Recent reviews by Nazasu

Resident Evil: Requiem is a video game where you Requiem some Residents of Evil.

In all seriousness, Resident Evil 9: Resident Evil: Requiem is a once in decade kind of experience. This game blends the survival horror aspects of 7 and 8 with the faster paced action of the RE: Remakes into one cohesive package. The blend between these two could have royally been messed up if done incorrectly. Ever since the blunder that is 6, Capcom never makes the same mistake twice and has learned that doing their homework, taking their time, and crafting masterpieces of iteration are what innovates the industry and keeps fans getting more than what they expected.
The Grace sections are phenomenal in how giving the player tools makes Grace a more competent survivor and the player better at the systems it asks of them. The performance from the VA of Grace genuinely feels like she is terrified at the start of the game then turns into a capable survivor which should be nominated for the best VA, hands down. The way the game paces itself out during her sections keeps the players on their toes the entire time while giving them room to make mistakes.
In contrast, Leon's sections are a power fantasy but do not overly make him feel overpowered. The player still needs to respect the mechanics and stay on top of things to mitigate needless use of resources. Leon and his sense of humor and the way he carries himself is at full display here and what is to be expected for him as he has aged. I genuinely feel that older Leon has enough world wisdom to make him feel like a grizzled veteran, while still having his quips and one-liners that are at the forefront of her personality. Every playthrough I have done I find myself saying his quotes while he says them. I feel that this is the best incarnation of Leon and his gameplay is so satisfying for those familiar with the newer RE: Remake styles.
The story of this game feels like a come to terms for the Umbrella storyline and the overarching Spencer narrative that the series has been building upon. However, it leaves room for more nefarious actors and more to be built upon to fill the void from the Spencer legacy. I am very interested to see where this goes and what DLC they come out for this game to further expand upon things.
My only real negative is that the UI feels uninspired and flat. I am an advocate for more skeuomorphic design, like that we see in RE 4 and 5. The charm of having something representative of what you're actually interacting inside of the Attache Case makes the entire experience more pleasant and makes me want to micro manage my inventory while the flat design in Requiem does not.
Outside of that one issue, this game has three really strong sections that feel cohesive and well thought out. I'm sure some parts will be less enjoyable on more playthrough, but 5 playthroughs in, they still hold up really well. As of time of writing, I have completed every challenge including the Final Puzzle and have completed 5 playthroughs. This game is phenomenal and is for sure one of my favorite Resident Evil games ever made.

Sun Moon Sun, Moon Star Moon out of 10.

The only reason not to play this game is if you're infected with the T-Virus.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 was described to me as "JRPG Bioshock" by a friend and me inferring that from its looks, that description couldn't have been more wrong. If I hadn't been introduced to the first two hours of gameplay outside of that, I probably would have initially went with my decision to skip this game. I am glad that I was very wrong.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is not JRPG Bioshock and fully cements itself as it's own thing. A love letter to gaming. A heartfelt story of what it means to be human. A tear-jerking story about grief and what it does to those around us. A message about capital A "Art" and how that is no replacement for genuine human connection. The way this game delivers all these aspects is wrapped in a very French coat of paint whose themes is genuinely human in nature and will be timeless for years to come.
At the time of writing this, I completed the main story and did not grind to fight the optional super bosses or complete the side dungeons that are above my skill level. The depth of the mechanics in this game and how the developers spread everything out through the main story is masterfully done and every time a mechanic is introduced, it sticks around for the entirety of the game allowing the player to never feel like they learned something useless. The tight combat and the mechanical depth to parrying and dodging rewards mastery of memorizing attack patterns from the enemies, while providing an option for players to learn in a less punishing way. The breadth of mechanics each playable character has keeps the strategy fresh and invigorating with planning what skills to take and how to use them for every combat encounter kept me hooked and saying "one more" when I failed.
The stories twists and turns I experienced while getting rug pulled two times kept me on the edge of my seat not knowing what to expect until the credits rolled. The way this game lets the player come to their own conclusions about the story and how to resolve it will keep people discussing it into the far future. The absolute Chads of Expedition 60 had me rolling in laughter and sorrow but also intrigued me into more of the world building and wishing I could learn even more about the previous expeditions. I will be returning to collect the rest of the expedition journals because of this.
The musics way it plays with themes and melodies, providing unique and inspiring score design kept me jamming along during idle times and during combat. I especially love the theme for the Flying Waters and its combat theme. I genuinely think that this games soundtrack and score exemplify the tone of the work even more and complete the entire packing. Triumphant ballads, haunting whaling, and somber solos elevate this game into a masterpiece beyond what the story has done by itself.
This game and its legacy of being the hard work of talented, passionate individuals shows us that in our modern gaming landscape that games can be laser focused into a niche and made on shoestring budgets; providing a caliber of quality that punches far above its weight and stands toe to toe with giants. I genuinely believe that this game is "Art" and it only takes sitting with it for 30 hours to understand that. This for me will sit on the same level as Shadow of the Colossus and will have me ranting and raving about it to everyone I know for no good reason other than to spout how masterfully it was created in a gaming landscape that has abandoned artful design in gaming within the AAA space.

33/33

The only reason not to play this game is if you physically cannot.

Monster Hunter Wilds is another Monster Hunting game. In which you, the player, fight monsters over, and over, and over again. This entry of the series is a brilliant example of iteration, not revolution. Capcom's modern age designers are masters in iterating on their IP's and refreshing them with the changing times. Do they mess up sometimes? Yes. But Monster Hunter Wilds is not one of those mess ups.
Those who play Monster Hunter and have played Monster Hunter through the years understand this. They understand that those who keep this franchise alive and thriving understand and accept the iterations on the franchise. Are updates as frequent as people want? No. But those who keep this game alive and the franchise alive are playing for the community, the mechanics they love, and the fights they take the time to master. It's not about the amount of rapid release content that keeps the game flourishing, its the hardcore community of stalwart hunters who thrive in the repeat fights over and over again of the same content.
This game is objectively a good game and iterates on Monster Hunter World in a unique and fun way. If you, the reader, are looking through these reviews about this objectively good game and wondering why people are leaving negative reviews, understand that this game is not trash and it is not a soulless cashgrab. If the mechanics of the game speak to you as a player, you will pick this game up and never put it back down. If it doesn't, there is no shame in putting it down when you have had your fill. There is no shame in moving on to other games or other experiences. Play something new, go outside your comfort zone, or pick up the other games in the franchise. When you find that game that speaks to you, the lack of content being released is the least of your worries. Games are meant to be fun, Monster Hunter Wilds is fun and rewarding. This game benefits greatly from the repetition of fighting and mastering the same fights over and over again as all Monster Hunters do.

10/10

This game is incredible. The first thoughts I had when I saw it was "This looks nuts, I have to play it" and I don't regret it one bit. There are some key factors that really drew me in and kept me hooked about this game those being the survival mechanics plus the way it handles the story and the way the character interacts with those systems together. The easiest way I can explain this game is "What if Astroneer grew up into a mature thought provoking message?" and I have to say the way 11 bit studios was able to take that idea and wrap it up in such a great package was a blast to experience through the 3 nights I put into this game.

The survival mechanics are great and tense in the early game, and much more relaxed in the later portion. I think the semi-unforgiving deadlines of the early game helped me to get engaged with the systems and keep me invested in the moment to moment gameplay.
The base building aspect and macro-management of the overall systems of the game is engaging in tandem with the survival system to made me really question if upgrading one aspect of my base is worth it versus the risk of saving those resources for something else when emergencies arrive. This can be very nerve wracking in the earlier portions of the game when manpower is low and needing to micro-manage everything really makes me think about what im doing and whether or not its worth it.
The way the Alter system is incorporated is wild. Outside the two beginning Alters that the player NEEDS to make to complete the game, the rest of them are up to the player to prioritize their importance or to skip out on them completely. My playthrough I prioritized Alters who could provide to the necessities of my base, food, and mining. I do think the way I could specialize my Alters for roles and deny them from doing tasks I didn't think would be fitting for them had me look at the assignment screen a lot through my playthrough.

That being said, I do believe there are some aspects of the game which could be a turn off or were a negative in my playthrough. One issue being that on Ultra graphic settings with the latest NVidia Drivers, my game would crash frequently on my 4080 Super. I never had any issues on High, but Ultra would crash multiple times during an in game day, and on high dialogue days it would set me back a few hours over my entire playthrough. I had some issues with exiting a menu and my character would be stuck under the floor boards and unable to move. In the last 30 mins of the game I had it to where a character wouldnt be in a location they needed to be in to end the game, though that fixed itself of reloading the last save. Just be aware there are some issues that will no doubt be fixed in a later patch.

I'm loving the way modern gaming is taking ideas and genres from the last 30 years and remixing them in unique and interesting ways to create new blends that revolutionize the current gaming landscape. This year has had some amazing Indie and AA dev work and I can't wait to see what comes next from 11 bit. I highly recommend anyone who reads this who hasn't played it to dive in and give this game an opportunity. A playthrough can last anywhere from 18-25 hours and will provide opportunities for replayability.
9/10

Helldivers 1 is one of my favorite games of all time. I am rarely ever excited by game announcements these days in my jaded old age who has had their trust burned by too many companies. I was genuinely excited for Helldivers 2 since I found out about its development and to say it has exceeded my expectations of what I expected is an understatement. While yes I do not have the most time on this game in comparison to some of my friends, I have thoroughly enjoyed my time with it.

They way the game feels as a competent third person shooter is a much welcome evolution in how the game is played in comparison to the first games twin-stick style. I believe this is the biggest glow-up I've ever seen outside of Risk of Rain 1 to 2. The tweaks to the game play balance between Helldivers 1 and 2 actually make gatling turrets / rocket turrets / etc, feel more worthwhile to take over all the utility stratagems, whereas in #1 I would only take utility stratagems in combination with equitable weapons. Being able to take a mortar turret that has decent target acquisition and rotation speed makes a world of difference for the semi-open world aspect to each mission. All the changes to how the missions act out also give the game a fresh feel. As a player who would mostly solo the hardest difficulties in #1 I would intentionally blow it up any objectives that had a health bar and take the L on them to speed things up, however the new steps to launch the ICBM in #2 and the payoff for completing the missions makes it worth it every time, and you best bet I salute the GLORIOUS Liberation illumination that follows. One thing to also talk about is how the missions that are essentially just eliminate x number of enemies, in #1 those missions were a complete wash in if a group could realistically achieve them and felt like they were only added in in a desperate attempt to provide diversity of mission types. In this game and with the changes to how enplacement and turret stratagems work, they feel more do-able with less than a full squad of players and genuinely feel like a worthwhile addition to the game. I no longer dread seeing them as a mission that needs to be completed in order to get the maximum Medals for my Warbonds.

Overall I think this is clearly the best version of Helldivers and I will continue to play this through the years as I have done with #1 (I play #1 more on my PS4 than I do on PC)

In regards to the micro-transactions, the game gives players free Super Credits (w/e they're called) and purchasing them isn't necessary. Is it annoying to have the entire progression bound to the Warbonds? Sure, but Medals that are used to unlock things are only acquired in game and cannot be purchased with Super Credits. I understand peoples frustration about it being implemented at all, however, it is not as egregious as a lot of other games micro-transaction systems.

I am a bit saddened by a clear lack of the Illuminate faction. I hope they enter the war soon so I can continue my "Negotiations" to have them become Liberated. As well I would like my Illuminate Negotiator, Bug Ecologist and Cyborg Peacekeeper capes back please as they were the only pieces of drip that were earn-able through an actual in-game reward for completing the Hell Dive difficulty.

For Super Earth and Democracy!

10/10

I love FFX. I always try to get a play through in when I can, and this is the first real play through on Steam and the game is still always fantastic. I love this game and i highly encourage people at least experience this game, even if its on PC. But be sure to have DS4Windows if you're using a PS4 controller, or just use a Xbox controller.