JDubYes

Monster Hunter Rise & Sunbreak
Ys Chronicles 1
Metaphor Refantazio
Monster Hunter Wilds
Ys Chronicles II
Astro Bot
God of War Ragnarok: Valhalla

Luigi’s Mansion

Finally played this, on the 3DS, and was a little over halfway through when I started getting a little fed up with using the 3DS nubbin to control it, and the fact you could play the GC version on Switch 2 was announced. Oh well.

Having to use the nubbin was about the only thing I didn’t like about it though, other than Luigi moving a bit too slowly. Lovely little game, which I really should’ve got around to before now, a year shy of it being a quarter century old…

That said, you don’t actually have to swap to the archetypes if/when you don’t want to - once you max one out you can keep levelling it, and will get a currency you can spend on levelling others. Makes it so you can cherry pick the skills you want from a class without actually having to use it.

I didn’t realise this at first, as I don’t think the game tells you, and I did sort of miss being forced to try new things, but it’s very handy later on when new stuff is introduced too late to use it comfortably without levelling first.

Yeah, it’s really hard to judge these until they’re “done”, and also to forget just how much game there is in the meantime.

I’ve started TU1 in earnest since my post, and the new headliner fight is great, if still not super challenging for an old hand.

I’m more annoyed that I can’t get an A on the Event/Arena Challenge quest…

Monster Hunter Rise & Sunbreak
Ys Chronicles 1
Metaphor Refantazio

Monster Hunter Wilds
Ys Chronicles II
Astro Bot
God of War Ragnarok; Valhalla

I should probably remember to update this more.

Wilds is… good. Very good, really, and it’s too early to tell just how good it’ll be, seeing as, just as playing to the credits in MH is barely the whole game, we’re barely at TU1 in Wilds, so there’s no telling what it’ll be by the time all the title updates and expansion are done.

I don’t think I love it yet though. Not like I love the others. It’s a bit too easy, too streamlined, and it’s missing… something. It’s difficult to explain, but it feels like something has been lost, and something about the balance is off, especially with my beloved Great Sword.

Lance seems fun though, and I’ve played for over 100 hours already, so it’s obviously doing something right already, even as I wait to see how it ends up.

Astro Bot is lovely. 3D platformers aren’t really my jam, but the word-of-mouth was so good I had to give it a go. It parlays the nostalgia event in a way that’s fun rather than obnoxious - the remixed themes of a couple of the games are brilliant too - and the short levels make replaying to find the secrets a joy. Got the platinum, and enjoyed almost every minute.

Valhalla is a decent roguelite built around a great combat system and that acts as a satisfying coda to Kratos’ tale. At least until he goes off to fight Ra and Osiris, or Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva, or something.

I was not aware there was anti-Kirby sentiment. This deeply saddens me.

(I also thought DK looked really good. Maybe I’m the problem.)

I’m in, and even leaning towards trying to get one at launch, if I can, which I haven’t done in bloody ages. (The Dreamcast?!) Mario Kart, DK and Bravely Default all appeal, as does playing my existing/extensive Switch library on a console that, I’m hoping/assuming, will do a bit of a PS5 and play them faster, thanks to the SSD?