Gaming off the Beaten Path

It's time to keep the GBA Metroidvania train rolling. We started with Castlevania, then moved on to Metroid, and now it's time to make our way back to Dracula's castle. I was pleasantly surprised last year when I, sort of on a whim, decided to take a shot at Castlevania: Circle of the Moon on the Game Boy Advance. I had heard good things about the handheld titles in the series, but never actually took the time to play any of them. And that's a shame, because Circle of the Moon was outstanding. It was truly an exceptional example of just what the tiny but mighty GBA was capable of. It got me excited to dig into the other games in the genre I had missed from that console, both Metroid and Castlevania alike. I moved right along to Metroid: Zero Mission and while I wasn't as high on it as I was COTM, it was still a solid experience that was incredibly well designed and polished. So naturally, the next step in the progression was back to 'Vania with the next in that...

I guess we all have to start somewhere. Sometimes, starting could be a micro thing, starting a new game or starting a new review. Sometimes it's a Macro thing, like starting a whole new business. Sometimes it's somewhere in between, like starting with a whole new resolution. But at the end of the day, staring something new is starting something new. I first started with PlayStation Plus in late 2014,  having just received a brand new PS4 as a wedding gift. I initially wasn't too happy about this, the whole thought of paying just to play with my friends online wasn't something I was a fan of. However, there was also a nice consolation prize: two free games every month. And believe me, I made absolutely sure I downloaded those games as soon as they were available. I mean, I barely had any games for my new system. I always have been and always will be a physical media first person, but I'm not exactly opposed to digital media, especially when it's free (well, tec...

Last year, I jumped head first into the pool Metroidvania titles for the Game Boy Advance. I started with the "Vania," so now it's time to look at the "Metroid" side of things. As with Castlevania, Metroid is a series that needs absolutely no introduction. In some respect, I'm a little surprised that I haven't touched the franchise in the seven years I've been doing this. While it's far from "unknown," I feel like Metroid has a lot of weird, quirky entries that probably would fit the "off the beaten path" theme. These games may not be quite as popular as the bigger Nintendo IPs, but they have some very, very passionate fans that live and die with them. And I hope they don't get too mad at me for saying that Metroid isn't really a favorite franchise of mine. Don't get me wrong, I don't think I've ever played a bad Metroid game. I know  some people hate Other M for the Wii, but I haven't really played th...

It's time to start yet another year with a look at an old sports title. And it's one that I never thought I probably would have never touched if I didn't dig it up at random. But first, a little bit about my general sports fandom. While I am definitely more nerd than jock, I've always been a huge sports fan. Whether it's as a fan of my pro teams, as a reporter covering local high school teams or as a competitor myself, sports have always been a major part of my life. I watch as many sports as I can, though I wish I had time for more. I love learning about players, speculating about what teams will do with their offseasons, tracking statistics and immersing myself in various aspects of various types of athletic competition.  To me, the new year is a great time for sports, the NFL playoffs are starting, MLB's winter meetings are underway, the NHL season is in full swing and NCAA wrestling is coming back from its holiday break. It also tends to be a pretty decent t...

So it looks like it's time for yet another GOTBP end of year review. I know I say it every year, but I can't believe I'm still doing this going on seven years. I have to say I've been a little disappointed in myself this year, I absolutely slacked on the number of reviews I put out. I felt myself slowing down in a lot of ways and I want to make it a point next year to try and get back to putting out more consistent reviews. I guess it's sort of my resolution this year. Hey, everything is coming full circle, this whole thing started as a resolution. As we continue with said circle, it's time to look at this year's scores. Remember, I give awards for Game of the Year, worst game, most surprising, most disappointing and best candidate for a modern update/remake. 10s games aren't eligible for any of these awards. A reminder of the scores:  Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 - 9.5/10 Garou: Mark of the Wolves - 9.5/10 Castlevania: Circle of the Moon - ...

Last week, we started our look at Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, one of 2025's most hyped games. E33 has cleaned up at every major gaming awards show, and for good reason. It features a unique and amazing world, a gripping story and spectacular soundtrack that has captivated millions of gamers. All of those things make for a great movie...but this isn't a movie, now is it. Here, we have gameplay to discuss. Did it live up to the high standard set by its narrative? Well, let's see. It may be French in origin, but E33 plays like a classic, turn-based JRPG. I talked a little bit about this last week, but it was so nice to see a game that played like this, at least a core level, receive the amount of reverence it has. It has the combat, the dungeons, the exploration, the pacing, all the hallmarks of the genre that those of us that grew up in the 90's came to know and love. You have turn based combat, a world map, tons of sidequests, all of the things that made these games so ...

I may as well finish the year with a bang. Unless you've been living under a rock for the past year, you've probably heard of the latest and greatest turn based RPG that's taking the gaming world by storm. It seems that these games are popping up every year now, something I absolutely love to see. It was less than 10 years ago that the general consensus was that these games were all but dead, made all but obsolete by bigger, better open world and action games that allowed for a more "true" role playing experience. I'm not going to get into that now, because I have strong feelings about that, but it feels like it was the mindset of the gaming community at large for the entirety of the 7th and majority of the 8th console generations. Console RPGs were all but dead, relegated to a niche genre for weirdos full of doe eyed chibis and unnecessary fan service. The genre that seemed to spawn new IPs left and right was all the sudden focused on a few core series, Ta...

Unfortunately, I just learned a few weeks ago that this game exists. I thought I was done with these two, I really did. I reviewed The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle and Friends in year one, and it was one of the few games from the early days that I had expectations for going in. And those expectations were very, very low. Every gaming content creator, big or small, blogger or YouTuber, retro or modern, seems to have "that game" that they absolutely hate. The Angry Video Game Nerd infamously despises Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde for the NES, for example. Well for me, Rocky and Bullwinkle for the NES is, was and always will be "that game." Simply put, that game made me realize that videogames could, in fact, suck. I had a lot of "bad" games, but most of them offered something, anything that would make you keep playing. Gaming is always better than not gaming, right? I used to think that way as a kid, at least before I played Rocky and Bullwinkle. I remembe...

Last time out, we started our look into XBox 360 action RPG Infinite Undiscovery, covering its story and characters. You should go back and take a look at part 1, whether its on the blog or the pod. But to summarize, IU was, to put it nicely, not great in those categories. Did the gameplay fair any better? Well, I guess I would answer that question with an emphatic "kind of." It may have had a nonsense story with lame characters, but IU definitely has a few bright spots in the gameplay department. A lot more of the experimentation hit here, though there were still plenty of mechanics that could have stood to be cut. Interestingly enough, many IU's gameplay pitfalls were caused by the same mindset as the story's problem. If I could use two words to describe the narrative, they would be "nonsensical" and "bloated." Fortunately, only the latter applied to the gameplay. But before I talk about the bad, I will give IU credit for a few things it did well...