A Dearth of Good Game Writing?

Crimson Desert was decently prominent among my most anticipated games of the year, but, at best, it was a wait and see” prospect. Now it’s out, along with a plethora of initial reviews, I am glad I didn’t jump on it in a fit of FOMO. Word is that Crimson Desert is, to turn a…

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The Duck’s Initial Thoughts on Hollow Knight: Silksong

As usual, I’m a bit late to the party, but I’ve finally gotten around to playing the long-awaited Hollow Knight sequel, Silksong.  This time, we’re playing as the nimble Hornet in the haunted kingdom of Pharloom.  And instead of bugs being infected with a nasty disease, there are bugs being controlled by…some different sort of…

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MIO: Memories in Orbit First Impressions

Back in January, I listed MIO: Memories in Orbit as one of my most anticipated games of the year, and it one that I thought I’d have to buy. Color me surprised when it popped up on Game Pass upon release! With a winter plate too full of games, spring has arrived, and MIO’s time…

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Analyzing the Two Super Mario Galaxy Movie Trailers

After the massive success of The Super Mario Brothers Movie from 2023 (because we do NOT talk about the live-action movie from 30 years prior), it was no surprise that they’re making another one.  What is surprising, however, is that they’re skipping straight to Super Mario Galaxy, with some elements from other games thrown into…

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Sometimes, It’s All About the Soundtrack

I recently completed Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, or, I should say, saw it through to an end, and of all its excellent qualities, I remain summarily in awe of its soundtrack. Every song created for it just works, from its gorgeously epic main theme to some wildly jazzy tunes (Monoco’s theme is my new jam)…

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Bruma: Demo Review

Bruma (Spanish for haze) is a lovely platformer with a unique art style about a cat named Luna who must seek out an old lady’s lost memories.  According to the game’s Steam page and Kickstarter, you will explore an abandoned city submerged in a mysterious mist, where you can use traps or stealth to deal…

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The Marathon Situation is Kinda Silly

I’m gonna keep it real here, I was as prepared to hate on Marathon as just about anyone else, but after playing it for myself during the Marathon Server Slam last week, I don’t think it deserves it. This doesn’t mean that I like the game or the business practices Bungie seems to want to…

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Yep, I’m Fired Up for Fable

Being late to the party, as usual, I just recently got around to checking out the preview of Playground Games’ Fable, which was featured during last month’s Xbox Developer Direct. As a fan of the original series, I’ve had my eye on this new entry since it was first announced way back in the summer…

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The Last Cube: Demo Review

The Last Cube is a deceptively simple looking puzzle game where you play as one of the most unassuming characters ever.  A cube.  Silly though it may feel to play as a basic geometrical shape, this game actually had some decent puzzles that made me think.  At the same time, the demo’s 4.5 levels could…

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Darwin’s Paradox! Demo Review

While the Internet says that Darwin’s Paradox! was first announced several years ago, I didn’t catch wind of it until one of Sony’s State of Play showcases from almost exactly a year ago. Fast forward to the present, and the game’s demo appears, much to my delight. I eagerly dove into it upon release and…

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Top 10 Most Aggravating Levels from Donkey Kong Country 3

Being my least favorite Donkey Kong Country game in the original trilogy, I could still admit in my previous list that this game has plenty of fun and memorable levels.  It also has plenty of evil ones that I despise to varying degrees of white-hot hatred.  Whether it’s dealing with a level that doesn’t even…

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The Writing’s on the Wall

A recent article by journalist Jason Schreier on Obsidian, the studio responsible for The Outer Worlds and Grounded series, and Avowed, to name just a couple of its very recent credits, has been weaving its way through the news and social outlets. It’s an interesting read. While it’s focus is on the studio’s re-invention efforts,…

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Conquistadorio: Demo Review

Conquistadorio is a puzzle game about a retired conqueror who became a hermit.  And I suppose he’s become about as reclusive as one can get, as the demo opens with his coffin being unearthed by some rather large bugs!  Yikes!  I was drawn to this game mainly due to the interesting art style, which is…

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Ranking the Worlds of KH: Birth By Sleep

As I continue my Kingdom Hearts marathon, my next stop was Birth by Sleep, a prequel that was originally released for the PSP, but which eventually came to consoles.  Each of the three playable characters has their own story, during which you’ll be exploring different portions of the same worlds and experiencing different pieces of…

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How Much Value is Actually in Gaming Subscriptions?

In the past, I’ve talked about Xbox Game Pass and how I don’t think it offers subscribers as much as it seems to. It’s not just Game Pass, though. It’s all of these monthly subscriptions: Game Pass, PlayStation Plus and Nintendo Switch Online. They all offer access to lots of games, but I wonder how…

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Do You Really Have to Oxygenate the Water in Jolly Roger’s Lagoon?

I’ve played Banjo-Tooie countless times over the years.  And so it’s hard to make one of my favorite games of all time feel fresh.  Partly, this is because I tend to do the same thing every single time.  For example, I always head left upon entering Terrydactyland and climb the vine behind the waterfall.  This…

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What Gives a Game ‘Heart’?

For a long time, I thought that good games, games with “heart” or “soul” were those that were made painstakingly from the ground up. They needed original gameplay, original music, original characters and artwork custom made to fit the developer’s vision. Whether it was an indie project or AAA giant didn’t matter, only that it…

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Top 10 Levels from Donkey Kong Country 3

I’ll be honest, the third Donkey Kong Country isn’t exactly my favorite.  It’s a bit too cutesy, a bit too gimmicky, and…Kiddy exists.  With that said, this is still a pretty fun game if you don’t compare it to its predecessors.  As I recently replayed it for the purposes of research, I accumulated a nice,…

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Croc’s World 1, 2, & Run: Demo Reviews

Not to be confused with the equally obscure Croc series by Argonaut Software, I’ll be reviewing all three Croc’s World demos that I could find because they’re all pretty much the same and very, very short.  Croc’s World 1, 2, and Run are very colorful platformers starring a crocodile.  Powerups include a helmet for breaking…

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The Duck’s 2026 Gaming To-Do List

Last week, I wrote about how and why I didn’t play any games released in 2025.  And yet, as we begin 2026, it appears the trend will likely stay the same.  But I’ve still got plenty of games, or at the very least, general categories of games that I’d like to play during the upcoming…

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Reminiscing Over the Duck’s 2025 Year in Gaming

Every January, we each pick our choice for Game of the Year and discuss what exactly made it stand out above the rest.  But this is the very first year since the tradition began that I, well…I didn’t play any new games.  Sure, I did play a lot of games.  Just none that were released…

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Listmas 2025: Ranking the Bosses of Kingdom Hearts

As you can no doubt tell, I’m in a big Kingdom Hearts mood, which means I’m ending my Listmas posts with yet another KH list!  Today, I’ll be ranking the boss battles from the first game, ranging from the absolute worst to the most fun.  Pretty simple, right?  Except, since there are so many bosses,…

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Listmas 2025: Ranking KH2.5’s Data Battles

Keeping with the Kingdom Hearts theme, I have been playing the Final Mix versions of the first two numbered games in the series, which features new boss fights, including battles against the members of Organization XIII who had originally appeared (and perished) in Chain of Memories.  This is great because I never enjoyed CoM’s card-based…

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Listmas 2025: Kingdom Hearts 2 World Ranking

Last week, I wrote a world ranking about the very first Kingdom Hearts game, and now it’s time to cover its even more impressive sequel, the aptly named Kingdom Hearts 2.  This game has some really good worlds…and some really dull ones.  I’ll be ranking these based off of everything, the general theming, the story,…

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Listmas 2025: Kingdom Hearts World Ranking

One of my favorite game series of all time is Kingdom Hearts, a mashup of Disney and Final Fantasy that is surprisingly deep and works far better than you’d expect.  With memorable characters and lore that rivals that of Five Nights at Freddy’s, the first two numbered games of the series in particular will always…

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The Jumping Donut: Demo Review

I don’t usually do much research when I download demos.  They’re free, so there’s really nothing to lose but a little bit of time.  With that said, I didn’t expect much from The Jumping Donut, and I didn’t get much, either.  I guess I’d kind of describe this game as a puzzle-platformer.  As the name…

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Happy Home Paradise is any Budding Interior Decorator’s Dream

Animal Crossing: Happy Home Paradise is the DLC for New Horizons for the Switch.  The premise is simple.  You get a job on a tropical island separate from your own, where you design vacation homes for various animal clients you meet on the island.  After picking a location amongst various settings, including mountains, sandy beaches,…

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Cozy Grove is Like Animal Crossing with a Plot

Cozy Grove is, to put it simply, kind of like Animal Crossing, but with a greater emphasis on story.  You play as a Spirit Scout and must help out the ghostly bears that inhabit the island by completing various fetch quests for them.  Along the way, you’ll feed your sentient campfire Flamey with logs to…

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Unravel 2’s Smooth Gameplay is Unravelled by a Weak Story

The original Unravel was a sweet and unique platformer where you play as a little creature named Yarny (made from yarn, as the name suggests) who can solve puzzles and traverse photo-realistic environments (spanning natural Swedish landscapes to industrial locations) using yarn.  You can swing from yarn, make bridges with yarn, and even make trampolines…

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Spooktober: Animal Crossing’s Tarantula and Scorpion Islands

The last game you’d expect to be discussed during Spooktober is most assuredly the cute and relaxing life sim, Animal Crossing.  After all, what could possibly be scary about decorating your house or meeting new animal friends?  Well, ever since the franchise’s debut on the Nintendo GameCube, there has been one, no, make that two…

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Spooktober: The Many Traumas of Outer Wilds

Outer Wilds is a fantastic game where you discover the mysteries of your galaxy, while a supernova occurs every 22 minutes.  (And time travel is involved or else it would be a very short game indeed).  Nothing else can truly compare, making this one of my favorite games of all time.  There’s just one teensy,…

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Spooktober: Just How Far Will the Aberrations in Dredge Spread?

Whereas some horror games have you getting chased by terrifying monstrosities that scream and moan as they shuffle or outright bolt after you, the horror of Dredge is far more understated.  In fact, the game could almost appear relaxing on the surface.  You play as a new fisherman who just moved to the island of…

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Spooktober: The Time Hogwarts Legacy Turned Into a Horror Movie

Hogwarts Legacy is a massive Harry Potter RPG that I played off and on for roughly a year, spanning 80+ hours.  The world of Harry Potter is, undoubtedly, a spooky one indeed, with giant spiders (the acromantula is just the worst!), undead inferi, super sus dark magic, and lots of ghosts and poltergeists.  To my…

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Barely Scratching the Surface of Undertale Easter Eggs

Undertale was groundbreaking in its time.  A game that broke the mold, where you had the potential to spare every enemy instead of fighting them.  Filled with lovable characters that you may or may not have chosen to massacre depending on the route you were taking, this game also boasted a jarring mix of quirky…

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Sony Likely Won’t Have a PC Launcher (Thankfully)

Between Sony’s decision to rebrand PlayStation Network (PSN) into, uh, something else later this year and the statements its been making regarding PC as a platform, there hasn’t been a lot for fans to celebrate this year. One thing that likely will be nice, though, is that Sony doesn’t appear to be interested in making…

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Bethesda’s Time in the Sun Might Be Over

With Bethesda now going about crowing over its latest re-release, this time the PS5 port of Starfield, I found myself thinking about just how different this company and its games are compared to its Oblivion, Fallout 3 and Skyrim era. In pure dollars and cents, Bethesda is bigger and enjoying more success than ever before,…

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Big Hops is a Platforming Delight!

Just when I thought I’m not going to find another solid 3D platformer, along came my friend with a recommendation. “Dude, you gotta try Big Hops,” he said. “It’s everything you could want in a modern platformer,” is how he sold it to me. Now, I love me some indie platformers, but that sounded like…

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