I am super excited for Backlaugust this year! I have mostly cleared the decks, though there is a game that will just cross the finish line tomorrow. I have been focusing on playing new releases as they come out instead of putting them at the back of the queue. To that end I am planning to play Rhythm Heaven Groove and Splatoon Raiders this month. I also got the switch 2 version of Xenoblade and as much as I want to play that now, it would really hurt my stats. Plenty of other games lined up that I will talk about as I get to them. Time to put Star Fox multiplayer on hold and just focus 8).
So, I guess I’ll count my first finish, as I was up until 12:00 am last night closing it out: I just completed a “good ending” run of UNSIGHTED, which I had not done previously. This involves a late-game quest and new boss fights that are particularly brutal. I won’t lie- I did kick on “Explorer Mode” for additional stamina and more forgiving combat, as the game’s reliance on perfect parries and additional mobs in the final boss phase were a bit too much for me to handle. I have no qualms in admitting this.
I’ll circle back to my initial rating of the game in my own thread, but to be honest, I doubt it will change much.There’s some post game features that make the whole thing even more appealing from a NG+ perspective, and some extra modes that unlock as well (roguelike dungeon crawler mode?! Completely unnecessary but amazing) that make this easily one of the best top-down Metroidvanias (maybe also a Zelda-like?) I’ve ever played.
Might pick this one up, myself. It's on sale on PSN right now for $8. Concerned about the game's description referencing a time limit, though. I don't generally enjoy speedruns.If its any consolation, the game features a variety of ways to extend the time limit, and there are quality of life features that allow you to remove the time limit mechanic entirely. The "Good" ending even involves resetting the game's clock entirely, so that you don't have to worry about any of that stuff.
Late to the party as usual, but I am ready to get put up on the leaderboards. I rolled credits on Splatoon Raiders on Switch 2 yesterday. I mostly just moved through the main campaign and it took me about 11 hours. For folks not aware of the game it is like the single player campaigns in the mainline Splatoon games with a few exceptions. One difference is the focus on the gameplay from the Salmon Run. The other is the way the multiplayer is handled. You get one member of Deep Cut as an NPC companion on your team and you can request help from others online. I got stuck on some of the final levels since I was a little under leveled and it actually worked great to have some randos come help me. You can of course volunteer to help others as well though I didn't try it. Overall the game was really fun and I liked it more than the single player modes in the 3 mainline games. There is still plenty to do and I will probably come back and complete it some day.(https://i.imgur.com/YS8iT7f.jpeg)
2. Kill swarms of enemies under a strict time limit.
2. Kill swarms of enemies under a strict time limit.
I was not a big fan of the time limits. I understand the need for them in Salmon Run, but they were too restricting here. I actually didn't upgrade my health at all until the very end and only really failed missions because of the time limits. I think the power ups could have been a little better too, they really didn't seem to make much of a difference. It was the classic, 5% increase in this area that you don't really notice.
Hey all, long-time lurker, first-time (in ages) poster. Can I get in on this?
Hey all, long-time lurker, first-time (in ages) poster. Can I get in on this?
I don't know... Someone being such a big fan of Mop it up seems like a giant red flag.... But I guess if you're also a raging alcoholic that it sort of balances things out.
Sooooo...
(https://media.tenor.com/UT_Rl_XMIM4AAAAM/saddle-up-partner-dumb-and-dumber.gif)
Hey all, long-time lurker, first-time (in ages) poster. Can I get in on this? :D I'm making an attempt to complete OG Hollow Knight. I played it long ago but never quite finished it. I'd like to get through all of it including the DLC if possible.
I 100%'d Silksong earlier this year, including steel soul/heart, and had a great time doing it, so feel like it's time to check the original off the list.
Anyone is welcome to contribute at any time during the month. The main goal here is to get people talking on the forums.
Hey all, long-time lurker, first-time (in ages) poster. Can I get in on this? :D I'm making an attempt to complete OG Hollow Knight. I played it long ago but never quite finished it. I'd like to get through all of it including the DLC if possible.It's nice to see that my number-one fan has finally returned!
This is going to seem a little random, and it is, but I might as well toss this one onto the finished pile: Sonic and the Black Knight for the Wii.
Just to preface this a little bit: my mate Terra has been wanting me to play more Sonic games for a while, so it's something I've been doing on and off this year. I bought Black Knight a long time ago from the Wii bargain bin and never opened it, so this was my first time cracking open the sealing on this bad boy. This one is... a bit of a headscratcher, I guess they really didn't know what to do with Sonic for a while. I did like the presentation, such as the medieval setting and the storybook-style cutscenes, and it's a Sonic game so of course it's got some good music. However, the gameplay systems struggle to complement each other: swinging the sword brings Sonic to a stop, and there's a meter that builds up from defeating enemies which charges up a "bullet-time" like power that slows things to an even further crawl. The extra characters that unlock towards the end of the game all feel slower and clunkier than Sonic, so they just make the game harder. It was enough for me to roll credits (the second time, or "true ending" if you prefer), there are some bonus missions and of course rankings for each level, but I'm not interested.
Don't be surprised if I end up reporting back with some more Sonic games before the month is through...
I'm probably gonna go for quality over quantity this time.
This is going to seem a little random, and it is, but I might as well toss this one onto the finished pile: Sonic and the Black Knight for the Wii.
This one is... a bit of a headscratcher, I guess they really didn't know what to do with Sonic for a while.
After failing to do much of anything the past two Backlaugusts, I have completed a game. Banjo-Kazooie on the N64 online app. I find it in a weird place though because playing and finishing it there doesn't exactly take it off my backlog since I've got the actual N64 cartridge but have never played it before. This was my first time doing it so in that sense it does take off my backlog in life as I'm now able to say I've played and finished it but it doesn't come off the actual list I do keep on my Backloggery page (https://www.backloggery.com/khushrenada). But I'm definitely glad I played it this way thanks to save-state use and abuse. I'm not sure I want to play this game without that feature as the last couple levels could be pretty tough to get all those notes with dying and having to start over and that last boss was such a pain to complete near the end with its constant fireball spells. Maybe I'll get to the actual cartridge copy sometime for a harder experience but for now I'm glad to be done with it as the game lost some of its appeal for me near the end. I got more thoughts on it but for now I want to do less typing and more game completeing.
Well now! So much for me being able to take some nights off after work and sleep, since Khush is making a serious push on the leaderboard! ;)
Still, I will persevere: I intend to just start over Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown and give it a fair shot
For what it's worth, the 360 and Rare Replay versions of Banjo-Kazooie have some quality of life updates like notes always being saved when you collect them, so you don't have to collect them all over again when you die. Those versions are much easier and much less tedious to 100%.
So much for me being able to take some nights off after work and sleep, since Khush is making a serious push on the leaderboard! ;)
I've spent several years playing mostly smaller indie titles, but felt the need for something a bit more substantial. I had gotten Persona 3: Reload for $35 earlier this year - I liked Persona 5 a lot but not enough for repeat playthroughs like many of my friends had. Practically the same combat, though the gun-to-the-head Persona summoning is a little jarring at first (and my teenage son made a point to mention it). The music's more poppy/hip hop sensibilities are a nice departure from the very jazzy P5, though I prefer that game's soundtrack. S.E.E.S. are kind of dull compared to the Phantom Thieves - the way you're thrust into this group without much explanation or reasoning feels different when you're being directed by a few upperclassmen & an adult. The cast of characters so far is fine. None of them grate me, but I also haven't really attached to any of them?
In spite of the griping, I am enjoying the game. It's new (to me) Persona which is what I was looking for. We'll see how I feel once I get farther into the second half of the game.
Maybe, but it seems I'm already straying from that mindset anyway with these Sonic games.I'm probably gonna go for quality over quantity this time.Sounds like someone has forgotten what Backlaugust is all about! :P Ain't gonna climb no leaderboards with that attitude. ;)
So much for the quality over quantity mission statement. ZING!Ha, yeah, I was gonna say... Welp, I s'pose there's no reason for me to be commenting anymore.
I've spent several years playing mostly smaller indie titles, but felt the need for something a bit more substantial. I had gotten Persona 3: Reload for $35 earlier this year - I liked Persona 5 a lot but not enough for repeat playthroughs like many of my friends had. Practically the same combat, though the gun-to-the-head Persona summoning is a little jarring at first (and my teenage son made a point to mention it). The music's more poppy/hip hop sensibilities are a nice departure from the very jazzy P5, though I prefer that game's soundtrack. S.E.E.S. are kind of dull compared to the Phantom Thieves - the way you're thrust into this group without much explanation or reasoning feels different when you're being directed by a few upperclassmen & an adult. The cast of characters so far is fine. None of them grate me, but I also haven't really attached to any of them?
In spite of the griping, I am enjoying the game. It's new (to me) Persona which is what I was looking for. We'll see how I feel once I get farther into the second half of the game.
By contrast, P3 is my 2nd-favorite Persona game (behind P4 vanilla, of course) and you'll see why in the game's 2nd half. It's the only Persona game where actual character development happens outside of social links.
I found P5 to be incredibly average, even with the Royal additions. The Phantom Thieves needed Strikers to become particularly interesting, especially Haru.
Like it or not I'm back again, now with Sonic Origins completed for the Switch! And I've gotta... go fast!
I've played Sonic 1, 2, and 3 before, but not CD and the "& Knuckles" add-on to 3, so this seemed like a good form for those two. I went through the "story mode" of the game that strings together all of the titles as one continuous experience, which still includes any opening and ending scenes the games might have had, plus a few new shorts to connect everything together in a way that attempts but fails to help make things more comprehensible.
Sonic 1 posed less trouble that I remember, or maybe I'm just used to it by now. Sonic CD is slotted next for some reason even though it released later, and I'm not exactly sure what this game was going for. With past, present, and future versions of each stage, it often becomes a big maze with an unclear path of progression, but at least it isn't difficult. The bosses are hilarious however. Sonic 2 is the one I'm most familiar with since it's the one we had, though I'm used to playing it in two-player which makes the bosses and bonus stages easier. I had played Sonic 3 just once before so didn't remember much about it, and the "& Knuckles" stages were new to me. It's a good thing this mode offers infinite lives as these games have a nasty tendency to feature an end-game boss gauntlet with no rings available.
And may I just say, the bonus stages in Sonic games have always been terrible.
I may not say it?
Oops.
How exactly should all this be counted, anyway? Does this count as a Sonic CD completion, or would I need to play that as a separate entity to include it? Is "Sonic & Knuckles" its own game, or part of Sonic 3? Eesh, Sonic really is such a mess!
I bought the GTA Definitive edition trilogy for like less than $20.
It's been fun. And I got it well past the point where it was a buggy mess with a lot of broken stuff. Though I have seen some floating trees. And I lament some missing soundtrack pieces and the ability to make your own radio station on the pc version.
I beat Vice City, which I give an 8.5/10
and I'm 60-70ish percent through San Andreas which I also give an 8.5/10 so far.
Last Summer I played through Red Dead Redemption 1 and I give that one a 9/10
I am halfway through Undead Nightmare, but haven't touched it since last summer.
I also give Red Dead Redemption 2 a 9.5/10.
I got GTAIV too on mu backlog. I played a little bit of it before switching to Vice City.
So, I've almost played through all the major Rockstar games.
I bought the GTA Definitive edition trilogy for like less than $20.
It's been fun. And I got it well past the point where it was a buggy mess with a lot of broken stuff. Though I have seen some floating trees. And I lament some missing soundtrack pieces and the ability to make your own radio station on the pc version.
I beat Vice City, which I give an 8.5/10
and I'm 60-70ish percent through San Andreas which I also give an 8.5/10 so far.
Last Summer I played through Red Dead Redemption 1 and I give that one a 9/10
I am halfway through Undead Nightmare, but haven't touched it since last summer.
I also give Red Dead Redemption 2 a 9.5/10.
I got GTAIV too on mu backlog. I played a little bit of it before switching to Vice City.
So, I've almost played through all the major Rockstar games.
Just checking, but am I reading correctly that Vice City was the only game of this list that you completed this month so far?
I'm starting to think I won't even stand a chance against Broodwars in this competition. Makes me think his hosting of this thread is a bit self-fulfilling.
I've come to realize that I don't tend to grab lots of short games, and when I want a short game, it takes a very specific sort of combination of elements for me to really enjoy it. Let us observe Evan Bee's latest acquisitions and marvel at his strange tastes.
For what it's worth, the 360 and Rare Replay versions of Banjo-Kazooie have some quality of life updates like notes always being saved when you collect them, so you don't have to collect them all over again when you die. Those versions are much easier and much less tedious to 100%.
Well now! So much for me being able to take some nights off after work and sleep, since Khush is making a serious push on the leaderboard! ;)
Now I was able to roll credits on Disney's Illusion Island on Switch. I have playing this coop with my partner throughout the summer and was glad we could finish it this month to help pad my numbers. This is a Metroidvania where you cannot attack, only avoid enemies. You can choose the difficulty by choosing how many hearts you have, anywhere from 1 to unlimited. The game is quite generous with checkpoints ultimately quite easy. I think the art style was what sold me, it really is a pretty game. It only takes about 8 hours so it is funny it took us so long to finish.
(https://i.imgur.com/so9MvA9.jpeg)
Currently in the midst of playing a collection of really fucking bad games, so took a bit of a break to catch up on the PS5 version of a game I've previously enjoyed: Carrion
Note: Due to the PSN protest going on for the next week, that means my PS devices will be logged out of my PSN account, so no images on any new games I may post about. Well, at least not high-quality ones. I have my phone. It also means any trophies I post about won't be reflected on my PS account for the next week.
You still have 16 games to use topad your scoreclear your backlog, which I have to be honest I don't think I'm going to be able to overcome by the end of the month. :D
I noticed you've often posted pictures of the games you've played and never really thought anything about it. Just that it seemed like you were doing your own mini-review and including some shots of the game for that. However, on reading this, I realize that you were also posting to show a trophy and sort of prove that you beat/finished the game. Never thought about screenshots or proof before like that with Backlaugust. I've always accepted it as a word of honor premise. Plus, it's always been a hassle to make screenshots or photos from a game to a post on the forums that I'd rather just not bother. I don't know if it is something that people should do moving forward in future events when participating in this but it's something I'll probably look into particularly if I'm going to put in a challenge for the leaderboard like I am this year.
This is definitely the last Backlaugust where I'm going to make an active effort to chase the Top Spot. It's a fun novelty and it's definitely lead to me playing some stuff I wouldn't have gotten around to for a very long time (and other stuff I have no earthly idea when or why I bought it), but it does mean I'm actively avoiding playing longer stuff I would otherwise be playing.
Elea is ....
BULL...****.
I bought the GTA Definitive edition trilogy for like less than $20.
It's been fun. And I got it well past the point where it was a buggy mess with a lot of broken stuff. Though I have seen some floating trees. And I lament some missing soundtrack pieces and the ability to make your own radio station on the pc version.
I beat Vice City, which I give an 8.5/10
and I'm 60-70ish percent through San Andreas which I also give an 8.5/10 so far.
Last Summer I played through Red Dead Redemption 1 and I give that one a 9/10
I am halfway through Undead Nightmare, but haven't touched it since last summer.
I also give Red Dead Redemption 2 a 9.5/10.
I got GTAIV too on mu backlog. I played a little bit of it before switching to Vice City.
So, I've almost played through all the major Rockstar games.
Just checking, but am I reading correctly that Vice City was the only game of this list that you completed this month so far?
Back again now with Sonic the Hedgehog 2 for Game Gear, which I believe is also a port of the Master System version. And I've gotta... puke! This is easily the most difficult Sonic game I've tried, and not in any way that a sane person would dream up; they must have really been worried about people beating this one as a rental! I appreciate that they needed some gimmicks to make this stand out from Genesis Sonic 2, but the janky minecarts and hang gliders were not the play. One of the final levels is a stretch of pick-a-pipe which often have spike pits waiting at the end of incorrect choices, long before Mario Maker made it cool. Full disclosure, I had to abuse the mop outta save states to make it through this one, I don't think there's any way I could beat it legitimately. I'll leave it up to the panel of judges here if it should count. Also, I'm preeeeeetty sure that the devs mistook Tails for being a girl...
Full disclosure, I had to abuse the mop outta save states to make it through this one, I don't think there's any way I could beat it legitimately. I'll leave it up to the panel of judges here if it should count.
Well, after work, went to the movies and saw The End of Oak Street. And then I came up home and wrapped up another game. Khush can't stop!
What Remains of Edith Finch - I've been semi-aware of this game for years. I'd seen a lot of positive reviews about it but never really read up on what it was about. Constantly would see it on sale on the eShop. For whatever reason, I decided to finally get it on a recent sale a couple months ago. My take from the screenshots I'd seen of it was that it seemed like a possible point and click adventure in which you go through an abandoned house to solve a mystery which, for some reason, I thought was the case of a missing person called Edith Finch. That's not really what this game is. In fact, it really stretches the definition of a game. Sort of like how Phoenix Wright is sometimes referred to more a visual novel, to me WROEF is more like an interactive movie. Or maybe a theme park ride or museum tour. There's very little gaming to be done. You're mostly just moving the main character along a linear path and being given their thoughts on this journey as well as encountering some stories/histories of the people who lived in the house which often have a brief gameplay element tied to them but I wouldn't really call much of that gameplay as fun or engaging. The story has a pretty heavy feel to it which is probably why I felt like taking some breaks from the game instead of trying to finish it all in one go. In the end, this idea just didn't work for me and I could probably get into a bit more detail on that. For now, I just want to check off that this game has been beat and complete and am moving on to the next one.
Special shout-out to the music, by the way. The new orchestrations (particularly Aquas' theme) are outstanding.
Against my better judgment, I next tried out Sonic Drift for the Game Gear. I played and won all three of the GPs which rolled credits, so I s'pose that's a completion for this title. Why is Sonic in a car? Wouldn't he be faster without it? I guess he needs to make it fair for everyone else.
I’ve really just come to the sobering conclusion that most of the games I purchase are either procedural hellscapes or “feature length experiences,” which for my preferred genre tastes (RPGs) is twenty hours on a good day. The exceptions are few and far between, and when I do get those exceptions, they tend to be the first part of my backlog that I fridge clean. This is worrisome, of course, considering I am very aware of at least ten RPGs in my backlog at the moment. At least ten.
69. Tails Adventure - Mop It Up
Backlaugust 2026 Total: 69 Games
At this point, it was getting to be late and I'd only beat 3 games and with one game very close to the finish line. I'll admit Broodwars number of 22 had deflated my enthusiasm.
Broodwars suckered me in good when he told Mop it up that there were like 16 Sonic Game Gear games and he wouldn’t be able to match that total. Yet, now he had found a way to hit 22.
Broodwars suckered me in good when he told Mop it up that there were like 16 Sonic Game Gear games and he wouldn’t be able to match that total. Yet, now he had found a way to hit 22.
In my defense, when I said that I meant it. I did the mental math and saw that Mop was going to hit 18 games if she cleared all the games in the collection. I think at the time I was still around 9-10 and I wasn't seeing how I was going to top that and still play stuff I wanted to play like those games I listed as honorable mentions.
Considering I was playing crap like Elea and the Jurassic Park collection after that just to try to catch up to where I thought Mop and you would end up, I would say I rather suckered myself. And I had to heavily de-tox from gaming with anime binging for several days when it was all over. :P
As for your 2 last games, I have no issues counting them, though I'm surprised you only cleared Super Mario Bros. U when you had New Super Luigi U right there as well. I would have counted that game as well since it's individually select-able in that collection. 75 completed games is a nice round number for something like this.
I’ve really just come to the sobering conclusion that most of the games I purchase are either procedural hellscapes or “feature length experiences,” which for my preferred genre tastes (RPGs) is twenty hours on a good day. The exceptions are few and far between, and when I do get those exceptions, they tend to be the first part of my backlog that I fridge clean. This is worrisome, of course, considering I am very aware of at least ten RPGs in my backlog at the moment. At least ten.
I've been mulling over creating a separate forum event for RPGs in the future, but unfortunately the only month with a name that fits the topic is "ARPGust" (August), a month that is definitely already taken. "JRPG July?" Maybe we just go June -> August with "RPG Summer", since those are months where basically nothing comes out. I dunno. Open to ideas, because this is definitely the last Backlaugust where I'm going to be to shotgunning games like this. RPGs make up the vast majority of the backlog I care about as well, and they don't suit this format.
Edit: Been mulling it over, and what about "Rolevember"? Set it across November and December, traditionally dead months these days.
Rolevember has some charm! But I’d also consider a general “RPG book club” for folks, especially since their contents are rarely a neat fit in a single month. Since I play a lot I’d be willing to offer my hand and hot takes to those who come later.
Looking ahead, I think if we end up doing the RPG event in November (incidentally, I do plan to count Adventure games in that event), I think I'm going to forego the whole leaderboard thing unless people really want it. I don't seem to remember Shocktober using one. Seems to generate more stress than it does excitement, though it does look like we surpassed the views on 2024 and are making good progress on overtaking 2025's numbers.
My argument against the whole "RPG Book Club" idea is that we basically already have that with the "What are you playing?" thread.
I have another one to add: Down in Bermuda
Picked this up on a sale for like $2 last month! Not bad, not bad…
