The 2022 Backlog Challenge

[Gloves | 12,004]

Beat God of War PS4. It was really good, I can see why it'd have gotten game of the year awards. That said it's quite a large departure from previous titles.

I get that it's a reboot and the series creators wanted to do something different, and they did a good job of it. It felt a bit lacking in main story compared due to the world building and I hope Ragnarok up's the stakes (and with that title I imagine it would).

Overall I enjoyed it, and I might keep playing to do the Valkyrie and challenges. Doubt I'll bother with collectibles to get the Platinum trophy, probably for the best I just move on to the next game soon. 

[Splain | 2,629]

I finished Origami King and I'm finally on the board. I'm happy with this game, I'm surprised at some of the storyline decisions they made. The battles were annoying, but when I go back to try and "quickly" grab some of the stuff I missed, battles have now magically become SUPER ANNOYING++ and I wonder if I can survive to 100%. Solid game though. So many paper jokes. So many. Don't play for the challenge, play for the charming Mario experience.

 

[Sumez | 3,043]

6 hours ago, Renmauzo said:

It's a shame that the steam generated from MM11 wasn't followed up on for either a 12 or an X9

11 is the best new Mega Man game since, I don't know... 6 or X1 probably? So yeah, I was also expecting a whole new series of new Mega Man games considering how great that game was, it's really disappointing almost no one is talking about it.

  

6 hours ago, Gloves said:

I get that it's a reboot

Did you skip the cutscenes? 

Seems to me the only reason it doesn't have "4" in the title is a PR decision.

Edited May 24, 2022 by Sumez

[Gloves | 12,004]

1 minute ago, Sumez said:

11 is the best new Mega Man game since, I don't know... 6 or X1 probably? So yeah, I was also expecting a whole new series of new Mega Man games considering how great that game was, it's really disappointing almost no one is talking about it.

  

Did you skip the cutscenes? 

Seems to me the only reason it doesn't have "4" in the title is a PR decision.

I meant reboot in that it's a different style, a new story, setting, etc.. The definition of the term is loose enough that I think it's fair to call it such. They are definitely rebranding the series with this entry, and I'd consider the terms synonyms. 

At any rate, reboot, soft reboot, rebrand, sequel, whatever you wanna call it. I'm not really about debating terminology on forum posts, a very casual discussion setting. 

[Sumez | 3,043]

Still seems like PR to me though, but if you don't want to discuss games on a game discussion forum, I'll respect that.

I honestly just thought the game was much more in line with the classic games than how it was initially portrayed from early trailers, and feels like a very natural evolution of the series. Progression is mostly linear, with the same focus on switching between clearing the room of dudes and light puzzle solving, and

Spoiler

once Kratos gets his blades back, combat pretty much plays the same as well

The only real difference is that they'd run out of Greek gods to murder.  

Edited May 24, 2022 by Sumez

[MegaMan52 | 2,488]

Beat Super Mario Sunshine and got all of the Shine Sprites:

Let me make something clear. I've beaten Super Mario Sunshine many times over the years. What I didn't do until recently was collect all of the Shine Sprites. Over the years, I've gone back to my original save file that I've had since 2003 and slowly collected more Shine Sprites. As of last year, I had 110. Nine of the remaining Shine Sprites required Blue Coins and one was for beating the Pachinko secret area. I missed quite a few Blue CoIns in Bianco Hills and Noki Bay, likely because I didn't use guides much several years ago (I wanted to buy the official Player's Guide, but didn't get around to it...maybe someday). I decided to finally look up a guide. It took me hours to find and collect the rest of the Blue Coins in Bianco Hills, and a couple days to find the rest of the Blue Coins in Noki Bay. I thought I beat the Pachinko secret area well-over a decade ago. I do remember it frustrating me in 2004 or so, but I thought I eventually got the Red Coins and Shine Sprite. I knew there were 40 Shine Sprites in Delfino Plaza, and I had 38. I knew one of them required Blue Coins, so I had to check through most of the Shine Sprite areas to find out what other one I didn't have. I took the time to get all the Red Coins in the Pachinko secret area, and found out that I really hadn't gotten that Shine Sprite after all these years. It's not as frustrating as I remember. I found out that holding a direction on the Control Stick (or not touching it at all) after launching yourself determines where you land on the Pachinko table. I figured it out pretty quick.

Anyway, despite having some frustrating parts, I really like Super Mario Sunshine and think it is pretty underrated compared to other Mario games. It isn't as far removed from traditional Mario gameplay as many people think. Mario still jumps, stomps enemies, and collects coins like he does in pretty much all of the other main Mario games. There are lots of secret areas with traditional Mario platforming (even going so far as to making you complete them without FLUDD the first time), complete with a very catchy remix of the Super Mario Bros. theme. The fences in Ricco Harbor are just like the ones in Super Mario World, allowing you to flip to the other side and punch enemies. You can ride on Yoshi, who still uses his tongue to eat fruit and enemies. The music even changes a little when riding Yoshi, again like Super Mario World. Most of the bosses in the game are a familiar type of Mario enemy (Piranha Plants, Bloopers, etc.). Classic enemies also appear in the game as regular enemies, such as Cheep Cheeps and Bullet Bills. Brick blocks and Pipes, though not as common, are also in the game. And of course, Mario still has to rescue Peach and defeat Bowser.

I like the creative ways you can use FLUDD, like riding on lily pads like a boat/raft, spraying Boo pictures in the Hotel that you can jump through to enter other rooms, shrinking Springs in Noki Bay then picking them up and moving them somewhere else, etc. Rocket Nozzles and Turbo Nozzles are fun to use as well. The levels are pretty fun too, and are FULL of secrets like most other Mario games. Some of the music is catchy, while others are relaxing. If the game's bright and colorful look bothers your eyes after a while, you can talk to a Pianta in most levels who gives you Sunglasses then the screen darkens a little.

Super Mario Sunshine may not be the most liked game in the series (and OF COURSE it isn't as good as Super Mario 64), but it is still a pretty good game and hasn't been forgotten. The Piantas, Nokis, boss characters, and Shine Sprites have appeared in other Mario games. FLUDD has been in every Smash Bros. game since Brawl, along with a Delifino Plaza stage. Bowser Jr. has been in several other main Mario games, including New Super Mario Bros. and Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe has a track based on Super Mario Sunshine (Sunshine Airport). Animal Crossing: New Leaf includes a Super Mario Sunshine reference. And Super Mario Maker 2 has a fan-made level based on the Sand Bird from Super Mario Sunshine, complete with the GameCube's logo and the Delfino Plaza music. 

Anyway, I've had a lot of fun playing Super Mario Sunshine over the years. I need to take a break from playing it now, but I'll more than likely come back to it someday. It's a little early yet, but this year marks the game's 20th Anniversary. In 2017, I made a video to celebrate its 15th Anniversary.

Edited May 30, 2022 by MegaMan52

[Gloves | 12,004]

My list is kind of grating to look at tbh. I almost never actually play handhelds these days, as I work from home every day. Kinda shot myself in the foot with the "1 or 2 from every console" deal, as that made it so almost half are handheld games, and mostly RPGs. 

I should really have accounted for that my largest collection is ps2 games and added more of those. 

[Reed Rothchild | 9,684]

5 minutes ago, Gloves said:

My list is kind of grating to look at tbh. I almost never actually play handhelds these days, as I work from home every day. Kinda shot myself in the foot with the "1 or 2 from every console" deal, as that made it so almost half are handheld games, and mostly RPGs. 

I should really have accounted for that my largest collection is ps2 games and added more of those. 

My list next year is mostly PS2.  I diversified the last two years, but that's not what I actually need to play going forward.

[Reed Rothchild | 9,684]

So, here's one that was almost 20 years in the making.

Gungriffon Blaze was one of the first dozen PS2 games I bought back in 2003.  It's an early title, it's one of the last games released by Working Designs, and it is super short (6 missions).

But in true WD fashion, Vic Ireland made it brutally difficult.  You have to grind the missions again and again to stock up on weapons and gear - which exhaust - and to unlock new mechs.  And the last two missions are absurdly hard.

Back in the day I couldn't clear the final Egypt mission regardless of how much I tried.  Couldn't even get close.  Eventually I gave up.

Now, empowered with assets like Youtube playthroughs to assist my strategy, I spent every night for the last week staying up late, grinding this out for a win.  God damn those last two missions.

[twiztor | 858]

Finished up Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2 (Wii) tonight. mainly played through as Wolverine, along with my teammates Hulk, Captain America, and Human Torch. Took around 11 hours. There's no real "Congratulations" screen so the pictures are underwhelming.

i feel about this game about the same as the first one. it's alright. the levels and enemies all feel same-y. the storyline is OK, but it's doled out in such small chunks ("this is happening. go do this mission. Now this is happening. Go do this mission.") that it is hard to get invested. The camera really liked to switch on you when you weren't expecting it to (what is this, n64?) and liked to hover in doorways so you couldn't see anything.

At this rate, i probably won't pick up the 3rd entry in the series unless i get a ton of feedback that it is awesome.

[MegaMan52 | 2,488]

Beat Wario World: 

All Treasures, Red Diamonds, Gold Statue parts, and Spritelings found: 

All WarioWare Microgames unlocked: 

Wario's Castle rebuilt: 

Wario World was one of the few Nintendo released games on the GameCube that I overlooked, until I rented it in 2007. I played lots of Wario Land on Game Boy and really enjoyed it, so I don't know why I waited until 2007 to play Wario World. I read about it in Nintendo Power's E3 2002 article in the July 2002 issue. I was excited that a Wario adventure was finally being released on a console. But for whatever reason, it just slipped by me and I didn't play it until a few years later.

A lot of people criticize this game for its short length, but I enjoyed it. Like Super Mario Sunshine, the levels are filled with secrets. And like Wario Land 4, there are puzzle rooms in each level. There was an area in the Shivering Mountains level that I didn't even know about until just recently: the hidden area where the Ancient Chalice is located (just before the cave section), with two Igloos and some Christmas trees. I like that many of the levels have two music tracks, changing tracks as you get further into a level and better fitting the area that you're in. The bosses are really weird, but definitely appropriate for a Wario game. Some of the platform mini stages are frustrating, but others are fun and have kind of a retro feel (you can move the camera and pretend you're playing a side-scrolling platform game). There is even an easter egg on the pause screen that you can hear if you keep the game paused for about 50 minutes (or you can watch my video below).

This game has Game Boy Advance Connectivity that allows you to download some WarioWare games to a Game Boy Advance. Like the WarioWare demo on the 2003 GameCube Preview Disc, the WarioWare games included in Wario World are somewhat different than the released version and have some sound and animation differences.

Besides the sometimes frustrating platform mini stages, my only other complaint with Wario World is that the final boss battle is kind of boring and seems unfinished. It's not bad, I just wish there was more to it. The Japanese version actually has a longer final boss battle, and I'd like to import it someday.

 

Edited May 27, 2022 by MegaMan52

[Foochie776 | 1,066]

Kingdom Hearts grabbed me by the balls and drug me in. I love this game. 

[Kguillemette | 1,570]

Gonna start working back on this list as soon as I wrap up Windwaker. I'm parked at the final boss, so it won't be long.

[twiztor | 858]

Well, i did the seemingly impossible. I polished off Mega Man & Bass. i ended up picking up a knockoff SNES cartridge, as the GBA one just wasn't going to work for me. This game was tough. really tough. That's probably obvious enough by the fact that i gave up a couple months ago. Good graphics, good sound. I thought the boss characters were pretty cool looking, with a good variety of weapons. pretty solid level design too. The 2nd King Stage and the final Wily stage were just endurance challenges though. Happy to be done with this one. Now i need a nice, long Mega Break.

Thank you again @Estilfor the encouragement.

On 5/6/2022 at 12:29 AM, Reed Rothchild said:

@twiztor 5/8
I beat Mega Man & Bass on an emulator in high school.  I'm now convinced that I'm only lying to myself and that I must have cheated my way through it with save states and somehow tricked myself into remembering otherwise.  I mean, I was using a damn keyboard for Christ's sake!

Regardless of how you did it, it was an accomplishment. 

 

i've added more to my list. Going to tackle the Sonic the Hedgehog series (1, 2, 3/& Knuckles, 4, Mania). Going to play through as Knuckles on all of them (not sure if that works on 4, and i don't really know if 3 and &K are different enough to count as separate games, but i guess i will find out).

[ScaryD | 244]

Knocked a big one off the list today FFVII Remake.

Edited May 30, 2022 by ScaryD

[Estil | 1,282]

2 hours ago, twiztor said:

Thank you again @Estilfor the encouragement.

PS: You did catch all 100 CDs, right?

Edited May 30, 2022 by Estil

[Sumez | 3,043]

47 minutes ago, ScaryD said:

Knocked a big one off the list today FFVII Remake.

Do yourself a favourite and play every chapter in Hard Mode, it really made me appreciate the game a lot more!  
I don't think the combat system ever really clicked for me on the first playthrough, and mostly felt like hack'n'slash, but it actually really shines on Hard.

[twiztor | 858]

21 minutes ago, Estil said:

PS: You did catch all 100 CDs, right?

cd count: 017

i conveniently left that screen out of the pics i posted

[Estil | 1,282]

2 minutes ago, twiztor said:

cd count: 017

i conveniently left that screen out of the pics i posted

You haven't for real beat the game until and unless you get all 100...and BTW good luck on getting that one that you have to have Rush dig up without getting hit by those flying drill thingies before those flying drill thingies drill away the ground the CD would be on!!

[Reed Rothchild | 9,684]

30 minutes ago, Estil said:

You haven't for real beat the game until and unless you get all 100...and BTW good luck on getting that one that you have to have Rush dig up without getting hit by those flying drill thingies before those flying drill thingies drill away the ground the CD would be on!!

Beat =/= complete

[Californication | 1,490]

About half-way through Doom Eternal on Nightmare. Pretty good challenge so far. Got stuck on level 2/3 for over a week. But now that I have the mechanics down, it's speeding up.

[FireHazard51 | 2,074]

Flower for PS4 - Short game but I can understand why it was a hit back on PS3.  Also hands down the best credits in a video game.

Also knocked out Pikmin 3 Deluxe.  Honestly not that big of a fan but I'm glad I got to experience what the hype is for Pikmin games.

[Foochie776 | 1,066]

On 5/15/2022 at 8:05 AM, RH said:

I beat SM64 last night on Mario 3D All-Stars.  I’m not going for the full 120 and that was never my intent.  I did that as a kid and though it was great, my real intent of starting this one was to just have a fun walk down memory lane.  I must say, Tick-Tock Clock is probably the level I dislike the most, even over Rainbow Road.  Regardless, the whole game is great and I don’t think there’s a single stage that I hate playing. I’ll update my list shortly.

Thanks @Reed Rothchild for calling me out as a trolling, lazy gamer.   It really put a fire under my feet to at least try to finish something on the list and it paid off!

It’s on my own list to complete it 120 stars. I’ve never done it. The closet I’ve come is 115–116?

[RH | 5,062]

32 minutes ago, Foochie776 said:

It’s on my own list to complete it 120 stars. I’ve never done it. The closet I’ve come is 115–116?

I was quite satisfied with it as a kid.  It was probably the first titled I ever 100%ed that was more than just a "beat the game" type of setup.  I had a buddy who also got an N64 on the same day.  In fact, we bumped into each other at Wal-Mart when we went after school.  Anyway, I didn't tell him but each day before school, we'd talk about our progress and I was "racing" him to 120.  He won.  Typical.

Lol, anyone remember or have friends that would argue that there were 121 stars?  I can't quite recall, but I think people would always lie and involve having to first unlock 120 so you could get to Yoshi and then do something else.  Lol, good times.  The spirit of "Purple Ganon" lived on.

[Philosoraptor | 473]

First post in two months. Damn it's been a hell of a last two months. The only game I managed to find time to beat in that time was Demon's Tier +, which I beat in mid-April.

It was enjoyable and significantly easier than other "SHMUP-inspired" dungeon crawlers like Enter the Gungeon and Binding of Isaac. I actually played both of those before this game and ended up liking Demon's Tier + the most of the three. Also, thanks to the Binding of Isaac, Enter the Gungeon, and Steredenn, I now know that I dislike games centered on "runs" with tens or hundreds of random weapon or equipable "possibilities" that you lose after your run ends. Steredenn aside, I feel like those games are actively wasting my time until I unlock enough possibilities to start actually getting consistent runs. To me, they're like the cursed offspring of a mystery dungeon game (which I love) and a top-down action game (which I also love). Steredenn is a true SHMUP, but most of the ideas for weapons seemed...uninspired...or downright detrimental. I would have liked to see more of a standard weapon system, but the game is very unique. 

In Demon's Tier +, you still have the (light) "SHMUP-inspired" gameplay, but more traditional RPG elements. You have six characters to choose from, all of whom have different stats. As you progress in the dungeon and kill enemies, you get more and more of the game's main currency, which you can use to upgrade your character's stats at the end of each level and pay for better weapons and helpful items in the hub-world. If you die in the dungeon, you lose all your money, but not your weapon. It's good fun. It's more of a *gestures towards all the new terms for Dark Souls-esque games* type of game. Souls-like? Souls-lite? Roguelike? Roguelite? Who knows. Why do we do this to ourselves?

Anyway, due to unforseen events, I've spent the last month and change moving. I found a better place not far from where I was, but the saying "you don't know how much stuff you have until you move" is so apropos. As soon as everything gets back in order and my life settles down a bit, I do plan on continuing my backlog challenge. I'm thiiiiiis close to 100 games beaten this year, and I'd rather not squander that opportunity.