First off a big thanks to GROLAF and CRUNCHFEST for sending me a copy of codex mortis its greatly appreciated let’s dive in. First off this game according to there steam page is 100% made by A.I and when I saw this i wasnt sure how to feel but I decided to give it a […]
Codex Mortis
Hasn’t everybody wanted to be a superhero at least once in there lives? Raz has big dreams of becoming a Psychonaut, even going so far as to sneak into the Whispering Heights Camp for young Psychonauts in training. He was only a few days at the camp before his parents come for him, leaving him precious time to master his powers and uncover a dark mystery threatening the campers and instructors and maybe even the world. Will Raz rise to the occasion?
If any game deserved a modern day facelift or remake, it’s this precious gem. I absolutely love the insane mix of shockingly deep psychological storytelling and dark humor in a pretty complex and creative platformer. This game is a giant acid trip and I love it. Raz is a interesting kid amongst other weird, funny, tragic, or damn creepy characters- seriously the Milkman creeped me out more than most modern horror monsters. The worldbuilding is fantastic and I was really invested in the lore. It was so cool being able to jump into other characters brains, exploring entirely new universes, including bosses.
Unfortunately this game has some deep drawbacks. While extremely creative, that partially leads to how obtuse a lot of the goals and pathfinding are. Way to often I found myself relying on walkthroughs, scratching my head when seeing where I was supposed to go or what the hell I needed. Another big issue I had was items cost too damn much. In the Milkman section, if you don’t have a certain tool, get ready for the game to come to a stop and you have to grind to afford it. The powers are a mixed bag but when they are a blast, they are awesome.
In the end, I highly recommend it but I urge you to stay patient. Originally this game came from PS2/ original X Box era so a lot of the modern gaming comforts aren’t there, and like all platformers, there’s going to be some frustration. Stick around and you will be rewarded with a cool world of memorable characters and one of the most unique games I might’ve ever played. May the gaming gods bring you glory.
Remember when you got hyped seeing the iconic headline “A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away,” followed by the legendary boom of John William’s score that promised adventure, new worlds, and the unforgettable yet simple clash of good vs evil? Depressed yet? I went back to the good old days to experience a classic (before the dark times, before the real Empire came) for the first time.
We play as Jaden, one of many young force sensitives on our way to Luke Skywalker’s Jedi Academy. As an upcoming Jedi, we go across the galaxy in various missions fighting the last remnants of the Empire as well as the looming threat of a Sith cult trying to revive a ancient god-level, forging our own path as either a Guardian of peace or weapon of the dark side. What will you choose?
I’ve lost lost count how many people have told me either Academy or Jedi Outcast were their favorite Star Wars games and honestly, I can see why. The game is peak Star Wars in so many ways, full of the characters, weapons, locations and music we love. The story isn’t too complicated but effective with diverging paths I appreciated for some replayability. Most of the gameplay holds up remarkably well in places. The FPS features hold up very well and combining guns with force powers can be a blast at time. The saber combat definitely takes some getting used to but it does become intoxicating once you do. Academy and Outcast walked so Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order could run. I do also appreciate you getting to customize not only your lightsaber but your style, whether single, dual wield, or double bladed (I went green and orange dual wield).
Unfortunately, this game does show its age in many ways. The game has some really unpredictable difficulty spikes. There’s moments towards the end that pissed me off because dirty enemy placement, obtuse pathfinding, or bullshit environmental deaths. You’d better get used to manually saving because their are checkpoints, but they’re sporadic and sometimes dying means a hell of a fall back and a long stretch of progress gone. Younger gamers will also hate that there’s no map, waypoints, autosaves, tutorials, and a loose reminder of your current objective. There’s one mission though that absolutely killed the entire game for me- the damn speeder bike mission. It’s nearly unplayable. The bike is nearly uncontrollable, the game clips out between speed and slow- mo, there’s a jump that killed me too many times. I almost rage-quit the whole game because of that one level alone.
In the end, Jedi Academy is a fun blast from the past for Star Wars fans. A nice reminder of better times, before the era of the Mouse set in. It definitely has it’s faults and shows its 20+ year age but with patience, a little help from Youtube, and your favorite booze for that damn speeder bike level, you’ll get through. I recommend picking it up for a good time overall. May the Force be with you and the gaming gods bring you glory.
During an exploration on the moon, a strange object was found. A space dumpster. Inside the long sealed empress of evil, Rita Repulsa, is unleashed to conquer Earth. Zordon, an ancient alien wizard, and his trusty robot servant Alpha 5 spring into action. Zordon has Alpha find five teenagers with attitude from the nearby city of Angel Grove. Jason, Zack, Trini, Billy, and Kimberly were chosen to become the Power Rangers, the only heroes mighty enough to stop the forces of evil…
If you grew up as a 90’s kid as Savior and I did, this show is peak nostaglia as you can get. Fighting, monsters, a colorful giant robot fighting said giant monsters- what else can any kid ask for? Hell, I was a Power Ranger for Halloween the years I wasn’t Batman. The first season with the classic 6 rangers is lightning in a bottle. The core 6 had good chemistry and for the first 60-episode season, it is it cool seeing the characters grow. For example, Billy starts as a weak, stereotypical nerd who gradually becomes the team’s tech wizard as well as a competent, confident fighter. The show’s structure is aligned with self-contained episodes but the multi-part arcs are some of the show’s highlights. The evil Green Ranger arc that introduces the legendary Tommy into the group is still awesome all these years later. The original Zords are iconic: the Mastodon, Triceratops, Pterodactyl, Sabre-Tooth Tiger, Tyrannosaurus, and the Dragon Zord. The theme is one of my all-time favorites and I still smile each time I hear it; the music all around kicks ass.
Like many show’s there’s some dull episodes here and there. Because of the use of Japanese footage, there is quite a bit of repetition to the Ranger and Zord scenes. This show looks goofy and over the top, but to a charming degree. A couple of times in the first season, plotlines do repeat, just slightly altered. As a kid I remember thinking Bulk and Skull, the comic relief bullies, were annoying, and they are, but they grew on me. Rita is a goofball villain with a shrill voice and neither her or her lackeys are competent, but damn if it isn’t funny.
In the end, Power Rangers is a fun, goofy, kids show but it’s still plenty of fun. Whether you’re riffing it with friends, or getting hyped whenever you hear “It’s Morphin Time!”, the first season of Power Rangers is a good, light-hearted time in our dreary world I recommend. May the power protect you.
What do a rundown hotel, a blind woman, a bleak old painting, and a brainwave machine have in common? Eliza is in the midst of renovating the old, dilapidated 7 Gates Hotel in Louisiana when strange things begin to happen. Dangerous, deadly accidents and the appearance of a mysterious blind woman named Emily, who is seeking Eliza. Her message is clear: leave the hotel. Desperate, Eliza refuses only to discover the true horror of the hotel- it was built on one of the seven gates to Hell itself.
A long time ago I talked about House by the Cemetary , the third part of Fulci’s Gates of Hell trilogy. The Beyond is the middle entry, the most renowned of the trilogy, and for damn good reason. The Beyond is just short of a horror masterpiece. The cinematography is both breathtaking and uncanny, which makes you feel unsettled throughout. The music is haunting and even operatic, compounding the surrealness of the whole movie. The gore is absolutely disgusting without ever feeling comedically overboard. The english dub is pretty good, but I do give the actors a lot of credit; their expressions add to the terror. While I deeply love the movie, their’s some flaws that make you scratch you’re head and don’t make sense. Eliza knows someone, somehow you never see her interact with; the one dude might be possessed or something and randomly vanishes at the end; clearly fake spiders on string at one point. The movie isn’t perfect but it is pretty ambiguous with some reality-bending. The ending is bleak as hell and a perfect fit. The Beyond ain’t for everyone- the gore alone will deter a lot of people- but I seriously recommend this Italian horror classic. May the gaming gods bring you glory.
How in the hell did we get a sequel? Normally, I’d start with a synopsis, but truth be told, there isn’t much of one. Marshall and Washington reunite begrudgingly to take on a new syndicate and Tommy Wiseau. I just explained the movie and saved you a lot of boredom.
Samurai Cop 2 misses a lot of what made the first great. There is bad acting and garish effects but nothing that reaches into the legendary WTF territory as the first. The pacing is atrocious. Halfway through Savior and I kept asking when it would be over. Tommy Wiseau was…Tommy Wiseau and though he’s the final villain, he is too annoying to be funny. There are a lot of callbacks that don’t go anywhere. In the end , forget this movie exists and stay with the original. May the gaming gods bring you glory.
When the violent Katana Gang goes too far, it’s up to 2 mispaired cops to bring them down: the laid back Frank Washington and his partner Joe Marshall, the Samurai Cop, trained in Japan… ok let’s stop there.
Samurai Cop absolutely earned its legendary status in B movie culture. It’s got everything a bad movie can ask for: Godzilla-style dubbing, random sex scenes, hilariously bad fight scenes, WTF dialogue, porno level level line deliveries and hair that is clearly a wig. This movie is a laugh riot that thankfully doesn’t try to take itself seriously. Savior and I had a blast reciting lines from it between laughing our asses off at the bad fights and the mankini scenes. There’s not much to say for this Lethal Weapon knock off except it’s a damn fun time with friends that lives up to B movie legend. May the gaming gods bring you glory.
Vito Scarletta and his best friend Joe are out to make a name for themselves in 1940’s Empire City. Both grew up poor, witnessing the destitution of the Great Depression and the riches of the made men in there midsts. After Vito returns from WW2, he finds himself getting involved with a local mob head only to be sent to prison. After a shortened sentence him and Joe are back at with a new family, new opportunities and a bright future. But at what cost?
I have a weird relationship with this series that I mostly love. 2 is actually the final game of the trilogy I played, the 3rd and least loved game being my first foray into the series, then the 1st, and now 2, which many have told me is the series’s peak. In many ways, I can see why.
The game, like the other two, is great at making you feel like you’re in the time period from the clothes, to the cars, to the guns. I will warn you, there are some raunchy scenes and a fair bit of racism involved, understandable given the time period. I loved Vito’s story and I was invested in the other characters. The driving feels solid and I do appreciate being able to tune up and customize your cars as well as save them in your garages. The gunplay is solid and challenging at points, sometimes too challenging. Sometimes I’ve died out of nowhere and the checkpoints can be unmerciful as the later, more intense missions come out. The fighting damn right annoyed the hell out of me and I tried avoiding it whenever possible. The police can be a major pain in the ass, either forgetting you exist instantly or clinging to you like herpes over the dumbest crap- I had to outrun them once for 15 minutes straight just because I checked my guns on the sidewalk. In the end, Mafia 2 is a damn good game despite some annoyances and some harmless bugs but well worth checking out. May the gaming gods bring you glory.
So Caleb is a good-looking country guy working on his dad’s farm with his little brother, living the typical boring farmhand life. When he and a buddy go into the city looking for chicks, beer, and a good time, Caleb finds it. Mae is hot, quirky, and likes Caleb a lot…so much she nearly bites his throat out getting some hanky panky. Understandably Caleb freaks out and heads back home, bleeding out and feeling his skin burn the closer morning comes. Before he can reach his home, he’s snatched by a gang layered in thick blankets who speed off with Caleb in an RV with all blacked out windows. Odd. Turns out Mae is part of a nomadic gang of anarchist vampires, feeding and raising hell by night while laying low come dawn. Caleb is drawn between his budding love for Mae and the comradery he begins slowly forging with the maniacs but is he willing to destroy his soul for love and immortality?
Ok, this movie is a gem and I’m utterly pissed its a pain in the ass to find. There’s some legal rights dispute bullshit with it so finding it physically is going to cost you a hell of a penny, and streaming is a headache. I found it on Tubi- once- after trying for over a decade to track it down.
If you loved Aliens the gang will look extremely familiar; Henrickson, Goldstein, and Paxton did Near Dark right after Aliens actually. Bill Paxton (RIP) steals the show as a menacing, hilarious, and awesome villain. The acting all around is great. I love that the movie is a terrific balance between a western and a horror movie. I weirdly found many themes from Twilight as far as Caleb’s pathos when he has to fight the cravings to keep his humanity, just obviously much better and effectively done, reminding me much of Kaneke’s arc in Tokyo Ghoul (season 1) . I do like how they came up with a clever means to a happy, albeit badass ending. In the end, I implore you to go find Near Dark and experience this super underrated, near-forgotten gem for yourselves. May the gaming gods bring you glory Mr Pig Knuckle.
X-Out: Resurfaced was sent to me by ININ Games a company you all know I love for their ability to bring games from the past to the modern era. (seriously if you guys are listening, The Guardian Legend is begging you for an update) and once again they have nailed this one. If you enjoyed the original don’t think, just go pick this one up. It is worth the $20.
The game itself is a typical side-scrolling shooter straight from the Amiga days of computer shooters. You get some money, build a submarine, start on the left-hand side of the screen, move to the right avoiding bullets and enemies, and use assorted powerups and bullets of your own to make your way to the boss.
The game is beautiful and easy to control. Also, no game has pissed me off this badly since, actually, I don’t know when. BloodBorne review maybe, and I have beat Dark Souls 2 and Elden Ring since then. The game is not easy, and it is hard in the best way possible. There are no cheap deaths here. It is all skill, or lack of skill that will kill you. If you can’t “git gud” as they say, look up the cheat codes. Yes, those exist, just like the good old days. When ININ brought this bad boy from the past they left those intact.
This game isn’t for everyone, it is hard and it is a niche genre of game from a niche time in gaming. But for the people who love that period, it is a must-have for your collection. 9/10, best wishes and may the gaming gods bring you glory.
Savior Gaming 