Community Backlog Blitz Season 11 - Runs April 1 through June 30 with a raffle at the end

[C-Dub]

Decided to update my Blitz. I don't like doing this but I'm so finnicky about what I play. Here's what my April to June list now looks like.

1. Anno Mutationem (PC)
2. The Stanley Parable Ultra Deluxe (PC)
3. Loop Hero (PC)
4. The World Ends With You - Final Mix (Switch)
5. Atelier Ryza (PC)

Lost Judgement has slipped off the list as I want to leave a bit more time between playing the first game and it. I also have Yakuza 0-6 to play on Steam and I know they're very similar. So I think Lost Judgement and/or one of the Yakuza games will be on my next Blitz from July onwards, along with a whole bunch of Steam Deck games.

Playing Anno: Mutationem now and I'm really enjoying it. I know it had some off reviews at launch but I played the demo and loved it, and now I'm enjoying the full game just as much.

 

[Wibblewozzer]

Decided to update my Blitz. I don't like doing this but I'm so finnicky about what I play. Here's what my April to June list now looks like.

1. Anno Mutationem (PC)
2. The Stanley Parable Ultra Deluxe (PC)
3. Loop Hero (PC)
4. The World Ends With You - Final Mix (Switch)
5. Atelier Ryza (PC)

Lost Judgement has slipped off the list as I want to leave a bit more time between playing the first game and it. I also have Yakuza 0-6 to play on Steam and I know they're very similar. So I think Lost Judgement and/or one of the Yakuza games will be on my next Blitz from July onwards, along with a whole bunch of Steam Deck games.

Playing Anno: Mutationem now and I'm really enjoying it. I know it had some off reviews at launch but I played the demo and loved it, and now I'm enjoying the full game just as much.

You're probably already aware but the events in the Judgment and Yakuza games are shared as they fit in the same timeline. Lost Judgment would give you some pretty big spoilers for the world of the Yakuza series. It's like Judgment where it doesn't really talk specific characters or cameos but you get an idea of events based off of the world.

Also, good luck with Loop Hero. Unless they patched it, I thought the loop (heh) was fun but it became really grindy and it felt like I really needed one of a few specific builds to take down a boss so it got a little frustrating when a run was pretty clear it'd not be successful early on.

 

[gabbo]

Metro Exodus down
I'm really glad the games only stick tangentially to the novels, because I was definitely more invested in Artyom - The Hero vs Artyom Cancer Pervert.
Got the sad/bad ending, so I'll likely go through it again to try and get the good one. Fuck all the insects on this game, especially those spiders, 4A games do too good a job with them..

Aside from a literal game breaking bug in the desert lighthouse, nary a problem and looked great. Highly recommend, as I do the other two games as well.

 

[C-Dub]

ANNO: Mutationem down. I reviewed it here.

In short there was a lot of squandered potential with this game. With better writing and more meaty combat, I feel like the game could be lifted from medicore, which is what it is, to downright excellent. And there are threads of greatness throughout the game as it is, so I think the story of this game is a "what could've been", which is a shame.

Still, I hope the developer continues to make games in this style because they legitimately have a diamond in the rough here. I've not seen a game that blends 2D pixel art anime and 3D rich and detailed environments so well before, and if they really work on putting some meat on the bones of their gameplay and showing more confidence in their plot and worldbuilding they could be onto a winner.

Next up for me is The Stanley Parable Ultra Deluxe and Atelier Ryza. I bought both of them last week so I'm keen to get some good time in both of them before my refund window closes.

 

[Futaleufu]

142 hours into the Witcher 3 so far. I don't think I'll play Risen 3 this season, maybe next.

 

[Parsnip]

I'm probably going to swap out FFX out at some point. I'm currently sinking so much time into Elden Ring that I don't think I have the energy to tackle a 40-50 hour jrpg. Even if it has turbo speed options.

 

[Derrick01]

I got a new PC (again) so I'm going to change one of my games out to MHW which was on my original list. Hopefully this time I can go through it.

 

[Kvik]

Thinking of joining the blitz again for the next season, since I've been keeping a good track record of completing my games in the past 3 months. At least it would be good for me to write down my thoughts on the games I've played in a longer form. I haven't been doing that lately.

 

[Wibblewozzer]

I started XIV and that's eaten up a lot of my gaming time and I fear for the next Blitz.

 

[Deku]

Time consuming games aren't good for blitz

Anyway, I finished all my five games for the current blitz.

 

[Futaleufu]

After 208 hours I completed The Witcher 3, both DLCs and every quest available. The most polished eastern european RPG I've played but also the easiest. Good story and gameplay but bad progression: once I reached level 20 I was overleveled for most of the game. Somehow I got the hardest ending to achieve. Very recommended if you need a time sinker.

I doubt I'll be able to play Risen 3 this season so I'll switch it for something completely different: DreadOut

 

[Deku]

I doubt I'll be able to play Risen 3 this season so I'll switch it for something completely different: DreadOut

I tried Dreadout a few years ago. But I was too scared to play it...

 

[Futaleufu]

I tried Dreadout a few years ago. But I was too scared to play it...

The most scary thing about the game is how kusoge it is.

Battlefield 1 had a decent campaign, better than 4, but shorter. That's 3 out of 5.

 

[Futaleufu]

Don't play DreadOut. 4/5.

 

[Deku]

Don't play DreadOut. 4/5.

Did you pee on your pants?

 

[Ascheroth]

After some deliberation I think I'm dropping Virgo Vs the Zodiac.
Considering I can't even stick with it on the Deck, I might as well just cut my losses. I don't think it's bad, but at least to me it's too exhausting. Just when I got comfortable with the equipment/skill/combat stuff with 1 character, the game throws 2 party members at you and that just increases the build variety/complexity and completely changes the combat flow.
It's not exactly getting harder, but I have this constant feeling that I have to actively work to get enjoyment out of the game instead of the game inviting me in to enjoy it, if that makes some sort of sense? And no aspect of the game has hooked me enough at this point to justify the amount of work I feel I have to put into it.
I'll replace it with ENIGMA:

 

[Futaleufu]

Realms of the Haunting makes it 5/5 for this season.

Pretty good mix of FPS and adventure game and some decently produced mid 90s FMVs to tell the story. The shooting part is kind on the easy side, the adventure part has some tricky puzzles in the later chapters with some confusing mazes.. Recommended if you want to try a game thats neither modern nor a boomer shooter.

 

[Knurek]

I don't think I'll manage to finish Muramasa this month, I mean, I'm only 46 hours in...
Might have to settle for a 4/5 Blitz

 

[Ascheroth]

And that wraps up ENIGMA:!
Deck continues to be a VN decimator.
I liked that a lot. Good length and pacing, pretty art, good music and an interesting story with lots of emotion. Some heartwarming, some bittersweet, some completely messed up.

That leaves only Scarlet Nexus. Although technically I've already finished it once and am on the 2nd playthrough. Which has some different scenes, but the overall story stays the same so I'm not super motivated, especially since I haven't gotten all the fun powers back yet, so combat also isn't particularly interesting at the moment.
Not sure yet if I should just count it as done at this point or try to finish the 2nd playthrough as well.

 

[Parsnip]

I still haven't started a second game from this blitz.

 

[Futaleufu]

I still haven't started a second game from this blitz.

There are lots of games 5 hours or less, any hidden object game will do.

 

[kio]

Finish my last 2 games of the current blitz:
Iconoclasts - A very pretty game with interesting characters and lore but also a very shallow one in terms of gameplay. It focus too much on combat and (very) light metroidvania mechanics when it should be a much more linear platformer with focus on puzzles and story.
Timelie - A short puzzle game with time manipulation mechanics. What's there is very good but it's only 3h-4h long.

 

[Parsnip]

There are lots of games 5 hours or less, any hidden object game will do.

I'm probably going to swap some of the current ones out for sure, but probably not into hidden object games.

 

[Derrick01]

I finished Horizon Forbidden West the other day. I was really surprised at how bad I thought the game was and a downgrade over the original despite arguably having more of everything. It's a great example of how more isn't always better and can hurt the core of the game. They inundate you with so many weapons and weapons types, armor types with a bunch of different sub skills, ammo types, enemy types each with a multitude of breakable pieces to target on top of strengths and weaknesses, and traps to manage. The whole thing becomes overwhelming and much more of a chore than 1's combat. Also because of the huge variety of enemy types and size of the battles you get into it's extremely easy to lose track of one mid fight and get knocked down. In fact just about any hit in the game knocks aloy down which makes it even more frustrating to fight. It also lacks a lot of polish that you'd normally expect a big Sony game to have. At times I would say it's even jankier than modern assassin's creed particularly if climbing is involved at all. The story is a catastrophic failure too that I can't really go into detail without spoiling huge parts of the game. Trust me when I say it gets embarrassing at times.

So yeah this is one of the more disappointing sequels in recent years that I can think of (still not as bad as dying light 2 was though. This year has not been kind to sequels.)

I also finished MHW and have moved on to Iceborne. The game really punishes you for playing solo at this point, enemies are insanely tanky. I'll keep going but my progress has slowed a lot.

 

[Wibblewozzer]

I just remembered I never updated that I finished my fifth game, 428: Shibuya Scramble. Pretty good with a fun story and writing but the text speed and just method of displaying the text weren't to my liking. Oh, and most everything beyond the true ending and one of the bonus stories at the end was kind of tedious and not a great read despite taking like five more hours to complete. There was some good stuff in there but I would have likely enjoyed it more in the end if I didn't read past the true ending.

Nobody else has chipped in again so we're looking at a $23.68 prize pool when this wraps up in a couple weeks but also the Steam sale should be going on so that prize money should afford a bit more. Hopefully everyone is wrapping up their games and for those of you that plan ahead it might be time to start considering what could go into the next Blitz.

 

[Parsnip]

I have finally finished Elden Ring, we'll see how many games I can blitz still of the 4 I have remaining. Definitely going to change that FFX out though.
I have some options in mind, but not sure yet. Will probably take another look tomorrow.

 

[Parsnip]

Did my swaps. Kept Paradise Killer, swapped out FFX, Infinifactory and Frozen Synapse, swapped in Quantum Break, A Plague Tale: Innocence and Pikuniku.

 

[Parsnip]

Started Quantum Break. Kind of digging it so far. Playing on easy was definitely the correct choice.

 

[Valdien]

All right, I'm gonna join the Blitz with only 10 days left.

1) - Folklore - Finished Chapter 3 with Ellen last night.
2) - Valkyria Chronicles 4 - Currently on Chapter 15.
3) - Neon White - Starting Episode 3 today.
4) - TMNT Shredder's Revenge
5) - Mana Khemia 1 - started this two days ago and will obviously end up on the next Blitz at this stage, lol.

 

[Wibblewozzer]

All right, I'm gonna join the Blitz with only 10 days left.

1) - Folklore - Finished Chapter 3 with Ellen last night.
2) - Valkyria Chronicles 4 - Currently on Chapter 15.
3) - Neon White - Starting Episode 3 today.
4) - TMNT Shredder's Revenge
5) - Mana Khemia 1 - started this two days ago and will obviously end up on the next Blitz at this stage, lol.

Yeah, at this point I'm just starting to put together my plan for next Blitz. I'm getting started in a few games but purposely going to hold off getting deeper into later (except one is really long so I might dive in a lot more before July hits).

But it looks like many people will be pushing stuff until the next Blitz based on the amount completed this time.

 

[Parsnip]

I'll probably move whatever I have left of this one to the next at the end of the month, assuming I don't manage to finish them all.
Not entirely sure what else to pick though. Maybe I'll play Horizon Zero Dawn now that I have a better GPU. Maybe Control.

 

[C-Dub]

I changed my Blitz towards the end due to the prompt arrival of my Steam Deck and the fact that I can't settle on a game.

I started playing Root Film on my PS5, so I've added that to the list. I also had Mass Effect 3 to play as part of the Legendary Edition (played 1 & 2 years ago, but never got around to 3 - finally got around to playing it after replaying the first two).

And anyway, I've now finished ME3. Root Film will be finished soon. I've also put AI: The Somnium Files - nirvanA Initiative on my list, but I don't think I'll finish that in time for the next Blitz so it may carry over.

 

[Parsnip]

Finished Quantum Break. It's alright.
2/5 games done. Cutting it close.

 

[Ascheroth]

Been cutting it pretty close since I decided to go through with the second playthrough of Scarlet Nexus after all, but I'm glad I did.
After you get past the initial bump, it's very good again. Seeing the events, that were just briefly mentioned on the other route, play out is good, there were even some surprises and unique boss fights and all of the character episodes are different, so you see a different side of the side characters (and there are a lot of them ). Good stuff.
Would buy a sequel.

With that I have finished this Blitz

Not sure yet what I'll be doing the next once. Since I've just bought lots of stuff in the seal and intend to buy more stuff soon (Sunbreak, Digimon Survive) I imagine I'll be pretty busy with mainly that, so I'll have to look for some small-ish stuff to fit inbetween.

 

[Knurek]

Another 5/5 Blitz for me
Game 25: Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy - started on 30.03.2022, finished on 11.04.2022 (17:33) - 4/5
Game 28: Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales - started on 11.04.2022, finished on 18.04.2022 (11:50) - 4/5
Game 32: Yakuza Kiwami - started on 19.04.2022, finished on 07.05.2022 (32:26) - 4/5
Game 35: Monster Boy and The Cursed Kingdom - started on 07.05.2022, finished on 08.06.2022 (16:42) - 4/5
Game 37: Full Metal Daemon Muramasa - started on 17.03.2022, finished on 25.06.2022 (79:07) - 5/5

 

[Wibblewozzer]

Been cutting it pretty close since I decided to go through with the second playthrough of Scarlet Nexus after all, but I'm glad I did.
After you get past the initial bump, it's very good again. Seeing the events, that were just briefly mentioned on the other route, play out is good, there were even some surprises and unique boss fights and all of the character episodes are different, so you see a different side of the side characters (and there are a lot of them ). Good stuff.
Would buy a sequel.

With that I have finished this Blitz

Not sure yet what I'll be doing the next once. Since I've just bought lots of stuff in the seal and intend to buy more stuff soon (Sunbreak, Digimon Survive) I imagine I'll be pretty busy with mainly that, so I'll have to look for some small-ish stuff to fit inbetween.

I have Scarlet Nexus installed but know practically zero about it. Are you really intended to play it twice to get the full ending (Nier style) or is it more of a bonus optional thing that you do only if you really liked it the first time through? Sounds like it could be fairly substantial from how you talk about it.

 

[Ascheroth]

I have Scarlet Nexus installed but know practically zero about it. Are you really intended to play it twice to get the full ending (Nier style) or is it more of a bonus optional thing that you do only if you really liked it the first time through? Sounds like it could be fairly substantial from how you talk about it.

No, the actual story ending is the same for both routes. They start off essentially the same with some perspective differences, then branch off into separate things (still the same story but focused on different aspects of it and you have different NPC companions) and then about two thirds? into the game they connect again and the rest of the story is essentially the same outside of some perspective changes in a few events.

What is however completely different for both routes are the side-character events. So the game has a so-called "standby phase" after (almost) every phase (=chapter), where you can hang out with the side-characters to get to know them better and power them up. All of these events are completely different in both routes and there are a lot of them.

In terms of story it's pretty much enough to play through it once. The unique story content per route is pretty good but not really mandatory. If you like the characters though, there's a lot of meat in the second playthrough due to the above mentioned unique character episodes.
According to the Steam achievements not many people are that thorough though, all the "see all character episodes in both routes" achievements are around 5%

 

[ganmo]

Finished Quantum Break. It's alright.
2/5 games done. Cutting it close.

was it good? I'm pondering whether I should play it or not

 

[Wibblewozzer]

was it good? I'm pondering whether I should play it or not

I think Remedy is really hit or miss but I thought Quantum Break was pretty good. I actually was really into it by the end and I'm still grumpy we never got a sequel.

 

[Parsnip]

was it good? I'm pondering whether I should play it or not

It's alright.
But I'm always in for stupid time travel shenanigans, so it immediately has a leg up over everything else. But I definitely don't plan to go through it again to check how the other choices affect the story, and I definitely made the correct choice to play on easy.

 

[Knurek]

It's alright.
But I'm always in for stupid time travel shenanigans, so it immediately has a leg up over everything else. But I definitely don't plan to go through it again to check how the other choices affect the story, and I definitely made the correct choice to play on easy.

Also that realtime time lapse scene is just so cool, even by today's standards.

 

[Parsnip]

Also that realtime time lapse scene is just so cool, even by today's standards.

Yeah, it has a lot of cool stuff in there including that one.

 

[Valdien]

Finished TMNT. Well, the first playthrough anyway , but I can at least knock it off the blitz list.

Played as April and personally find her to be the best character in the game so far. Really fun to play as since she's the fastest and all her moves combo into each other very smoothly, particularly her slide + launcher attack. She's also good at quickly filling up the super meter. I've managed to juggle dead enemies across multiple screen transitions quite easily with her.

 

[Wibblewozzer]

By the way, just calling out there's around 36 hours until the very end and I do the raffle drawing so make sure you update your progress on the tracker!

As per usual I'll put up the new thread around the same time, too. If you wish to talk about your next Blitz picks prior to that you can do so here, too.

The winner is looking to get around $23 in prize money unless there are any last minute chip-ins to the prize pot. But that should get something good since the Steam sale is going on.

 

[Parsnip]

I would chip in but alas, I need to make about €20 last for the next 2 weeks or so.


I've almost finished Plague Tale, or so I assume. I haven't actually looked at how many chapters I have left. I like it but there's also definitely room left to improve on the sequel.
So I'll probably get 3/5 games done this blitz. Truly shameful.

 

[Parsnip]

And Plague Tale is done.
It's pretty good but feels like its budget shows in some places. Checked out the trailers for next one and it seems like the mechanics are greatly expanded as well the tools at your disposal. Looking forward to it, and I hope that the increased scope isn't their downfall.

 

[Wibblewozzer]

New thread will go up in about 12 hours and the raffle winner around the same time but I did put up a new spreadsheet for anyone that wants to jump into it early. It's the second tab at the normal spot and I'll move it over into the first slot once everything is updated.

 

[Parsnip]

I'll move the two I didn't finish forwards to the next one, some ideas about what else but not sure yet. Going to take a closer look once I'm home.

 

[Wibblewozzer]

All right, time to wrap up this Blitz and the new thread will be up shortly. But of course more importantly we need to have a winner!

Deku! Congrats on winning with your completion of Street Fighter V! The prize this go around is $23.68 so PM me with whatever you choose (store doesn't really matter though I'm in the US so if there's any wackiness with regions we'll sort it out).

Congrats! And now you're all ready for Street Fighter 6!