Raven's Top 1,000 Video Games Ranked[backloggd.com]
Raven's 2025 Video Games Ranked[www.backloggd.com]

'Absolum' is a beat em up game that satisfied my every need. If it wasn't for E33, Hades 2 and Hollowknight: Silksong being up there for my GOTY, this might've went in there! With the visuals and art design looking beautiful and stunning in the world view, it also had very detailed drawn art and great animation that will have you hooked from start to finish through the different runs. The soundtrack is a vibe and it lowkey made each run so much fun! Not only was the visuals the highlight, but the gameplay this beat em up provided was fast paced with great combat and balancing out the classical beat em up formula with its roguelike aspects. It did get a little repetitive with the multiple runs that you needed to 100% the campaign, yet I still came back to having fun with the game! Due to the whole premise adding a lot of replayability into the mix. With each run you do, you choose different paths to unlock new story missions and on top of that playing with each of the 4 characters and upgrading your character that makes each run rather fun. Speaking about the characters; each of the 4 characters feel unique and have their own combat, combos and feeling towards them. Cider, Brome and Galandra were by far my favorite characters to use! Everything else this game had was well delivered, well made and honestly there wasn't something that didn't have high quality! Like even the sound design was awesome and all the voice actors did a great job! Each of their performances with the dialogue brought theses characters to life alongside making you feel immersed with its story and overall characters.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3613760385

From start to finish you will not want to put the controller down! Because the gameplay is not only fast paced like I stated beforehand, but it's satisfying and combo focused. With the game also featuring the 'boons' type system like hades, with it giving you special items and things to use throughout each run, making it a little easier compared to not using theses items. The combat mechanics were well deleierved in the sense of having both the dodge and grab mechanics work pretty well. The combo itself is focused a lot on combo's, the higher combo's you get and increasing the score on your combo, will basically make you more powerful and overall satisfied while killing off the enemies. Luckily if you get bored of one character's combos, skills and attacks, you can always switch between the other 3 characters, who all bring in other unique skills and special moves! In this sense, it makes all four characters rather unique in their own way. It's nice to have a game that brings in different variety of enemies, rather then the same enemies over and over... Hence meaning, you will be FORCED to adapt to each new enemy you fight throughout each run. With the animation being fluid and combat having well delivered feed back, this just makes the moves a lot more easier to land and feel awesome while doing so!

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3611627383

Conclusion
A very solid beat em up that balances its classical beat em up formula with roguelite mechanics. The visuals, animation, gameplay, sound design and voice acting were all well executed and everything this game offered was nothing more then high quality! So I can not recommend this game enough! Because it is fun and it offers replayability, with the map branching paths on each run and having 4 unique characters to play as!

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3611628341

Overall 'Absolum' is a game that I would recommend to everyone! Doesn't matter if you don't like beat em ups cause you will for sure have fun with this game. The gameplay is fun, the animation and visuals are fluid as hell, all four characters are unique and have their own combo's and fighting styles, lastly the production provides such high quality traits that is worth the money!

Raven's Top 1,000 Video Games Ranked[backloggd.com]
Raven's 2025 Video Games Ranked[www.backloggd.com]
Ninja Gaiden Games Ranked[backloggd.com]

Ninja Gaiden 4 may of had a story that was not only forgettable but weak considered to the other strong points that this game had, along with enemies that got pretty repetitive during later levels and the world design being nothing special. It did have some beautiful viewpoints on certain parts of each levels, but I just found each of the levels to feel pretty forgettable once you reached the end of the game. Thus having the world design feel kind of repetitive in a way, just like how the game would of benefited a lot more with way more enemy types then it had. Some of the boss fights were alright, some felt bland, to be honest. Both of the Ryu fights were pretty cool! Along with both of the final fights between The Dark Dragon! I forgot to mention that there were so many damn combo's and skills during this game. This just made it feel kind of overwhelming with the amount of combo's that I had to remember, which I ended up remembering both and this wasn't an issue later on during the game.

However, the combat system, graphics, optimization and engaging gameplay really made up for the weaknesses that I mentioned beforehand. The combat system is very fast paced to the point of always keeping your attention despite the enemies feeling repetitive, and you even have different type of weapons that come with cool skills and finishing moves! Not to mention the fast paced gameplay also feels immersive to the point of getting you into it's core combat system and leaving you always satisfied with each kill that you get via combo's! The gameplay keeps you on your feet with engagement, all throughout the game. Not only is the core combat satisfying, super fun and making you want more, but how much gore there is between each kill makes it even better! Even with the gameplay itself being pretty simple to pick up, makes it easier for newer people of the NG franchise to come in and enjoy the game without needing to worry! Even the action itself IS VERY fast paced and it will leave you so damn satisfied with each kill that you get.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3591521561

Whilst the story was OKAY for the time being, it just didn't really serve anything worth remembering. As much as I wanted to enjoy the game's story, I just couldn't and I found its narrative to be forgettable, along with the cutscenes not really drawing me into its story telling. This is where the gameplay and combat really carried! I thought the whole concept of unleashing The Dark Dragon was kind of cool though! Since Ryu had previously sealed the Dark Dragon, but it could not be destroyed in the same way. Which led to Ryu assisting Yakumo in defeating the resurrected Dark Dragon, and this whole part of Yakumo vs the Dark Dragon was a dope final battle! Having Seori on this journey with Yakumo provided some cool dynamics between the 2 later on in the story! Seeing the different bosses that Yakumo had to defeat to unlock each seal to unleash The Dark Dragon was cool and all, but the narrative wasn't anything special and I did like how Ryu was basically the antagonist to Yakumo and then becomes an ally closer towards the end of the game, to help Yakumo defeat The Dark Dragon. Ryu was the antagonist due to him believing that it was too dangerous to revive the Dark Dragon, since he was the one who sealed it off in the first place; 7 years prior. Then comes around to the idea, later on in the game.

The world and levels could've been executed a lot better, as well. Like don't get me wrong, there were some beautiful viewpoints in each of the levels, but most of the time it just suffered from the same thing that the lack of varied enemies did... Each of the levels just had repetitive environments, that would've benefited a lot more if the locations had a lot more variety towards them along with more enemy variety. It would've actually worked in the games favour, to be fair. This really felt like the only complaint I had, even the story and narrative had better impact.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3591520945

I can't give the combat system and gameplay enough praise! Since it really took this game to the next level despite the story and narrative being OKAY and forgettable. The core combat system manages to draw you in within the first 20 minutes of the game and it keeps you in that engaged state all throughout its story! Even though the enemies do get repetitive with there not being enough variety, the gameplay and combat system manages to keep you hooked rather then having it fall flat due to the repetitiveness in the same variety enemy types. That's how well executed both of theses things were. Not to mention the gameplay itself is fairly easy for newer fans of the Ninja Gaiden franchise! You can pick up the game and automatically get used to its gameplay and combat system, that's how straightforward it is! However, I do think there were way too many combo's with each of the weapons. This made me somewhat overwhelmed, due to the combo's being the same for each weapon, it wasn't that hard to remember each of the combo triggers, so that's a plus. It just took me some time to get used to all the combo's.

The new protagonist of this franchise; Yakumo, was an okay protagonist. He isn't better then Ryu but still fairly alright! He is basically your emo boy that is a badass Ninja with some aggressive moments when he got pissed off at a boss during their fight. It was nice having Ryu in this game too! Their first collide was pretty cool. When you get to FINALLY play as Ryu, I felt more nostalgic then anything... Doesn't help that we basically replayed the SAME levels, but this time around it was 7 years prior with defeating THE same bosses as we did with Yakumo. It was still super fun defeating theses same bosses as Ryu and replaying this levels, due to his style being more badass and I just love using Ryu's combo's a lot more! Ayane had some cameo time during the story as well. Yakumo and Seori ended up gaining some good dynamics as the story went on. You could see how tough her death was for Yakumo.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3596705906

Conclusion
This game may not live up to the standard of Ninja Gaiden Black, but it's still a decent and fun entry towards the NG franchise! It's my 2nd favorite Ninja Gaiden game out of the others and I really had a lot of fun with this game! Even though the story could've been done a lot better, enemies could've had more variety and the world design could've looked a lot better then it did... I was still satisfied with how great the combat system, gameplay, graphics and optimization was! I even enjoyed my time playing as our new protagonist; Yakumo then playing as Ryu during the later portion of the story. If we are truly being honest here though, the gameplay, combat system and optimization really carried this game... Still, the story was enjoyable for the time being despite it being forgettable and weaker compared to the positives that this game had! Just wish there were more enemy variety during this game, since lot of the enemies got repetitive kind of fast and the world design could've looked a lot better as well. There were some beautiful viewpoints in each of the levels though! Just felt forgettable.

Overall 'Ninja Gaiden 4' is a great entry for both newcomers and veterans of the Ninja Gaiden franchise! With the gameplay having enough depth for experts of the franchise and also having the combat system being really easy to pick up and learn for newcomers of the franchise! This game basically benefits everyone who wants to pick up this game and play it..

Raven's 2025 Video Games Ranked

Review After 100% Achievements. Approximate amount of time to platinum/100% in achievements 40-60 hours; It all depends on if you are a decent soulslike player or not! Since the expert difficulty is a challenge along with the 3 phase ozma final fight! It took me 41 hours.

I bought this game on launch and ended up grinding it till the very end then took a 4 month break due to the Ozma 3 phase final boss fight giving me a headache. It was hard and it was challenging, especially on expert difficulty. So I decided to come back today and after 2 hours or so back playing this game, I finally defeated Ozma! His 3 phase fight was a challenge to say the least! Since you get the ozma 3 phase if you do certain things for the true Berserker ending. This has to be my favourite soulslike released this year to be honest, alongside; AI LIMIT and Wuchang Fallen Feathers! The gameplay is fun and the story while forgettable was engaging for the time spent playing through this game.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3538746461

"The First Berserker: Khazan" is a solid entry towards the soulslike genre! With well executed combat and satisfying gameplay. While the story is engaging for the time spent playing through the game, it does get forgettable once you finish the game and after you have a few months break from the game just like I did. This is not to say the story wasn't good since it was decent enough to keep me engaged but it's just rather forgettable once you finish the game or have a break and come back to it. The boss fights were also well designed and executed. Each boss fight felt not only unique but it felt like each of the bosses had their own "aesthetic" going for themselves. Along with each of the boss fights being; visually stunning, colorful and well designed despite some of their moves getting a little repetitive, typical for a soulslike though. You could clearly see that the creators did put a lot of passion and creativity into the designs of each boss fight! The animation style and graphics were well also well executed and I loved how this felt like an "anime soulslike" which I really fell in love with! Especially since I am a massive weeb.

The story does provide the engagement factor while playing through the game, it just ended up feeling rather forgettable once I got towards the end and with taking a few months off from the game. But from the time being spent playing through the game it was engaging and I did love it's story telling, just wish it wasn't as forgettable as it was! With the story showing us that Khazan was once a celebrated general of the Pell Los Empire but got betrayed and exiled was an intriguing plot for me. And seeing each boss fight uncover more and more of what actually happened to Khazan had me engaged and curious to see what happened next with each boss that we met. Like I stated beforehand though, after coming back to this game the story was rather forgettable and I think it's fine for the time being spent playing through the game!

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3538746050

The gameplay, combat and boss fights truly carried this game, since the story is mostly forgettable. With it being well executed and providing gameplay that felt satisfying with the anime themed type animation. I ended up playing a spear built and it was truly fun! It also has a difficulty lowering setting for people that weren't good at soulslike games. With each boss fight each providing some uniqueness with each fight and you can clearly see that the developers of this game ended up putting a lot of effort, passion and creativity into each boss and their character design! My favourite boss fights; Blade Pnantom, Rangkus, Trokka, Bellerian, Princess Ilyna, Reese and 3 phase Ozma. The Ozma fight carries though! He was the BEST boss fight during the game and the developers really COOKED with his 3 phase!

There is only really 3 achievements that WILL be difficult for people that aren't that good at soulslike games. The 2 acheivements are; "The Expert’s Journey - Beating the game on Expert difficulty." "Standing Alone - Reached the ending without summoning a Spirit of Advocacy." And "THE FIRST BERSERKER - Basically the TRUE ending" And I say The First Berserker achievement being hard due to ozma having a 3rd phase instead of 2 phases. But the rest of the achievements are pretty easy besides the 3 that I just mentioned!

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3538745870

Conclusion
I really enjoyed the time I spent with this game despite the ozma 3 phase making me have a few months break before beating him! And the story being mostly forgettable once I returned. The rest of the game was great and it became my favourite soulslike that released this year along with; AI LIMIT and Wuchang Fallen Feathers! The combat was well executed, the gameplay was satisfying, the boss fights were well designed, and the animation/visuals looked great! Just wish the story was a little better though! But hey, it's a souslike after all so least it tried with an alright story that has it's engagement factor for the time you spend playing through the game!

Overall "The First Berserker: Khazan" was a fun entry towards the souslike genre! I would suggest it to not only souslike players but also people that aren't into the soulslike genre, since the game is fun and it does favour itself to nooby players with it's difficulty lowering setting! And not to mention any weeb will automatically love this game!

Review After 100% Achievements. Approximate amount of time to platinum/100% in achievements 10 hours; you can do it in less if you skip all of the cutscenes! It took me 12 hours.

Ended up finishing this game off with 100% achievements awhile ago, so thought I'd post my review about this game! Since I came back to this game after a year or so after finishing the main story... Yes, I know but least I am returned since I wanted to get all the achievements and I had 4 left. I ended up getting them and now the game is 100%! Very fun game not only in story wise but also gameplay, character and achievement wise as well! This game ran beautifully on my PC and this game on ultra settings look so beautiful with the visuals, colours and effects.

"Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart" is just another enjoyable and entertaining game added into the Ratchet and Clank franchise. With the story being enjoyable, fun and the writing felt like it got more watered down to match more of the family friendly genre for kids. The villain was cool, he was giving off such Disney villain vibes and the end boss fight was hectic! Beautiful visuals, effects, coloring and you can get some nice photo mode shoots in this as well!

Story wise I feel like with each new ratchet and clank insomniac keeps on getting more family friendly compared to the older Ratchet and Clank games. The dialogue in this felt like the dialogue you would see in older Disney films with how family friend it was. Nonetheless, I still think the story, writing and script for this game is very well done and it's super fun with the villain reminding me of a Disney villain with the vibe he was giving off. The game does take itself a little too seriously at times and I don't mind that with the villain having that cool mix added into it. it's just sad that this franchise is kind of loosing itself to more kid friendly viewership, with the writing becoming more and more family friendly.

The gameplay carries this game by a mile and I feel like it's the main star in the game. You would think that this would get repetitive around the halfway point just like other Ratchet and Clank games? But it doesn't. It adds in newer mechanics ie; Rocket Boosts, dodging and few other mechanics, not to mention they added newer guns in this as well. The new guns I weren't a fan of, most were useless, had some weird effects and felt like they made it just for the kids who play the game... Least you get a few laughs out of some of the silly weapons though! It was nice to see a new character being added into the game; Vivet. I really liked her and her design was badass! The chemistry between her and Ratchet was cool.

Overall "Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart" is a fun enjoyable game that feels like it has gotten more friendly family in the sense of writing compared to the other games. The story is cool, the boss fights are dope and the end boss fight is just insanity! With the game having stunning visuals, effects, coloring and adding in a new character called "Vivet" which is a very lovable character!