Reviews on Pixel Poppers2023-09-03T00:00:00-07:00https://pixelpoppers.com/review/Doctor Professordocprof@pixelpoppers.comHugo -- gohugo.iohttps://pixelpoppers.com/review/star-trek-resurgence/2023-09-03T00:00:00-07:002023-09-03T00:00:00-07:00<main>
<p><b>A narrative adventure set in the Star Trek universe with compelling characters and decisions to make along with some flaws in story and gameplay.</b></p>
<p>Created by veterans of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telltale_Games">Telltale Games</a>, <em>Resurgence</em> applies the interactive storytelling formula to the <em>Star Trek</em> universe. The most important gameplay is making dialog choices, though there are also walking-around-and-investigating, shuttle-piloting, cover-based shooting, and stealth segments plus QTEs and a few different minigames. The story takes place about a year after <a href="https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Star_Trek_Nemesis"><em>Star Trek: Nemesis</em></a> and has you alternately control two officers on the USS <em>Resolute</em>: Jara Rydek, the new first officer, and Carter Diaz, a junior engineer. The plot has the <em>Resolute</em> sent on a diplomatic mission that ends up being much more complicated than it initially appears.</p>
<p>I am supremely biased and this game succeeded in making me feel like a Starfleet officer, so I’m willing to forgive a lot. But if I’m being honest, both gameplay and story had some flaws and a non-biased rating here probably caps out at three stars. (The game also apparently launched with serious technical/performance problems; I played the PS4 version on a PS5 after the first major bugfix patch and ran into only minor glitches and a single softlock that forced me to restart a chapter.)</p>
<p>Starting with the gameplay: The dialog choices are on a time limit, though thankfully you can pause the game in the middle of a choice if you want to take more time to think about it, though while paused the options aren’t visible. Also, the options do the thing where they only show you a short summary instead of the actual words you’d be saying, and this occasionally misled me but didn’t cause any major frustration.</p>
<p>The QTEs were fine; I found they enhanced the tension and the immersion without being too disruptive. I think the only ones I failed were intended to be impossible for story reasons. I also enjoyed most of the minigames, but there were a couple where I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to be doing and just fumbled around until I succeeded, which took me out of the story. The combat and stealth segments were terrible; the engine just doesn’t provide a good experience for either kind of gameplay and they were sufficiently awkward and frustrating that they always took me out of the game rather than enhancing the immersion. They’re pass/fail anyway, so I’d argue they should have been implemented via QTEs instead (with maybe an option to just make them straight-up cutscenes).</p>
<p>As for the story, which is the main attraction in a game like this: the foundation is excellent, especially for <em>Star Trek</em> fans. You get to know several of the <em>Resolute</em>’s crew members and they’re an intriguing and mostly-likable bunch who could clearly support an ongoing series, and the state they’re in after their previous mission (as depicted in the <a href="https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Star_Trek:_Resurgence_%28IDW%29">prequel comic</a>) creates a lot of opportunity for drama and interesting choices for the player to make. Characters have plausible relationships and differing perspectives, making them feel like people with depth who are worth interacting with and paying attention to. (Perhaps the most intriguing backstory is actually that of the other junior engineer Nili, who shows a viewpoint on Trill culture we’ve never seen in canon but which makes perfect sense in context and which has real-feeling ramifications for her arc during the game.) There’s also a feedback system that tells you how the supporting characters feel about your decisions which adds some extra depth, though there are a few points where it seems clear that a character is reacting in an unrealistic and over-the-top way in order to create drama.</p>
<p><em><strong>MINOR SPOILERS IN THIS PARAGRAPH</strong></em></p>
<p>The early events of the game also set up two themes that provide tension for many early choices: first, whether a first officer’s duty is to their captain or to their crew, and second, the Federation’s responsibility around (and occasional complicity in) colonialism affecting other cultures. Soon, though, plot twists completely derail both of these themes and replace them with a conflict with greater scope and stakes but far less nuance. This, plus the fact that for various reasons a number of characters whose relationships you may have been developing and following with great interest can suddenly become unavailable at various points in the game can make several of the plot- and character-arcs feel like they end suddenly and without closure. Add in the fact that several significant questions (including the ultimate fates of multiple major characters) go completely unresolved and I found the ending unsatisfying.</p>
<p><em><strong>END SPOILERS</strong></em></p>
<p>Overall, while the game certainly has some flaws I had a good time with it and I’m very happy it exists. I’d love to see more <em>Trek</em> games like this (the format is a great fit for what’s special about <em>Trek</em>) and will keep an eye on <a href="https://dramaticlabs.com/">Dramatic Labs</a>. The low point was the kludged-in “traditional gameplay” combat/stealth sequences; the high points were the character/relationship work, the interesting choices, and the lovingly-built backdrop of the <em>Trek</em> universe.</p>
<p><b>I Stopped Playing When:</b> I finished a complete playthrough. I didn’t go back to see the outcomes of other choices because I liked the versions of the characters that I’d created and wasn’t interested in undermining them.</p>
<p class="rating">
<b>Docprof's Rating:</b>
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/rating/four-stars" title="Four Stars">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span></a>
</p>
<p><i>Four Stars: <b>Great.</b> Not only did I finish the game, I probably played through the whole thing again and/or completed any optional objectives. It's an easy recommendation for any genre fan.</i></p>
<p><a href="https://www.startrek-resurgence.com/">You can get it or learn more here.</a></p>
</main>
<aside class="gamecard">
<a href="https://www.startrek-resurgence.com/"><img src="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/star-trek-resurgence/star-trek-resurgence_huf4f5eaedd21888518822bd5acba2f8ec_153604_200x200_resize_catmullrom_2.png" alt="Star Trek: Resurgence cover art" /></a>
<div class="deets">
<h1 class="link_title"><a href="https://www.startrek-resurgence.com/">Star Trek: Resurgence</a></h1>
<ul>
<li>Genre: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/genres/interactive-storytelling/">Interactive Storytelling</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/genres/action-adventure/">Action Adventure</a></li>
<li>Year: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/years/2023/">2023</a></li>
<li>Platform: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/pc/">PC</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/playstation-4/">PlayStation 4</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/playstation-5/">PlayStation 5</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/xbox-one/">Xbox One</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/xbox-series-x/s/">Xbox Series X/S</a></li>
<li>Developer: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/developers/dramatic-labs/">Dramatic Labs</a></li>
<li>Publisher: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/publishers/bruner-house/">Bruner House</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
</aside>
<aside class="related">
<h2>More Reviews from the <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/series/star-trek">Star Trek</a> Series</h2>
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<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/star-trek-prodigy-supernova/" title="Star Trek Prodigy: Supernova (Three Stars)">
<div class="cover" style="background-image: url('/review/star-trek-prodigy-supernova/star-trek-prodigy-supernova_huc513ff90571ba8d732c2e069f71e018e_292500_200x200_resize_q75_h2_catmullrom.webp');"><span class="rating">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span></span></div>
<h4>Star Trek Prodigy: Supernova</h4>
<time datetime="2022-11-06 00:00:00 -0700 PDT">Sunday, November 6, 2022</time>
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</aside>
https://pixelpoppers.com/review/sonic-frontiers/2023-06-11T00:00:00-07:002023-06-11T00:00:00-07:00<main>
<p><b>A flawed but promising take on Sonic as an open-world game.</b></p>
<p>A new formula for modern Sonic gameplay where traditional linear levels are present but only as one of many interconnected systems wrapped in an open-world structure.</p>
<p>The game takes place on a series of large islands that Sonic can explore mostly-freely. The islands are dotted with tons of short platforming segments, varied combat encounters and minibosses (some of which also incorporate platforming), minor puzzles and challenges, portals that take you to the traditional linear levels, and a lot of collectibles.</p>
<p>Some collectibles make Sonic more powerful (“skill pieces” gained mostly from combat help unlock new attacks and combos from a skill tree, while a few other collectibles can be traded in to increase Sonic’s attack, defense, speed, and maximum ring capacity) while others tie in to story progression (“memory tokens” gained mostly from the short platforming segments are needed to access story scenes while using the portals requires “portal gears” gained mostly from minibosses; beating the traditional levels and optional objectives within them rewards “vault keys” used to get the Chaos Emeralds which are required to finish each island). While there are some story chokepoints, you can approach most of the content in whatever order you want and most of it is optional. Aside from the Chaos Emeralds, there are way more of every type of collectible than needed and several ways to get each of them.</p>
<p>There are some frustrations and parts that feel unpolished. A few minigames that are required to complete the story are shallow and unfun while being overly strict, a few boss fights feel like they needed a bit more tweaking (like one that requires you to pick up balls of light hovering above rails, and then locks the camera to a position where you can’t tell <em>which rail</em> the light is hovering over), and it’s annoyingly common to run into bugs that break platforming segments (like going through a dash panel and getting sped onto a spring and clipping right through it and falling off, obliging you to restart the platforming segment from the beginning). Probably the worst problem is that there is omnipresent pop-in with the platforming segments and some other environmental features, which can be a problem when you’re trying to figure out the path to a particular collectible but you can’t see the features that make up the path (especially when it happens because they are high up above the ground so you can’t feasibly get close enough to pop them in), but this never blocked me for long. Most of the stumbles seem like growing pains from this being the first Sonic game of this format, and I’ll be very interested in any follow-up titles that build on and improve the formula based on the lessons learned here.</p>
<p>Someone who just wants to master the linear levels will likely be frustrated and bored by the open-world structure they’re trapped in (there is an “Arcade Mode” that lets you access the levels directly, but you have to beat the story mode to unlock it). But if you’re interested in the idea of hanging out in Sonic’s world with experiences that vary more in scope and tension and give you a lot of flexibility in what to tackle based on your mood, there’s fun to be had here. Personally, I really appreciated the setup - running around doing all the little platforming segments and gathering way more collectibles than I needed was a great way to relax, and then I could jump into miniboss fights or the linear levels when I wanted a more-directed and higher-intensity challenge.</p>
<p><b>I Stopped Playing When:</b> I finished the game with all achievements and many but not all of the other optional objectives.</p>
<p class="rating">
<b>Docprof's Rating:</b>
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/rating/four-stars" title="Four Stars">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span></a>
</p>
<p><i>Four Stars: <b>Great.</b> Not only did I finish the game, I probably played through the whole thing again and/or completed any optional objectives. It's an easy recommendation for any genre fan.</i></p>
<p><a href="https://frontiers.sonicthehedgehog.com/">You can get it or learn more here.</a></p>
</main>
<aside class="gamecard">
<a href="https://frontiers.sonicthehedgehog.com/"><img src="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/sonic-frontiers/sonic-frontiers_huf99e3ef999d0aff3ebd5c4bce9bd668d_151672_200x200_resize_q75_catmullrom.jpg" alt="Sonic Frontiers cover art" /></a>
<div class="deets">
<h1 class="link_title"><a href="https://frontiers.sonicthehedgehog.com/">Sonic Frontiers</a></h1>
<ul>
<li>Genre: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/genres/platformer/">Platformer</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/genres/open-world/">Open World</a></li>
<li>Year: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/years/2022/">2022</a></li>
<li>Platform: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/nintendo-switch/">Nintendo Switch</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/playstation-4/">PlayStation 4</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/playstation-5/">PlayStation 5</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/pc/">PC</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/xbox-one/">Xbox One</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/xbox-series-x/s/">Xbox Series X/S</a></li>
<li>Developer: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/developers/sonic-team/">Sonic Team</a></li>
<li>Publisher: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/publishers/sega/">Sega</a></li>
</ul>
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<h2>More Reviews from the <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/series/sonic-the-hedgehog">Sonic the Hedgehog</a> Series</h2>
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<span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span></span></div>
<h4>Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood</h4>
<time datetime="2017-08-10 00:00:00 -0700 PDT">Thursday, August 10, 2017</time>
</a>
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<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/sonic-runners-adventure/" title="Sonic Runners Adventure (Two Stars)">
<div class="cover" style="background-image: url('/review/sonic-runners-adventure/cover_hu913029bcb6357a864ac50e33d18c1361_18957_200x200_resize_q75_catmullrom.jpg');"><span class="rating">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span></span></div>
<h4>Sonic Runners Adventure</h4>
<time datetime="2018-05-11 00:00:00 -0700 PDT">Friday, May 11, 2018</time>
</a>
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<article class="review thumb">
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/sonic-forces/" title="Sonic Forces (One Star)">
<div class="cover" style="background-image: url('/review/sonic-forces/sonic-forces_hu4b4e4ed7b057aad0658bd3a219b35907_201093_200x200_resize_q75_catmullrom.jpg');"><span class="rating">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span></span></div>
<h4>Sonic Forces</h4>
<time datetime="2020-04-08 00:00:00 -0700 PDT">Wednesday, April 8, 2020</time>
</a>
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<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/the-murder-of-sonic-the-hedgehog/" title="The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog (Three Stars)">
<div class="cover" style="background-image: url('/review/the-murder-of-sonic-the-hedgehog/cover_hu74e06cc9665e918d621cd25bed051f7e_723046_200x200_resize_catmullrom_2.png');"><span class="rating">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span></span></div>
<h4>The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog</h4>
<time datetime="2023-04-16 00:00:00 -0700 PDT">Sunday, April 16, 2023</time>
</a>
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https://pixelpoppers.com/review/the-murder-of-sonic-the-hedgehog/2023-04-16T00:00:00-07:002023-04-16T00:00:00-07:00<main>
<p><b>A light-hearted murder mystery visual novel punctuated by an auto-runner minigame.</b></p>
<p>A surprise free release for April Fool’s 2023, this is a full (if somewhat short, clocking in at under two hours) game that’s much better than one might expect from that setup.</p>
<p>The game is primarily a point-and-click visual novel with a mystery story that plays like a greatly simplified <em>Ace Attorney</em>. Read through dialog making occasional dialog choices, click around a scene collecting clues, interrogate characters and occasionally choose from your collected evidence to refute their claims or advance your own theories, then move to the next scene and repeat. There’s also a minigame that comes up repeatedly during interrogations: Your character thinking through their arguments is represented as an auto-runner where you collect rings and avoid hazards as Sonic, and you need to end each level with a sufficient number of rings to advance the story.</p>
<p>The visual novel side of the game is pretty great. The situations and dialog are funny, the characters are well-captured and fun to hang out with, and the mysteries are small in scope but engaging and clever. The auto-runner is a jarring inclusion - that sort of reflex-testing gameplay is about as far as you can get from the point-and-click-and-read experience the game otherwise presents, and it adds <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/glossary/game-design/#elements-of-difficulty">punishment</a> the game otherwise lacks: making the wrong dialog/evidence choice just gives you different (and sometimes funny) dialog and then you can immediately choose again, but failing an auto-runner level means restarting it. Thankfully, there are optional assist features that allow you to tune the difficulty of the auto-runner down to trivially easy, so even if you struggle with this sort of gameplay, it’s not <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/2022/07/all-hail-no-fail/#failure-puts-up-walls">a hard wall</a> - but you still have to sit through the levels as there is no way to simply skip them.</p>
<p>I don’t want to complain too much about a free game, but I really don’t understand this design decision. The auto-runner would have been a cute <em>optional</em> minigame you could play from the menu or something, but cramming it on the main path of a visual novel is just bizarre. But then, would it even <em>be</em> a <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/series/sonic-the-hedgehog/"><cite>Sonic the Hedgehog</cite></a> game if it <em>didn’t</em> pad its runtime with weird off-genre gameplay that isn’t what you came for?</p>
<p>That aside, <em>The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog</em> is an enjoyable snack of a game if you like the <em>Sonic</em> cast or simple mystery games. It’s free and a short time investment, and even if you dislike the auto-runner it won’t block you. If you’re curious about the game, it’s worth checking out. I had a good time with it.</p>
<p><b>I Stopped Playing When:</b> I finished the game.</p>
<p class="rating">
<b>Docprof's Rating:</b>
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/rating/three-stars" title="Three Stars">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span></a>
</p>
<p><i>Three Stars: <b>Good.</b> I liked the game enough to finish it (or just play it a bunch, for games that don't end). I recommend it to most genre fans.</i></p>
<p><a href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/2324650/The_Murder_of_Sonic_the_Hedgehog/">You can get it or learn more here.</a></p>
</main>
<aside class="gamecard">
<a href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/2324650/The_Murder_of_Sonic_the_Hedgehog/"><img src="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/the-murder-of-sonic-the-hedgehog/cover_hu74e06cc9665e918d621cd25bed051f7e_723046_200x200_resize_catmullrom_2.png" alt="The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog cover art" /></a>
<div class="deets">
<h1 class="link_title"><a href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/2324650/The_Murder_of_Sonic_the_Hedgehog/">The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog</a></h1>
<ul>
<li>Genre: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/genres/visual-novel/">Visual Novel</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/genres/auto-runner/">Auto-Runner</a></li>
<li>Year: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/years/2023/">2023</a></li>
<li>Platform: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/pc/">PC</a></li>
<li>Developer: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/developers/sega/">Sega</a></li>
<li>Publisher: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/publishers/sega/">Sega</a></li>
</ul>
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<div class="cover" style="background-image: url('/review/sonic-runners-adventure/cover_hu913029bcb6357a864ac50e33d18c1361_18957_200x200_resize_q75_catmullrom.jpg');"><span class="rating">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span></span></div>
<h4>Sonic Runners Adventure</h4>
<time datetime="2018-05-11 00:00:00 -0700 PDT">Friday, May 11, 2018</time>
</a>
</article>
<article class="review thumb">
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/sonic-forces/" title="Sonic Forces (One Star)">
<div class="cover" style="background-image: url('/review/sonic-forces/sonic-forces_hu4b4e4ed7b057aad0658bd3a219b35907_201093_200x200_resize_q75_catmullrom.jpg');"><span class="rating">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span></span></div>
<h4>Sonic Forces</h4>
<time datetime="2020-04-08 00:00:00 -0700 PDT">Wednesday, April 8, 2020</time>
</a>
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<article class="review thumb">
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/sonic-frontiers/" title="Sonic Frontiers (Four Stars)">
<div class="cover" style="background-image: url('/review/sonic-frontiers/sonic-frontiers_huf99e3ef999d0aff3ebd5c4bce9bd668d_151672_200x200_resize_q75_catmullrom.jpg');"><span class="rating">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span></span></div>
<h4>Sonic Frontiers</h4>
<time datetime="2023-06-11 00:00:00 -0700 PDT">Sunday, June 11, 2023</time>
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https://pixelpoppers.com/review/shadows-over-loathing/2022-12-31T00:00:07-08:002022-12-31T00:00:07-08:00<main>
<p><b>A Lovecraftian-themed comedic RPG with monochrome stick-figure art and surprisingly good music and sound effects.</b></p>
<p>Follow a trail of cursed objects to find your missing uncle while dealing with sidequests and random encounters featuring turn-based combat, puzzles, and a lot of humor.</p>
<p>This is mostly a bigger-and-better <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/west-of-loathing/"><cite>West of Loathing</cite></a> in a new Lovecraftian setting and with a more cohesive frame story (though many of the side quests and such along the way are still effectively standalone). It’s still warm and safe with no game overs and very few permanent fail states (and none in the main story),</p>
<p>Combat has become deeper through the addition of new systems (elemental damage types, skill points, and a crafting system for gear and consumables) and a slightly larger party (you can swap between several partners and combat pets). It’s still very optional, though - most situations that can involve combat also have non-combat solutions and it’s possible to get through the game without participating in a single fight. There are plenty of other ways to power yourself up to pass stat checks through getting XP from non-combat sources, getting gear, and using the crafting system. This means that the difficulty level is very much up to the player and they can use the set of systems they enjoy. In my playthrough on Normal difficulty, I frequently engaged in combat and paid attention to gear but completely ignored the crafting system and rarely lost a fight or struggled with a stat check.</p>
<p>The story has much more of an arc this time, though a <em>lot</em> of the sidequests and other content along the way is effectively standalone and could have fit into any story. The individual experiences are well-done and generally amusing and satisfying, and it’s nice to have the running thread of searching for your uncle, dealing with the curses, and learning more about the villains. The ending (or at least the ones I saw; there are a bunch) are still anticlimactic, though.</p>
<p>There is a huge amount of player choice here. You have a few choices when building your character that have some effect on the game’s content (most notably, you have a different nemesis based on your chosen class), a lot of ways to set up and develop your combat build, a ton of optional quests with multiple resolutions, and a variety of endings depending on what choices you’ve made along the way. As such, the game seems to be set up to be replayed, though to do so you’ll still have to repeat a lot of content that will not be as funny or surprising after the first time.</p>
<p><b>I Stopped Playing When:</b> I finished a playthrough having done a lot (but not all) of the side content. The game saves right before the final point of no return, so I went back and tried for a different ending, but this involved a lot of unskippable dialog and credits (and both endings had been anticlimactic) so I didn’t bother going for more. As with <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/west-of-loathing/">the previous game</a>, I don’t expect to replay it at least until enough time has passed that I’ve forgotten most of it and can enjoy the humor and surprises again.</p>
<p class="rating">
<b>Docprof's Rating:</b>
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/rating/three-stars" title="Three Stars">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span></a>
</p>
<p><i>Three Stars: <b>Good.</b> I liked the game enough to finish it (or just play it a bunch, for games that don't end). I recommend it to most genre fans.</i></p>
<p><a href="https://www.shadowsoverloathing.com/">You can get it or learn more here.</a></p>
</main>
<aside class="gamecard">
<a href="https://www.shadowsoverloathing.com/"><img src="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/shadows-over-loathing/shadows-over-loathing_hu774a4d143d063155adf0e92a3758cf23_168439_200x200_resize_catmullrom_2.png" alt="Shadows Over Loathing cover art" /></a>
<div class="deets">
<h1 class="link_title"><a href="https://www.shadowsoverloathing.com/">Shadows Over Loathing</a></h1>
<ul>
<li>Genre: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/genres/role-playing/">Role-Playing</a></li>
<li>Year: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/years/2022/">2022</a></li>
<li>Platform: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/pc/">PC</a></li>
<li>Developer: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/developers/asymmetric-publications/">Asymmetric Publications</a></li>
<li>Publisher: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/publishers/asymmetric-publications/">Asymmetric Publications</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
</aside>
<aside class="related">
<h2>More Reviews from the <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/series/kingdom-of-loathing">Kingdom of Loathing</a> Series</h2>
<section class="thumbs"><article class="review thumb">
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/west-of-loathing/" title="West of Loathing (Three Stars)">
<div class="cover" style="background-image: url('/review/west-of-loathing/cover_hu01137737645f1be4403b88211b7abe07_16529_200x200_resize_q75_catmullrom.jpg');"><span class="rating">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span></span></div>
<h4>West of Loathing</h4>
<time datetime="2018-09-26 00:00:00 -0700 PDT">Wednesday, September 26, 2018</time>
</a>
</article>
</section>
</aside>
https://pixelpoppers.com/review/vampire-survivors/2022-12-31T00:00:06-08:002022-12-31T00:00:06-08:00<main>
<p><b>A streamlined but flashy shoot 'em up with roguelite elements.</b></p>
<p>Move your character around a top-down 2D battlefield while enemies spawn in endlessly with increasing power and numbers. You start with one weapon and as you level up from defeating enemies you accumulate and power-up more weapons and abilities, but they all fire automatically. You just steer your character and choose power-up options. Skillful play, good choices, and some luck will keep you alive for a while but at the 30-minute mark, Death will come in and put an end to your run. Coins collected during runs can be spent on permanent upgrades (though you can respec freely) and more characters, stages, and power-ups can be unlocked by getting achievements.</p>
<p>The controls aren’t very deep, but the action is frenetic and rewarding. Managing threats and collecting dropped experience and treasures does take skill and the variety of weapons, stages, and power-ups makes for a large number of potential builds with different viability, so runs can be quite different from each other. It can be easy to fall into just using your favorite build over and over, but achievements provide directed goals that push you into using weapons, characters, or strategies you otherwise might not, keeping the gameplay varied as long as there’s more stuff for you to unlock.</p>
<p>Once you have unlocked and tried out everything, all that’s really left is a progression treadmill, but the fact that most sessions are capped at half an hour (though there are ways to go beyond this) means it can easily still serve as something bite-sized to dip into periodically to relax with.</p>
<p>If you enjoy the basic gameplay loop (which you can try for free on mobile or <a href="https://poncle.itch.io/vampire-survivors">in the browser</a>) the game will give you a <em>lot</em> of enjoyment for a very low price tag. I just wish the mobile version were a one-time purchase too instead of being ad-supported.</p>
<p><b>I Stopped Playing When:</b> I mostly played during the game’s Early Access period, so I repeatedly unlocked everything and got all achievements and then put the game down until the next update adding more stuff to do. Eventually it started feeling samey to me and I moved on, so while the game has still gotten some new updates and DLC since then I haven’t come back for it. At this point, I think I’d need a new <em>mode</em> instead of just new characters, weapons, and stages.</p>
<p class="rating">
<b>Docprof's Rating:</b>
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/rating/four-stars" title="Four Stars">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span></a>
</p>
<p><i>Four Stars: <b>Great.</b> Not only did I finish the game, I probably played through the whole thing again and/or completed any optional objectives. It's an easy recommendation for any genre fan.</i></p>
<p><a href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/1794680/Vampire_Survivors/">You can get it or learn more here.</a></p>
</main>
<aside class="gamecard">
<a href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/1794680/Vampire_Survivors/"><img src="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/vampire-survivors/vampire-survivors_hudcd9d53b3cf012b4fdd6cb52fb6f719d_158072_200x200_resize_catmullrom_2.png" alt="Vampire Survivors cover art" /></a>
<div class="deets">
<h1 class="link_title"><a href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/1794680/Vampire_Survivors/">Vampire Survivors</a></h1>
<ul>
<li>Genre: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/genres/shoot-em-up/">Shoot 'em Up</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/genres/roguelike/">Roguelike</a></li>
<li>Year: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/years/2022/">2022</a></li>
<li>Platform: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/pc/">PC</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/xbox-one/">Xbox One</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/xbox-series-x/s/">Xbox Series X/S</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/mobile/">Mobile</a></li>
<li>Developer: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/developers/poncle/">poncle</a></li>
<li>Publisher: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/publishers/poncle/">poncle</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
</aside>
<aside class="related">
<h2>Related Content</h2>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/2022/07/so-i-got-my-steam-deck/">[THOUGHT] So I got my Steam Deck</a></li>
</ul>
</aside>
https://pixelpoppers.com/review/kirby-and-the-forgotten-land/2022-12-31T00:00:05-08:002022-12-31T00:00:05-08:00<main>
<p><b>A triumphant leap by the pink puff into full 3D.</b></p>
<p>The first fully-3D mainline Kirby title. After <a href="https://www.nintendo.co.uk/News/2022/March/Ask-the-Developer-Vol-4-Kirby-and-the-Forgotten-Land-2187039.html">much experimentation and many false starts to overcome the challenges of this change</a>, the team found an approach that works and ironed out nearly every snag. The result is a game that feels great to play and where most of the effort and tricks are invisible because the experience Just Works.</p>
<p>The game is beautiful, with colorful and compellingly-themed levels that look like real spaces. Everything is set against a surprisingly cozy postapocalyptic/reclaimed-by-nature setting and all the character designs and animations are cuddly-looking, even the enemies. The soundtrack is also great and fits very well.</p>
<p>Gameplay has you navigating levels while dealing with the enemies and some environmental obstacles and puzzles, exploring for a few different kinds of collectible, experimenting with a variety of copy abilities, and going after optional bonus mission objectives, with a few boss fights along the way. As you find collectibles, you also develop a hub area that has an arena, a handful of minigames, and other similar activities.</p>
<p>Copy abilities are handled fantastically. Most are recurring ones from previous games adapted to work in 3D, but a couple new ones are added too. They all feel distinct and decently balanced (though I suspect most players will have their favorites and unfavorites) and extra variety is added through an upgrade system that gives them new properties. On top of this is the new “Mouthful Mode” which allows for new situational abilities that are somewhere between copy abilities and vehicle sections - wrap your mouth around a car and you can drive around, suck in a vending machine and spit sodas at enemies and obstacles, and so on. They don’t all have the same level of depth but they all change up the gameplay in interesting ways, and the optional “treasure road” challenges that task the player with skilled use of each copy ability and mouthful mode nudge the player into advanced techniques they might not otherwise thought of.</p>
<p>The game is kid-friendly and adults will likely find it fairly easy on its default difficulty (though it also has an easy mode and a few other ways to make its harder challenges easier such as using an Amiibo to get health pickups). I was looking for cozy fun and found the low difficulty and high level of polish gave me a great and low-friction experience. I really enjoyed exploring the colorful world and playing with the copy abilities, which is exactly what I want in a <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/series/kirby/"><cite>Kirby</cite></a> game.</p>
<p><b>I Stopped Playing When:</b> I fully completed the game including all optional objectives.</p>
<p class="rating">
<b>Docprof's Rating:</b>
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/rating/five-stars" title="Five Stars">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span></a>
</p>
<p><i>Five Stars: <b>Favorite.</b> This is one of my all-time favorite games that made a significant impact on me or that I've returned to time and again.</i></p>
<p><a href="https://kirbyandtheforgottenland.nintendo.com/">You can get it or learn more here.</a></p>
</main>
<aside class="gamecard">
<a href="https://kirbyandtheforgottenland.nintendo.com/"><img src="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/kirby-and-the-forgotten-land/kirby-and-the-forgotten-land_hu9a3e4ea44e9fff3d163db2cf5100eeb3_3523110_200x200_resize_q75_catmullrom.jpg" alt="Kirby and the Forgotten Land cover art" /></a>
<div class="deets">
<h1 class="link_title"><a href="https://kirbyandtheforgottenland.nintendo.com/">Kirby and the Forgotten Land</a></h1>
<ul>
<li>Genre: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/genres/platformer/">Platformer</a></li>
<li>Year: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/years/2022/">2022</a></li>
<li>Platform: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/nintendo-switch/">Nintendo Switch</a></li>
<li>Developer: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/developers/hal-laboratory/">HAL Laboratory</a></li>
<li>Publisher: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/publishers/nintendo/">Nintendo</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
</aside>
<aside class="related">
<h2>Related Content</h2>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/2022/04/kirby-and-the-curved-difficulty/">[THOUGHT] Kirby and the Curved Difficulty</a></li>
</ul>
</aside>
https://pixelpoppers.com/review/the-fall/2022-12-31T00:00:04-08:002022-12-31T00:00:04-08:00<main>
<p><b>A cinematic platformer with a great dark story, weak combat, and uneven puzzle design.</b></p>
<p>A darkly atmospheric game structured and presented like a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Platform_game#Cinematic_platform_game">cinematic platformer</a> and which does have some platforming and combat but is mostly made up of inventory puzzles reminiscent of point-and-click adventures.</p>
<p>The game’s highlight is its narrative. There’s an intriguing story with darkly compelling themes told through solid writing, characterization, voice acting, and art supported by environmental storytelling and occasionally the game’s mechanics. Everything comes together effectively to create a dark, moody atmosphere with a rich implied world.</p>
<p>The mechanical side doesn’t fare quite as well. Combat is unwieldy and out of place, but not very difficult as long as you know to go for headshots. Controlling as a platformer does make the experience more immersive than a point-and-click approach, but since most interaction is menu-driven, collecting and using objects requires too many steps with awkward controls.</p>
<p>The puzzle design is very uneven. A few puzzles feed beautifully into the storytelling and characterization, but several are obtuse to the point of being unfair. I played with a walkthrough at the ready, consulted it several times, and was always glad I’d done so because the solution was absurd and I had clearly just saved myself time stumbling in the dark trying to find it. Resorting quickly to the walkthrough was clearly correct and enhanced my enjoyment of the game.</p>
<p>This game is also the first chapter of a planned trilogy. While the story does end with some closure for its immediate concerns, it leaves <em>many</em> significant questions wide open and most of the game’s pressing mysteries unresolved. As of this writing <a href="https://www.overthemoongames.com/#home-section">Part 2</a> is available but not Part 3 (and <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/NintendoSwitch/comments/7yxfvh/i_am_john_warner_from_over_the_moon_we_just/dujykhf/">this comment</a> doesn’t exactly make me optimistic).</p>
<p><b>I Stopped Playing When:</b> I finished the game. Reviews are split as to whether Part 2’s story lives up to Part 1’s, but they seem to all agree that the gameplay is worse with all the issues of the first game pushed even farther instead of being improved after the creators learned from people playing the first game. It’s not clear to me how much of an issue this would be if I again played with a walkthrough at the ready, or how much the disagreement on the quality of the story is affected by people just being more frustrated with the gameplay. So I’m on the fence about whether I want to play Part 2.</p>
<p class="rating">
<b>Docprof's Rating:</b>
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/rating/two-stars" title="Two Stars">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span></a>
</p>
<p><i>Two Stars: <b>Meh.</b> The game has some merit - it probably held my attention for at least an hour or I came back to it for more than one play session. But there wasn't enough draw for me to stick with it for the long haul.</i></p>
<p><a href="https://www.overthemoongames.com/#the-fall-section">You can get it or learn more here.</a></p>
</main>
<aside class="gamecard">
<a href="https://www.overthemoongames.com/#the-fall-section"><img src="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/the-fall/the-fall_hu040ab054566c5a67e684200214f6ae8c_114755_200x200_resize_q75_catmullrom.jpg" alt="The Fall cover art" /></a>
<div class="deets">
<h1 class="link_title"><a href="https://www.overthemoongames.com/#the-fall-section">The Fall</a></h1>
<ul>
<li>Genre: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/genres/adventure/">Adventure</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/genres/platformer/">Platformer</a></li>
<li>Year: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/years/2014/">2014</a></li>
<li>Platform: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/pc/">PC</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/wii-u/">Wii U</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/nintendo-switch/">Nintendo Switch</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/playstation-4/">PlayStation 4</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/xbox-one/">Xbox One</a></li>
<li>Developer: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/developers/over-the-moon-games/">Over the Moon Games</a></li>
<li>Publisher: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/publishers/over-the-moon-games/">Over the Moon Games</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
</aside>
https://pixelpoppers.com/review/inscryption/2022-12-31T00:00:03-08:002022-12-31T00:00:03-08:00<main>
<p><b>A game that starts as a creepy roguelike deck-builder but which turns out to have a lot of surprises and tricks up its sleeve.</b></p>
<p>Like <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/developers/daniel-mullins-games/">Daniel Mullins</a>' previous works, this is a sort of “haunted game” mystery that tells its story via a game-within-a-game. As before, there are sentient game characters, fourth-wall breaks involving you-the-player, metatextual surprises, and extra lore outside the game in an <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/glossary/game-design/#internet-scavenger-hunt">ARG-like</a> fashion. Discussion of the themes and gameplay changes all constitute spoilers, so I won’t be specific here, but I do think it’s important to know that this isn’t <em>just</em> a roguelike deck-builder. It starts there but cleverly remixes its systems and mechanics to create several other kinds of gameplay.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, not all the gameplay is equally deep and compelling, and the pacing of the narrative changes along the way as well. I had a good time for roughly the first five hours, though I personally could have done with slightly less deck-builder during this portion. The atmosphere was great and the story was compelling, introducing mysteries and gradually making me feel like I was seeing more and more of the big picture. Then for the remaining five hours, the atmosphere was much less interesting, the narrative slammed to a halt, and the gameplay became much more of a slog. The end sequence had some great atmosphere and finally brought the narrative to its conclusion, but in a rapid-fire way that left many important questions unanswered and the overall plot in an unsatisfying state with little closure.</p>
<p>While it is in some ways the most polished Mullins game yet, to me it feels like a step back in terms of making use of the formula’s strengths and falling into its weaknesses. The game-within-a-game is deeper and lengthier than before, to the point where it’s a bit of a slog if you’re just here for the story and surprises, but not deep enough to satisfy deck-builder enthusiasts. The story conflicts with the fourth-wall breaks even worse than it did in <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/pony-island/"><cite>Pony Island</cite></a>. The ending is even more confusing and unsatisfying than <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/the-hex/"><cite>The Hex</cite></a>. And rather than the in-game secrets and out-of-game lore just being extra context that you can safely ignore, here it seems to be required reading in order to understand important events in the game’s core plot.</p>
<p><b>I Stopped Playing When:</b> I finished the game, though I missed some secrets and optional puzzles. I found the ending particularly unsatisfying and had really only enjoyed about half the gameplay.</p>
<p class="rating">
<b>Docprof's Rating:</b>
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/rating/two-stars" title="Two Stars">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span></a>
</p>
<p><i>Two Stars: <b>Meh.</b> The game has some merit - it probably held my attention for at least an hour or I came back to it for more than one play session. But there wasn't enough draw for me to stick with it for the long haul.</i></p>
<p><a href="https://www.inscryption.com/">You can get it or learn more here.</a></p>
</main>
<aside class="gamecard">
<a href="https://www.inscryption.com/"><img src="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/inscryption/inscryption_hud4447c683635e2e5d0ec696b4e83b5f8_643278_200x200_resize_q75_catmullrom.jpg" alt="Inscryption cover art" /></a>
<div class="deets">
<h1 class="link_title"><a href="https://www.inscryption.com/">Inscryption</a></h1>
<ul>
<li>Genre: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/genres/roguelike/">Roguelike</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/genres/deck-builder/">Deck-Builder</a></li>
<li>Year: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/years/2021/">2021</a></li>
<li>Platform: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/pc/">PC</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/playstation-4/">PlayStation 4</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/playstation-5/">PlayStation 5</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/nintendo-switch/">Nintendo Switch</a></li>
<li>Developer: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/developers/daniel-mullins-games/">Daniel Mullins Games</a></li>
<li>Publisher: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/publishers/devolver-digital/">Devolver Digital</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
</aside>
<aside class="related">
<h2>Related Content</h2>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/2022/02/inscryption-and-privacy/">[THOUGHT] Inscryption and Privacy</a></li>
</ul>
</aside>
https://pixelpoppers.com/review/dordle/2022-12-31T00:00:02-08:002022-12-31T00:00:02-08:00<main>
<p><b>A daily spelling puzzle game that builds on Wordle's foundation.</b></p>
<p>Like a doubled <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/wordle/"><cite>Wordle</cite></a>, each day brings two new target five-letter words to guess. You get seven chances and after each guess you receive <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mastermind_(board_game)"><em>Mastermind</em></a>-like feedback telling you which letters are correct and in the right spot, correct but in the wrong spot, or not in the word at all–for <em>both</em> words, as each guess is applied to both words simultaneously. The game also has a social feature of giving you a set of emoji that depict your performance and which you can easily share on social media. And unlike <em>Wordle</em>, there’s also a free mode that lets you play repeatedly instead of waiting for a new day, but of course these games are not in sync with other players the way the daily words are.</p>
<p>This is one of the many games <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/2022/01/wordle/">experimenting with <em>Wordle</em>’s formula</a>, and it’s my personal favorite. It uses the exact same mechanics as <em>Wordle</em> but in a different combination that makes the game slightly harder in an interesting way, due to the added depth of needing to guess words in a way that will be useful for finding two words rather than just one. The social hook is perhaps not as strong here because fewer people play <em>dordle</em> than <em>Wordle</em>, but if you do have friends who play the comparisons are also more interesting.</p>
<p><b>I Stopped Playing When:</b> I still play this daily and compare with Allie.</p>
<p class="rating">
<b>Docprof's Rating:</b>
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/rating/three-stars" title="Three Stars">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span></a>
</p>
<p><i>Three Stars: <b>Good.</b> I liked the game enough to finish it (or just play it a bunch, for games that don't end). I recommend it to most genre fans.</i></p>
<p><a href="https://zaratustra.itch.io/dordle">You can get it or learn more here.</a></p>
</main>
<aside class="gamecard">
<a href="https://zaratustra.itch.io/dordle"><img src="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/dordle/dordle_hu3c7ad04a1490404607f9c8fbcd65b5b3_3179_200x200_resize_catmullrom_2.png" alt="dordle cover art" /></a>
<div class="deets">
<h1 class="link_title"><a href="https://zaratustra.itch.io/dordle">dordle</a></h1>
<ul>
<li>Genre: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/genres/puzzle/">Puzzle</a></li>
<li>Year: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/years/2022/">2022</a></li>
<li>Platform: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/browser/">Browser</a></li>
<li>Developer: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/developers/zaratustra-productions/">Zaratustra Productions</a></li>
<li>Publisher: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/publishers/zaratustra-productions/">Zaratustra Productions</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
</aside>
<aside class="related">
<h2>Related Content</h2>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/2022/01/wordle/">[THOUGHT] Wordle</a></li>
</ul>
</aside>
https://pixelpoppers.com/review/wordle/2022-12-31T00:00:01-08:002022-12-31T00:00:01-08:00<main>
<p><b>A daily spelling puzzle game that started an explosion of innovation.</b></p>
<p>Each day brings a new target five-letter word to guess. You get six chances and after each guess you receive <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mastermind_(board_game)"><em>Mastermind</em></a>-like feedback telling you which letters are correct and in the right spot, correct but in the wrong spot, or not in the word at all. The game also has a social feature of giving you a set of emoji that depict your performance and which you can easily share on social media.</p>
<p>It’s a very simple game, but its once-a-day gameplay and the ease of sharing and comparing scores made it take off. This resulted in a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wordle#Acquisition_by_the_New_York_Times_Company">high-profile acquisition by the New York Times</a> and <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/2022/01/wordle/">a lot of other takes on the formula</a>. If you aren’t interested in guessing a word, one of the many games this one has inspired may be more to your liking.</p>
<p><b>I Stopped Playing When:</b> I still play this daily and compare with Allie.</p>
<p class="rating">
<b>Docprof's Rating:</b>
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/rating/three-stars" title="Three Stars">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span></a>
</p>
<p><i>Three Stars: <b>Good.</b> I liked the game enough to finish it (or just play it a bunch, for games that don't end). I recommend it to most genre fans.</i></p>
<p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/games/wordle/index.html">You can get it or learn more here.</a></p>
</main>
<aside class="gamecard">
<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/games/wordle/index.html"><img src="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/wordle/wordle_hudf386a76d8eded9bc6ac7252d85f5bb9_26477_200x200_resize_catmullrom_2.png" alt="Wordle cover art" /></a>
<div class="deets">
<h1 class="link_title"><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/games/wordle/index.html">Wordle</a></h1>
<ul>
<li>Genre: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/genres/puzzle/">Puzzle</a></li>
<li>Year: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/years/2021/">2021</a></li>
<li>Platform: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/browser/">Browser</a></li>
<li>Developer: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/developers/josh-wardle/">Josh Wardle</a></li>
<li>Publisher: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/publishers/josh-wardle/">Josh Wardle</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
</aside>
<aside class="related">
<h2>Related Content</h2>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/link/f114ad/why-nyts-connections-makes-you-feel-bad/">[SHARED LINK] Why NYT’s Connections makes you feel bad</a></li>
<li><a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/2022/01/wordle/">[THOUGHT] Wordle</a></li>
</ul>
</aside>
https://pixelpoppers.com/review/the-last-campfire/2022-11-19T00:00:00-08:002022-11-19T00:00:00-08:00<main>
<p><b>A chill and moody puzzler with themes of losing and regaining hope.</b></p>
<p>A puzzle game with an atmospheric story. Explore a mysterious wilderness solving puzzles to progress and to restore hope to those who have lost it.</p>
<p>Structurally, the game is semi-linear hub-and-spokes. Move forward through the wilderness solving some environmental puzzles until you reach a campfire hub. In the areas near the campfire are several “forlorn”–others like who you have lost their way. They can be reached in various orders and sometimes require solving some puzzles to do so, and when you reach each one you can restore their hope by solving an isolated puzzle. Once you’ve saved enough, you can move on and proceed toward the next hub.</p>
<p>Puzzles are handled through simple controls. You walk around and have a context-sensitive interact button used for picking things up or putting them down, pushing or pulling large objects, or flipping levers. Partway through you get another button used to trigger an ability to move certain objects around the environment. These simple mechanics are added together to create a wide range of puzzles including inventory puzzles and variations on block sliding, light-redirecting, and other spatial reasoning challenges.</p>
<p>Several features are in place to prevent you from getting stuck. There are always more forlorn than are needed to proceed, so if any specific puzzles stump you you can skip them (and if desired, return to them from a menu later). There’s no map, but areas are simple enough that even with my <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/2019/10/climbing-the-mountain-because-its-wait-where/">terrible sense of direction</a> I never got lost–and at each campfire you can get hints pointing you to an unsaved forlorn, so people with even less direction than me can get some help. There’s also an “explore mode” that removes most of the puzzles and leaves you free to soak up the narrative without roadblocks.</p>
<p>That narrative is more evocative than explicit, but works well as a mood piece. The details of the setting are left mostly unexplained, but the thematic exploration of the role of hope in a fundamentally meaningless world is archetypal and comes through strongly (even if there isn’t a clear message in the end besides “have you considered <em>not</em> losing hope?"). It helps that both the visuals and music are lovely.</p>
<p>I really enjoyed my first couple hours with the game, though for me the pleasure did wane a bit when I saw how vague the storytelling was. I still liked the game enough to finish it, though I had no particular interest in going back for extra optional puzzles that didn’t feed into the narrative or achievements.</p>
<p><b>I Stopped Playing When:</b> After about five and a half hours, I finished the game having saved every forlorn (which grants 100% of achievements) but had not found all diary fragments or solved all optional puzzles.</p>
<p class="rating">
<b>Docprof's Rating:</b>
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/rating/three-stars" title="Three Stars">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span></a>
</p>
<p><i>Three Stars: <b>Good.</b> I liked the game enough to finish it (or just play it a bunch, for games that don't end). I recommend it to most genre fans.</i></p>
<p><a href="https://thelastcampfiregame.com/">You can get it or learn more here.</a></p>
</main>
<aside class="gamecard">
<a href="https://thelastcampfiregame.com/"><img src="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/the-last-campfire/the-last-campfire_hu4d18772d948388f5415dc159e9d14f80_40389_200x200_resize_q75_catmullrom.jpg" alt="The Last Campfire cover art" /></a>
<div class="deets">
<h1 class="link_title"><a href="https://thelastcampfiregame.com/">The Last Campfire</a></h1>
<ul>
<li>Genre: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/genres/puzzle/">Puzzle</a></li>
<li>Year: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/years/2020/">2020</a></li>
<li>Platform: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/pc/">PC</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/apple-arcade/">Apple Arcade</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/nintendo-switch/">Nintendo Switch</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/playstation-4/">PlayStation 4</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/xbox-one/">Xbox One</a></li>
<li>Developer: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/developers/hello-games/">Hello Games</a></li>
<li>Publisher: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/publishers/hello-games/">Hello Games</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
</aside>
https://pixelpoppers.com/review/star-trek-prodigy-supernova/2022-11-06T00:00:00-07:002022-11-06T00:00:00-07:00<main>
<p><b>A solid kid-friendly action and puzzle game with a co-op focus and lots of Star Trek references.</b></p>
<p>A licensed game starring the cast of <em>Star Trek: Prodigy</em> and taking place halfway through the show’s first season. Play as lead characters Gwyn and Dal, progress through a series of mostly-linear levels, explore for collectibles and secrets, and overcome two primary types of gameplay set piece: combat and puzzles.</p>
<p>Combat has you dealing with waves of attacking robots with several different abilities (projectile or melee attacks, healing nearby robots, exploding on death, and more). It’s simple and approachable as action games go but adds depth by giving Gwyn better melee options and Dal better ranged options. You can experiment and mix-and-match your approach to the particular set of robots attacking at that time, but you can also do okay being less efficient and just picking your favorite (I mostly just stick with Dal’s dual hand phasers). There are also a few climactic boss fights which tend to be more involved and require particular strategies to make them vulnerable or avoid their unique attacks.</p>
<p>Puzzles generally involve picking up and relocating energy sources and reflectors in order to route energy where it’s needed to do things like open doors, disable laser barriers, activate lifts, and so on. Some puzzles are very simple but most require Gwyn and Dal to work together and use their unique abilities through several steps. None of them have time pressure and I don’t think you can make any of them unsolvable. As an adult who’s played a number of puzzle games, I found the puzzles satisfyingly chill and they never stumped me. They may be more challenging for younger players.</p>
<p>Along the way, there’s flavor from a fairly simple story and a lot of character dialog, plus some unlockable decorations for Dal’s quarters that make references to most <em>Star Trek</em> series. The other crew members help out in a couple ways: Jankom and Rok sell upgrades, while each of Jankom, Rok, Zero, and Murf have an ability to help in combat (though this is implemented in a somewhat frustrating way that interrupts you whenever it becomes ready and you can’t choose not to use it). They’re also part of how the game encourages you to replay levels, since each crewmate can also open certain kinds of barriers and many levels have secrets behind barriers for which you won’t have the right crewmate the first time you pass through. Levels also have a few different optional objectives (complete in a certain amount of time, die fewer than three times, and find a certain amount of resources) that are a bit difficult to get all of the first time through. (I like to explore levels thoroughly so I generally had to come back for the speedrun objective.) Though, given this replay encouragement, it’s a little frustrating that you can’t skip tutorials and dialog scenes on repeat plays.</p>
<p>You can play through the game solo, switching between Gwyn and Dal with a single button press to use their respective abilities for combat and puzzles–this is what I did and it worked fine. But I expect the game would be more enjoyable playing co-op and working together to overcome challenges. It’s a solid choice for playing with someone young or inexperienced with games - and probably the <em>best</em> choice today if you’re specifically looking for a <em>Star Trek</em> game.</p>
<p><em>Star Trek Prodigy: Supernova</em> is a solid execution on the co-op action-and-puzzle structure. As an adult <em>Trek</em> fan and an experienced player of action and puzzle games, I found it to be a great way to relax. Younger players might find it a more engaging experience, and I imagine that if someone introduced their child to <em>Trek</em> through <em>Prodigy</em>, they could have a great time playing this game together.</p>
<p><b>I Stopped Playing When:</b> I fully completed the game including all achievements and optional objectives (which took me 16.3 hours according to Steam).</p>
<p class="rating">
<b>Docprof's Rating:</b>
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/rating/three-stars" title="Three Stars">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span></a>
</p>
<p><i>Three Stars: <b>Good.</b> I liked the game enough to finish it (or just play it a bunch, for games that don't end). I recommend it to most genre fans.</i></p>
<p><a href="https://outrightgames.com/games/star-trek-prodigy-supernova/">You can get it or learn more here.</a></p>
</main>
<aside class="gamecard">
<a href="https://outrightgames.com/games/star-trek-prodigy-supernova/"><img src="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/star-trek-prodigy-supernova/star-trek-prodigy-supernova_huc513ff90571ba8d732c2e069f71e018e_292500_200x200_resize_q75_h2_catmullrom.webp" alt="Star Trek Prodigy: Supernova cover art" /></a>
<div class="deets">
<h1 class="link_title"><a href="https://outrightgames.com/games/star-trek-prodigy-supernova/">Star Trek Prodigy: Supernova</a></h1>
<ul>
<li>Genre: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/genres/action-adventure/">Action Adventure</a></li>
<li>Year: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/years/2022/">2022</a></li>
<li>Platform: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/pc/">PC</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/xbox-one/">Xbox One</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/playstation-4/">PlayStation 4</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/playstation-5/">PlayStation 5</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/nintendo-switch/">Nintendo Switch</a></li>
<li>Developer: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/developers/tessera-studios/">Tessera Studios</a></li>
<li>Publisher: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/publishers/outright-games/">Outright Games</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
</aside>
<aside class="related">
<h2>More Reviews from the <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/series/star-trek">Star Trek</a> Series</h2>
<section class="thumbs"><article class="review thumb">
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/star-trek-resurgence/" title="Star Trek: Resurgence (Four Stars)">
<div class="cover" style="background-image: url('/review/star-trek-resurgence/star-trek-resurgence_huf4f5eaedd21888518822bd5acba2f8ec_153604_200x200_resize_catmullrom_2.png');"><span class="rating">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span></span></div>
<h4>Star Trek: Resurgence</h4>
<time datetime="2023-09-03 00:00:00 -0700 PDT">Sunday, September 3, 2023</time>
</a>
</article>
</section>
</aside>
https://pixelpoppers.com/review/impostor-factory/2021-12-26T10:30:00-06:002021-12-26T10:30:00-06:00<main>
<p><b>An interactive story that expands the lore of its predecessors but doesn't quite tell its own worthwhile tale.</b></p>
<p>A followup to <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/to-the-moon/"><cite>To the Moon</cite></a> and <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/finding-paradise/"><cite>Finding Paradise</cite></a> that is again an interactive story wrapped in the style and presentation of a SNES RPG, but which has a different narrative structure and focus this time. Instead of a frame story that has you playing as the recurring technicians investigating and rewriting the memories of a dying client to grant their life’s wish, you play as a different character in a different situation.</p>
<p>The gameplay is still mostly about exploring the story rather than steering it or overcoming challenges. This time the frustrating and out-of-place puzzle elements and action sequences are thankfully gone, though there is a single point-and-click-adventure-style inventory puzzle. Unfortunately, much of the game doesn’t even really feature exploration and is essentially a movie - and the parts that do feature enough exploration and interactivity to feel more like a world you can inhabit are disconnected from the parts of the plot that actually matter and mostly just set up expectations that go completely unfulfilled.</p>
<p>The story does still involve learning about someone’s life, choices, and regrets while solving some mysteries, but the result is less coherent than before. The focus of the story and mysteries aren’t directly about the life story, but instead expand on elements teased in the frame stories of <cite>To the Moon</cite> and <cite>Finding Paradise</cite>. So despite being roughly the same size as those previous mainline titles (rather than the smaller “minisodes” or the interquel <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/a-bird-story/"><cite>A Bird Story</cite></a>), <cite>Impostor Factory</cite> feels like a side story rather than another main installment: one which is obliged to exist to fill out lore details rather than to tell a story that stands firmly on its own merits.</p>
<p>I wouldn’t recommend playing <cite>Impostor Factory</cite> without first playing <cite>To the Moon</cite> and <cite>Finding Paradise</cite> as it’s not a similar mostly-standalone episodic story. It’s worth the time to play if you’re invested in the series, but the only people I’d expect to really enjoy it are the ones who want answers to the questions teased on the edges of the previous games.</p>
<p><b>I Stopped Playing When:</b> I finished the game.</p>
<p class="rating">
<b>Docprof's Rating:</b>
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/rating/two-stars" title="Two Stars">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span></a>
</p>
<p><i>Two Stars: <b>Meh.</b> The game has some merit - it probably held my attention for at least an hour or I came back to it for more than one play session. But there wasn't enough draw for me to stick with it for the long haul.</i></p>
<p><a href="https://freebirdgames.com/games/impostor-factory/">You can get it or learn more here.</a></p>
</main>
<aside class="gamecard">
<a href="https://freebirdgames.com/games/impostor-factory/"><img src="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/impostor-factory/impostor-factory_hud5bac92b031dbb20a2283238b426db23_342439_200x200_resize_catmullrom_2.png" alt="Impostor Factory cover art" /></a>
<div class="deets">
<h1 class="link_title"><a href="https://freebirdgames.com/games/impostor-factory/">Impostor Factory</a></h1>
<ul>
<li>Genre: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/genres/interactive-storytelling/">Interactive Storytelling</a></li>
<li>Year: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/years/2021/">2021</a></li>
<li>Platform: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/pc/">PC</a></li>
<li>Developer: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/developers/freebird-games/">Freebird Games</a></li>
<li>Publisher: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/publishers/freebird-games/">Freebird Games</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
</aside>
<aside class="related">
<h2>More Reviews from the <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/series/to-the-moon">To the Moon</a> Series</h2>
<section class="thumbs"><article class="review thumb">
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/to-the-moon/" title="To the Moon (Five Stars)">
<div class="cover" style="background-image: url('/review/to-the-moon/cover_hue9ee66c2958330525983d043a895e2f7_12976_200x200_resize_q75_catmullrom.jpg');"><span class="rating">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span></span></div>
<h4>To the Moon</h4>
<time datetime="2016-02-01 05:00:00 -0700 -0700">Monday, February 1, 2016</time>
</a>
</article>
<article class="review thumb">
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/a-bird-story/" title="A Bird Story (Three Stars)">
<div class="cover" style="background-image: url('/review/a-bird-story/cover_hu0229fbc6dbbf5ab14fd7fef35681566b_13920_200x200_resize_q75_catmullrom.jpg');"><span class="rating">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span></span></div>
<h4>A Bird Story</h4>
<time datetime="2016-02-08 05:00:00 -0700 -0700">Monday, February 8, 2016</time>
</a>
</article>
<article class="review thumb">
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/finding-paradise/" title="Finding Paradise (Four Stars)">
<div class="cover" style="background-image: url('/review/finding-paradise/cover_hu3cd4c78edefd13e559204f7be4dde7c5_11022_200x200_resize_q75_catmullrom.jpg');"><span class="rating">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span></span></div>
<h4>Finding Paradise</h4>
<time datetime="2018-07-18 00:00:00 -0700 PDT">Wednesday, July 18, 2018</time>
</a>
</article>
</section>
</aside>
<aside class="related">
<h2>Related Content</h2>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/2021/11/framing-device-plot-tumors/">[THOUGHT] Framing device plot tumors</a></li>
</ul>
</aside>
https://pixelpoppers.com/review/picross-e5/2021-08-21T00:00:00-07:002021-08-21T00:00:00-07:00<main>
<p><b>A solid budget-priced Picross experience with many puzzles and flexibility in play styles.</b></p>
<p>The fifth in a series of budget-priced downloadable <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/glossary/picross/#picross">Picross</a> games for the 3DS.</p>
<p>There are 120 standard Picross puzzles up to 20x15 in size and 30 <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/glossary/picross/#mega-picross">Mega Picross</a> puzzles up to 15x15 in size, bringing the total up to the familiar 150. And that’s if you don’t have save data from earlier <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/series/picross-e/"><cite>PICROSS e</cite></a> games - saves from <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/picross-e/"><cite>e</cite></a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/picross-e2/"><cite>e2</cite></a>, and <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/picross-e3/"><cite>e3</cite></a> each unlock five bonus <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/glossary/picross/#mega-picross">Mega Picross</a> puzzles, for a total of fifteen. And on top of all that, there are three <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/glossary/picross/#micross">Micross</a> puzzles.</p>
<p>As in <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/picross-e4/"><cite>e4</cite></a>, you can choose between <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/glossary/picross/#normal-and-free">Normal and Free</a> rule sets for all puzzles and play them all in your preferred way. Available assist features include <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/glossary/picross/#hint-roulette">Hint Roulette</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/glossary/picross/#hint-number-auto-check">Hint-Number Auto-Check</a>, and <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/glossary/picross/#navigation">? Navigation</a>. All assists can be selectively enabled or disabled at any time, except that every fifth standard Picross puzzle disables <em>all</em> assists and must be completed without them for some reason.</p>
<p>Having both buttons and stylus-based touchscreen makes the process of solving puzzles quite smooth. It’s also good that you can’t outright fail any of the puzzles, but if your time (including any penalties if playing a Normal puzzle) comes in under sixty minutes you get the bonus of having the black-and-white picture you’ve created rendered in color instead.</p>
<p>This is a solid Picross experience with a lot of puzzles for the price point. There are no real structural or mechanical improvements over <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/picross-e4/"><cite>e4</cite></a>, but that still means flexibility in rule sets and optional assists with a large variety of puzzle types and range in sizes. The result is another great entry point, particularly for folks unsure if they enjoy Picross.</p>
<p><b>I Stopped Playing When:</b> I finished the game by solving all puzzles.</p>
<p class="rating">
<b>Docprof's Rating:</b>
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/rating/three-stars" title="Three Stars">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span></a>
</p>
<p><i>Three Stars: <b>Good.</b> I liked the game enough to finish it (or just play it a bunch, for games that don't end). I recommend it to most genre fans.</i></p>
<p><a href="https://www.jupiter.co.jp/e/3ds/picrosse5/index.php">You can get it or learn more here.</a></p>
</main>
<aside class="gamecard">
<a href="https://www.jupiter.co.jp/e/3ds/picrosse5/index.php"><img src="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/picross-e5/cover_huc0e2ce6a78b7346fbef8d4fd6ce8fabd_25974_200x200_resize_q75_catmullrom.jpg" alt="PICROSS e5 cover art" /></a>
<div class="deets">
<h1 class="link_title"><a href="https://www.jupiter.co.jp/e/3ds/picrosse5/index.php">PICROSS e5</a></h1>
<ul>
<li>Genre: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/genres/puzzle/">Puzzle</a></li>
<li>Year: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/years/2014/">2014</a></li>
<li>Platform: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/nintendo-3ds/">Nintendo 3DS</a></li>
<li>Developer: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/developers/jupiter/">Jupiter</a></li>
<li>Publisher: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/publishers/jupiter/">Jupiter</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
</aside>
<aside class="related">
<h2>More Reviews from the <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/series/picross-e">PICROSS e</a> Series</h2>
<section class="thumbs"><article class="review thumb">
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/picross-e/" title="PICROSS e (Three Stars)">
<div class="cover" style="background-image: url('/review/picross-e/cover_huda3170e0c9406856755481ec36b50251_14019_200x200_resize_q75_catmullrom.jpg');"><span class="rating">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span></span></div>
<h4>PICROSS e</h4>
<time datetime="2017-10-16 00:00:01 -0700 PDT">Monday, October 16, 2017</time>
</a>
</article>
<article class="review thumb">
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/picross-e2/" title="PICROSS e2 (Three Stars)">
<div class="cover" style="background-image: url('/review/picross-e2/cover_hu821ccade069be876affb7f702a56ec1e_14882_200x200_resize_q75_catmullrom.jpg');"><span class="rating">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span></span></div>
<h4>PICROSS e2</h4>
<time datetime="2017-10-16 00:00:02 -0700 PDT">Monday, October 16, 2017</time>
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</article>
<article class="review thumb">
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/picross-e3/" title="PICROSS e3 (Three Stars)">
<div class="cover" style="background-image: url('/review/picross-e3/cover_hu1f03916e2f13a91782397cd37e545112_22192_200x200_resize_q75_catmullrom.jpg');"><span class="rating">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span></span></div>
<h4>PICROSS e3</h4>
<time datetime="2017-10-16 00:00:03 -0700 PDT">Monday, October 16, 2017</time>
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</article>
<article class="review thumb">
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/picross-e4/" title="PICROSS e4 (Three Stars)">
<div class="cover" style="background-image: url('/review/picross-e4/cover_hu2abadfc8c1c077d6ece11a6c3ad329e9_20983_200x200_resize_q75_catmullrom.jpg');"><span class="rating">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span></span></div>
<h4>PICROSS e4</h4>
<time datetime="2018-06-08 00:00:00 -0700 PDT">Friday, June 8, 2018</time>
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</article>
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https://pixelpoppers.com/review/one-piece-pirate-warriors-4/2021-08-15T00:00:00-07:002021-08-15T00:00:00-07:00<main>
<p><b>A One Piece Musou game with deeper moment-to-moment combat but which doesn't otherwise raise the bar.</b></p>
<p>A <a href="http://www.giantbomb.com/musou/3025-704/">Musou</a> game set in the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_Piece"><cite>One Piece</cite></a> universe. The adventure-filled and semi-fantastical setting is a great fit for the gameplay, as are the over-the-top super-powered characters. The game’s story mode presents a hyper-condensed take on the more than twenty years' worth of <cite>One Piece</cite> plot arcs and thus serves as a solid primer on the world, its characters, and their relationships, although for any real depth or detail you’ll have to refer to the source material. There’s also a “Treasure Log” mode that remixes the maps/characters/factions/objectives for a variety of non-canon scenarios.</p>
<p>In broad strokes, it’s a lot like <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/one-piece-pirate-warriors-3/">the previous installment</a>. Gameplay is hectic and satisfying, built on the standard Musou foundation - mow down weak enemies by the hundreds in large-scale dynamic battles, be in the right place at the right time and achieve various strategic objectives, and duel particularly powerful enemies one-on-one. Again, the <cite>One Piece</cite> world provides a wide but manageable array of colorful characters who all play at least a little bit differently, but this time they are also much more customizable. Instead of having standard and unchangeable <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/2019/05/musous-shazam-characters/">special attacks and rage modes</a>, each character can equip up to four active skills that can include weak-but-fast-recharging attacks, stronger-but-slower-charging attacks, and transformations - alongside a handful of passive skills from a shared pool. This is on top of some increased character variety from characters being of a few different types that each receive passive bonuses, plus playable giant characters, and means that you can actually experiment with legitimately different builds. Combine this with a more dynamic battlefield that includes destructible buildings and the moment-to-moment combat gameplay is noticeably deeper and more engaging. I personally miss the <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/2019/05/musou-tactics/">tactical depth</a> seen in titles like <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/fire-emblem-warriors/"><cite>Fire Emblem Warriors</cite></a> or even the ability to switch between characters and issue orders as in <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/hyrule-warriors-definitive-edition/"><cite>Hyrule Warriors</cite></a>, and the lack of this means there’s very little mechanical incentive to spread out and play a bunch of different characters. You can basically just stick with Luffy and get the best rewards. But this more brawler-like take on Musou absolutely has its place.</p>
<p>As is standard for Musou, the missions are fairly varied but you’ll generally succeed by finding bad guys and beating them up. The story structure is changed up from <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/one-piece-pirate-warriors-3/"><cite>Pirate Warriors 3</cite></a> - rather than each mission essentially being an arc from the manga, several arcs are skipped outright and others are spread out into a chapter with a series of missions. This does mean you get a closer look at some arcs, but it’s still not a very effective way to tell the story and also interferes with the pacing of the gameplay. Rather than representing a complicated series of events as a series of objectives in a single level, allowing each mission to have a variety of objectives and end with climactic resolution of the arc, many of <cite>Pirate Warriors 4</cite>’s missions focus on a single event and end suddenly to show you the next not-really-playable event as a cutscene and then introducing the next mission, which means individual missions are often not very satisfying and you can only rely on closure from completing each chapter. And while the “Treasure Log” postgame is fine, it feels a bit thin for a Musou crossover game, where finishing the story is usually just the beginning.</p>
<p><cite>Pirate Warriors 4</cite> does a good job evolving the moment-to-moment combat gameplay and stands out from other Musou titles because of this. In most other ways, it’s fairly standard <cite>One Piece</cite>-flavored Musou. If you enjoy the world or mood of <cite>One Piece</cite> and like the idea of running around huge dynamic battlefields using cartoonish powers to plow through enemies, you’ll have a lot of fun along the way.</p>
<p><b>I Stopped Playing When:</b> I finished the story mode and about 70% of the Treasure Log side mode - enough to get the platinum trophy. After doing this I did not feel like finishing the rest of the missions.</p>
<p class="rating">
<b>Docprof's Rating:</b>
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/rating/three-stars" title="Three Stars">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span></a>
</p>
<p><i>Three Stars: <b>Good.</b> I liked the game enough to finish it (or just play it a bunch, for games that don't end). I recommend it to most genre fans.</i></p>
<p><a href="https://oppw4-20-en.bn-ent.net/">You can get it or learn more here.</a></p>
</main>
<aside class="gamecard">
<a href="https://oppw4-20-en.bn-ent.net/"><img src="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/one-piece-pirate-warriors-4/one-piece-pirate-warriors-4_hub7368b2ec5892f83aa4145c235fe56e1_608838_200x200_resize_q75_h2_catmullrom.webp" alt="One Piece: Pirate Warriors 4 cover art" /></a>
<div class="deets">
<h1 class="link_title"><a href="https://oppw4-20-en.bn-ent.net/">One Piece: Pirate Warriors 4</a></h1>
<ul>
<li>Genre: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/genres/musou/">Musou</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/genres/brawler/">Brawler</a></li>
<li>Year: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/years/2020/">2020</a></li>
<li>Platform: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/pc/">PC</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/playstation-4/">PlayStation 4</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/xbox-one/">Xbox One</a>, <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/platforms/nintendo-switch/">Nintendo Switch</a></li>
<li>Developer: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/developers/omega-force/">Omega Force</a></li>
<li>Publisher: <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/publishers/bandai-namco-entertainment/">Bandai Namco Entertainment</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
</aside>
<aside class="related">
<h2>More Reviews from the <a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/series/one-piece">One Piece</a> Series</h2>
<section class="thumbs"><article class="review thumb">
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/one-piece-unlimited-world-red/" title="One Piece: Unlimited World Red (Two Stars)">
<div class="cover" style="background-image: url('/review/one-piece-unlimited-world-red/cover_hu4ae44cc0e5e81a3fc7d372f4feb37f70_28336_200x200_resize_q75_catmullrom.jpg');"><span class="rating">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span></span></div>
<h4>One Piece: Unlimited World Red</h4>
<time datetime="2017-11-29 00:00:00 -0700 -0700">Wednesday, November 29, 2017</time>
</a>
</article>
<article class="review thumb">
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/one-piece-pirate-warriors-3/" title="One Piece: Pirate Warriors 3 (Four Stars)">
<div class="cover" style="background-image: url('/review/one-piece-pirate-warriors-3/cover_hu9fe2fa5e727ed41b3cc04bcabf6f014c_22199_200x200_resize_q75_catmullrom.jpg');"><span class="rating">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span></span></div>
<h4>One Piece: Pirate Warriors 3</h4>
<time datetime="2017-09-25 00:00:00 -0700 PDT">Monday, September 25, 2017</time>
</a>
</article>
<article class="review thumb">
<a href="https://pixelpoppers.com/review/one-piece-world-seeker/" title="One Piece: World Seeker (Three Stars)">
<div class="cover" style="background-image: url('/review/one-piece-world-seeker/one-piece-world-seeker_hub4e16812b196934340418f29104c400a_347243_200x200_resize_q75_catmullrom.jpg');"><span class="rating">
<span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="full">★</span><span class="empty">☆</span><span class="empty">☆</span></span></div>
<h4>One Piece: World Seeker</h4>
<time datetime="2020-12-09 00:00:00 -0800 PST">Wednesday, December 9, 2020</time>
</a>
</article>
</section>
</aside>