jbmasta

The scene of Sora and Riku in the Realm of Darkness at the conclusion of II, sitting on the beach with nowhere else to go and nothing to do but talk. Riku showing his character development in that he's let go of the ambition and jealousy that nearly cost him everything, the two reaffirming their friendship. It makes it all the more satisfying when Kairi's letter gives them the means to go home, Riku accompanying Sora at the latter's insistence, to what could easily work as the last scene in the franchise as they reunite with the characters they've been looking for and formed close bonds with over the last year. The prerendered animation makes the scene even better to watch.

Tron Uprising. Given the franchise ends at Legacy for the time being, using a Argon City in a post-Legacy setting has lots of potential in bringing closure to the characters from the show, restoring Tron and a story that explores what the Grid is like without Clu or any presence of Flynn. Maybe the story involves finding a mass back up to restore the reprogramed Programs Clu intended to use as foot soldiers, or someone like Dyson, Tesler, Pavel or Cyrus rising to fill the power vacuum. Imagine a Grid city with the scale of San Fransokyo you can move around and in and interact with. If the player character has admin privileges part of the interaction could involve changing the local area, making doors etc.

358/2 Days and re:coded. Out of the Xehanort or Dark Seeker Saga they are the only ones not available as proper games on current gen hardware, and despite being overlooked, and in the case of re:coded overhated, are genuinely good games that work better as games than as cinematics. The other Dark Seeker Saga games are available through the HD collections and are still very playable with graphics and gameplay that hold up in 2022.

For the very most part he's a fair critic, acknowledging what works and what doesn't without being too sensationalist or going for the low hanging fruit, actually critiquing what he's watching and why it's good or bad instead of ranting at it. He's not afraid to share his opinion, rather than run with the crowd. It definitely stands up well compared to things like CinemaSins, which are so bad they need Birdman to balance out the nitpicking, irrelevant pop culture references, lack of comprehension for onscreen things and various other ways to pad out the sin count and runtime. Doug acknowledges when he's not the target demographic but reckons if the target demographic will enjoy it, like in the Kingdom Hearts video. This is a much better approach than reviewers who say because they don't like it something sucks. He's played 2 and 3 on stream, not the non-numbered titles though, so those will come up this month if you like his Disneycember style reviews.

Doug Walker, aka the Nostalgia Critic, covers the first game to kick off Disneycember https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=feTgpBj6IGc

Haven't seen Encanto so no spoilers please. Moana would be ideal for that, and in a way the character works as a parallel to Sora and Riku.

Onward for the mix of the fantastical and urban, and the perfect opportunity for another form change. Some of the elements from the film, like the size change spell, have plenty of scope for exploration and puzzle solving (manipulating objects in the environment or the player character themselves growing or shrinking, creating more opportunities for opponents like the biker pixies) and Ian as a party member is a given. He and Donald would get on like a house with Firaga cast on it as they both specialise in magic.

Space Paranoids certainly has a unique look and soundscape, but the Grid has more areas to explore and makes use of flow motion slide lines to help with this. The reality shift is great for immersion in the digital setting, and some of the areas recreated from the movie look really good, like the stairs to the portal. The tracks for the Grid have a very Daft Punk vibe to them It's a shame Flynn's refuge isn't somewhere you can go, as they had to render it for the cutscene explaining about Flynn's disc anyway. For bosses, the MCP is definitely memorable, but Rinzler is memorable too, tying back to Space Paranoids (Sora briefly having his Space Paranoids outfit and performing the actions he used back with Tron's limit to try restore him) and the reverse gravity gimmick being from the movie and an added factor in the boss fight combat. While the Commantis final boss isn't anything to write home about, the way it appears in Riku's first major challenge in the world is a nice touch similarly to how Frollo summoned Wargoyle to menace Riku in La Cite Des Cloche prior to the boss fight.

Using Sonic Rave while in Limit Form (use the shortcuts menu to see the Limit Form exclusive attacks) is invaluable, and knowing what you can block is essential. If you have MP restoring items equipped, you can get in more rounds of Sonic Rave. Sonic Rave also gives you i frames (invincibility for the duration basically).

I think Atlantica is overhated. In KH1 it's optional unless you're seeking to do everything or at least all story for all the worlds. Once you're used to the swimming mechanics it makes full use of the 3D environment without resorting to platforming like other worlds do. It does suffer from the game lacking an inset map though. In KH2 it contributes nothing to the main plot, no Heartless, Nobodies or Organisation stuff. Again, it's only necessary for completionists or those who want to synthesise the Ultima Weapon. The minigame itself is enjoyable and the songs are bops, and the way they're unlocked paces out the world if you're doing them as they become available. As KH3 has honed swimming controls while keeping combat, a potential future Atlantica world with an original story perhaps giving Ursula's crazy sister Morgana a better showing than Return to the Sea did, and having land maps as well. To be honest I want to see a world really embrace swimming as an exploration mechanic like the Caribbean did, and the controls can be used for flying as well.

The vine swinging is Deep Jungle is infuriating. I bet Hippo Lagoon is one of the most hated areas in the whole series for how many times players have fallen down into it.

In Birth by Sleep, I find Terra the most interesting of the three protagonists because he's the one with the most fleshed out arc. He's a young man wanting to prove himself, but also grappling with something anathema to the values of the people closest to him so he can't talk to anyone. His fears are proven true when Eraqus fails him in the Mark of Mastery Exam because he's got Darkness issues (likely exacerbated by Eraqus's own strong anti-Darkness creed). Terra has been given no reason to suspect Xehanort is dodgy, and Xehanort is the first person to show Terra perceived respect, and this is the guy who played Eraqus so don't give Terra grief for falling for his story. To Terra's credit he takes the Disney villains with a pinch of salt, investigating their claims before making a final decision, which for the most part has him acting against them. He shows remorse for taking Aurora's heart and after the battle with Braig stops looking to Darkness as a form of power because of how uncontrollable it is for him. His final boss in the Coliseum is the Darkness infused Zack because Terra refused it from Hades. Terra's storyline in the second half of his story is taking the steps to wanting to reaffirm the friendship he took for granted, and fights Eraqus because Ven's life is on the line (and Xehanort has been economical with the actuality of the background with the X-Blade). Terra wants to atone for what he did to Eraqus, he doesn't hide or justify his actions. He wants to show his friends he's seen the error of his ways, but it's Aqua who fails here, leading to over a decade before a happy reunion. Terra is the most proactive of the three, even if he's playing to Xehanort's tune half the time. He's the one who leaves the Land of Departure initially, causing Ven to follow him and Aqua to observe Terra and retrieve Ven. Terra is the one who starts most of the Disney world storylines, making decisions for himself and going against the World Order by getting involved by choice.

I always take leaks with a hefty pinch of sea salt

Final Fantasy XV is definitely not mash attack to win, even if you overlevel. When you're levelled in the mid-seventies you still need to be weary of level 44 Magitek Assassins, and even then you may need to replenish your health.

The irony of Final Form, which is obtained by Sora reconciling with Roxas, being levelled up by defeating Nobodies, is delicious.