possibly have done with just being 2D itself at times), anyway.

Have I really finished almost nothing between August and now? Really? That seems… unlikely. But then, I'm playing a lot less that isn't co-op stuff with my partner, so it's feasible I guess. Anyway, a few for the list…

JANUARY
Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom

FEBRUARY
Granblue Fantasy Versus

MARCH
Nothing

APRIL
Monument Valley 2
DOOM (2016)
Accounting+
ASTRO BOT Rescue Mission

MAY
Streets of Rage 4
Maneater

JUNE/JULY
Nothing

AUGUST
Glass Masquerade
A Short Hike
Paper Mario: The Origami King

SEPTEMBER?
The Last Campfire - Played in co-op with my partner. Very lovely, very pretty, very short. A nice little distraction from Hello Games that isn't that silly space game. Worth grabbing if it's in a sale, I think.

OCTOBER/NOVEMBER
Nothing

DECEMBER
Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening - Bought on a whim because it was in the sale and will never be any cheaper digitally (the sale price is slightly less than my discount, but there's no work shop for the foreseeable future). Yeah… it was fine. It's Zelda! Surprising how much I remembered, which shows how fucked my short-term memory is against my long (remembering MK2 moves and how to finish Link's Awakening, fine; remembering recent events and things I'm meant to be doing currently, no chance). Won't be going back to it, the new stuff with the dungeon creation bit wasn't very compelling at all.

Looking back, it seems I've got a big pile of games that I've left almost done but not quite. Hades, La-Mulana 2, Horace, Scourge Bringer, Part Time UFO, No More Heroes… I really should make an effort, rather than just defaulting to playing Binding of Isaac whenever I have time.

Have I really finished almost nothing between August and now? Really? That seems… unlikely.

Your monthly average is still better than my annual total, so I think you're doing okay.

Dishonored 2
Tales From The Borderlands
Star Wars: Fallen Order
Gris
Borderlands 3
The Last of Us: Remastered
Devil May Cry V
Dishonored: Death of the Outsider
Mortal Kombat 11
Virginia
Uncharted: The Lost Leagcy
The Last of Us Part II
Vanquish
Wreckfest
Gravity Rush 2
Limbo
Everybody's Gone to the Rapture
Super Mario Odyssey
Inside
Outlast
Little Nightmares

Carrion

I actually really enjoyed that. It's not the best metroidvania out there in terms of level design, and the monster can get a bit unwieldy towards the endgame (as it's not clear which bit you're controlling, exactly), but the novelty value and sheer joy of being said monster never wore off for me.

It was Inside all over again for me - I really enjoyed it until the ending.

I actually quite liked the ending.

Spoiler - click to showI'm not sure if it's because I empathise/inhabit the characters I'm playing as more than I realise/is healthy, but the first time I got high up in a level and saw the city in the background I audibly gasped (and not in a horrified way).

Call of the Sea - going to sound the "hidden gem on GamePass" klaxon on this one because I thought this was genuinely great. The story, which starts with adventurer Norah Everhart exploring a mysterious Polynesian island investigating the disappearance of her husband, and ends… somewhere else, is well-told through notes and voiceovers, and pulls you through the game effortlessly. The game's puzzles are often surprisingly tricky but kept manageable through self-contained areas and a good notes journal; you'll feel clever when you solve them. It doesn't outstay its welcome, it looks pretty good throughout, and I thoroughly enjoyed the time I spent with this one.

It doesn't outstay its welcome, it looks pretty good throughout, and I thoroughly enjoyed the time I spent with this one.

Wasn't that the review you left me on Tinder when we went to the cinema to see Spider-Man?

I saw someone on Twitter expressing disappointment at the frequency of protagonist narrations in Call of the Sea - they said that they prefer it when the game lets you make your own connections, rather than explaining everything as soon as you inspect/collect it. Was the voiceover as intrusive for you, or is this guy just a tedious purist?

The main character’s pretty chatty - although she’s quite engaging and it’s the game’s primary method of storytelling, so it didn’t bother me. She never gives you the solutions to any puzzles though, that’s one of the things I really liked about the game. She’ll jot down relevant stuff in her journal but it’s always up to you to make the connections.

So I decided to load up my old save and finally win the main questline of Skyrim? I mean I might as well go back and beat Pong at this point, I'm so late. Was never a huge fan of the later Elder Scrolls games but it's the only one I hadn't finished.

Spoiler - click to showWhy are dragons so easy and everything else such a pain? The last guy you have to prove yourself to before the last dragon I had to cheap win against because he could easily two-hit me into death otherwise, while I just stood in front of the big boss dragon and swung my sword over and over while using the dragon shout thing to win.

Oh dear, I did mean to update this thread before 2021 started, but here we go anyway…

100% Completed:

Far Cry 3 Classic Edition - still holds up. Great for dipping in and out of (which is basically my gameplaying existence, now.)

North - the video game equivalent of an austere Eastern European cartoon from before the Cold War ended. Possible to complete in one go, which is what I did.

Marvel's Spider-Man: Once I started fighting like Spidey and not Batman, this was 100% fun. Genuinely sorry to have finished this. Did actually put it on after getting the final trophy a few times just to swing around the city and get into a few scraps before finally deleting it.

Journey: Finally got around to getting the last thingy for the last trophy. Only took me 4 years. Would still recommend.

Games 'Finished' but not 100%:

Far Cry 5: It's a Far Cry game, they're very competently done and the epitome of Unisoft Dad Games (i.e. something you can put on for 20 minutes with days or weeks in between sessions and not lose track of where you are). Just a bit of DLC and a little more map tidying and we're done on this, but I've moved onto an Assassin's Creed game now so may never revisit it.

Control: what a game! Pips Spidey to top spot on best games I played last year. Ticks all my boxes ("What if David Lynch directed an X-Files game?"). 10/10 would recommend unreservedly.

Manifold Garden: Lovely, gentle puzzle / walking sim game that is actually piss easy once you get your head around the infinitely recursive levels. Apparently, I have some secrets to find? Might try to do that, might not…

That's it. Probably my best haul for a few years. It's a pity we weren't gripped by a global pandemic 10 years ago, though. I'd have been completing games at a rate to rival Mart, then.