Games (from any year) which I finished playing in 2021.
Showing 1-10 of 45 items
01/01 -- As a co-op shooter, I like a lot about The Division 2. Its core gameplay is especially sharp -- the gun feel and variety are solid, the co-op balance seems really good, the skill choices are useful and some of the level designs are great. It creates a lot of scenarios for team play. In one underground fight, my brother laid down machine gun and autoturret fire while I ducked into a train car with a shotgun. In another rooftop battle, my drone flushed enemies out of cover while my brother sniped with a marksman rifle. The loot management can be a bit of a chore, but the progression is pretty quick and pushed me to try out several new gun types. The post-game specializations are also fun and reward leaning into certain playstyles. TD2's loot and shoot gameplay carries it for a long time, but it doesn't really offer any other gameplay variety. (There are some acheivement-style goals and the open world occasionally creates some unexpected cross-fire scenarios.) The storytelling also mostly takes a back seat (but that's probably a good thing for this style of game).
01/01 -- Risk of Rain 2 felt a lot like the first game (although I forgot how long it can be -- and maybe it's more exhausting in 3D). I can imagine revisiting it in the future, but I requested a refund for now.
01/02 -- 20XX is a lot of fun co-op (if somewhat short-lived). I'm surprised at how well it pulls off some of the randomized elements in a Mega Man style game. Platforming mistakes don't kill you instantly but instead chip away at your health. There are some fun upgrades, like the "core" (armor and blaster) parts. And the Mega Man/X aesthetic is pretty great. 20XX's difficulty may not be balanced for co-op. My brother and I finished on our second or third run. It was still fun for a few more runs, but an early win took some of the excitement out of the challenge.
01/26 -- Astroneer's open-ended gameplay probably isn't for everyone. I don't think its pace would work for me in single-player, but I enjoyed it quite a bit in co-op. There's plenty to discover in Astroneer. You might end up on an adventure, like bouncing around in low gravity or falling into a crater. It can also be really satisfying to set up and connect some of the base building elements. Multiplayer means you can share these stories or ideas, and it helps divide up some of the more rote tasks like resource management. I wouldn't say the progression is completely straightforward, especially its upgrades, but its planets do follow something of a pattern. The open-ended design and sandbox goofiness which can make Astroneer surprising and interesting, can also make it tedious and frustrating. It's pretty fun to dig wherever you want (and spray collected resources everywhere in the process) but the malleable, bumpy terrain often becomes a chore for tasks like driving or base building. And of course you'll probably try a lot of things which don't work (and miss some things which do).
02/06 -- I had fun with Immortals, and enjoyed its movement mechanics, combat and sense of humor (mostly). The puzzles and platforming segments were more... OK, even though they make up many of the map activities. (Especially the Vaults, which sometimes require solving an extra puzzle just to get in.) Immortals' world isn't particularly mysterious, but I usually had more fun there just exploring or running from point to point.
02/12 -- Crying Suns takes a lot of inspiration directly from FTL. ("Clone" would be a bit harsh since its combat and space pixel art style are distinct and pretty good.) It isn't bad, but it isn't great either. It's light on synergies and interactions, making its runs feel a bit flat and uneventful. Crying Suns' story progresses over several runs. I would enjoy this structure more if there were more gameplay progression or variety to match. There's an unfolding mystery which is interesting, but I wasn't a huge fan of the dark sci-fi setting or story in general.
02/28 (LSE, Normal) -- I had fun with Halcyon 6, and its Star Trek themes, sense of humor and art style often made me smile. It felt like a pretty straightforward strategy/RPG, at least on Normal difficulty.
02/28 -- Slime Rancher is fun with some neat sim mechanics, but it has some issues with inventory management, timed(?) progression gates and repetitive minigames.
03/02 -- Quite strange. I didn't get very far.
03/21 -- Remnant is a pretty fun co-op shooter. It's a bit linear and straight-forward, but its enemy designs and souls-like "feel" work pretty well. It doesn't offer a ton of character customization, but what's there supports teamwork and different playstyles. (For example, I played close-range with a shotgun, while my brother focused on a healing power and single-shot weapons.) The boss fights are solid -- this is where Remant's "souls-like" design works best. Even on Normal, it was usually worth tuning up our gear and learning an encounter's key mechanics. Remnant takes inspiration from a grab-bag of fictional settings (possibly including Mad Max, Stargate and Lovecraftian horror), while following From Software's model of obtuse storytelling. It's kind of absurd, but it sets up some cool weapon and enemy designs.