Finished: January 1st. Platform: Dreamcast. Time: 5h:11m:51s. Rating: 6/10

Not bad exactly. Plays quite well, level and boss design is solid, and while I think the music is pretty unremarkable and never warmed to the style of the character sprites, it's really very polished for an indie Dreamcast game. But unfortunately there's a disappointing lack of effort to knit the levels into a cohesive whole. The story is nonexistent, and the dialogue consists of largely unfunny one off gags. And it leads to a game that feels startlingly devoid of heart for a passion project on old hardware. It's competent, but really comes off as little more than a cheap knockoff of Shantae, and is mostly just interesting for the novelty of it being on the Dreamcast. And it's such a shame to say that of such a high effort homebrew title that could have been so much more.

Finished: January 3rd. Platform: Dreamcast. Time: 13h:47m:22s. Rating: 7/10

Do I think this is a great game? Absolutely not. The camera is barely functional (and this was in the Japanese version, which is meant to be better!), and the weapon targeting is total trash. But man if I didn't love it anyway. From the goofy plot to the hugely fun characters and setting and the genuinely funny (both intentionally and not) script, the whole game is like that so-bad-it's-good B-movie that you find yourself rewatching over and over simply because it's so danged fun.

It's also incredibly forgiving for a survival horror, allowing you to purchase unlimited ammo and healing items, so even the frustration tends to be short-lived. Were it not for a pretty weak final third, this would be an absolute cult classic for me. But I still had a great time. Will probably revisit from time to time at Christmas!

Finished: January 10th. Platform: Xbox. Time: 8h:51m:28s. Rating: 9/10

Gunplay here is so satisfying even in the modern era. There's a real snappiness to confrontations, with most fights being over in a matter of seconds when executed well, but even basic enemies still feeling incredibly dangerous if not managed carefully. And while it's hard to tell just how seriously you're supposed to take the story and its overwrought dialogue, I think that's a big part of the charm, and the way that it straddles parody and sincere homage to Hong Kong action movies and film noir is a lot of fun, especially with the cheesy yet totally endearing use of real Remedy staff for the characters. Not the deepest game and does grow a little repetitive by the end, but has a really infectious student film energy to it that I enjoyed a great deal.

Finished: January 11th. Platform: Dreamcast. Time: 17h:18m:14s. Rating: 8/10

Pretty great action RPG that shouldn't be as forgotten as it is. Absolutely gorgeous hand-drawn maps, good music, fun dungeon design, and a pretty cool wee story, even if I think it would've benefitted from more time with its main characters. The basic attack is a little too stubby for my liking, though, and the fact that continuing after losing to a boss respawns you with so little health feels like it creates unnecessary grinding. The 3D boss fights are also very hit and miss. When they work they're kind of fun jank and an interesting way to mix up the gameplay. But a few are obnoxiously spongy, and one in particular is absolute misery and I hated every moment of it. Still, I liked this a whole lot, and it really is quite impressive for a lower budget title.

Finished: January 14th. Platform: Dreamcast. Time: 14h:29m:02s. Rating: 8/10

A really fun ride with enough charm to just about paper over its rough edges. Super cool and delightfully daft setting and story, and feels like a mashup of so many 80s sci-fi classics. And fuses elements of Resident Evil and Metal Gear Solid into something really pretty fun despite some bugs and general jank. Soundtrack is also incredible and lifts the game's cinematic presentation enormously. Some story beats feel really anticlimactic though, and the bike is pure trash and tying progression to it at some points is actual madness. Would be closer to a 7 on PS2 where these sorts of cinematic adventures are much more common. But getting to play something of this scope and ambition on the Dreamcast was really quite special. And I really did have a great time.

Finished: January 21st. Platform: Dreamcast. Time: 22h:09m:13s. Rating: 9/10

For better or worse, this is a very faithful 3D adaptation of the Ecco series. And like the classic games, it's one that I think is polarising, with some very player-hostile level design, and an almost exhaustingly oppressive atmosphere. But if you did enjoy classic Ecco, this is an absolutely beautiful and extremely ambitious sequel, and for me one of the most memorable games on the Dreamcast. Levels are so imaginative, and no two are the same. Graphics are still stunning, and Tim Follin's music is majestic. And while the story is wild even by Ecco standards, I found it completely enchanting and hard to put down. The camera often lets the game down, as do the many clumsy bugs. But I think this is really quite special for all its frustrations, and I won't soon forget it.

Finished: January 25th. Platform: Gamecube. Time: 9h:04m:21s. Rating: 6/10

Astoundingly beautiful for a Gamecube launch title. The Star Wars license is also really well used, combat is solid, and when the missions hit (The Battle of Endor!) they really hit. But if I'm totally honest, I found the bulk of the game frustrating more than fun. Mission objectives are dreadfully explained, game is very tough in a clumsy and frequently unfun way, and I felt there were so many little design decisions that conspired to make the game less of a joy than it ought to have been. While it's not saddled with the wonky motion controls and terrible performance of Lair, I honestly don't think the rest of the game is really much better than that one was. And while I didn't hate Lair, that's not what I expected from such a critically acclaimed title. Very underwhelmed.

Finished: March 31st. Platform: Xbox. Time: 16h:59m:47s. Rating: 6/10

Cute and creative game that is more interesting than the throwaway mascot platformer that I expected. And musically and visually very nice. But sadly far too rough around the edges to be more than a curiosity. Difficulty ramps up to almost absurd levels by the end, and between unreliable aiming, a very poor camera, and some exremely rough level design late game that routinely drops you into tiny areas full of enemies and hazards, it's just not polished enough to stop some of the later challenges from feeling cheap, stressful, and more frustrating than enticing. If you're willing to push through a lot (and I mean a lot) of cheap deaths late game, there's quite a lot to like here, and I found myself sort of charmed by the game despite its problems. But it's a rough ride.

Finished: April 17th. Platform: Xbox. Time: 15h:54m:51s. Rating: 8/10

Enormously fun shooter with one foot in the 90s and another in more contemporary FPS design. Level design is outstanding and packed with fun secrets, difficulty is beautifully tuned, story is delightfully silly, and weapons are all super-fun, even if some of them are markedly more useful than others. Xbox port is also highly competent and still a great way to play the game, especially on CRT. Boss fights are all rubbish though, and the extra levels added to the Xbox port are unnecessary and little more than a glorified tutorial. The game's final few levels are also pretty weak, and make for a pretty disappointing end to a fantastic campaign. Otherwise a great time though, and an easy recommend to anyone who likes classic FPS.

Finished: June 30th. Platform: Xbox. Time: 12h:38m:08s. Rating: 7/10

Sorceress. Pretty decent little hack and slash for quite an early Xbox title. Still looks great, with nice models and beautiful water. And combat feels solid and is quite good fun despite the enemies being as stupid as bricks. Story is rubbish though, and it feels like a lot more work went into chapter one than the rest. And for a hack and slash game, the range of loot and gear available is really disappointing. Dungeons are very empty, and when you do find treasure boxes, they often just have gold when there isn't even that much to buy. Holds the game back quite a bit for me, and I think in some ways it's a less interesting game than even the first Diablo, much less contemporaries like Diablo 2 and Dungeon Siege. Still, not a bad way to spend ten hours or so if you like D&D and Diablo.

Finished: July 4th. Platform: Playstation 2. Time: 48h:35m:20s. Rating: 8/10

The black sheep of the series, but I thought it was actually pretty great. It shares some of SH2's weaknesses, with poor pacing early on, and a fusion of goofy humour and horror that doesn't always work. But I think I slightly preferred it on the whole. The humour landed better for me without the burden of being a direct sequel to the much more serious first game, and the combat builds on SH2's ideas with several big new additions and a much higher level of challenge, turning the battle system into one of the best I've ever played. It's also a very pretty game like its predecessor, and the story is relatively simple but really quite fun, with some quite memorable villains. For me, this is a fitting sendoff for a terrific series and one of the better RPGs in the PS2's exceptional lineup.

Finished: August 9th. Platform: Playstation 2. Time: 13h:13m:27s. Rating: 8/10

I really liked this one! It's a very chill game where not a huge amount happens. You go explore shipwrecks, salvage some junk, chat to some NPCs, occasionally buy a new piece of gear... But there's a really pleasant, hypnotic rhythm to it all, and I think the level design still holds up very well, particularly for the large and incredibly atmospheric tanker ship in the mid game. I think the story could have been a little bit better - there's the outline of something fun and some quite appealing NPCs, but it feels a bit rudimentary. And while I think the sparse use of musical cues in the diving segments is a wise choice, the parts where it does play are so effective that I wanted just a little more to set the scene at points. But I had a great time and will definitely play the sequel.

Finished: August 28th. Platform: Playstation 2. Time: 11h:42m:31s. Rating: 8/10

Incredibly stylish and frenetic action game with an unbelievably cool protagonist. Boppin' tunes, and the deceptively simple central mechanic of racking up damage bonuses on small enemies to deliver punishing one hit KOs to bigger foes is extremely well-designed and never stops feeling exciting. Not as difficult as I had heard either, and I found it a really satisfying and fair challenge. The one exception is the rancid final boss who took me like three hours of attempts to beat. An unfortunate low point to end the game on. And there are some other rough edges like the poor lock-on and barebones level design. Stlll, I enjoyed the rest so much that I would gladly go back to replay this one. Perhaps not the most complex or polished PS2 action game, but it has the juice.

Finished: September 14th. Platform: Playstation 2. Time: 11h:44m:43s. Rating: 7/10

The "create your own monster" system is just as fun, robust and well-realised as in the first title, but takes on a new dimension when you actually get to play as the creatures. And while it's a pretty rudimentary action RPG with a poor framerate and camera, even the very basic platforming and combat on offer here is such an enormous improvement over the terrible rock-paper-scissors battles of the original. The Mitsuda soundtrack is lovely too - one of his weaker works, but still such a perfect complement to the game's whimsical tone. And while the game is lacking a little of the Ghibli charm that the first one had, the silly, playful dialogue is often quite funny. Still a creative tool first and a game second, but a much, much better attempt than the first game.

Finished: September 19th. Platform: Xbox. Time: 9h:49m:30s. Rating: 7/10

Between a strange, inverted difficulty curve, the sky-high learning curve attached to the game's unusual control scheme, and the boring, unimaginative mission design, it's not often that a game makes as poor a first impression as this one, and I hated it through a few of the earlier stages. But give it time, and you'll find it does start to come together. The controls become second nature and really don't feel like any other game I've played, and the movement is some of the best and most fun of any 3D action game ever made. The music and atmosphere are also sort of a vibe, even if the story is mostly just a series of text logs and feels completely unfinished. So by the end, I had warmed to this quite a bit. I wish the level design was as expressive and creative as the movement, but I really did warm to the sense of mastery and skill that the game conveys once it really starts to click.

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One from my wall of shame - I got it for Christmas one year in the 2000s, played a huge chunk of it over my Christmas holidays, and then never went back to it again. It's a shame, too, as it's a series I like and as far as I remember this one is an easy contender for best game in the series. So it's time to finally clear it.

I played and enjoyed Bimini Run on the Mega Drive in early 2024 and found myself really wanting to see a more modern take on a similar formula. And this looks pretty close in many ways! It's also another weird little exclusive for the original Xbox, a platform full of similar weird little exclusives. You love to see it.

The developer of this got the gig on the back of Cross Tantei Monogatari, which I played on the Saturn back in about 2015. And while I think it had one extremely nasty plot beat that soured me on the game quite a bit, it was otherwise fantastic, and is still a game I think back to often. So I've been interested in this for a while. And while I've never played a game in the Jinguuji Saburou series before, this one is meant to be good, and seemed like a nice place to start.

I played Infection in 2022, Mutation in 2023, Outbreak in 2024, and Quarantine in 2025. I may as well keep this most leisurely of series playthroughs going by stepping into the first game in the sequel trilogy in 2026.