Recent reviews by Freakazoid

I haven't been this enthralled with a Final Fantasy game since FFX.

One of my favorite JRPG worlds in quite some time.

This game is like crack to me, the movement feels so good.

It's like Risk of Rain 2, but I don't have to think as hard, which is so nice, because I'm rather dumb.

This dev understands game balance to a degree that I wish other studios could even mimic 20% of.

Every character feels amazing to control, and the identity of each run for a game feels so unique due to ability augmentation. Even one item set changing can drastically change the trajectory of a run.

This game is up there with 'Favorite Co-Op Game' tied with Deep Rock Galactic.

I'm only a bit over 10 hours into this game at the time of writing this review, but I feel like I can say that I'm enjoying this game very much, even without finishing it.

The part that I love is the combat system. In the field, it's a light action-RPG, with the ability to start your turn-based combat when the moment is right. The turn-based combat reminds me a lot of Chrono Trigger where some abilities have an AoE effect for damage, debuffs, etc. It makes every combat scenario feel fresh as enemy positioning can change what abilities you'll want to use, making you want to really know what all you can do in combat.

The spell system allows you to lock-in abilities much like the FF7 spell system, where you 'equip' spells. I always loved that system, so I don't mind seeing a variation of that here.

The story and presentation so far are all top notch. I love the characters, and the English dub cast has done a great job bringing me into the cutscenes without anything feeling to 'uwu'-eey.

Make sure you go into the options and turn on the orchestral arrangement instead of the default OST. I feel like it's a sin in isn't on by default, it's a lovely OST.

Also, one last huge prop: It's NOT open-world. I feel myself having had open-world game fatigue, so this is a nice breath of fresh air from that formula. Having a designed path for the party to follow makes exploring seem more fine-tuned.

Runs great on the Steam Deck, too! (I have the LCD model and playing it on there is a joy).

Also, there are so many QoL designs in this game that make this so nice, such as fast-forwarding pretty much everything if exploring / combat is sluggish, although I find the normal pace to be just fine. Also, from Steam, you can boot RIGHT to your save without having to go from the bootup through the main menu and save select. You can hop back in so quick.

Anyways, I'm gushing. Highly recommend this! Worth the full price, in my opinion.

I don't think that there is anything I can say about this game that hasn't been said already, but this is about as impressive of a map and world as Dark Souls. Everything is very intuitive and great.

The only downside is that early to mid-game, it might be a bit difficult to find 'exactly' where you need to go for movement abilities to progress the game. However, there are online guides that give you spoiler-free hints.

Other than that, this is about as perfect of a game for what it tries to do. Masterclass design, music, levels, visuals. Everything.

Very excited to play through Silksong. I get what all the fuss was about, I was missing out!

Probably the biggest bang for your buck that I've ever experienced in a game.

Games like this show exactly why indie games are king. There's so much diversity in gameplay, this truly 'feels' like some old studio made 50 games decades ago. It's astonishing.

Oh god I'm gonna nub

I was smiling ear to ear the entire time playing this. The music, story, characters and gameplay are all just amazing.

Please do yourself a favor, and play Undertale, then play this game. I really think that these games deserve all the support they could ever get.

I find it hard to recommend any gacha game of any sort. Gachas are designed to be addictive and prey upon gambling tendencies. IF you have a lot of self-control, this might be the single gacha I could recommend to someone.

Wuthering Waves (will call it WuWa) does a fantastic job on-boarding a new played with tools, characters and weapons to hit the ground running. Your main character you get is great for a lot of content, and isn't a slob with clearing harder stuff if invested. WuWa also rewards players who play the game with a nice stream of rewards starting out. This gives you a good month of pretty much free content and the ability to get good stuff. Afterwards, the rewards fizzle out, so that 'feel good dopamine' train stops, and you might be tempted to spend. Don't fall for it, try and save, or spend WISELY.

The game is extremely good at it's core. The combat is fluid, the exploration is vast and varied. One thing I love is when a game 'feels good' to play and control a character. Grappling, wall-running, and in the new areas, flying, the game is a joy to play (Mouse and Keyboard or Controller).

The systems for building your character to be stronger take a minute to wrap your head around, but are fun, too. Fighting monsters in the open world has a chance to turn them into an 'echo' that you can equip to give you stats, or even toss out said monster in combat for a brief moment to do damage / support. Kinda like a Pseudo-Pokemon vibe. It's a nice touch.

Coming from years and years of Genshin Impact, this game really feels like a 'better' version of that in every regard. It took me a moment to stop playing Genshin due to the sunk cost I put into it, but I'm glad to have moved to this title.

I'm hoping for Steam Deck support since playing this on the Steam Deck would be amazing.

Check this game out! Spend wisely (I recommend you don't at all), but there is SO much content you can get for free.

I think the government needs to do studies on this game, it's a new addictive substance.