Assassin’s Creed Odyssey: The Ancient Greek, the Malaka, and the Animus

Over 68 hours in to my attempt at forging a tale grander than any Homer ever wrote, I have become an Olympic champion, hunted down and destroyed every member of a secret cult, dueled with the likes of Medusa and the Minotaur, saved democracy, and fetched countless herbs and animal pelts for random villagers. The last major cutscene has played following completion of the final of the 3 major quest lines, yet there are still places in the massive 230 km2 map that I will never set foot on.

The Amazing Selfie-Man

Of all the games I've spent an unhealthy amount of time playing this year, none have come close to being as much fun and joyful to play as the recently released Marvel's Spider-Man. It's basically like the developers figured out how to make the best Arkham game ever with a hero that is fun and hopeful instead of bleak and 'roided out. The story is absolutely fantastic Naughty Dog-quality stuff. The combat is silky smooth. There are hundreds of amusing collectible side-quests, and web slinging through New York is the best traversal system I've ever experienced in a video game. Most importantly, though, it has a killer photo mode that I spent entirely too much time playing with when I should have been saving citizens in peril. Instead of writing a lengthy post detailing why I love this game so much, I thought I'd just show you with some of the 100 or so pictures I took while having a blast.

Hollow Knight: The Metroidvania to Rule Them All

It's 11 p.m. on a Friday night and like the cool kid that I am, I find myself mired in my 15th or so attempt at Hollow Knight's final boss. What started with meeting my unceremonious doom quicker than I could blink, has evolved over the course of an hour or so of battles and pattern memorization/recognition into a test of will against the toughest boss I have encountered yet. In one final glorious run, everything clicks. I dodge the Radiance's varied attacks, find the perfect milliseconds to heal, and deliver rapid masterful blows before retreating to safety. By bringing together everything I had learned in the past 35 hours of gameplay, I scale the final platform and deliver the ultimate strike. At long last, I breathe a sigh of relief as the Radiance is vanquished freeing Hallownest and myself from its grasp.

Octopath Traveler: The Good, the Bad, and the JRPG

Finally, after a mere 59 hours and 32 chapters, my main journey in Octopath Traveler has come to an end. Looking back on my time immersed in this stylish 16-bit throwback adventure, I find there's both plenty to love and a lot to be frustrated about. As far as scratching that classic JRPG itch, Octopath certainly does that. It's enjoyable throughout and a solid 8.5/10 or so if you were to grade it. The main problem is that it could have easily been an all-time great game had it tried just a little bit harder.

Tips for Choosing Your Party in Octopath Traveler

This weekend I download the mesmerizingly beautiful new JRPG Octopath Traveler on my Switch and spent a good deal of my time enjoying the 16-bit throwback in handheld mode. I was determined not to stop until I recruited all of the characters, so I could figure out how best to tackle the rest of my adventure. While the game does suffer some from a need to grind and a fairly repetitive structure (at least for everyone's chapter one), the immersive battle system, perfect soundtrack, gorgeous visuals, and compelling characters makes it a joy to play and a worthwhile world for fans of old-school JRPGs to get lost in. Continue reading for my impressions on each character based on the order in which I enlisted them.

Fortnite Season 4 Recap

Thanks to Fornite finally making its way to the Nintendo Switch a month ago and my 3 weeks of unemployment during that span, I was able to get a great feel for the most popular game on the planet. So what if I now get the DTs if I go more than 24 hours without playing it!??! I thoroughly enjoyed my first season, and I look forward to taking part in a full 10 week season to inflict maximum pwnage. Continue reading below for a recap of my time so far, as well as, tips for anyone looking to join the growing Fortnite  community.

The Deepnest and the Brilliant and Punishing Difficulty of Hollow Knight

Recently, I have been enjoying the magnificent Metroidvania game Hollow Knight on my Switch. Friday night, I thought I would get in an hour or so of exploration and geo (the game world's currency) grinding before bed. Instead of enjoying slumber at a respectable hour, I ended up being sent on one of the craziest and most challenging adventures I have ever encountered in a video game.

Dance Parties and Tears in the Sky: Tales From the Fortnite Missile Launch

A few weeks ago I finally gave in and tried out Fortnite. Unfortunately for me, it turns out the game is as highly addictive as I had heard, and my initial plan to check in every now and then has led to about 30 hours of battle royales (and 5 very awesome victory royales) over the past 3 weeks.  One of my favorite places on the map has been the super-villain lair/missile silo located inside of a mountain to the northeast of Snobby Shores. There always seems to be great loot there and there aren't often many others landing there, so it's a solid starting point. Starting yesterday, all TVs in the game began a countdown to 1:30 pm EST when the missiles would launch, so I decided to go watch the fireworks happen. Here's what I saw.

How to Become a Master Sushi Striker

It has been said that the best Nintendo is weird Nintendo. This is epitomized by Sushi Striker: Way of the Sushido, a recently released puzzle/Pokemon/fighting game hybrid centered around eating mass quantities of sushi. Over the course of about 20 hours and 150 levels, I fell in love with the absurd, yet surprisingly deep and challenging anime adventure the game took me on. Instead of spending a post singing its many  over-the-top praises, I thought I'd provide tips on maximizing your sushi striking abilities for anyone seeking to start their own sushi revolution.