Turok (Switch) – A real bait-and-switch, since I grew up knowing the N64 subtitle “Dinosaur Hunter”, but really you’re mostly killing people and the occasional velociraptor. Aside from that, I really liked this game. It’s a lot like DOOM, but in 3D and has lots of platforming. The biggest failing is that the first boss (and only the first boss) is almost impossibly difficult. I burned through seven of my nine lives in that fight.
Timesplitters 2 (GC) – Co-oped the story mode, and it was a wonderful nostalgia trip. Maybe it’s just me, but it seems like big studios don’t really make shooters like this any more. Specifically, ones with big maze-like levels, varied objectives, and a willingness to be unapologetically weird. And it’s the last one that matters the most to me. I’m less turned off by murdering hundreds of people when they’re over-the-top cartoons.
Sol Seraph (PS4) – A mash-up of side-scrolling action and town-building simulation, much like Actraiser for SNES. Unlike Actraiser, the town-building parts are more tower defense than sim. It’s also a very easy game, despite the old-school design and stiff character control in the action parts. I’m glad I played it, but it’s not life-changing by any means.
Picross: Lord of the Nazarick (Switch) – This is my least favourite picross game, on the grounds that they mashed in an eye-rolling anime story that I could not have cared less about. Made even worse by the fact that it assumes you have existing knowledge of the story and characters. But the puzzles were still fun, so money/time well spent.
Pikmin (GC) – I still really like the first Pikmin. It’s short and sweet, but it does lack a few important quality-of-life features that the sequels brought in. Most importantly: multiple captains. Trying to multitask with Olimar alone is not the most effective for casual players like myself.
Cat Quest (Switch) – Super basic action-RPG, where you basically just follow arrows to the next objective and then chop up enemies. It lacks depth and variety, but it’s short enough that what is there is satisfying. Definitely made with the iPad crowd in mind, though the only think I truly disliked about it is that the ending seemed to be missing? Like, it just sort of drops a major plot thread in the middle of the climax and says “that’s it, thanks for playing!” Clearly a poorly executed sequel hook.
Death Squared (Switch) – Up to Level 15.
Mega Man Legends 2 (PS1) – Collected 2/4 keys.
Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Switch) – 4 Divine Beasts / 105 shrines.
Pixel Puzzle Collection (iOS) – 149.1% and Bosses complete!