06/29/2026 - Okay I need to head the reanalysis of this game in the 2020s, because Star Wars: Dark Forces is so sick and not enough people talk about how much this game pushed the first person shooter genre forward (from what I can tell). Without the constraints of Doom's engine (preventing layered vertical level design), this game has some of the most interesting stages that I've seen in an FPS so far in this challenge. There are huge buildings with multiple stories, platforming segments (with the ability to actually jump!), hidden vents to crouch through, it's just great. This is probably the best "Doom" clone that I've played and of course it gets extra points for being an official Star Wars Doom clone. Genuinely a great game and I think I like it more than Doom 2.

06/28/2026 - Aaaaaah the original Tekken. It's cool to see this franchise's beginnings, but yeah its pretty rough. I wouldn't play this for any reason other than to appreciate the history. It is at the very least better than Virtua Fighter 1, that's probably the nicest thing I can say about it.

06/24/2026 - Mega Man 7 has been my favorite game in the classic series ever since I played through them all when I was younger close to 8 years ago. I can't really explain it, I just felt comfortable with the level design, really enjoyed the art style they went with and I don't know...it was just cozy! Replaying it all this time later for this challenge...I'm sad to say that I don't think its my favorite anymore. The levels felt shorter than normal and didn't really have any satisfying platforming. I think I used to love the fact that you can have the Rush armor, and its still so sick to have that 1v1 with Bass in your mechanized dog suits, but after playing through Mega Man 6, I think that game does that concept a bit better. I think replaying this has just given me even more appreciation for 6, and while I still had a good time, I don't think I love this game like I used to.

06/20/2026 - I really wanted to love the original Darkstalkers, the character designs are amazing and it probably has one of the coolest rosters of completely orignal characters in fighting games, but it was kinda clunky to play. The arcade mode was also hard as balls and I couldn't even great through the first 2 battles. Darkstalkers' Revenge is what the original Darkstalkers should have been. The gameplay is way more smooth, I don't feel like I'm fighting the game to try and do cool shit, and the arcade mode difficulty is actually reasonable! Honestly, if you want to start with Darkstalkers, I would start with this one. Everyone is fun to play and the character art is still best in class.

06/20/2026 - It took me a couple tries to get into Alien Soldier. The control scheme is very cumbersome and the game demand's that you master the big chicken gameplay to make any meaningful progress. Once you do, this game kinda rocks. I don't think I like it as much as Gunstar Heroes, but I was glued to the screen while playing this one.

06/19/2026 - Super breezy playthrough this one was. I was surprised how much I enjoyed my time with this one, nothing crazy but it was a fun little time. I actually liked what they did with the animal buddies and copy abilities, it was fun testing out the different combinations. Dark Matter Swordsman is also a very cool boss, so overall glad I actually finished this one!

06/18/2026 - We love Ristar don't we folks? I did not expect Ristar's "thing" to be grabbing things. How did they come up with that? I respect this game but also hate this game. I love this game but also think its stupid. Ristar is a lil' cutie. Put him in a motorized vehicle immediately.

06/14/2026 - I tried to play through Earthbound as a young lad, but I think I got lost in Onett and gave up. Since then, I've played and loved both Undertale and Deltarune, but have never fully appreciated how Earthbound influenced those games until now. Wow, what a video game. A game that gives you the warm fuzzies (pickles). Absolute joy in electronic form. It even has my favorite thing - memorable towns with cool problems to solve! This game is very special and is something I'm going to be thinking about for years to come. Rest in peace Buzz Buzz :(

06/06/2026 - I've been wanting to play this game for a while but never really got around to it, so the Switch 2 release was a perfect opportunity to finally try it! If you love the Indiana Jones films you will for sure find some enjoyment in this. It's impressive how well they adapt the style of those movies. Troy Baker's Harrison Ford impression is insane. If I had any complaints, I wish there were more linear action segments where you were free to go guns blazing. Of course you can do that whenver you want, but something about it doesn't feel that satisfying. Still an easy recommend for Indiana Jonesers.

05/30/2026 - A HIDEO KOJIMA GAME. Any slander spoken or libel printed against Kojimbo claiming he has ghost writers for Metal Gear Solid should play this game. It has a lot of the Kojima-isms that we learn to love from Metal Gear Solid. Another game that I just could not put down because of how engrossed I was in the story. The soundtrack is also pretty great. Snatchers are freaky and I hate them!

05/30/2026 - I only discovered this game by sorting by highest rated games on Backloggd per year, the character designs of the 2 girls on the cover art are what mainly caught my eye. They're pretty cool lookin....and after finally playing through the game, the whole game is pretty cool! I've tried playing different shmups in my journey but I dunno man, maybe its not my type of thing. Or is it? I beat this game didn't I? Is Star Fox a shmup? No that's an on rails shooter. Okay maybe this will be the only shmup I ever beat. Play this game!

05/30/2026 - I've been trying to play this game for years. Why is this so hard to find the rom for? I think I'm just shtewpid. Anyways, finally playing it and yeaaa this is a cool lil game. Unfortunately I technically haven't beaten this one since I accidentally closed the game without save stating. Oh well. Linn Kurosawa for Marvel vs Capcom 4.

05/30/2026 - This is one of my most anticipated games to play in my hell journey. I've heard nothing but the highest praise, claiming it's not only the best Final Fantasy game, but one of the greatest JRPGs, maybe even the greatest game? Is that true? No not exactly, but it is still a gem. This is easily the best Final Fantasy game up to this point, you can start to see the things that make modern JRPGs so appealing: an epic story, memorable characters, a fun combat and progression system. The only thing this game is missing is memorable towns! Although Zozo is pretty good.

Also, Celes might be my favorite Final Fantasy protagonist. I know Terra is the girl on the box but Celes is the true star of the show to me dammit!

04/30/2026 - I've never been one to play old janky PC games. This felt very off-putting to control especially since it released a year after Doom, one of the greatest games of all time, but I powered through. What I ended up finding was a game that I haven't stopped thinking about since I finished it. The freedom to explore is next-level, mastering the hackerman cyborg controls is super satisfying and SHODAN is maybe the best villain in gaming at this point? Still surprised that I loved this as much as I did, and it only gets better the more I think about it.

The epitome of keep mining and you'll find a diamond, it's name is System Shock.

04/30/2026 - The music made me cry. Nothing is more beautiful than a gorilla swimming through the ocean to chill beats. 10/10, one of the greatest pieces of art of all time. Oh and the game is pretty great too.

04/30/2026 - This might be the best Contra game up to this point, but I need to play more of it to concretely decide it. This series has needed more character and weapon variety and this game has that. The branching paths is a very interesting idea that I think might enhance replayability, but my main issue is this doesn't really have stages like the previous games, its more of a boss rush type-game with very short sections of fighting standard jobbers. Not sure how I feel about this? It's kinda like Gunstar Heroes in that way. I want to go back to this one before I can say its my favorite, but its easily better than Contra 3.

04/30/2026 - What is there to say that hasn't already been said about Super Metroid. It's one of the greatest games of all time. This is the first game in a long while ever since I started working full time that I sat and played non-stop for 4+ hours until I finished the game. I couldn't put the controller down, just immaculate pacing in this one. SAVE THE ANIMALS!

04/30/2026 - I wanted to love this game, but I ended up just really liking it! I think this might be the first game I've played so far in my hell journey that has like, actual side quests in the way we understand it in modern times? Pretty cool. I loved the spell combination system that they had going on, the anime-style cutscenes are super impressive and really dig the futuristic fantasy style that this series has. Unfortunately, the story was kinda a stinker and didn't keep me engrossed, with characters that are pretty standard for JRPGs of this time. Except for Alys, they could never make me hate you.

03/31/2026 - This is Tau Ceti IV dawg, you're gettin skinned. I haven't gotten this engrossed in a shooter since...I can't even remember. World class shooting which is expected of Bungie. The hate is undeserved. Please don't die Marathon 2026! It's not your fault Snoy has no clue what they're doing!

03/31/2026 - The first 2026 release beaten in 2026?!? Say it ain't so!! I got this on Switch 2 and wow is this one of the best games in the first year of the system. Overall just a joy to play through. Maybe not one of the most replayable RE games? But I would be lying if I wasn't laughing and kicking my feet every time Leon quipped. Don't even get me started on the motorcycle bit. We need Mercenaries NOW.

02/28/2026 - As part of the challenge from hell, I've played through many Castlevania titles for the first time (1-4, Rondo of Blood, a couple of Gameboy titles) and have become a bit of a fan of the series up to this point. Castelvania Bloodlines has been hyped up a little as something that might be better than Castlevania IV, a game that I did not love as much as the average AVGN-like tuber in the 2000s, so I had high hopes for this one.

I think playing Rondo before this one does it no favors, because overall I thought it was a pretty standard, formulaic, Castlevania title. Some of the locations were interesting, but overall I have a hard time remembering much of my playthrough. There isn't even any music tracks that I particularly care for, which is a sin in a series like Castlevania.

02/28/2026 - After the announcement of the sequel, this game went on sale for around $5, so I said what the hell and decided to buy it. I'm not a huge visual novel head, but I've played through a few in my time and enjoyed most of what I've played. This one was a fun time, it has an engrossing mystery and very spooky vibes that sometimes had me checking over my shoulder while playing it because I was so creeped out. I wish the curse mechanic was used more often, it seemed like it was going to be a major part of the game at the beginning, but it was never really fully realized. I've heard that the sequel improves on some of my issues with this game, so I am looking forward to trying it one day!

02/28/2026 - I got this game for Christmas and mainly wanted it because it was heralded as one of the most technically impressive Switch 2 ports when it released. I can definitely echo those sentiments, I have took a lot of screenshots while playing through this and often stopped in my tracks just to take in the scenery. It is a very pretty game, but otherwise it's pretty milquetoast. There aren't really any meaningful upgrades to your toolkit as you play through and while the open world is huge (with 4 planets to explore), the rewards you get for exploring never really amounted to anything. Eventually, I was rushing to the end just to finish it.

02/28/2026 - Riiiiiiiiiiiiiidge Raaaacerrrrrrrrrrr

02/28/2026 - Going into this one, I already knew it was one of my favorite games of all time. I've done multiple playthroughs fairly recently, notably through Sonic Origins, but maybe it would have went down after this playthrough??? Nah, this is still one of the greatest games of it's era. Easily one of the most replayable platformers released at that point, this game never really gets old to play. The soundtrack is amazing, the perfect balance between the need-for-speed and exploration design philosophies of both Sonic 2 and Sonic CD respectively, BLUEEE SPHEREEEEEEE.

This game has everything and more. Also revolutionary for it's blending of story into the gameplay which was never really done for platformers. I mean, this is still one of the most iconic stories in the series, it was even made into a movie! A must-play and probably definitely the best game on the Genesis.

01/31/2026 - Waaaaaario Laaaaaaaand. I don't have much to say about this one other than I enjoyed my time with it more than a lot of the other Gameboy games I've tried to play in my hell challenge. I'm interested to try the rest of the series at the very least, but it's so weird how big the gap is between this game and Wario Land 2. We'll see what I think of that in 2029!

01/31/2026 - Some of my favorite JRPGs are ones with memorable characters, an epic story and structured progression. Romancing Saga 2 has none of these things, yet it is somehow one of my favorite games that I have played this year. It's hard to explain why, I really shouldn't like this game, I am usually not a huge fan of the types of RPGs where you can basically do whatever you want with your player characters, especially ones that have no personality of their own, yet this game really drew me in.

I think I've come to learn that I love RPGs with memorable towns; it's so fun going to a bunch of new locations with different problems that need to be solved and that is basically all you do in this game. It was always exciting adding different regions to your kingdom and seeing the possible new classes that you get to play with, and its not always the standard mage, warrior or thief types, sometimes its a lizard man, a mole man, maybe even a big beefy eskimo.

I am very excited to try the remake - my fiance got it for me for Christmas last year! Overall one of my biggest surprises in my play-every-game-in-order-of-release journey.