STRAY (BlueTwelve Studio, 2022)

in

(****+ / *****) :: easily the most fascinating cyberpunk dystopia brought to game-life in recent memory (at least since DEUS EX: HUMAN REVOLUTION and yes, I'm including CYBERPUNK 2077 here), each small and contained section a vast, deep world unto itself, a unique beating heart throughout. Other than wishing it were longer (not a bad thing) and for a bit more variety in gameplay, STRAY is nothing short of a (n ever-so-slightly) flawed work of game-making genius. Not only are my heartstrings well and duly tugged, but I learned a new word: Hopepunk; meow.

i tried, SUICIDE SQUAD: KTJL, really, but jesusfuckingchrist

in

First game I've abandoned in a long time: had its moments of fun, but was too bombastic, too crazed, too everything I never wanted in a game from the ARKHAM world. Didn't kill any of the Justice League nevermind make it to the controversy around Batman's death and Conroy's "final "performance (which I guess it isn't but is or something, IDK) but didn't care: not a single one of the TFX, save Harley – as whom I played only to seek some semblance of gameplay continuity between SQUAD and the ARKHAM games – spoke to me. The rest of the characters (King Shark as a Drax rip-off?) and the tone felt like a bad GTA rip-off version of something far better, as though the writers tried to create the HARLEY QUINN animated series version of the ARKHAM world but weren't up to the task (was nice to see ARKHAM’s Penguin, though). Maybe I'll revisit if they add more DLC that has something resembling a story, but hell, GOTHAM KNIGHTS was a better game. Massive disappointment from one of the era-defining studios of the last decade.

links/2024w11

in

And we're back to the weekly list: Squarespace changed up their iPad editor and made it impossible to add links, so it's simpler to do it this way and put it together once a week on the Mac.