Recent reviews by Striped

Frankly, I'm still reeling from and trying to understand the totality of what I just played. And the game clearly has some rough spots in terms of certain gameplay and pacing.

But by the end of it all, this is one of those games that remind me why I love video games, and creative expression as a whole. An absolutely euphoric fever dream in the best way possible.

I thought I was prepared for anything either of the new chapters could throw at me.
I was not.
You are not ready either.

At last, the remaster of Sam & Max's biggest and possibly best adventure is finally out, and so completes the remastered trilogy of all 3 seasons. And it looks BEAUTIFUL. Granted, The Devil's Playhouse originally already was visually ahead of the first two seasons, but to have this season completely relit, enhanced, with HD audio (and new music!), and stylistically consistent with the previous remasters with extremely clean new art direction for a modern release is nothing short of fantastic. And with proper point-and-click support this time!

The Devil's Playhouse is leagues ahead of the previous two seasons in terms of presentation, serialized narrative, and game design. All that tedious backtracking back-and-forth using the DeSoto in previous seasons? Practically solved with a new teleporting ability. Max's powers this season just in general are a delight of a gameplay feature, a toolkit of magical puzzle-solving abilities at your disposal, while also being a delightful source of surplus bonus dialogue & gags through experimentation. And a way to discover hints too! Replaying this season for the first time in many years, I was surprised to find that a lot of the puzzle solutions seemed a bit... easier than the previous seasons' often esoteric or off-the-wall solutions, or at least easier to wrap your head around. Which is probably for the best, or even a sign that the puzzle design here is tighter and cleaner. That doesn't make the actual solutions here any less ridiculous though! The humor is still as sharp as ever, focusing on some of the most entertaining characters to date, and through its story this season grabs and keeps your attention in a way the previous two sometimes struggled to.

That all being said, seasons 1 and 2 are still great and fun experiences, and with how self-referential the series is, it's worth it to play them to completion, in order, before this one. So many jokes would be lost otherwise. Makes it a bit hard to recommend this game standalone, but it is meant to be a climatic finale & sendoff for these all characters' time at Telltale. At time of writing, I did also experience several visual and audio bugs during my playthrough, as well as a few moments that could use a bit more polish or better audio mixing, but given Skunkape's great track record of post-release patches, I'm not too worried. The Devil's Playhouse is a much bigger undertaking to remaster than the other two, Skunkape did such a wonderful job and I couldn't be happier. If you're a Sam & Max fan and somehow haven't played this one, you owe it to yourself to experience it.

I underestimated this game, I genuinely didn't expect it to become my current GOTY, and rival my enjoyment for the likes of Hollow Knight in the genre. Granted, its design goes in nearly the opposite direction as Hollow Knight, being a mostly linear, story-heavy, combat-centric metroidvania, but stands as a phenomenal title that more people need to play & deserves to make a name for itself. It's brutal, tragic, stunning, captivating, a story of vengeance in a lore-rich world inspired by Chinese mythology, complete with engaging level design and some of the best boss fights in the entire genre. You'll get your ass kicked many times over, its Sekiro-inspired claim baring some real teeth. It's a HARD video game, but finally overcoming these hurdles makes it all the more satisfying. If it ever becomes too overwhelming, the game even offers a difficulty option with modifiable damage values, so anyone can experience the game. Please give this game a chance, it deserves it.

Plus you play as a cute, short, angry cat that chiefs that squang in order to heal, what's not to love.

A delightful little puzzle game that's deceptively simple at first, then goes on to use its mechanics to their furthest possible extent. Great puzzle design, enough content to keep you occupied for many brain-melting hours, and is a gift that keeps on giving.