#it’s probably my favorite fromsoft game still

[dagaan]

Shiver, Way of Tomoe

[funeralcity]

gm cami :> what is yuor favorite fromsoft area and why

good morning n_n i think my #1 favourite is probably still ash lake from dark souls... i still remember getting there for the first time and being blown away, the lighting and the music are so otherworldly and seeing the vast expanse of pillar trees holding the world up is so breathtaking. i really like the world of dark souls in general, out of any of the post-kings field rpgs it feels the most mysterious and vibrant, like anywhere you could go might completely surprise you in that classic fantasy way and i think ash lake is the perfect example of that... i feel like more recent games have kind of fallen into trying to be "what people expect from dark souls" or "what dark fantasy is Supposed to look like" and i love dark souls for just being itself

[pyro-madder]

Coucou! So for the ask game :

1.Favorite boss fight? 28.Least favorite boss fight?

4.Favorite weapon? 19.Favorite Old Hunter?

24.What do you think of Cainhurst?

25.Upper Cathedral Ward Y/N (je déteste cet endroit du démon 💀 j'ai legit perdu toute ma lucidité la première fois. 20-30 points!!!)

39.Hot takes on any Bloodborne lore?

Coucouuu :} let's get to it... it got long because I can't help but ramble, so I put it under a readmore :')

1. Favorite boss fight ? Micolaaash i am a bad no good fromsofter and prefer gimmick bosses over hit-and-roll-and-pray LOL

But really, between the chase, the insane OST (it's my favorite in the game, really), and his voicelines over it all... it's such An Atmosphere !! The downside is that once you've figured a) which path to follow and b) that he won't Call Beyond you if you stay close to him, it becomes terribly short and easy 😔 this said I'm obligated to say that I did not go in fully blind, so I understand those who struggled, and remember witnessing my brother raging as the man jumped into yet another mirror 😅

Special mention to when he starts monologuing just as you're about to pick up an item in his arena. *mashes X*

28. Least favorite boss ? Celestial Emmissaries. ON S'EMMERDE

They're not *difficult*, but they still hit hard and will get you if you're not careful. Music is nice, of course, but not particularly memorable to me. Glorified mobs... though I understand it's probably on purpose, given what lies after them. X)

4. Favorite weapon ? Tough one ! I love the concept of trick weapons as a whole, seeing the mechanisms and hearing the satisfying click when they change shape. There are several that stand out for different reasons, but no overall favorite :

Saw Spear : simple yet deadly efficient, I picked it up on my first playthrough and never put it down. But aesthetically, that's not quite it...

Threaded Cane : i'm a simple person. whip sexy. looks twice as badass when said whip is made of tiny blades chained together. extremely satisfying to hit several enemies mobbing you in one hit, and beautiful when you infuse it with an element.

Stake Driver, Whirligig Saw : i don't use them a lot (the former especially is tricky) but i adore their design and brutality. i tell you, i'm a Powder Keg at heart...

19. Favorite Old Hunter ? depends on how you define those ;

overall, if Djura counts, he wins by default of being my favorite character for many reasons : cool design, cool dialogue, cool weapons, very reasonable motives. i love how collected he is in all his interactions, he's seen it all and knows his stuff. also "uncommonly kind but dreadfully foolish" my kind of man fr /joke

if we're referring to hunters of Gehrman's era, then Simon. his hobo swag and needless dramatics have bewitched me body and soul. cool weapon also :)

if we're talking about summons : again Gascoigne wins by default of being my second favorite character (for less noble and nuanced reasons than Djura - he's just hot and badass). Closely followed by Damian for saving my ass against Ebrietas and the myriad of headcanons his title and gear alone enable.

24. What do you think of Cainhurst ? Welcome to the house of fun /sarcasm

The scenery's cool, the level and boss are... bearable once you've grown acquainted with them, but I don't like the Vilebloods (I say this light-heartedly), so meh tier overall. Stylish clothes and weapons though. 👀

25. Upper Cathedral Ward Y/N ? Yeah no. Pain 🤝

I also lost quite the insight here on my first run, and those damned buffed werewolves... for a boring boss and then a horribly hard one, for a chalice and a revival spot for a character i don't particularly want to do anything with...

The atmosphere is great tho. Loved the werewolves crashing in and swinging on the chandelier. Also, Damian is here. 🙏

39. Any hot takes on Bloodborne lore ? I'm just gonna repaste my "older sister rant" (which i had to dig up my archive thanks to tungle's super functional search function, and has since been pacified by Katy's theory that the girl in question was dead before the game started, thank you again for putting my soul to rest)

vraiment les premiers jours dans leur tag c'était je deviene fol.exe

[samusique-concrete]

some thoughts on dark souls 3

i've been playing dark souls 3 for the first time these last couple of days and it's quickly become one of my favorite games visually, ever. which is a weird thing for me to say because i could also name among those games a game like yoshi's island, whose artstyle i love and appreciate, but that is so ingrained in my brain that i don't think about it that often, since i grew up with it (and also to be fair i kinda fell of from new-at-the-time games after the 360/PS3 era, so i haven't had that many experiences with AAA games after that). with ds3 instead every new area has me taking screenshots of many a nook and cranny. it's stunningly gorgeous: every pathway and courtyard and tunnel has been art directed to heck, with lighting and terrain and colour and framing playing such huge parts. i've played basically all there is to play in elden ring already and that game also has its own moments of breathtaking beauty, but ds3's advantage is that it's smaller, tighter, and the designers could treat it almost as a diorama in which every single step the player would take would be one where the environment around them has been handcrafted in great detail, which obviously would have been impossible for a game of elden ring's scale. the game's still big though, but in comparison to what came after it, and frankly also what came before with dark souls 1, it inevitably feels like a condensed version of the fromsoft fantasy soulslike, like a greatest hits even. i also think it's way easier, but in a complimentary way. obviously now i know what i'm doing in a soulslike, as opposed to when i first picked up ds1, but i feel like the devs took this into account when making it. players most likely came to dark souls 3 after having familiarized themselves with 1 and 2, and a bevy of new players probably lept right over to ds3 after the franchise had established itself with its previous entries, so when you play the game with a decent build it feels almost like a rollercoaster or a victory lap, with the emphasis being placed on making sure the player gets to experienced the whole game and have a reasonably good time enjoying themselves while being wowed at every turn. it's almost as if the team had already had their fill of punishing players brutally, so they made this game with a veneer of that but this time helping the player along, as if they recognized that it is the player the one on the driver's seat as opposed to the enemies of the world they're exploring. it's not like the player is a badass terminator-like being that can demolish their adversaries from the start, like in games such as bayonetta or god hand, but more like you're being put on a costume by the devs and they're pushing you along the way in this play that they've put on for you to wave your sword at things. oppositely, the feeling in ds1 was that there was no play but rather a very real and very cruel world and there was no one around to help you or, at least, no guiding hand. this new intention also may or may not have had something to do with ds2 not being as well received as ds1 and the team, with miyazaki now at the helm again, wanting to show the fans 'what's what', so to speak. bonfires are more frequent, upgrade item drops are far more generous, and hollowing is an entirely optional thing now, which, honestly, thank god for that. the embers as a mechaninc are a friendlier alternative to the more obtuse humanity system from before, and you can get a lot of embers really easily. this ends up making ds3 feel like a smoother, more seamless experience for the player in terms of what they want and how they can achieve it. ds1 instead basks in its friction, and has a more robust identity because of it. i'm not saying one is better than the other however. i still think that dark souls 1 is the far more interesting game out of all of the fromsoft soulslikes, and i'll always prefer something interesting over something that's just nice, but man, it is nice to have this other, more laid-back option available for when you just want to cruise and see the sights.

anyway; i'm having fun, i love the game, and here i wil post some screenshots of places that caught my eye. might update later with more as i keep playing.

(this is where i started having my HUD show up on auto so that i could enjoy the scenery more)

[sapphic-scylla]

I’ve done a lot of Soulsbornekiro posts but I don’t think I’ve ever written a Game ranking. So here goes. Reminder that this is opinion based on the thousands of hours I’ve sunk into these games. Enjoy!

All Souls Games Ranked from Best to Worst

Dark Souls 3- This is a no brainer for me. EVERYTHING I love about the Souls games were on full display in DS3. The scale of the fights, the lore, the weapons, the environments, the aesthetic. DS3 will always win for me in every regard.

Sekiro- A spin-off, sure, but such a creative presence in FromSoft’s anthology. The combat was unique while still having the classic Souls flair. It also forced me to learn its combat system and when you learn it, it’s such a satisfying victory. My only gripes were that it didn’t have DLC and that it wasn’t a longer game.

Dark Souls 1- Where it all started for me. Looking back on it, it’s probably the easiest on this list for me, but it’s still a very solid entry. I love the nostalgia it brings me as well as it setting the pace for a lot of lore and moments we see in future games. I wish it had gotten a little harder in the remastered version, but I can’t complain past that.

Elden Ring- A lot of my moots are probably surprised to see this down this low. Mommy Malenia is a shining star and definitely tops a list of my favorite souls bosses, but looking at the rest of the game, it fells short in some respects. A lot of the bosses are either way too easy or brutally difficult and not always for the best reasons. The lore and boss scale is great, but a lot of solid play styles get drowned out by the rising difficulty and it becomes a cheesefest fairly easily. Also, I’m annoyed by a lot more bosses in Elden Ring than most of the games on this list and it’s not because they are difficult.

Bloodborne- This is where I will lose A LOT of people. People rank this at the VERY top of their lists for a lot of reasons and are probably gonna be completely lost as to why this is down this far. Don’t get me wrong. The lore is great, the environment is good, Lady Maria is perfect, the weapons are fantastic, and people know I love cosmic and eldritch horror stuff, so you would think I’d love this game. But for me, what really shafts this game is the balance, the combat, and the walk back. One of the first weapons you get practically makes every other weapon in this game meaningless if you let it, my favorite weapons come at the END of the game (#rakuyobitchfolyfe), the combat and dodge system bones me about as much as it helps, and the fact that blood vials are a consumable? Not my favorite design choice. I don’t like having to refarm my healing options after having to trek through Cainhurst or the Fishing Hamlet and if I’m slamming my head against the Orphan of Kos, it dampens the experience to have to go back and refarm blood vials because I ran out. There were a lot of things that could have been executed better and it probably wouldn’t have been as bad if these issues weren’t so blatant.

Dark Souls 2- It’s the design choices. I don’t hate DS2 as much as a lot of people, but I’ll admit the game did not come off good to me when I first played it. The hollowing system actively frustrates me to this day, the quantity over quality bosses leaves a lot of nebulous memories, the open-ish world hurts me a lot more than it helps, and the weapons were really meh compared to the rest of the list. It’s definitely not as bad as people say, but there were some questionable choices here.

Demon Souls- The walkback hurts in this game. The system is great, but again consumable healing is brutal. It also is a lot of punishment unless you know the gimmicks that each boss has and once you know them, it kinda waters down the experience in an unsatisfying way. At least in DS2, you have Estus and can always have a healing option, but Demon Souls’ LOOOONG walk back to boss rooms and exhausting areas really wore me out of love for this game quickly.

[self-loving-vampire]

I feel like the people who think of The West™ as a hegemonic artistic entity largely separate from Japan and Japanese aesthetics are going to have a rude awakening when they look up the kind of artists Tetsuo Hara, Shigeru Mizuki and Ryoichi Ikegami were inspired by.

I admit I'm not super familiar with the inspirations of these specific people myself but I agree with you based on what I do know about my special interests.

Feels like more than 90% of Japanese RPG developers in the 80s and 90s were obsessed with Ultima and especially Wizardry, to such a degree where you can easily spot this if you have played either or both of those games before. There is a good chance your favorite Japanese RPG can trace its lineage to one of those two games.

This is also true of King's Field (and by extension Dark Souls and later FromSoft games), though that also has other influences. Like D&D and Berserk.

What is more curious is that this level of influence slowed down in the 90s. Japanese game devs are making clones of the early Wizardry games to this day but I notice that more recent yet still highly-influential western RPGs like Fallout, Deus Ex, and etc. have not inspired the same amount of games over there the way they have in the rest of the world.

Even the last mainline Wizardry games (such as 7 and 8) don't seem to have the same level of influence as the earlier games did over there even though I'm sure they were played.

Anyway, play Wizardry I-II-III: Legacy of Llylgamyn for the SNES (there's a translation out there) and you can probably notice this too. Those early Wizardry games were extremely influential.

[changethecircumstances]

have been bashing my head against the Abyss Watchers for months (technically years really; i've picked ds3 up and down constantly over the years now) and tonight i finally beat them! AND I WENT TO BE BIG SKELLY AND CRYSTAL BITCH IN THE SAME NIGHT

so i'm pretty proud of myself. i know ds3 is often times seen as the golden child but it's really my least favorite fromsoft game. that said i still enjoy aspects of it and hope to finish it one day though i probably won't 100% it like Bloodborne and Elden Ring

[pandaemoanium]

8, 9, 17, 21, 26, 38 & 40 for the video gaymer ask thingy

8. Most anticipated upcoming game? am i allowed to say Alan Wake 2 if it already came out a couple days ago but i havent been able to buy it yet

9. Most hours you’ve put into a single game? easily FF14 with uhhhhh..... 5380 hours?????? i um....yeah

17. Do you play mobile games? not really, still havent found an interesting mobile game that wasnt some boring predatory gacha bs. except maybe Fantasian for the ios, but i never finished it :/

21. A game you thought you wouldn’t like, but ended up loving? Hades! im not usually into roguelikes but Hades really surprised me with its great characters and writing (and a banger ost!)

26. Least favorite environmental hazard (e.g. poison swamp, fire/lava, etc.) probably fire/lava, thankfully i havent seen many poison swamps outside of fromsoft games lmao

38. An unpopular gaming opinion you have. Parasite Eve 2 is super good actually and yall are just wrong :( also this is more aimed at furries i guess but Echo Project is mid sorry

40. Best game cover art. Kingdom Hearts definitely, but i'll also give a shoutout to Fatal Frame 3 (especially the PAL version bc we have a cooler title font uwu (though i still prefer Fatal Frame as a name lol)) smth about the cover has made it stick to my brain ever since i first saw it in the late 2000s

send me a number!

[obsidiangx]

Retrospective of Armored Core's first generation of games: AC1, Project Phantasma, and Master of the Arena.

Armored Core is an exceptional game. While the ending is a bit confusing, it demonstrates its dystopia expertly, using its limitations to craft a unique and exciting story. The other two are also very fun, but are more of a straightforward 'kill your nemesis' story. MotA does a little more, but it still feels way more conventional, and doesn't have time for AC1's terrifying escalation.

That said, I think Master of the Arena is my favorite to play. Story aside, its focus on the arena makes the economy extremely skewed in my favor. I had a lot of fun doing silly shit with no consequences, and while I appreciate FromSoft's constant attempts to fine tune the difficulty in their games, I really enjoy when it ends up being kind of a joke to beat.

I started the series in a cool heavyweight spider mech, pouring expensive machine gun fire into everything I saw. However, after getting a little more used to the controls, I found even more enjoyment in a nice middleweight bipedal build. The Karasawa will never be my thing probably, but Moonlight is for life.

These games so far nail their RPG mechanics perfectly. It's really fun to fit together a collection of tools that are versatile, sustainable, fun to use, and within the weight limit. Even more so in MotA, where money isn't really an object.

I would be lying if I said I wasn't expecting to find a more modern Armored Core experience that I prefer over these. A larger scope and slightly less old game jank will do the series good, I think. But I don't know if they'll ever match the minimalist storytelling of AC1.

That said, hopefully the Arena will stay full of freaks forever, to keep at least a little bit of that feeling alive. I'll always be your fan, No Problem.

[katyspersonal]

Hey for the fandom ask let’s change a little i’m curious to know what you think of Deltarune characters (& Undertale if no one else ask)

Oh, alright! Yeah, I do not address UTDR all that often despite avidly awaiting Deltarune's completion... This happens when I am into a thing but choose to not interact with the fandom! I will separate the games because even though UT and DR share some characters, even they are slightly differently portrayed.

(Asks from this ( x ) meme)

DELTARUNE:

❤Favorite character

This motherfucker is some of the most intimate and personal a character ever got to be for me:

I was actually so surprised by Literally Everything about him that I needed several days to process his EXISTENCE xD I absolutely love every single line he makes, and I feel strange deep relation to him (not kinnie one, but it feels spiritual). We are just on the same wavelength about being huge l00sers, being cringe but with a unique charisma, having intense mood swings, using weird humour and, of course, the whole 'perceiving the world as a simulation and going insane because of it'... I wish there was a legit term for 'the character I do not kin yet relate to and feel emotions of like they were my own'. I also once had a weird dream about him fusing with me into one entity to get to be 'real' using my human soul, and trust me, that was a whole TRIP for a considerable time. :')

👿Least favorite character

I will have to say Jevil, but this isn't entirely fair... Like I said, I am not ABLE to dislike a fictional character, ESPECIALLY by Toby, but with Jevil it is a love/hate relationship, so he is the only one who can even approach ;-; He is same category as Patches Fromsoft: the 'You have a lot to love about you, but... WHY.' kind of character. xD

💐Comfort character

Deltarune version of Asgore is THE definition of the soft man. Somewhat lingers with me that in UT timeline he murdered children, but... this just doesn't get to me. After all, most people are capable of terrible atrocities, it is only a matter of whether they meet the conditions that bring it up in them or not. Hehehe...

😍Character you have the biggest crush on

Surprisingly, not Spamton! We are only [[Serious Business Offer]], my [[babygirl]]! Instead, I fucking HAD to have a crush on the hypocritical weather wane bitch ass motherfucker idiot Rouxls Kaard! x_x I still can't justify it to this fucking day. I tend to only like characters that are smart and complex, but I guess his Style TM and charisma alone are irresistible.

🤝Character you relate to the most

You probably won't believe me, but... Noelle? Yeah, I know, this is very hard to communicate because she is sweet and soft but I am rude and abrasive, to say the least. Nonetheless, I am as far as kinning this character. There is a side of me that is alas not shown very often, however, close friends know of it. Christmas is my favourite holiday, I am very smart and talented but let people use me, I ask too many questions, I have some kindness to me, I am anxious and get startled easily, I am actually easy to push around the closer you are... Heck, sometimes I switch full mode into speaking like her, feeling like her and envisioning myself as her in my mind. x_x

It is a side of me that no longer shows often, nonetheless, it is still alive, like a soft core under a very thick skin. I also started to SERIOUSLY relate to her history after learning of the Snow Grave route.

🔥Character you think is overrated

I ammmm gonna say, Spamton NEO version! When this character became really popular, it felt as though everyone only cared about his NEO form! Yeah, they are the same character, actually, but it is more about the delivery! If you don't love Spamton at his 'silly super short failing salesman that lives in the trashcan', you don't deserve him at his 'tall cool robot' form!!!!1! /lh

🧨Character you love to hate

Rouxls Kaard again! I know, it is the only DR character that gave me even a semblance of attraction, but I will always bully him for the coward and hypocrite siding with the winning side that he is XD

🙈Character you always forget exists

That one red blob with a face that characters always act around as if that's their friend and someone famous. See, I do not even remember their name! This is how much I forget about them!

🐰Favorite non-human character

Deltarune has only one human character to begin with, so I will use this field as 'favorite unexplored character' instead. Well, I was actually rather fond of Diamond King in my time! Gave him hella headcanons and all that!

❤️‍🩹Character who deserved better

ALL THE KINGS!!!!!!!! Diamond, Heart and Club Kings - because they were just a haha funny cameo with only Diamond King having at least SOME lines. Spade King was handled well enough in the canon, but it was the fandom that gave him pretty bad treatment - from neglecting the nuance of his character to the outright ableism (I am serious). But even fandom aside, Spade King deserved better than having endured an obvious divorce from a rather shallow wife, being abandoned by his Knight and living in the bitterness about how Lightners treated the Darkners. No shit he became an unlikeable person. Like... can anyone treat him nicely?

UNDERTALE:

❤Favorite character

I love them all, but THE favorite got to be Undyne!

She is already the badass fish girlfriend in the normal timeline, however, her best traits sure get to shine in Merciless Route. Her speech about humans and monsters hearts beating as one just to continue existing absolutely won me over. The coolest character, hands down.

👿Least favorite character

No such thing, sorry! The closest I can think of is Muffet because unlike other bosses, she is Just There and is doing the smug anime girl moves, but she is still cute! Also I still like spiders ;-;

💐Comfort character

W. D. Gaster + Whatever fandom made out of W. D. Gaster (that mostly comes from interpreting Mystery Man sprite as him). But honestly, this character makes me happy! A mad scientist that accidentally cancelled his own existence and transcended beyond his own plane.

😍Character you have the biggest crush on

Stupid motherfucking Mettaton and his pretentious, full of self personality -_- Can you tell yet that I have a type? W. D. Gaster is the close second, however.

🤝Character you relate to the most

Honestly, Papyrus. Almost a kinnie. Again, something hard to explain, because you can see my personality doesn't match, but it is just... the whole 'looser that really wants approval but is THE manifestation of everything that won't make anyone except a few people appreciate him'. He is also silly, that I can relate to. I will turn goddamn full TWENTY SIX in April, but I am still just really silly and naive @_@

🔥Character you think is overrated

I don't know whether I want to say Sans, because he kindaaaaa deserved his popularity... I think it is more about how his potential was overrated. In every Undertale AU, he is the central figure, and like... THIS is my gripe. If you gonna alter universes, why not touch other characters?

🧨Character you love to hate

Mettaton, because he is a huge bitch, actually xd Like, yes, he is very attractive, but I also want to short his circuits and not in the way of a weird euphemism, but in a literal way :( Think of 'I want to strangle him' but in regards of a robot character. Fuck him for abandoning Napstablook and being mean to Alphys when she is clearly struggling with many issues in weird ways :( I still love him tho

🙈Character you always forget exists

Nice Cream guy! Only ever remember about him when he is brought up in his ship with Burgerpants.

🐰Favorite non-human character

Again, Undertale has like... TWO human characters, so I will reverse this point! Picking between All Two of them, I think I like Chara better than Frisk. They invoke so much sympathy, they were the only one who truly understood Asriel (by his OWN admission!), they take lacking trust and bullshit very seriously and were clearly a very strong-willed child.

❤️‍🩹Character who deserved better

The entire Dremurr family, including Chara. I mean... the whole plot sprouts from the tragedy of this family, so I guess this part is a no-brainer. Honorable mention is Alphys in the ending variant where Mettaton becomes the king, because it is heavily implied that she either committed minecraft or simply was in a terrible mental space enough to distance and disappear from society. I am thinking about that timeline every now and then. I even had a lost concept of her trying to run away from everything that fell on her and falling into rift in time, that changed her permanently. A never developed AU because people in a Discord server dissed my overly elaborate idea :(

Thank you for the ask though! I don't get to talk about UTDR side of me all that often, despite how much it means for me!

[catgirlforeskin]

hi i hope this doesnt sound like i'm stereotyping u as a transfem but um. which souls game should I play first? I was looking at bloodborne but i dont have a console so. one i could play on pc please :'))

Sekiro, play it with mods to be a Bloodborne or dark souls girl instead though (if you wanna be a girl) since it doesn’t let you customize by default, it’s my favorite game period and the best soulslike with no competition imo. The Surge 2 is my second favorite soulslike, though it’s not made by fromsoft

The first Dark Souls is probably worth playing just as a like, piece of gaming history, and it still holds a soft spot in my heart, but sekiro and the surge 2 really elevate the genre with new mechanics in ways that make it hard to go back to the old basic style, for me personally.

[chronicas]

Okay, FINALLY getting around to the games played 2022 top ten ranking!!

10. Hollow Knight

VERY fun although I unfortunately didn’t spend much time on it. It definitely presents a pretty significant learning curve because it’s not very much like many other games I’ve played. I hope to revisit it soon!

9. Astro’s Playroom

This cute little platformer comes with the PS5 and demonstrates many of the consoles new functionality! It’s a great way to see what the console is capable of and is also just VERY cute and enjoyable!! Definitely don’t skip this game if you get the chance to play it!

8. Pokémon White

The second oldest game I played this year and also the first non-Pokémon GO Pokémon game I’ve played. Was a lot more simple than I thought it’d be and it’s super fun. I may not know much about Pokémon, but it was really easy to grasp. Really enjoyed it and loved it as an introduction to the franchise. I hope to play more Pokémon games in the future!

7. Bloodborne

My first Fromsoft game hopefully of many! I love the gameplay and design. It’s a really fun game for when I want a challenge! I absolutely adore the boss design in it and would love to you know.. actually beat it someday.

6. Ratchet & Clank (2016)

Despite my many criticisms for this game, it was VERY enjoyable. I still argue it doesn’t quite live up to the original, but the level design being overall the same certainly made it enjoyable! It’s definitely lower on my list than other R&C games, but again! I had a great time with it.

5. Oxenfree

I’m not usually a fan of these kind of point and click games, but the narrative of this game was so so fascinating that it’s actually one of my favorite games I played this year. Only outranked by some of my favorite games in general. I highly recommend giving this game a shot and I’m VERY much looking forward to the sequel.

4. Final Fantasy VII Remake: EPISODE INTERmission

A lot of debating back and forth if this DLC really counted as a “game played” this year, but I decided it did because of how much I enjoyed it. I definitely had my issues with it, mainly all stemming from DOC being my least favorite part of the FFVII Compilation. However with Yuffie being one of my very favorite characters, I think her getting her own dedicated DLC was well deserved! It makes me incredibly excited to use her move set more come Rebirth. While I wasn’t a fan of the narrative of this DLC, the gameplay more than made up for it!!

3. Destiny 2: The Witch Queen

I was EXTREMELY excited about this expansion and I tell you it did NOT disappoint! The story of this expansion was one of my favorites since The Taken King and is in my top five Destiny storylines. The Lucent Hive are among my favorite enemies right after my all time faves, the SIVA corrupted Iron Lords. Something I have wanted since TTK was a storyline about fighting against enemy guardians (not in the Crucible) and this is probably one of the BEST ways they could’ve done that. Oryx, Xivu Arath, and Savathûn are in my opinion the most interesting characters in Destiny, and getting to see Savathûn in action was EVERYTHING I hoped it would be. She unfortunately didn’t live up to the hype of her brother Oryx, but there’s only so much you can do to live up with that without turning into a goddamn kaiju. Still, EXCELLENT expansion and a GREAT place to start if you’re looking to get into Destiny right now!!

2. Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart

ONE OF THE GAMES OF ALL TIME!!!! Rift Apart ABSOLUTELY lived up to the hype and is in my opinion the best game for next-gen consoles to be released so far. The story is INCREDIBLY enjoyable, the new characters are WONDERFUL additions to the franchise, and the gameplay is hours and hours of pure enjoyment. It was a wonderful use of the new features of the PS5 and absolutely didn’t hold back on using the console to its full potential. If you happen to own a PS5, this game is an absolute MUST!!

1. Sonic Frontiers

SONIC FRANCHISE SAVED!!!! I had a lot of hopes riding on this game and this game blew my expectations out of the water. Ian Flynn’s writing was exceptional and truly captured everything that I love about Sonic games. The open world design was SOOOO much fun and I REALLY hope to see more of it in the future! The boss fights are probably my favorite in any Sonic game I’ve ever played. The MOVESET was SICK AS HELL, I loved the use of combo attacks in this game, not a single battle ever felt boring. The enemy design was EXTREMELY fun, every miniboss was extremely fun and creative. And SAGE?? Everything to me, I hope she appears in every single new game from here on out. The game isn’t without it’s issues, the Cyber Space levels have many of the same issues I had with the level design in Sonic Forces, but that’s pretty much my main complaint. This game makes me EXTREMELY excited about the future of Sonic games. If you haven’t played it yet… do it immediately. There is no game I’ve played in the last five years I would recommend higher than Frontiers.

[ya-ya-sestrahood]

3, 4, 17, 24, 28 and random selection uhhh 30 for video g g g ames

Hi Kat!

3. 1-3 games you’ve played in the past 12 months that you really enjoyed

Easy, Personas 3-5 just got rereleases.

Okay, fine.

Elden Ring - Maybe you've heard. It's good. Been a Fromsoft fan since Demon's Souls, but this is the only game with turtle pope.

Rogue Legacy 2 - Unbelievably addictive. The ultimate "just one more run" game. Sometimes you get a character with vertigo and have to play upside down. Nightmarish. 10/10.

Tunic - The game itself is a decent little Zelda homage, but the game beneath the game... Let's just say it inspired a lot of furious note-taking. Finally opening the mountain door has to be the gaming highlight of the year. Fez II was canceled 10 years ago. This is Fez II.

4. Do you like to get 100% achievements/trophies?

If it's a game I really like, it can be a lot of fun. Otherwise, I've learned to let go. Too many games to play! It was a lot of fun when Bobby and I would brag about our platinums to each other. Thanks, Bobby. :)

Also, there should be an independent, platform-agnostic organization like the ESRB in charge of achievements so we can all have one comprehensive list or WHAT'S EVEN THE POINT.

17. A game you didn’t finish but would like to get back to or restart someday

I keep restarting Children of Morta, thinking it's awesome, and then not finishing it. I'll finish it. It's awesome.

24. A game with a cool art style

Most recently, Pentiment. For a game where NPCs talk to you about Christianity and agriculture for 10 hours, it’s cool. There’s a slider to adjust the size of the heads.

28. Pick a series you like. What was the first game you played for it? Was it a good starting point? Would it still be a good starting point now?

It’s Persona time! Persona 3 was my first back in 2007, and it very quickly became my favorite game ever (sorry, Banjo-Kazooie). Persona 1 and 2 have their fans, but they’re different enough that they’re essentially their own series, and they didn’t grab me when I went back to try them out. 3 being the birth of the modern Persona format made it the perfect starting point. As for whether I’d recommend people start there now… probably not? The main issue is that there is no “definitive” version of Persona 3. The PSP version had a bunch of new content (female protagonist!) and improvements, but they also had to make some serious compromises to get it to run on the system. That’s the version they just re-released. I think it’s still fun as hell, but I don’t know how new players are gonna respond to having to drag a cursor around static images instead of being able to run around the city. But then wouldn’t it be harder to go back to after experiencing the free exploration of 4 and 5? I dunno, man. It’s a great game. People should play it. This answer was too long.

30. Game you think you’ll finish next?

I want to say Monster Hunter Rise, but I don’t know if you can really finish a Monster Hunter game. I’ll take a wild guess and say Hi-Fi Rush, which I have not played yet, but it’s on Game Pass and it looks cool.

Thank you Kat!

[transurfingers]

whats your favorite video game you played in 2022

Fuck that's a hard one. Hm. The thing is, these days I mostly play with friends, so I very rarely get to play a single-player game all the way through. Elden Ring's my favorite single player, probably- I'm a sucker for Fromsoft games, and Ranni did successfully steal my heart. 10/10 would slay god just to hand the throne to my wife again. Multiplayer, Phasmophobia hands down. I've played so much phasmophobia in the last few months and it still spooks me. Everyone says they're not really scared anymore until the Crawling Child starts weeping behind them.

[lordrandreaming]

73 hours, 159 level ups. I beat Elden Ring.

I bit the bullet, after fighting Dragonlord and defeating him, i then went on to first try all the final bosses of this masterpiece.

First of my Endgame tour, was Dragonlord. What a PAIN in the Ass to fight. Took me three tries. Of course, being a FromSoft game, Elden Ring's optional fights are the hardest. Malenia and Placidusax are no exeptions. But, at least, Malenia doesn't fucking teleport around. Sure, she's hard. But.. Placidusax is just terrible. One day, im going to get all the Sorceries/Incantations for the trophy, and when i do.. I'll be one overleved sorcerer. But as for Daedra, FUCK NO! He's not going to go against Placi for a VERY long time, if ever again. Hated this boss. If you do this boss, be a VERY high level. I was 152. Recommending being 160 and higher with ALOT of vigor.

Second.. Maliketh. My fucking FAVORITE fight in this whole game.. First tried. Best music, my all time favorite boss and character. He's what really got me wanting Elden Ring, so to beat him first try was.. Unbelievable to me. I thought he was an optional Endgame boss.. Like Farum Azula was optional to go to. But NOPE get FUCKED emotions. I love him so much.. Plus, I completed Gurranq's quest before doing Mali, so i got the special dialogue i wanted. :) Fav boss 10/10 will always look forward to fighting him.

Third, Gideon. I destined deathed his ass.. First try. He didn't even hit me- I sure showed him! Becoming Elden Lord and all. So sad that he chooses to fight against us as he doesn't believe a Tarnished could even be Elden Lord. Shame, he woulda been a good advisor for us.

Fourth, Godfrey. Annoying second phase, but overall a pretty fun fight. First try. Poor Serosh.. Godfrey is such a good guy though. Commending us for our strength and how a crown befits it.. Aww thanks man. Basically the first boss to be like 'WOW man. Your strong. Go for it.' Chivalry's not dead!

Fifth.. Radagon/Elden Beast. My gods.. Where do i begin? Radagon is an asskicker, that's for sure.. Poor fucking guy. First try. Kicked me and my Mimic Tear's asses like were nothing! I so wish we could do something for him, other than just killing him. I won't get into his lore and so fourth, but he was probably a pretty good guy, not motivated politically like Marika, kinda almost opposite of her. He was everything Marika didn't want to be. And i wish we could help Rennala too.. Fought the good fight, but in the end it just wasn't enough Rada 💔

Elden Beast, what a beautiful boss theme omfg.. Only had 5 flasks when i started with 12 on Radagon. Annoying because it can just go under the water.. But not as awful as Dragonlord. A good Final Boss, since its a 2-for-1 kinda deal. Drained me of all my crimson, but i still bested it.

The ending i got? I got the Duskborn Ending. And.. I got chills. I fucking love this game, and am crying. Just watching death be restored to the Land's Between.. People can finally just die again, things will never be the same though. Just Daedra, sitting on that throne, watching.. It felt profound, yet oddly comforting. I didn't get the same feeling i did after DS3, because after DS3 i felt a little... Hollow. Haha! Get it? Anyway.. I instantly hopped into NG+ as i got addicted to DS3.

With Elden Ring though, it was rather accomplishing. I think i forgot a Talisman for the legendary Talisman trophy, but seeing the Erdtree and Roundtable hold on fire.. It felt so empty. So. Entered Ng+ like a madman, and now I'm going to do it all over again! Yknow.. Except for Dragonlord (ESPECIALLY Dragonlord.), Fortissax, and Malenia. I don't even need to explain.. Lol

But then again, I ran through all DS3 bosses way after i capped NG+7. And i mean.. All of them. Even the DLC bosses. I found it fun to fight Midir in NG+7. Gael not so much, but you know :) Souls player's love doing crazy shit.

My plans are so- I either stay in NG+ as Dae, get/wait to get Age of Stars ending, or i move on and do as i did in DS3 and NG+7 the game before the DLC comes out. Or.. OR I take Tennren, my Sorcerer Build and do the Age of Order ending. THEN do the DLC with him, before diving in with Daedra. But I'll probably have Daedra go through the DLC first, because :)

The EldenSoulsBorne series is just a magnificent series, renound for it's twisting and turning lore, incredible stories to be uncovered and pondered- the punishing difficulty, staggering new player's, causing them to just drop the game, never to return. It happens with all the Souls games, if you don't know what your doing.

But these games, once you learn one, you will find it a breeze to go through all the other ones. I learned DS3 after about.. A whole three months of playing it, i think? It came out April, in 2016.. I bought it then. But took like.. A week break, because it was just so hard.

But the journey.. It was incredible. I'm so utterly blown away by all the stories Souls has to offer. All stories are beautiful, yet similar. So different, but are almost the same.. It's something I've never encountered before. EldenSoulsBorne will always habe place as #1 in my heart, because it just.. Speaks to me.

As I've said, I've completed DS3, Bloodborne, Dark Souls 1, and now Elden Ring. DS2 is on its way to being completed.. I'm a fairly decent level and don't exactly expect too much trouble with the DLC's and endgame. But man..

Elden Ring hits different. All Souls have that unique hit on you, actually.. No Souls game will punch you in the heart and dick the exact same way.. I will always cherish these games, and the impact they made on my life.

If you haven't played one of the aforementioned games, i suggest, that if you are ever so eager, to start with Dark Souls 3. It's among the easier side of Souls games, but its still plenty challenging. These games prove difficult at first, but they are oh so rewarding when you learn them.

Thanks for reading.

[sapphic-scylla]

I mean I had to do this eventually. I won’t rank all of them because there are SO many, but here is the Top 20. Enjoy!

Top 20 Best From Software Boss Fights In Order

Malenia, Blade of Miquella- She wins. I can’t help but to put her here for a myriad of reasons. Aesthetic, difficulty, arena, moveset, rewards, the practice you need? She makes me happy for reasons the rest of this community will NEVER understand.

Sister Friede & Father Ariandel- The most stressful stamina fight you will EVER do in these games. Three consecutive boss fights that were all built to test how well you can manage your own healing with different strategies tailored to each section. Friede still scares me to this day and I love her for it.

Lady Maria of the Astral Clocktower- Probably the easiest boss fight I’ll put on this list, but frankly, this fight is glorious. Truly, such an entertaining fight and yet she still keeps me on my toes.

Darkeater Midir- I still maintain this as the ONLY perfect dragon fight in all of FromSoft’s entire menagerie. No one else even holds a candle to this legend. Not Fortissax, not Kalameet, not Placidusax. Midir takes their crown without even a contest.

Knight Artorias- This man STILL kicks my ass. DS1 didn’t really age well in terms of difficulty, but Artorias still demonstrates to this day that his greatsword can find its way down my throat easier than most bosses.

Slave Knight Gael- Truly one of the more satisfying wins on this list. I always feel accomplished when I beat this man at the end of DS3 and his entire story is probably one of the better lore entries in the Souls Narrative.

Dancer of the Boreal Valley- My favorite base game boss bar none. Aesthetic and difficulty and the best outfit in the game.

Sword Saint Isshin- Truly a gorgeous fight. Scale plus difficulty AND a great ending to Sekiro.

Ornstein and Smough- No explanation needed. The original gank fight and nothing has ever come close since.

Orphan of Kos- I shouldn’t like this scrawny heathen, but fuck if he’s not one of two reasons I crawl my ass back through this game time and again.

Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy-Dude says 15 words the entire game and his voice lines have been etched into my skull. Plus, his fight is cinematic as hell and he gives me serotonin.

Demon Princes-The closest FromSoft came to matching O&S in gank fights. Unique mechanic and the bosses’ design was actually super dope. Entertaining every time.

Genichiro- This man taught me how to play Sekiro single-handedly by kicking the shit out of me until I understood. Easy fight now, but he needed to be included.

Gravelord Nito- I don’t have an explanation for this one. I shouldn’t like him, but here we are.

Mohg, Lord of Blood- Very creative boss fight and his music is dope. An underrated yet VERY satisfying boss fight to win if you take him down by yourself.

Radagon of the Golden Order- Checks all of the boxes in my humble opinion. He also has great lore and his physical design is incredible to look at. Plus I gotta respect the dude for putting his hammer through my skull. Every. Single. Time.

Guardian Ape- This fucker forced me to play like Dark Souls in Sekiro. After all that work learning from Genichiro, this punk had the audacity to make me relearn everything. Respect.

Quelaag- You know why she’s here. Don’t act like you don’t. We love her and we respect her.

The Nameless King- Hours of work paid off when I learned to beat this dude. My level of play skyrocketed when I learned how to beat this guy. Everything became so much easier after I learned how to successfully kick this guy’s ass on command and I’ll forever respect him for it.

Owl (Father)- An ADHD nightmare, but one of the more satisfying victories in Sekiro. He also is a good punching bag to empty out the disdain I carry for my own father and my father can’t even throw shuriken.