I think the fact that it took like six years for me to beat a 20 hour game should be an indicator of what I was feeling for its duration

I found mechanically the numbered entries were all like solid improvements on each other, even if my own sensibilities means they're all less interesting to me. This one is just...I don't even think it's as good as the first game, which me and @thatsjustvile.bsky.social are CURRENTLY replaying.

The gravity also makes the game feel floaty in a way that I just don't like, even it's mitigated somewhat by the groundslam.
I also found the pacing just kind of bad. I found myself behind in levels quite often even when there were either no missions or missions that gave negligible XP.

39: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel
Blegh. I think Gearbox has the basic Borderlands loop down to a science...which makes me less interested in these games in general. This entry has the same issue the ones from 2 onward have where it just won't shut the fuck up while the writing is abysmal dogshit.

I don't know if she changed the cigarettes she smokes or something, but jesus fucking christ the smell was WAY stronger than normal

...having made a difference in peoples' lives for the better despite being given little choice but to hurt others.

...if you go in knowing it's not the sort of look into the the life of depravity and excess said blurb seems to imply, you'll have a better time.
Basically, it's a story of a man's desire to escape the fate he was seemingly condemned to by his warped family, to come out on the other side at least...

38: Evil and The Mask by Fuminori Nakamura
A fairly gripping crime thriller. I personally enjoyed it, but I've heard of people who've been let down by where the book goes. I think it's easy to build up an image of what the book is based off the blurb that's nothing like the actual contents, but...

Genuinely the worst I’ve ever performed in a job interview

I froze up and kept pausing and it fuckin’ snowballed from there I hate this

I also still don’t like the equipment system. I’ve complained about that enough, though, so I’m gonna leave it at that.
Next up…who knows? Maybe Tales of Graces? Finish Silent Hill f? Xenoblade? We’ll see

…disadvantage them, but also gain access to more of the your combo routes. This basically meant that if I wasn’t just treating enemies like punching bags (which was MOST encounters), I was running around the arena swatting at them with a single hit HOPING it inflicts stun or burn or…something.

…a bit…cumbersome?
Like, if classic Tales games are Super Smash Bros, this would be Tekken. There’s so many artes, and they all have use cases, but it kind if felt a bit overwhelming at times.
Combat also felt very swingy. The combat system is all about inflicting status effects on enemies to both…

37: Tales of Berseria.
I was at the final dungeon, and I’m having trouble sleeping, so I decides to just do one big lap to the finish.
I enjoyed it quite a bit. I think the combat system is…it definitely has interesting ideas, and I can appreciate it going for something new. However, I feel it was…

…inspiring as someone who wants to GM.

…the world of Vampire: The Masquerade.
I do say this as someone who LOVES the VtM setting. I don’t like it to be completely divorced from the game - hence why I never cared to try Requiem. I just think having it presented as more of a “polite suggestion” in the way this game does makes it feel more…

…playable game, but there’s something magical about how 2e presents its world and the concepts within. Like, the fact that it’s NOT overly-emphatic on the grim-darkness and the perpetual misery and all that junk makes it feel fresh.
Like, it’s more a toolbox for a “vampire game” than a game set in…

36: Vampire: The Masquerade 2e
Man, it’s been a while since I’ve done a FULL, cover-to-cover reading of an RPG book.
If my constant bitching about the post-revised era hasn’t made it clear, I think this is a great game SETTING. I can’t deny that Revised/20th streamlines these systems into a more…