The Games That I Play

Hi hi hi to all interested! My name is Peach and I've made this blog as an outlet to share my thoughts and feelings on games I want to play and games that I've recently played! :)

I kinda delve into like a billion different games and genre without rhyme or reason, so this will be an eclectic mess of video game!

Favourite genres:

JRPGs

Platformers

3d Collectathons

Soulsborne

Metroidvania

Action/Adventure

Favourite games:

Elder Scrolls IV Oblivion

Jet Set Radio Future

Hollow Knight

The Legend of Zelda Twilight Princess

Super Mario Sunshine

I’ve got a 3ds that’s essentially been busted for months and for the life of me I couldn’t figure out what the hell was wrong with it… UNTIL TODAY THAT IS

I spent ages tearing apart, diagnosing, and repairing my 3ds and after A LOT of stress and tears, I managed to fix everything!!! So now I’m super happy and excited to play heaps of games again, so please please please give me ur recommendations!!

Oh yeah this btw

So uh I'm really good at Ocarina of Time....

Hi hi sorry I’m late with this, I’ve been busy moving states! Anyway, I wanted to take a quick squiz back at some of the games I played for the first time in 2023 and as a disclaimer: these aren’t games that released in 2023, just ones that I actually played this year, and I promise I play more than just the Nintendo Switch despite what this list looks like. Anyways, Happy New Year and enjoy!

Hollow Knight

As an Australian, I am honour-bound to start this with DID YOU GUYS KNOW THAT HOLLOW KNIGHT WAS DEVELOPED IN ADELAIDE???? Ahem… now that that’s out of the way, I can safely say that Hollow Knight isn’t just one of the best games I played in 2023, but is actually one of my new all time favourite games. I, like many others, was initially put off by the brutal difficulty that I’ve heard many people talk about when discussing the game - however, having finally summed up the drive to play through a challenging game, I found Hollow Knight to be an absolute masterpiece. The combat is quick and intuitive, with many unique charms that allow you to heavily customise your playstyle in ways you wouldn’t initially think possible. I mean, how many games are realistically going to let you shoot farting maggots at people (I swear it’s not as gross as it sounds). These unique play styles also lend themselves to the beautifully crafted boss fights that rely on your ability to adapt and evolve. Having the opportunity to develop your own style of play and fighting can make some of these bosses a walk in the park, whilst simultaneously making some bosses unnecessarily hard - meaning that your abilities as a player to change things up and adapt are instrumental in your success and truly make you feel accomplished upon overcoming one of the many challenges the game throws at you. 

I kinda went on a big tangent about the combat, but that’s because it is the main embodiment of the game. However that’s not all that makes this game stand out among its competition, as there are numerous things I could talk about for HOURS when it comes to Hollow Knight - in fact, I might even make a separate, more detailed post…. But anyway, this game has it all. The music is outstanding and I highly recommend giving it a listen if you ever get the change, the character design and worldbuilding are insanely well done and this is the first game that has genuinely ever made me want to create my own unique characters to fit into the setting, and the unique soulslike brand of storytelling predominantly told through lore that you can optionally seek out is something I have really come to enjoy. I will be hyperfixating on this game for the foreseeable future and I highly recommend you do the same. 

2) Mario & Luigi Superstar Saga

Okay, I have to be one of the very few who actively like Nintendo Switch Online having GBA games (I don’t agree with the pricing or many of Nintendo’s ideas, so please don’t crucify me). I actively like being able to play GBA games on my switch, and this has been a great way to introduce me to titles I’ve missed out on in the past - like Superstar Saga. So anyway, to the game! 

Oughh this game has so much undeniable charm that I am frothing at the mouth. I can’t believe that AlphaDream absolutely obliterated any expectation I had for a GBA mario RPG and, in doing so, proceeded to give me one of my favourite Mario art styles of all time?? Jesus Christ, this game is like the absolutely perfect GBA game, and a pure embodiment of 2003 in it’s gameplay loop and quirky style. I regularly listen to the soundtrack from this game while I’m doing my day to day activities, like there are just some tracks that slap so hard I actually have to stop what I’m doing to groove along to these tunes. On top of that, the pixel based art in game looks fantastic for the time, and the colour palette is such a warm and inviting atmosphere that really draws you into the world of the Bean Kingdom. These things, alongside the signature Mario spinoff dialogue, create a fully realised world that is fun to explore and fuck around in, as well as a world that feels lived in. The way that characters interact in this game is so reminiscent of paper mario and I do wish Nintendo would have more of this whimsically comedic dialogue in their more recent games. Huh? Oh yeah, the combat is pretty cool too I guess - like it’s super easy to cheese when you know what you’re doing (I may have one shot Cackletta on my second playthrough using the mushroom badge…)

And lastly, I think Luigi x Peasley should be canon and nothing can convince me oth- *gets shot in the head*

3) The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap

Okay how did literally nobody tell me how good this game is?? Honestly, I’m blaming all of you for not informing me about one of my new favourite Zelda games. Seriously, the toon Link aesthetic has to be one of my all time favourite looks for anything really - like you could put DOOM in this style I would eat it the fuck up. YUM YUM. Anyway, apart from the obviously stellar visuals for a GBA game, the combat is fun and entertaining - like most 2d Zelda games, but also just adds little things it’s integrated from the 3d games like rolling, etc that I really appreciate. Capcom did such a good job with this game, it’s like a ten billion times improvement over their last Zelda games (the Oracle games) and arghhh this game is so so so so charming I love it so much. Story-wise, the Picori are an amazing addition to the Zelda franchise and I personally love Vaati as a villain (especially that final battle hoo boy). Link having a personal connection with Zelda and living in a relatively smaller world than most Zelda games definitely allows this game to become a more personal experience as you travel along with Ezlo and discover the smaller things hidden in this world. I just wish they were more towns tbh. I must admit though, the music is probably the biggest let down (COMPARED TO OTHER ZELDA TITLES) probably due to a combination of third party development and hardware limitations but idk I’m not well-versed on any of that. I do very much like seeing Windwaker moblins in 2d pixel art though, that gives me heaps of serotonin. 

4) Metroid Dread

Now this game right here, this is the one. This is the single game I was absolutely floored with upon starting it up. To preface this, before 2023 I had not played a single Metroid game… by the end of 2023 I had played like 6 Metroid games (some of which are also on this list!). So coming into Metroid Dread, I had just completed Super Metroid, Metroid Samus Returns, and Metroid Fusion - so I was excited. I had already seen what the Metroid series had to offer and I was hungry for more. I needed it so badly, I spent days waiting for a physical copy of Metroid Dread to arrive. I HAD to play it, the anticipation was killing me. And when I booted the game up, I was not disappointed. I was so invested in the story and lore of the series at this point, I was looking around excitedly giggling and pointing out any easter egg or reference I could. The game looked amazing, I was literally left breathless by the actual beauty of the game and its environments. The gameplay was smoother than ever, like even my housemate (who hasn’t played Metroid) noticed just how incredibly smooth the game was. Samus felt great to handle, almost like an extension of the player with how well the controls were integrated into a Nintendo Switch pro controller. I have spent so much time in the game just running around and trying out all of the possible movement options. I also love how they evolved the level of horror and seclusion from Metroid Fusion and used SA-X as a beta to make the EMMIs one of the most terrifying enemies in any game I have played. 

This game has me feel so many emotions - from acute stress, to bliss, to genuine shock and awe - as we went through Samus’ story and met new characters, fought new bosses, and explored a new planet. The story beats in this game hit hard, and were very reminiscent of its predecessor in Metroid Fusion. And speaking of boss fights, holy hell is the final boss of this game amazing. Raven Beak has to be a genuine contender for the best video game final boss of this decade, like I might need to dedicate an entire post to everything I love about that boss fight because there’s no way I could fit it all here. I actually bought a soundbar just for this game, so that when I play through it again (which I will so many times) I can hear the amazing sound design throughout the entirety of the game, but especially with certain enemies like the EMMIs and Raven Beak. This game is truly amazing and I urge you to play it. 

5) Luigi’s Mansion 3

I’m sorry, but why is Luigi’s Mansion 3 by far the most gorgeous looking Nintendo Switch game of all time? Honestly, it’s gonna be illegal that this game is so goddamn pretty - I can (and have) just stared at the screen for hours enamoured by the visuals. Obviously this game wouldn’t be on this list for visuals alone, but honestly it could be. I cannot overstate how gorgeous this game is, and how much the visuals of the game lend themselves to the overall amazing atmosphere surrounding the game itself. I personally feel that Luigi’s Mansion 3 gives itself over to the environments it has created in a way that they would have liked to have done so in the past if not for hardware limitations. By doing so, I believe that the team has created an intricately connected world that feels, not only lived in, but actively alive - despite the fact that the entire game takes place in a hotel. The game controls so much better than previous entries in the series, and the boss fights are much more varied and zany, which really adds to the overall charm crafted in this game world. The overall atmosphere is elevated by the fantastic soundtrack and absolute absurdly unique level designs on the different floors of the hotel which, in turn, create unique and amazing characters for us as Luigi to interact with. This game, through both its visuals and gameplay loop, makes my brain happy and I can sit there for days unblinking when playing this game.

This is now a GORB appreciation blog

Platform: Nintendo Gamecube

Release Date: 2001

Oh man oh boy, my housemate has been DESPERATE for me to play this ever since I played through Luigi’s Mansion 3 late last year. Due to a completely random sequence of events, we managed to get our hands on a free copy of Luigi’s Mansion for Gamecube earlier this year, and I am proud to say I fought through my executive dysfunction long enough to finally set up the Wii so I can play more Wii/Gamecube games! (such as Luigi’s Mansion hehe)

Admittedly, I was a bit apprehensive going into this game for two major reasons - number one being that this game means so much to my housemate and I truly wanted this experience to be a positive one we could share together, and the second being that the game is 22 years old.

Thankfully, my fears were unfounded and I was immediately drawn into the immensely creepy atmosphere that the game possesses. I genuinely don’t know how I managed to go 22 years without seeing a single thing about this game, but I think that made it all the better being able to fully experience this for the first time completely blind. Every second, from the opening cutscene all the way to the final credits, had me gripped to the tv like some sort of ravenous animal devouring a succulent meal. I was mesmerised to the point that I began developing headaches due to a lack of blinking - if that isn’t a ringing endorsement for a game, I don’t know what is. 

The art direction this game took was incredibly ambitious for a release title for the Gamecube - it is something that I am still thinking of days after having played the game because Nintendo absolutely NAILED the aesthetic and tone of this game through its visuals alone. That isn’t to say that the soundtrack or gameplay don’t equally play just as big of a role in the creation of what I would consider a masterpiece, it’s just that I am incredibly impressed with how the viscerally creepy atmosphere comes to life on the backs of the cartoonish caricatures of ghost tropes and the expressive animations associated with both them and Luigi himself. The personality of the characters ooze through the screen and into my heart due their incredibly charming individuality, with many of the standout moments of the game (for me atleast) feeding off of this to create such a memorable experience for me. I actually feel like the Luigi’s Mansion series has been an opportunity for nintendo to develop Luigi’s more expressive side that isn’t fully apparent in mainline Mario games as Luigi’s mansion fully exaggerates the physical reactions and behaviour of Luigi to an extreme - even the subtle moments of Luigi’s nervous wondering through the mansions halls is an example of the personality that radiates from the game.

Of course, the game isn’t perfect by any means and I had my fair share of trouble and frustrations with it. These mainly, if not entirely, revolved around the fundamental controls of the game that I’m sure worked well 20+ years ago. Unfortunately I am playing this game in 2023, and have both the blessing and curse of modern controls that are intuitive and responsive - something that I cannot in full honesty say about Luigi’s Mansion. I do not claim to be good at video games at all, and this game further proved that to me by making me feel like an idiot at times. I took far too long to adapt to the inverted c-stick controls and found that I had a lot of issues with aiming when it came to catching ghosts. I did eventually get the hang of it and manage to have it become a lot more instinctual for me, but my major problem that I’m sure many people probably won’t share is that I found some mechanics (particularly in boss fights) to be super counterproductive and archaic compared to what i am used to in modern games. A lot of my struggles were trying to get the mechanics of the fights to work as intended, and I did admittedly get frustrated at times when I knew exactly what to do but I physically couldn’t do it in certain situations. 

Once again, I must emphasise that I thoroughly enjoyed the game and that I can overlook outdated gameplay mechanics. I mean early 3D games from like 20 years ago obviously aren’t going to work the same way that modern games do and for some people that can be part of the charm. I personally find it less on the charming side, but I’m not going to hold a grudge against the entire gaming industry from 20 years ago or anything. This game was an amazing experience and I genuinely love the atmosphere it presents and I’m so surprised with how well everything else about the game holds up. From the soundtrack, to the animations, to the nonsensical plot, I fully understand why my housemate (among many others) love this game and I actually genuinely love it myself now. A game like this that just drips charm is one that I can hold in high regard.