Monday, February 22, 2021

Re-Review #11: The Walking Dead: A New Frontier

The Walking Dead: A New Frontier
PlayStation 4


To see my original review of this game, click 
>>HERE!!<<


Most of the time when I am re-reviewing a game and look back at my initial review, I agree with my original assessment. If I play something and I enjoy it the first time around, chances are I'll still enjoy it the second time. That didn't happen with this game.

I can't even say what really changed. I think a part of it could be Walking Dead burnout. I recently re-played the first two games in the series (as well as the Michonne spinoff) in rapid succession. It's possible by the time I got to this one, I was simply going through the motions.

But I don't know about that. I am currently playing The Final Season and really enjoying it. No burnout whatsoever. Maybe it's because I've already played this game before? Well, I've already played (and re-reviewed) the three games that came before this, and I didn't experience any kind of burnout with those titles. So what gives?*

*in case you're wondering why I didn't re-re-review those other Walking Dead games, even I have limits. I'll review a game and even re-review it if I play it twice, but that is as far as I'm going to go. If I play a game a third time, it does not get another review. Glad we've cleared that up.




But anyway, I have some theories. The first being that maybe, just maybe, the people who gave this game bad reviews were right. I ignored those bad reviews back in 2019 when I first played this game, and really ended up liking it. Gave it an A-. 

But maybe they were right. Maybe this game isn't as good as I initially thought. My first time through I welcomed Javi and the new cast, and I applauded the whole civil war story with the New Frontier. This time around, I was thoroughly unimpressed. 

All the events of the game seemed old hat. I've been there/done that with some variation of this infighting storyline in countless other movies, TV shows, and video games. The characters aren't very likeable. I know that aside from Clementine getting separated from AJ, almost all of the characters are 100% irrelevant to Clementine's tale and where she ends up in the future. You don't see or hear from Javi, Kate, or anyone else again. That makes this whole game seem rather pointless, especially considering this game is fully centered around them.




The gameplay is uninspired. The graphics and the colors in this game seem lifeless and a bit drab. Characters carry on conversations that are painfully long and boring. I would zone out during some of these talks and pick up my phone and start looking at it. Then I'd lose track of what was happening in the game and miss important button prompts or conversation choices.

Don't get me wrong - this isn't a bad game. It just pales in comparison to the greatness of the two titles in the series that came before it. In no way, shape, or form is this an A- title. It's not even a B title.

It's still something you want to play, though, especially if you're a fan of the series or even just a Walking Dead fan in general. Just don't expect me to jump out of my seat and start singing the praises of a game that I consider to be just "all right."

Because it's just all right. Nothing more, nothing less. 

Just all right.


Final Score:
C-


Thursday, February 18, 2021

Video Game Review #254: The Last of Us Part II

The Last of Us Part II
PlayStation 4


Nostalgia Factor:

The original Last of Us is widely renowned as one of the greatest video games ever made. I've played through it three times now, most recently a few years ago when I gave it a glowing A+ review. I didn't ever expect there to be a sequel, but I was pleasantly surprised when I heard the announcement back in 2016. 

In the months leading up to the game's 2020 release date, plot leaks and spoilers hit the internet. Everywhere you looked, people were sounding off on what they thought of The Last of Us Part II. I miraculously managed to avoid these spoilers, so I entered my 2021 playthrough of the game not knowing what to expect. All I knew was that on one hand the game was controversial and had polarized many fans of the original game - while on the other hand it raked in several Game of the Year titles and was overall praised by most major gaming news outlets.

What side would I stand on? Well, that is what this review is for.

As always, I don't shy away from spoilers in my reviews so if you haven't played this game yet and don't want to know what happens, you may want to come back and read this at a later time.




Story:

The Last of Us Part II takes place several years after the events of its predecessor. Joel and Ellie are living in a community in Wyoming, which you may recognize as Joel's brother Tommy's settlement from the original game. Things have expanded quite a bit. This is a community full of friends and family, and the characters are as close to knowing peace as they have in years. That all changes when Joel and Tommy disappear on a scouting mission. Ellie knows something is up, as it is unusual for Joel to not check in like that. She races off to his last known whereabouts. 

Ellie arrives just in time to see Joel getting his head beat in with a golf club by a strong, muscular woman named Abby. Ellie and Tommy try fight these mysterious attackers, but they are helplessly outnumbered. The attackers claim they are only there for Joel, and after he is dead, they depart - leaving a grief-stricken Tommy and Ellie in their wake.

The next day, the attackers are identified by their badges as members of the WLF - a freedom fighting organization similar to the Fireflies that is based out of Seattle. Tommy leaves to track these killers down and get revenge. Ellie and her girlfriend Dina chase after him to lend their support. The first major section of the game is Ellie and Dina arriving in Seattle, where they try to track Tommy's whereabouts and see if he has any leads on the killers. 

Ellie and Dina get caught up in a war between the WLF and a cult called the Seraphites - a religious group that sneaks around in silence and disavows use of technology or anything from the "old world". Our heroines take shelter in an abandoned theater, where Dina tells Ellie she is pregnant. Dina's ex, Jesse, arrives at the theater. Apparently, he had been following Ellie and Dina all the way from Wyoming. Ellie and Jesse head out to track down Abby, leaving the pregnant Dina to rest at the theater by herself. 

Long story short, they don't catch Abby but they find her last known location where they are forced to kill two of Abby's known associates - one of them a pregnant woman. Injured in the battle, Jesse and Ellie return to the theater only for Abby to show up, kill Jesse, and attack Ellie and Dina.

Then the game cuts away from present events to take us to the past. That's right, all of a sudden we find ourselves in control of the game's villain - Abby.

Controlling Abby, we wander around the WLF camp which is a lot more organized than we are led to believe. Abby goes out on a mission to find a man named Owen, who has vanished. Through a series of flashbacks we learn that Owen discovered an abandoned aquarium and likes to hang out there. He and Abby have a romantic past, although now he has a new woman who is very jealous and also very pregnant (hint hint - she's the one later killed by Ellie). These flashbacks also reveal Abby in a different light. She's not just some monster who killed Joel - she is a caring and emotional person with a troubled past. Her father was the doctor that Joel killed to save Ellie's life at the end of the first game. All of a sudden, her quest for revenge becomes a lot more understandable and sympathetic.

Abby is captured by the Seraphites (or Scars - as the characters in the game call them) but is rescued by two kids/young adults named Yara and Lev. Yara and Lev were Seraphites themselves but were cast out of the group when Lev shaved her head and began identifying as a man to avoid an arranged marriage. Abby takes Yara and Lev to the aquarium with her, where they find Owen who is alive and well, but getting ready to leave Seattle to head to California where rumor has it the Fireflies are reassembling. Lev and Abby leave to find medical supplies which are needed to help amputate Yara's broken arm. They return and the amputation is successful, but when they catch wind of a WLF attack on the Seraphites' home base, Lev runs off to try and save his mother.

Yara and Abby take off after him, only to get caught up in a giant battle between the Wolves and the Scars. Lev is forced to kill his devoutly religious mother when she attacks him for betraying the Seraphites. Yara is killed helping Abby and Lev escape - which kind of makes the whole trip to the hospital and trip to the island seem somewhat irrelevant, but whatever.

Abby and Lev return to the aquarium to find Owen and his pregnant girlfriend slaughtered. A bloodied map leading to a theater is the only clue left behind. You see where this is going, right?

Abby and Ellie's paths merge in an epic smackdown at the theater. Abby wins, but decides to let Elli and Dina go when she finds out Dina is pregnant. Got to set a good example for Lev, right?

I thought this would be the end of the game because it fast forwards to the future where Ellie and Dina have returned to Wyoming and live on a ranch by themselves (and Dina's new baby). But nope, the story rolls on. Tommy shows up to tell Ellie that Abby has once again been spotted - this time in California. Ellie deliberates, but haunted by the PTSD brought on by Abby's actions in her life, she decides to leave Dina and the baby behind on her quest for revenge.

Abby is trying to find traces of the Firefly movement, which was rumored by her late friend Owen to have started up again in California. She and Lev are captured by a terrifying group of violent, slave owning bandits known as Rattlers. Ellie arrives just in time to save them after they've been tied to poles and left to rot. Not satisfied on her revenge tour, Ellie forces Abby to fight her by threatening an unconscious Lev. Abby and Ellie engage in a brutal, violent battle that leaves Ellie with two fingers bitten off and Abby nearly drowned and with multiple stab wounds.

Ellie just up and decides that this circle of violence is all pointless, and leaves Abby and Lev behind. They disappear in a boat, presumably to resume their hunt for the Fireflies. Ellie returns home, only to find that Dina has packed up her things and left. Ellie finds her old guitar and forlornly thinks of Joel while strumming a few cords with her injured hand.

The game ends.




Gameplay:

If you've played the first game, you shouldn't have a hard time picking this one up. It handles almost exactly the same. One major difference is that the stealth mechanics have been refined. Also, things are a bit more "open world" this time around. An area early in the game has you checking out locations on a map trying to explore everything and figure out where to go next. But overall, this is still a pretty linear game.

You run around, you explore, you go from point A to point B to advance the story. Expect a lot of walking and a lot of talking. Not gonna lie, I was a bit bored from time to time as I played this game. I'm all for immersion and good character development but sometimes you just got to pick up the pace to keep people entertained. This game definitely has some pacing issues.

Combat is fun and challenging. I enjoyed adapting my strategies as I went from human enemies to non-human ones. There's something inherently satisfying about picking off enemies one by one. Even if they see you, you can find a place to hide until they stop looking for you. Then I'd pop out and do the same thing over again. Just getting involved in straight up firefights is very satisfying too. There are a lot of ways to tackle this game's combat and no particular way is considered right or wrong. It's up to you to decide how you want to play.

I can't say the combat didn't get repetitive though. Every time I'd enter a big open area with lots of small hiding places I'd think - here we go again. It was obvious a big fight was coming. And there are SO MANY fights in this game that they started to become a bit dull after a while. You can only do the same thing so many times over and over again before it begins to get boring.

Boring is never a word you want to hear when playing a game. I was really invested in the stories of Ellie and Abby and I was always on the edge of my seat waiting to see what would happen next. But the problem is that the game oftentimes takes way too long to get there. And it really got in the way of my enjoyment of this title.




Graphics:

I have nothing to complain about here. This is truly a fantastic looking game. I've been blessed to play such gorgeous games lately, namely this one and the Resident Evil 3 remake. They may be two of the best-looking games I have ever played. The characters look great. It is easy to forget these aren't real people as you're playing. They are so realistic, well portrayed, and brought to life so wonderfully.

The environments steal the show, however. The level of detail that went into this game is just amazing. Entire cities and neighborhoods are brought to life with astonishing detail. If you ever wanted to see what the world would look like after an apocalyptic event, you need look no further than this game. The mix of old businesses and buildings overrun with wildlife and decay is truly a thing to behold. The interiors of the game are just SO well detailed. Some of these locations look like they could have been lived in or occupied by real people - down to the dishes in the kitchen and the posters on the walls. 

Not only does the game look astonishing, it is very atmospheric as well. The feeling of dread as you walk around in an abandoned building with nothing but a flashlight is hard to put into words. I'd suggest playing this in the dark with headphones on. You will lose yourself in the world of this game.




Sound:

Naughty Dog spared no expense when it came to the presentation of this game. Everything I said about the graphics rings true for the sound as well. The characters are brought to life by some truly remarkable voice acting. Joel, Ellie, Abby, and all of their friends and enemies feel like real, breathing people. I can't offer enough praise for this game's cast. Whether they are talking, fighting, singing, or just shooting the shit - they are all super believable as characters.

The sound effects match the atmosphere created by the game's visuals. When you're in a dark underground tunnel - it SOUNDS like you are in a dark underground tunnel. Water dripping from the ceiling, the splashing sound as you run through a puddle, the growl of a nearby enemy. This is all A+ stuff. I love how the NPCs communicate as well, calling out the names of their fallen comrades in battle. The Seraphites and their coordinated whistling while they stalk you through the playing field helps to create a harrowing experience as well.

The music is subtle but effective. Honestly, this game doesn't really have any iconic or memorable musical tracks like a Final Fantasy or Resident Evil game. But it isn't trying to, either. This game is all about atmosphere, and I would say it succeeds immensely in that regard.




Overall:

This is a great game. There is no way around it. The graphics are amazing, the characters are well-written, the story takes you places you're horrified but also thrilled to go. And mainly - it is a ton of fun to play. This is not a flawless game, however. I already mentioned the pacing issues, the repetitive combat, and the fact that I got bored from time to time. Don't expect me to give this game a perfect score because I am not going to. 

But it is still a great game. I didn't realize how all-consuming this title was, how much it had gotten into my head until I had finished playing it. My mind kept coming back to Ellie and Abby, and where they were going to go and what they were going to do next. I couldn't stop thinking about the game. I wanted more more more content from the wonderful and dark universe of The Last of Us. To me that is a sign that a game is truly a great one when it gets in your head like that.

I'm not going to say this game is flawless, but I am not going to say it's not exceptional either. And clocking in at about 25 hours or so to complete (I'm very thorough and check out EVERYTHING), I'd say it is well worth the price of admission. I plan to come back to both this game and its predecessor at some point in the next few years... maybe before part three comes out. Please let there be a part three. Hey, I can hope, right?  



Final Score:
A



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for a complete index of all of my game reviews!


Thursday, February 4, 2021

2020 Movie Ranking: #40 to #6

Onward we roll with my 2020 movie ranking. I decided it would take too much time to put a picture by each movie, so I am only adding one for the first movie on the list. You do want me to finish this, right? Sacrifices must be made. Anyway, let's go. The top 5 will be coming within the next few days/weeks/months/whenever the hell I feel like it.



#40:
Captain America: The Winter Soldier

I've come to appreciate this movie more and more the older I get, but compared to the other Marvel movies to come it is missing some of their humor and personality.


#39:
The Cable Guy
I always liked this when I was a kid and wondered why it had gotten such bad reviews. Now I know. It isn't a good movie. It is ridiculous. But I still like it.


#38:
Toy Story 3
Not my favorite Toy Story movie but still a good one. The series should have ended here, as the movie ended on a high note and would have been the perfect send-off for these characters. But no, they had to go make another movie and wreck it all!


#37:
Super 8
I like what the movie is trying to do but I feel the second half of the film couldn't match the first. It is still entertaining, but it left me expecting more.


#36:
Driving Miss Daisy
A quaint and fun little movie with a lot of heart.


#35:
Deep Impact
I don't think I will ever be able to decide which movie is better: this or Armageddon? Luckily I won't have to decide this year as I did not watch Armageddon and it won't appear on this ranking. Yay! 


#34:
The Fear of 13
One man narrates his harrowing story of being rescued from death row by DNA evidence. Even though it is just one guy talking for the whole movie, he really demands your attention and tells you a pretty good story. If you like the Netflix series I Am a Killer you will like this.


#33:
Supersize Me
Interesting documentary about what eating large portions of fast food every day does to your body.


#32:
Ant Man
A solid, funny Marvel movie. Ant Man is not my favorite character, and honestly the movie's plot isn't too interesting to me. But the humor and the awesome visual effects make this an enjoyable ride nonetheless.


#31:
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Entertaining movie to be sure as you never know what Jack Nicholson's wild card character is going to say or do. I'm not sure I see the emotional significance this movie seems to carry with some people though. Am I missing something?


#30:
Rocketman
I expected something more along the lines of Bohemian Rhapsody rather than a musical that tells most of its story through song. But it was still pretty good, and did a lot to reinvigorate my interest in Elton John and his music.


#29:
Goldeneye
My favorite Bond movie but honestly I remember it being better than this. 


#28:
The Greasy Strangler
Just really, really freaking weird. One of the weirdest things I have seen. Normally I don't like abstract movies like this but this one was just outrageous enough that it grabbed my attention in a "can't look away from the car wreck" sort of way. Not to say the movie is a car wreck. It is good, it is just.... you need to see it for yourself.


#27:
Doctor Strange
I have come to appreciate Doctor Strange recently. In the past I would have said this is one of my least favorite Marvel movies, but I really got into it this time around.


#26:
Toy Story 2
Probably the pinnacle of the Toy Story series. I liked it.


#25:
The Platform
I like the lesson this movie tries to tell. The concept is really outrageous and original, which is what drew me to it initially. It is unsettling but in a riveting way. I can't really say I had "fun" watching it, but it was certainly something different and unique.


#24:
Monster House
I had never seen this before, but it was surprisingly entertaining for adults - for a kids' movie.


#23:
Terminator Dark Fate
I am probably overrating this movie but its tone reminded me a lot of the original Terminator and T2 - which I liked. It's a fun popcorn flick and seeing how all the Terminator movies have sucked lately this was a breath of fresh air.


#22:
Star Wars: A New Hope
Great movie and I want to start a Christmas tradition now that we have a baby of watching a Star Wars movie every Christmas. We started with this one, but with his short attention span it took us like 5 days to actually finish this movie.


#21:
Me, Myself, and Irene
This is the part of the list where things are starting to get tough. I have always had a soft spot for this movie as it was something me and my first "real" girlfriend uses to watch over and over again. All these years later and I still like it.


#20:
Child's Play (2019)
You know, I expected this to be absolutely horrible and instead I came out pleasantly surprised. Obviously this will never be a Best Picture type movie but I thought it was so entertaining!


#19:
Ant-Man and the Wasp
Although I already mentioned that I wasn't a huge Ant-Man fan, I thought that its sequel was very entertaining. It is funny. The action is over-the-top with all the shrinking and expanding objects and how cleverly they are implemented. It is fast moving and colorful. It ends on a cliffhanger that ties the movie in with Infinity War and Endgame. Just really a fun movie that flies by as you are watching it. Pun intended.


#18:
Ace Ventura: Pet Detective
A movie that never gets old.


#17:
The Wicker Man
Can you believe this was my first time seeing this classic? I thought it was great. Now I need to see the Nicolas Cage version I've heard all about.


#16:
Spider-Man
I think these Tobey McGuire Spider-Man movies are a lot better than some of the movies in the MCU. The 90's-style action and jokes really make this feel like a true comic book movie.


#15:
Spider-Man 2
I had a hard time deciding which of the movies was better, but I settled on the sequel as I love Alfred Molina as Doc Oc. The action and cinematography in this movie is just so good. Both these movies as a whole have aged remarkably well. Let's just forget about the third one.


#14:
Guardians of the Galaxy
Fun movie with a great cast of characters. Really opens things up to the whole expanded universe with Thanos and the Infinity Stones and everything, so it is an essential part of MCU lore as well.


#13:
Phantasm
I've always thought this movie was mediocre, but I completely changed my mind on it upon my 2020 viewing. I love the setting and the characters and the classic 80's horror movie feel of the whole thing. The "other dimension" is something that caught my interest and has made me seriously consider checking out some of the sequels.


#12:
Thor Ragnarok
The embodiment of a great superhero movie. 


#11:
Dennis the Menace
Another one of those "can you believe he's never seen that??" type of movies. I loved it! How did I never watch this when I was a kid? I would have loved it then too. Has a very Home Alone vibe to it.


#10:
Black Panther
I've always liked this movie but for some reason I appreciated it extra this time around. Maybe because my wife and I coincidentally watched it a day or two after Chadwick Boseman died. The whole movie carried a lot more weight to it.


#9:
Star Trek
All these years since this movie has come out and I still am impressed that it is as good as it is.


#8:
The Buddy Holly Story
Who knew Gary Busey could pull off such a fantastic Buddy Holly? I was thoroughly impressed by this movie, both the acting and the music. I never knew much about Buddy Holly either so it was very informative and also made me a fan all in one fell swoop.

#7:
Green Inferno
A gory torture fest where a group of do-gooder college students travel to the rainforest to stop a destructive construction site and are captured and cannibalized by a group of hostile natives. This is a disturbing, non-PC bloodbath and I am here for every second of it.

#6:
Three Men and a Baby
A charming cast, an intriguing crime-related subplot, and a lot of really funny humor and jokes make this film a real joy to watch. Too bad I didn't care much for the sequel.



TOP 5 COMING SOON!


Wednesday, February 3, 2021

Video Game Review #253: Sly 2: Band of Thieves

Sly 2: Band of Thieves
PlayStation 2


Nostalgia Factor:

Back in the early to mid 2000s I was dating a girl that absolutely loved the Sly Cooper series. Every time a new game in the series would come out, she'd buy it immediately. I enjoyed the first game with its more traditional 3D platforming mechanics, but for whatever reason I was never very fond of its two sequels. To me, they were too slow paced and too focused on stealth mechanics and goofball conversations between the characters. I played through the games from beginning to end when they first came out - and I even replayed the entire series back in 2011. My opinion didn't change.

With that said, I didn't expect to really like Sly 2 when I played it for the third time here in 2021. But hey, sometimes a game will pleasantly surprise me. Not only did I really enjoy Sly 2, I would go so far as to say I had a great time with the game. What happened? What changed? Aside from ten years passing, I'm not sure. But I'll try to break it down for you in this review.




Story:

This game has a fairly simple story. Sly discovers that the villain from the previous game, Clockwerk, has had his mechanical body parts stolen from the museum. Sly and his sidekicks Murray and Bentley set out on a quest to retrieve these parts from the criminal organization that has stolen them. Each stage of the game takes you to an area of the world where that particular villain is hiding out with his or her respective Clockwerk part. It is up to you and your gang to pull off a series of heists that allow you to steal back the missing Clockwerk pieces one by one.

Throughout the game you are chased by Sly's nemesis Inspector Carmelita. Carmelita is betrayed by her partner, Constable Neyla, who is after the Clockwerk pieces herself. Spoiler alert: she is the big baddie at the end of the game. 

That is the super simple breakdown of the game's story, but there is more to it than that. This game is packed with all kinds of humor. Conversations with your sidekicks take place through a Metal Gear Solid codec-like screen. The villains are impressively fleshed out and have very unique and distinctive personalities - which shine through when you play their respective stages. You'll play lots of fun mini-games that really add to the world-building of this game. The world of Sly 2 is a bright, colorful place - similar to that of a Saturday morning cartoon. And that world really shines through in this game.




Gameplay:

This is where Sly 2 shines. Whether it is jumping, running, attacking, picking pockets, or latching onto objects in your environment - controls are crisp and responsive and easy to get a hang of. You should be able to pick up this game and have it figured out in no time. 

Each mission has an overworld where your gang has a safe house that they use to plot their heists. You have to select a character (either Sly, Murray, or Bentley) and enter the overworld looking for mission markers. Head to the mission marker with the appropriate character, and you begin a heist that will get you one step closer to a Clockwerk part. When in-between missions, you can explore the overworld looking for collectible bottles that lead to extra moves and abilities for your character. Or you can look for precious artifacts to bring back to the safe house, which will net you a pretty penny. Or you can run around the map pickpocketing enemies. Use the gold coins you acquire to purchase even more moves and abilities for your characters.

The missions themselves are pretty varied and fun. One thing this game is NOT is repetitive. One mission will have you dancing while you infiltrate a masquerade ball and another will have you planting bombs on a bridge that you need to destroy. Another mission will have you sneaking around taking recon photographs while another will have you trailing enemies around the overworld map in an attempt to uncover the location of their hidden base. There are missions where you steal keys, there are missions where you have to rescue your cohorts, there are missions where you have to destroy all the enemies/obstacles identified on the map, there is even a mission where you have to engage in Olympic-like winter games.

One thing that is super cool about this game is how different your three main characters are. Sly is all about jumping and agility and grabbing onto things and picking pockets, while Murray is all about bashing enemies with his brute strength. Bentley sneaks around and shoots sleeping darts at his foes, while his missions tend to focus on hacking enemy computers with Asteroids-like mini games. If you've played Nier Automata, these hacking minigames should look very familiar to you. Just remember: Sly did it first!

I haven't even mentioned the flying stages, the shooting stages, the ones where you control RC cars, the ones where you parachute from the sky, the ones where you have to carry objects around without being spotted or attacked - so on and so forth. There is SO MUCH variety to this game. Once again,  I can't really figure out why I didn't enjoy this game during my previous playthroughs.




Graphics:

The world of this game is bright, vibrant, and colorful. I already said it before, but I guess I will say it again - it is like stepping directly into the world of a Saturday morning cartoon. If you are playing an original copy of this game on a PS2, you'll find that it this game is a little dark and grainy and it shows some age. I would suggest playing the HD version of the game on the Sly Collection for the PS3 for the full, crisp graphical effect. 

Not only is the game's aesthetic enjoyable to look at, it creates a very fun atmosphere as well. There is just something about the level variety in this game and how charming that variety is. My particular favorite is the snow level. You run around in the snow dodging bears, going into caves, hitching rides on trains, and visiting warm and cozy cabins with fires blazing in the hearth. There's just something comforting about this stage. In fact, nearly every stage has something about it that gives me that warm and comforting feeling of "home." I don't know if I am just being weird or if you understand what I am talking about. I'm not sure I know how to put it into words!




Sound:

This game sounds wonderful too. The music fits the tone of the game perfectly. I love the little "spy jingles" and how they are incorporated into the game - like when you steal a key item from an enemy or sneak past someone on a ledge. The little tune that plays when you complete a mission is perfection as well. 

Voice acting is really good. Each character has such a distinctive feel, sound, and personality, and it couldn't be done without these voice actors. Just really impressive how these characters are brought to life.




Overall:

This game was such a pleasant surprise. I really had a blast playing it. I loved the story, I loved the characters, I loved the look and feel of the game, I loved its voice acting, I loved its music, I loved its mission variety. Overall, I had just a really, really good experience with this game. If I had to nitpick any flaws it would be that the game's conversations can drag on from time to time. Blah blah blah, cut the banter and just let me play! I also think that the game would have benefited from an overworld map of some kind. Finding all the bottles started to become a bit tedious after a while. It also can take an obnoxious amount of pickpocket grinding to be able to afford all the upgrades in the game - not that they are necessary to obtain by any stretch of the imagination.

I'd recommend Sly 2 to anyone even remotely interested in the 3D platforming genre. This game is just bursting with personality and gameplay variety. I have NO idea why I didn't like it that much the first few times I played it back in the day. It is a very enjoyable title. Is it perfect? No. Is it a little too scatterbrained at parts? Yeah. But it is still a lot of fun. Now that I have changed my mind on this game, I am curious to see how I will feel about its follow-up, Sly 3. I remember thinking that it was the worst game in the series, but I guess I will just have to play it and find out.


Final Score:
A-



If you liked this review, check out some of my other game reviews: