Gamer’s Digest: 2012 Gaming Favorites

Mass Effect 3 | Spec Ops: The Line | Max Payne 3 | Lollipop Chainsaw | Persona 4 Arena | The Walking Dead | Borderlands 2 | Assassin’s Creed 3 | Call of Duty: Black Ops 2

MASS EFFECT 3
It’s unforunate that ME3 got so much press about the ending. In case you hadn’t heard, it was some crap and the Extended Cut wasn’t going to help everyone. Having beat it myself, I found the endings to be great and the Extended Cut really helped in places where the original ending cut short. As I progressed thru ME3, I started feeling more and more that ME2 is the superior game in the series as 3’s action formula grew tiring on me. But I wouldn’t let that comment detract from my enjoyment of 3 as it’s still a fun game to walk and talk to your crew, maybe romance Liara T’Soni like I did and use your Bionic powers to push the Geth around. What I did like most about the game was its theme of bringing alien species together to take down the Reapers. It’s a perfect fit with how Bioware sold my Commander Shepherd as the most amazing leader in history, dare I say it kind of deifies him.

Mass Effect 3’s multiplayer is cool and the story DLC pieces are pretty good like the recently released Omega. What I would strongly recommend is the “From Ashes” DLC where you can add Javik, the Prothean. He is a character who has something interesting to say in seemingly every mission you embark on because he has already been through a Reaper invasion long ago in the ME storyline. You just can’t get the same wealth of knowledge from a James Vega or any others aboard the Normandy, and he really added a lot of unique thoughts to the missions I took him on. While it may be unfortunate that the DLC comes at a price, it’s worth it if you want to hear his thoughts on his & Earth’s battle against the Reapers.

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SPEC OPS: THE LINE
I had heard so much buzz about how the story in Spec Ops was really great, especially when compared against the barrage of Modern Warfare genre titles that focus on set pieces over character stories. Opposite of the positive reviews of the story was the average and ordinary gameplay. So I waited and waited for Black Friday to come hoping this game would be a deal, and sure enough Amazon got me in for $15. At that price point, the whole product of Spec Ops: The Line is pretty amazing. Yeah, even that bland 3rd-person shooter junk.

The gameplay is what you & I thought it’d be, average. However… the best sell of this game is the story, and it took no more than a couple chapters to get me hooked in and wonder what the hell is going on as you can see Walker’s slow descent into madness form. If you think deeply, you can draw your own conclusion on what commentary the game is be trying to make, whether it be anti-war or if it’s just saying, “try harder on the story, CoD.” You might figure out what the story tries to do if you come in a little warmed up like I’m writing here now, but because The Line is such a character-driven story, as I played I got anxious to find out what would happen next and what difficult choices Walker would have to make. I rushed through the game in 4 hours, and if I’d bought it at $60 I would’ve been far more negative on the game, but because the story is really sensational I have to give it its propers. Rent this or buy used/cheap new.

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MAX PAYNE 3
When it comes to gameplay, Max Payne 3 is a very ordinary third person shooter. It has a cover and slow-mo system, aka bullet time, that just doesn’t stand out in any sort of way. The enemy AI isn’t exactly bright either and will do some incredibly stupid things. It limits the weapons and ammo you can carry, which makes you constantly looking for new weapons to use and that can be frustrating at times. The one thing that makes this game stand out, from a gameplay point of view, is that it can be quite challenging. You can’t just commando your way through enemies because you have limited health and bullet time. You have to play strategically and use cover/bullet time effectively, all while watching your ammo count.

With all that said about the gameplay, I would like to say that Max Payne 3 is the best game you probably didn’t play this year. I don’t want to make it out to be better than what it is because, as I already mentioned, it is a very ordinary shooter in most respects. Even the graphics, while great, just don’t stand out from some of the more visually stunning games of the year. What the game does do phenomenally is provide a cinematic experience that can match some of the best games of all time, like Uncharted 2 or Heavy Rain. However, instead of an action packed thrill ride, it instead focuses on a dark more melancholic experience that can excite and chill you. The narration and voice acting from James McCaffrey has my vote for the best of the year. The game thrives on that and it is great because of it. The story is heartbreaking and just impressed me in a lot of ways. This is the kind of game everyone should play once.

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LOLLIPOP CHAINSAW
Suda 51 is known for making rather…unconventional games. Lollipop Chainsaw is no exception. It mixes rainbows and zombies, cheerleaders and chainsaws, and shameless upskirt shots with gratuitous gore. Somehow, it all mixes together to make a really fun game. It’s supposed to be a little on the corny and bombastic side (which I actually wrote about before), and it’s self-aware of this fact the entire way through. The result is that it’s funny and just naturally makes you smile as you play it. It’s not the deepest game out there, but definitely fun. It can be challenging too if you’re going for high scores since you can’t just hack zombies to pieces willy-nilly. You have to use specific crowd-control techniques to herd them together, weaken them, and then decapitate as many as you can with one swing to get the most “Sparkle Hunting” bonuses. As you get more moves, the combat becomes surprisingly involved for what feels like a game you’d play at an arcade, shoving tokens in every time you die. The only downside is that this game is painfully short unless you really get a kick out of replaying levels for high scores and item collecting. I spent maybe 8 hours on it tops. This is more like the thing you borrow from a friend or rent (do people still rent games?) as opposed to purchase. But if you ever get the chance to play it…do it. If you enjoy HAVING FUN then you will enjoy Lollipop Chainsaw.

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PERSONA 4 ARENA
Persona 4 Arena could have been little more than a gimmick. Instead, we got a fantastic game born from the marriage of Atlus and Arc System Works. As a fan of Persona and Blaz Blue, this combination was like a dream come true. The game manages to combine the stories and characters of Persona 4 with the tight and exciting fighting mechanics that ArcSys is known for. The game manages to be accessible without sacrificing a deep system that true fighting veterans can really dig into and explore. Arena even comes with a huge story mode that lets you take your favorite characters back into the TV world for another mystery to solve. Persona 3 characters like Aegis and Elizabeth even join the fray, and the semi-new character Labrys makes her game debut as a wonderful addition to the cast. It’s safe to say that this is one of my favorite fighters of all time now, and that’s saying a lot in this age of revival for the fighting genre. The story of the game ended in an open manner easily allowing for further adventures, and whether that means another Persona fighter or that the story will be carried on into Persona 5, I cannot wait to see what Atlus and Arc Sys have in the works.

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THE WALKING DEAD
Released across several episodes comprising a season, “The Walking Dead: The Game” tells the story Lee and Clementine as they try to survive in a world infested with zombies and terrible people. It’s a game that falls squarely into the genre of point and click adventure games of the past. However, what really makes the game connect with the player is that you have a certain degree of influence over how the game progresses and Lee, the character you control, develops as a person. That means what you choose to say or even not say, what you do and who you save, will have repercussions that ripple through the rest of the story. This really makes the game an emotional experience more than anything else, the central relationship of Lee and the young girl Clementine being the driving force behind your empathic impulse to continue forward. The connection you feel to those and other characters has a lot to do with solid dialogue and excellent voice acting. You will most likely be in tears by the time you reach the finale in Episode 5.

While the game certainly deserves all the accolades and praise it has gotten, it’s not without its share of problems. From personal experience, I recommend that you play the game once. The law of diminishing returns is certainly in effect here. You might be tempted to go back and pick different options or say different things, but all that does is serve to highlight the game’s biggest flaw. For the most part, the sense of choice the game so heavily focuses on is merely a well-crafted illusion. The beginning and the end of the game is the same regardless of what you say or do, and the plot follows the same beats. You will get to certain points where characters will die, leave, or otherwise be written out of the story. If you are expecting an experience similar to a visual novel with different routes and endings, you’d be sorely disappointed. That’s why playing through once and living with your choices, most of which are made during split second moments, will result in the best outcome. There’s still a very satisfying sense of ownership from making your choices as you play along, and what’s even better is that the game will compare your choices against all other players and show you the results. Regardless of any complaints I may have, Telltale Games has really reinvigorated the adventure genre with this game, and a second season of “The Walking Dead: The Game” is all but guaranteed. Even if you’re not familiar with the TV series of the comic both are based on, you should still give the game a shot. If you’re a fan of either the TV or comics, then it’s really a…no-brainer. Get it? No brain. Because zombies ate it. HA!

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BORDERLANDS 2
Gearbox had a nice hit with the first Borderlands game, but looking back on it you can see how the fundamentals of the game just weren’t polished, the menus especially in need of a serious overhaul. It is as though with B2, Gearbox aimed to improve on pretty much every function of the first game and succeeded big time, making an incredibly polished FPS-meets-RPG game with tons of adventuring and looting, my personal pick for FPS of 2012 and Game of the Year. The campaign is as enjoyable to play as it is humorous to listen to all your mission handlers, and there’s lots and lots of hours to play around. The addition of new Vault Hunters was a good idea as was bringing back the originals; Lilith was pretty funny as a girl who just plain enjoyed being badass with her advanced Siren powers. The amount of loot I’ve sifted through in my close to 100 hours of play time is insane, finding and equipping/selling/dropping all kinds of weapons and shields and such. With different brands developing different kinds of weapons, I weirdly started to develop brand loyalty and attachment to specific guns you have equipped. Personally I think Dahl does some fine work, but props to Tediore for turning my gun into a grenade upon reloading.

If you buy this game, you’re going to enjoy it most with co-op play. Playing solo can be done and you get all the loot you see, but Borderlands is at its most fun when you’re playing with friends and looting (or boosting). The classes are great and are diversified even further to pick the gameplay style you feel most accustomed to. I chose to play as the Assassin, and the Bloodshed skill tree perfectly fit my need to melee; equipped with a shotgun, I can be in-your-face deadly. And one more thing to talk about with B2 are the easter eggs galore. You will fight a knockoff of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles in a side mission, you can unlock a Minecraft head design, mission names will be references to other forms of entertainment. The game is unrelenting but not overly intrusive in referencing some other game or movie. Fun fact: Ashley Burch of Hey Ash, Watcha Playin? voices Tiny Tina and is awesome as the World’s Deadliest 13-year Old Girl. Her brother, Anthony Burch, is the head writer for Borderlands 2.

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ASSASSIN’S CREED 3
I am a huge fan of the Assassin’s Creed franchise and I think that the games have been getting progressively bigger and better at the same time. While this game is bigger than ever, I would have to say that this is the first time in the franchise that I don’t think it has gotten better. In a word, this game is flawed. Free running through town in the previous games was the best way to get around, but in AC3 it becomes cumbersome. I find myself constantly falling off buildings and jumping at strange angles, so I just opt to run on the ground. Another thing about the game that is frustrating is how enemies will suddenly start to chase you without rhyme or reason. I found myself fleeing quite a bit from guards while I was just traveling to an objective. Another reason I found this game lacking was that the story wasn’t very good. In fact, I had to Wikipedia some parts and piece them together myself because things weren’t always explained very well. The last thing I will complain about is the ending. I won’t spoil it, but every previous game ended with a huge twist or discovery that just blew my mind. This game not so much. It wasn’t bad, but I wasn’t impressed either.

I might sound like I hate the game, but I am just being critical. Overall it still is a fantastic game. Free running in the wild is a blast and the new hunting challenges are fun. The game’s size also gives hours of playtime that doesn’t feel too repetitive and is something you will want to come back to even after you finish the game. The multiplayer is great too, especially when you play with friends. If you haven’t played any of the Assassin’s Creed games yet, then you probably won’t start now because of this game. If you are an avid fan of the franchise, then you won’t walk away disappointed.

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CALL OF DUTY: BLACK OPS 2
Most people don’t play Call of Duty for the campaign, it is merely an extra feature to the multiplayer, but this is the first campaign that actually made me want to go back and play it again. The story is on par with the first Black Ops game, which I liked a lot, but it is the choices and objectives that make the game better. Failing to complete objectives and making certain choices can lead to a “worst” ending, which is what I got the first time through. There are 4 possible endings and I have a desire to go back and see them all, which isn’t something I’ve ever done before in a Call of Duty game. It isn’t a very long campaign, so don’t expect too much from it, but it still was far better than every other campaign in the franchise.

As for the multiplayer, which we all know is why most people play Call of Duty, it has been changed for the better. The pick 10 system works really well and it allows for more customization than ever before. The possibilities are only limited by your imagination… and, well, the 10 points. The game is well balanced too, with practically no weapons or killstreaks feeling overpowered. There are a few problems that hinder the experience quite a bit though. There is a lot of bullet lag and spawn killing. You’ll die even though you fired half a clip and you’ll get spawned killed so often that you’ll rage at it. If it wasn’t for that over the top bullet lag and spawn killing I’d say it was the best Call of Duty multiplayer ever. Lets just hope some kind of patch comes out and fixes some of these problems.

Finally, zombies! TranZit is a great addition to the already great maps from the previous games. It is large and riding in the bus can be a lot of fun. They also added new craftable weapons and items, which can open up new areas of the map or just provide a fun way to kill zombies. They really didn’t do anything revolutionary to their already popular system, just added new gimmicks and a larger map to keep the mode from becoming stale. Overall, Black Ops 2 is easily the best Call of Duty game to date. It has its problems and will make you rage from time to time, but if you haven’t played a Call of Duty game in a while, then this is the perfect game to jump back into.

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26 Responses to “Gamer’s Digest: 2012 Gaming Favorites”

  1. kidd says:

    now I really wanna play Spec Ops: The Line

    • Jrow says:

      Looks like I’ve almost pushed you over that edge. Now, I take my index finger and give you that last little push to try it out. 🙂

  2. Rakkyo says:

    “roll a panda”
    Oh, You Fosh

    Sadly, the games I’ve played are only on pages 3 and 7 ><
    Still, they were good games and this a good review. Nice work guys!

    • Foshizzel says:

      Rolling pandas are the best ever!

      Yeah I plan on playing more PS3 games because my brother finally got one for his birthday! So that is cool now I can play all the games I missed <3

      • BlackBriar says:

        LOL. Looks like a perfect opportunity has presented itself to you, Fosh. Use it to get hands on as much games as you can. Just make sure you make a budget beforehand. We tend to lose ourselves when we see a sweet chance like that.

  3. BlackBriar says:

    Playstation Vita: Being a fanboy of Sony since the original Playstation, I’m totally into the PS Vita and have a list of games I’d go after as soon as I get my hands on one (Gravity Rush, Assassin’s Creed III: Liberation). Jrow’s opinions on the system are just icing on the cake.

    Pokémon Black & White 2: The first continuation to an arc for the Pokémon series is, indeed, a first and it’s not bad. What is different about the franchise since the original Black & White are that the use of TMs have now become unlimited and you’ve become very susceptible to status effects during the battles (Poison, burns, paralysis). And the twists for Black & White 2 are that there’s a gym in the player’s home town and the impression of fusion Pokémon with Black Kyurem and White Kyurem on the cover art.

    Virtue’s Last Reward: One of the games on my list for PS Vita. I’m not sure what the game is about but it looks interesting.

    Assassin’s Creed III: I’m also a big fan of the franchise and have played all the previous installments. The announced flaws seem so small compared to the good parts of the game so I’m hardly worried about enjoying it when I get the chance. The notable thing about the franchise is its variety of lead characters being Assassin ancestors of different nationalities and Connor Kenway is the most unique being half British, half Native American.

    • steev says:

      Conner wasn’t a bad character, but he just wasn’t all that interesting. The best part of the story was when he was interacting with his father, but that ended with a flop not a bang. His story was too much like Ezio’s, but he didn’t have the same personality and charm as him. He would’ve been more interesting if there was more of a twist with his character or maybe he could’ve been more revengeful which lead to bigger more steep consequences due to the revenge he was seeking.

    • Tofu says:

      I can’t say much since I’ve only played Assassins Creed 3 from start to finish (I helped my bro out from time to time with 1 and 2 but I wasn’t playing the games myself).

      Conner to me didn’t feel like a great protagonist at all. The reasoning behind him joining with the Assassins was mainly due to revenge than to protect the world from Templars. In a way, his actions at times felt like “I don’t care about the world, I just want to get revenge”. It was too selfish in my eyes and maybe because Conner got away with it more easily than I’d expect (like what Steev mentioned), his development as a character is still raw.

      Also, the story felt… short. In a way it felt rushed and there are multiple times where they could’ve expanded certain scenes for better character development. There was one scene between Conner and his father where they talk about his mother and the whole confusion “oh I didn’t know that” kinda situation. Instead of expanding on it, the story moved on and forgot about it… there was potential, but it wasn’t harnessed.

      I like how they included the ship battles and the tree climbing but everything comes at a price. The fighting has been made to feel ‘too’ simple, where you can win the game with the weapons you start off with. Actually, there’s hardly any weapons to get and the whole armor thing? That’s just for appearance now. There’s also a tunnel system I’m pretty sure no one uses. In other words, the content was lacking and was way too simplified compared to the previous installments but as negative as this comment is, overall I still enjoyed it for the fighting. The game didn’t reach my expectations but it was still a fairly fun game.

      Best if you try it out yourself because a friend of mine keeps harping on about how great it is (only… he harps on about the ship battles and tree climbing…)

    • Jrow says:

      There’s two camps for Gravity Rush: Those that enjoy it and those who think it’s just awful. It seems like people are on one side or the other of whether or not Gravity Rush was a good game. I know myself & Amuro enjoyed it and got used to how the game handles gravity.

      But yeah, when you get that Vita man, you’ll run that battery dry from so much playing of it.

  4. Kyokai says:

    Thanks for this detailed list guys. I am sure, this will be helping a lot of people during holidays and in general selecting the games that they might have missed for 2012. ^^

    • Jrow says:

      Sure thing. Somehow my amateurish HTML and graphics stuff worked out alright, though this is merely me adopting design styles of you & steev.

      Also, March 5th. Tomb Raider. F YEAH!

  5. Highway says:

    I used to be such a big gamer, and I’ve played none of this besides WoW. I’ll probably play Halo 4 after Christmas, but all in all, FPS games don’t interest me, big time investments don’t interest me (cause I’ve already got the time allotted to other things), and I just have other things to do.

  6. Samantha Zan says:

    I’ve heard of all these games! Too bad I’m poor so I haven’t gotten a chance to play all of them! Only some… DX

    Playstation All Stars Battle Royale – It is seriously one of the most funniest games played with other people all the way! I get so intense when playing that game! Usually I use Nathan Drake or Dante lolz. Mostly I was just sad there weren’t any Square Enix characters. Such a fun game still, though I too hope that we get DLCs with Cloud and Lara too! XD

    Persona 4 – Golden and Arena??? I just want both now with my Fsteak.

    Though I really want to play everything else, especially Journey, so Beautiful 0-0

    I really want to play most of those games though! Especially

    • Samantha Zan says:

      …Journey so Beautiful 0-0 (Sorry for the cut-off)

    • Jrow says:

      Lara Croft would be fun DLC, so would Cloud. I’m looking forward to when Kat comes out as DLC and the new levels get released.

      Golden/Arena are awesome. Arena deserves fighting game of the year mentions and Golden is no doubt the best game you can buy for Vita today.

  7. Amuro1X says:

    Thanks for inviting me to throw some words together here. It does the body good to stretch that muscle every now and again. You know, the one responsible for making with the writing and what not.

    As for the list of games, it really makes me look back on 2012 in a more positive light. It’s easy to say that it was a weak year for gaming, but there was plenty of great stuff. It’s also the year I got my Vita and finally ditched my fat ass launch 60gb PS3 for the new hotness of the 500gb Super Slim PS3. I even made the jump to PS+ and I’m not looking back. Will next year be the advent of Sony and Microsoft’s new consoles? Who knows, but if next year can surpass 2012 in gaming goodness, then it will truly be an exemplary year.

    • Jrow says:

      It did seem to me that 2012 wasn’t an amazing year prior to us doing this post, but 2012 was just fine by the end. I do think because there was a lull around summer time where no real AAA titles were coming and that it wasn’t like 2011 where good games were coming out once/twice a month, that my initial thought of 2012 was a very “7.9” situation… I’d rate it higher now in retrospect.

      I do think that when DmC, Bioshock and Tomb Raider come out in Q1 of 2013, people like me will have already declared 2013 > 2012.

      • Overcooled says:

        Not a bad year, indeed! Xenoblade and P4G alone made it worth it for me. It’s easy to forget what actually came out during the year until you actually look at a list. I had to be reminded too.

        …2013 does look pretty damn good though. I’m already excited for DmC and Ni no Kuni :3

  8. Hawthorne says:

    @Overcooled, would you say Last Story is worth the pricetag for an RPG fan? The negatives you mentioned seem to outweigh the positives (especially the lack of real strategy), and though I love RPGs the linearity seems kind of boring. OTL

    I was really excited for the game originally, but now I don’t know if I still want to get it. Oh the indecisiveness!

    • Overcooled says:

      I can see how some people would really like it, but I’d hesitate to say it’s worth the money. You might wanna hold off on this one. :/

    • akagami says:

      I’m a huge RPG fan so I’d say every RPG is worth it (I buy most at full price at release). But it’s on the Wii and I hate the Wii, so I haven’t had the chance to play either The Last Story or Xenoblade Chronicles.

  9. T.K. says:

    Great overview of 2012 in games. Definitely agree in Borderlands 2 being Game of the Year, I had already accumulated almost 120 hours in the main campaign. Dishonored being a close second favourite of mine but sadly it has been a slow year in gaming compared to previous years (for me at least). Let’s hope that 2013 gives us a much better offering.

  10. Amutofan123 says:

    So I bought Xenoblade over the summer and IT’S SO FREAKING GOOD. I adore it. It’s my favorite game ever. The environments are tremendous and beautiful, the soundtrack is amazing, and the story and characters are great too.

    I don’t think I can even pick a favorite place in the game. Eryth Sea at night during a meteor shower was probably the most beautiful to me, but Bionis’ Leg was probably the most fun for me to explore. Either that or Makna Forest.

    My favorite team was Shulk/Dunban (shirtless of course)/Riki with me controlling Shulk. I also really liked controlling Melia. That girl can deal out some damage. The characters are so great. I love them all, but Dunban (especially when he’s not wearing a shirt) is my favorite.

    I really have to thank your post in Spring for this, OC. I had been interested in the game before, but you absolutely convinced me to buy it.

    • Overcooled says:

      I’m so glad you liked Xenoblade! It’s the best game on the wii and one of my new favourite RPGs. Words just don’t do it justice because it does almost EVERYTHING right.

      I love all the game areas. Eryth Sea during a meteor shower was a rare treat, but I have to say Satorl Marsh took my breath away. During the day it’s pretty ugly, but at night it’s phenomenal. Seriously, the level design is absolutely fantastic!

      Looks like we have the same team set-up, although I preferred to control Rikki since his HP was through the roof. I actually never got the hang on Melia…mostly because I rarely ever use mage characters. I hear she’s supposed to be crazy strong, but I just couldn’t do it lol. Topless Dunban is always great. I love how he climbs up freaking walls with only one hand.

      Ahhhh, thank you~ So far I’ve gotten about 2 or 3 others to play Xenoblade thanks to my post nudging them (and their own drive to buy it, of course) and it seems to be overall really well-liked. Not many people have played it, but those who have tend to love it. It deserves all the advertising it can get.

  11. akagami says:

    I agree with the DLCs for ME3 – they were great, especially seeing all the back story of the Prothean race. Actually, the strong suit of ME is the rich characters and their history as well as the excellent script/voice actors.

    I enjoyed all parts of ME1. ME2 was great to play, but the ending was just horrible. Seriously? It’s like a trailer for an upcoming movie than an ending. And don’t get me started on ME3’s ending. It was utter crap in my eyes, but I went in knowing that ME endings were horrible and the play experience is what makes the series worth it, so I wasn’t totally surprised.

    In that entire list I’ve only played ME3… I’m so far behind in my games ><
    Currently playing Disgaea 2, Torchlight 2, Devil Survivor 2, Pokemon White 1, and Xenosaga 3. I think only Devil Survivor 2 and Torchlight 2 was released in 2012, haha. I really have too many games in my backlog (I'm still clearing out my PS2 games – I got some PS1 games I've always wanted to play last year and haven't got around to them… FFVIII, Tactics Ogre, and FF Tactics). Sigh.

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