I came to the conclusion that 3d Castlevania games simply do not live up to the design sensibilities of their own series. But for video-making purposes, Maximo is a pretty good substitute. The first copy I ordered even got crushed to death in transit, which is pretty on-brand. #blutoid

Gave it one solid run of NG+ as well, just to say I did. Opened some new areas, got to use a Ryu capable of dealing damage and I learned some more of how the systems work. It really is a game of nullifying barriers (money, weapons, items, skills, exp) and setting up for that perfect run. #blutoid

IMPORTANT BOOKSHELF UPDATE: Against all odds, I found a pristine "A Crack In Time" Clank plush to match my Ratchet from like 14 years ago. It only cost a fiver to boot, which I still can't believe. Can...can merch just cost a fair price? That was allowed? This entire time? #Blutoid

Dragon Quarter beaten! The endgame wasn't as tough as I thought, but I still needed to conserve a bunch of D meter. Reaching actual NG+ feels very rewarding, but the game is so slow I think I can only stomach doing one more run. Would have kicked ass to play as a teen with time. #Blutoid

NISA messed up their stock of the newest Trails game here across the pond, so I decided to to listen to the demons and aquire Ys 6 on PS2 instead. Judge me as you may. @joe-byron.bsky.social Spy Fiction was unplanned, but I just could resist it at a fair price. #blutoid

I found the limits of my D capacity fighting Cupid in the endgame, so that's one real playthrough down. Those shields are some bullshit. But I've learned the game now and stocked up on all sorts of things, so it'll be a cinch to catch back up and beat the game for real!

Ask yourself if playing a JRPG from 2002 on a CRT in the dark while dining on leftover peanuts during a sunday evening would fix you. #blutoid

Wavetale is on a 95% Steam sale in case anyone needs a palette cleanser. #blutoid

15 hours deep into my first real run with 60% meter after an early reset. Encounters are often agonizingly slow, but this game has the sauce. Every little upgrade feels well-earned and the transformation lets them get away with some complete bullshit bosses with no nearby save points. #blutoid

I'm working through my backlog of Nightreign quickplays while trying to write the script for my Ys 1 & 2 video and I continue to be impressed with the absolute cinema I manage to pick out for my thumbnails. Except, if you zoom this one out, it looks like one head got the spray bottle. #blutoid

It has taken literal years to free up the space, but now I have a proper pair of bookshelves for all my games! #blutoid

My first impressions of Dragon Quarter are really good! I managed to get past the train scene without dying, but it was extremely clutch. The combination of real-time trap-laying and turn-based combat makes for some tense exploration. You have to spend all you got and pray for success. #blutoid

One of life's great pleasures is finding a PS2 JRPG in $CURRENT_YEAR for less than what you think it'd cost. Wish we could have more of that in this insane aftermarket. I'll keep you updated on my progress, @weltalltales.bsky.social #blutoid

As a compromise for not streaming me another Yakuza game (bartering what to stream between us is a bit of a thing at this point), I convinced a friend to watch the Yakuza stage play with me. Absolutely amazing adaptation. Has just enough goofy shit and some good fights to boot. #blutoid

Had some terrible luck in Nightreign today. Got matched with people wanting to do their quests above all and then led two expeditions to their doom by not being efficient enough navigating the DLC map. But this last one, we cleared out the main map and fought to the last against Balancers #Blutoid

All right, Nintendo. It may have taken a decade of beta-testing to work up enough games, me becoming a Youtuber, an impending From Soft exclusive and the threat of an impending price hike of disastrous proportions, but you got me. Not a purchase that sparks joy, but it's done. #Blutoid

Okay, to actually talk about the game, Super Zangyura is a remake of the 2004 doujin game which still retains that awesome vibe. Despite being a Castlevania clone, it's more puzzle focused and has 3 very distinct difficulty modes. I felt done after hard mode. It took me 572 lives! #Blutoid

It's important to begin the year with some mature gaming. #Blutoid

!BACKLOG AT RISK! #blutoid

Ninja Blade marks the end of both 2025 and my 360 ninja marathon. It's kind of amazing of non-From Soft this game feels. It's almost like a parody of 7th gen games. QTEs everywhere, green-gray colour scheme, brainless combat, recycled bosses and tons of turret sequences. Kinda incredible. #Blutoid

The holidays gave me the opportunity to play some more Nikoderiko in couch-coop and we managed to beat it! Overall, it stands above a lot of indie platformers even if the UI screams cheap mobile game. It doesn't reach the heights of the genre, but it's brimming with fun gimmicks. #Blutoid

The theme of this year's Steam Holiday Sale is "Bulk up on PC versions of games for potential video material". Also picked up the Castlevania clone Super Zangyura on PS4. Never really played classic Tomb Raider and this seems like the time to do it. #Blutoid

Looking through the prices of a Switch 2 and some accessories is a trying challenge. But I think I need to take the chance now while I have Christmas money. Any advice before I seal the deal? #blutoid

I played through the demo for the next Trails game and what I found so delightful is how Falcom tries to get you back in. Not with big explosions, but by giving people a wardrobe refresh, some new moves and an extended sequence for small talk between characters who haven't met before. #Blutoid

Update: The nonsense hit critical mass and I beat the game. Overall, the puzzles here felt pretty uneven, leaning on easier than before save for a few. I like most of the plot, but it sure is 35 hours of repetitive and confusing setup to get there. Pretty elegant, hack writing aside. #Blutoid

Why is Yaiba? Never in my life have I played a game that can best be described as "Video Game-Ass Video Game (Derogatory)". It's a borderline comedy-shaped sleep-aid that ellicits no emotions outside of mounting frustration. Keiji Inafune's influence borders on a curse. #Blutoid

JESUS CAR-FUCKING CHRIST, 7th GEN HAS NEVER BEEN MORE DIRE. Vanilla Ninja Gaiden 3 feels like the elongated corpse of an E3 demo made exclusively to trick journalists into writing a positive preview. It's boneless, sauceless and almost laughably easy. It's a wonder it even shipped! #Blutoid

Imma just brand myself a heretic and say that Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor's Edge is the best in the trilogy. It's fast as hell, focused on humanoid encounters and Steel On Bone makes it so it you're not spamming Izuna Drop every single second. Still has some awful crap in it, but it's a real rush.

The Pragmata demo is some solid fun. The visuals are clean and the hacking mixed with close-quarters shooting feels pretty refreshing. It strikes me as pretty simplistic, but very polished. #Blutoid

The FreeLC for Expedition 33 certainly balances the Whee with the Whoo. It's absolutely delightful, but also filled with game design even more vile than what could be found in the pre-existing postgame. I can't deal with this. #blutoid

I went a bit overboard putting in a training montage in today's Ys 2 let's play episode (video here: youtu.be/e-vZXxTq_A8), but that alongside translating the Roones was totally worth it. These guys have good tase! #Blutoid

RPGs are fun. Please ignore the other 10 in my stack of backlog games. #blutoid #PSNwrapup

From Software's netcode remains a magical thing. #Blutoid #Nightreign

Forget combat prowess, the Nightreign DLC tests your ability to use your eyes in a productive manner and navigate this godforsaken map. I might be cooked. #Blutoid

I thought it was a shame that Falcom never did a proper "fanservice" Ys game where you get to return to Esteria, but it turns out that Ys IV: Dawn of Ys is that exact game! They cap off the Turbografx "trilogy" so well and it just left me so warm and fuzzy. Props to the fandubbers too. #Blutoid

@occams.bsky.social #blutoid

Started playing Ys IV: The Dawn of Ys (delightful so far) and stumbled upon this great argument for clear, shameless, musical theft while looking into it. Such a good "remix" of Yngwie Malmsteen's Far Beyond The Sun. #Blutoid

I am one note page deep into Virtue's Last Reward and have learned to expect the unexpected when it comes to robots and the colour of planetary bodies. The nonsense has yet to hit critical mass however, no matter my opinion on how much bigger bigger circles are meant to look. #Blutoid

Here's the physical half. Was hoping for better deals on Ninja Gaiden 4 and Silent Hill f, but there are always other games to fill the spot. Shoutout to Lego Horizon Adventures for bombing so hard it reached a level of 2013-esque clearance sales that's borderline nostalgic. #Blutoid

As a sideventure between Ys 1 & 2 in my let's play of Chronicles+, I put together a supercut of Ys 1 on Turbografx to show off the differences. Spoilers: It's full of goons. #Blutoid

Consider me baffled. The original Ninja Gaiden 2 is like a Kaizo mod made by a rogue dev from an alpha build of Sigma 2. This "finished" version is more polished, but the difficulty has been smoothed down into a frictionless sphere. No wonder I forgot 90% of it. Onto Ninja Gaiden 3RE... #Blutoid

As part one of my Black Friday aquisitions, I'm focusing the digital side on feeding my malnourished Xbox Series S. Here's to you, Xbox 360. Let's see how much I was missing out. #Blutoid

Ninja Gaiden 2 has the sauce and is much better than Black/Sigma. They mostly remembered what the combat system is built for, but there's still some 30% crap in there they should have cut. Camera's also still bad, but there are multiple good bosses! Now to replay Sigma 2 for comparison. #Blutoid

Me finally getting to experience the joy of the unfiltered Ninja Gaiden 2 staircase on my $300 Xbox after the game recycled the first boss 8 times, had me fight worms and pillbugs in acid pools and threw in some nerfed Ghost Fish for the hell of it, all in the same mission: #Blutoid

Happy to see UltiZero live long enough to add a Bloody Palace mode to Lost Soul Aside. Comes with a Style Meter and everything. #Blutoid

I found it within my abilities to reach up to ELO Hell in Nightreign. Deep of Night is a fun mode when it's this "easy", but I don't think I have it in me to ascend further into the Ball-Crushing Factory. #Blutoid

Having gone through Ys 1 & 2 on Turbografx CD for video material, I decided to play through that version of Ys III as well. Absolutely delightful experience, much leaner than Felghana even. There's something about the gleeful whimsy of 90s anime games that draws me in every time. #Blutoid

Current status: #Blutoid

I am now equipped to become the world's foremost expert on Game Republic. Fear me? #Blutoid