THE STAR WARS ANTHOLOGY FILMS NEED TO CHANGE

There's no way to circle around it. Solo: A Stars Wars Story is a failure. It can be chalked up to many different reasons, but that's not what we're here to discuss. What we are here to discuss, however, is the current state of the Star Wars anthology films. Episode IX will be releasing next year, and it is likely we won't get another 'mainline' Star Wars entry soon.

However, in the wake of Solo's struggle, back and forth reports have emerged on the future of these spin-off films. Some claim Lucasfilm is readjusting their approach, while others report that they are being outright shelved. Whatever the case, we are definitely in store for a change on the release of future Star Wars films. Which is a shame, really.

The anthology films are the chance to really grow the Star Wars universe. Explore places and characrers we've never seen or heard before. Stories that are so far from the Skywalker saga that the characters may not even know who the Skywalkers are. The Star Wars universe is one that is vast and diverse. It's about time for the films to reflect that.

It's All Connected

The original pitch behind the anthology films was to explore perviously unseen corners of the Star Wars universe. True, both Rogue One and Solo are essentially standalone stories. But they're both directly tied to other films in the series. 

Rogue One leads directly into A New Hope. Solo, naturally, deals with the origin of one of the franchise's most iconic characters (whether audiences wanted it or not). So, while they're films that could in theory stand on their own, they also lose a lot of their value without prior knowledge of the other films. 

That's not to say they can't still feature established characters. Part of the fun of having a cinematic universe (which is what Star Wars is becoming) is seeing different characters weave in and out of films.

As much as I don't particularly care for Darth Maul, I thought his reveal at the end of Solo was great. It makes sense to see some of the more prominent characters show up in different corners of the galaxy. But I just wish the stories themselves weren't tied so closely to what we already know.

Everything Feels Small

Going off of the second point, part of why I want to see the Star Wars anthology films branch out is because as it stands right now, the galaxy feels small. It's a problem that began with The Empire Strikes Back, and a problem that has become worse.

While the Darth Vader reveal in Empire is one or the history books, it did have the unintentional side effect of shrinking the Star Wars universe. When Leia was revealed as Luke's twin sister in Return of the Jedi, it began to seem like everyone in the Star Wars universe was connected.

That's part of why the revelation of Rey's lineage was so refreshing. Not everyone in this universe needs to be part of the same family. Luke started off as a moisture farmer, and grew to become one of the most legendary figures in the galaxy. (Well, before he was revealed to be the son of the chosen one, but what can you do.)

There are thousands of these 'non-important' characters all throughout the galaxy. Sure, not everyone will be fighting off against Darth Vader or Kylo Ren, but in some way, every character makes a difference. There are so many storylines that aren't connected to the Rebel vs Empire story, and those are stories that deserve to be told.

Less is More

One of the running theories as to why Solo bombed was simply because of Star Wars fatigue. Solo came out only five months after The Last Jedi. Was that too soon for a Star Wars movie? The 'more is more' approached has so far worked for Marvel, which is currently at three movies a year. So why hasn't the same worked for Star Wars?

Maybe it has to do with how the two franchises have operated in the past. The Marvel Cinematic Universe, obviously, has its roots in comics, which by nature of the medium, are long-running stories, with monthly releases in most cases. Star Wars, on the other hand, has no history with a yearly release.

Ever since the release of A New Hope, Star Wars has always felt like an event. There's always been at least two years between the release of films. When The Force Awakens came out, we hadn't seen a proper Star Wars release since 2005. It was a big deal. Now, with a new Star Wars movie coming out every calendar year, the series has begun to lose its luster a bit.

I think we all knew that once Disney acquired the franchise, we would be seeing yearly releases. Many lamented that, as it would possibly take away part of what made the franchise special. Now, I am never one to complain about more Star Wars, but maybe the general public isn't as interested in the series as we (or Disney) thinks they are?

Not Dead Yet

 With Solo's failure at the box office and The Last Jedi's divisiveness within the fanbase (despite being critically acclaimed), some are wondering what the future of the franchise is. Some are already claiming its death, but don't be mistaken, one failure does not a failure make.

While every film post-Disney has had some form of behind-the-scenes trouble, every film released prior to Solo has made more than $1 billion at the box office. Despite the uncertain nature of the oft-rumored Obi-Wan and Boba Fett films, we still have more big-screen stories on the way. The first of the Rian Johnson-helmed trilogy could be out in 2020. A series from the Game of Thrones creators is still on-track. And that's just the films.

Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge will be debuting at Disney Parks next year. Television series, both animated and live-action, are in development. The comics and novels are still going strong. Electronic Arts is still holding on to that Star Wars video game license (for now). 

The film side of things may be slowing down a bit, but don't be mistaken. Star Wars isn't dead. It'll still be around, for a long, long time. Lucasfilm and Disney may just need to reassess their approach.

What do you think of the future of the Star Wars franchise? Let me know, and be sure to follow me on Twitter @aidansimonds to see more!

HOW TO REALLY 'MAKE RIVERDALE GREAT AGAIN'

Riverdale's sophomore outing will soon come to a close. After an almost perfect first season, round two was a bit bumpy. While there were some highs (I still maintain that Chapter Twenty is the series' finest episode), there were also some lows (fascist Archie??).

With Riverdale season three presumably premiering this fall, this presents a perfect opportunity to course-correct. Riverdale still has the potential to reach the absolute highs of season 1. Let's look at some ways it can rebound from what many see as a sophomore slump.

Warning: Some spoilers for Riverdale Seasons One and Two follow

Focus on Riverdale As a Whole

What really makes the world of Archie Comics stand out is the ensemble that makes up the town of Riverdale. It's similar to Springfield in The Simpsons. A town that feels like its own world, made up of a variety of unique and memorable characters.

It's something Riverdale was pretty good about in Season One. Sure, some main characters didn't get their due (like Josie...), but Riverdale, both the town and show, felt like a fleshed-out world. Characters like Valerie and Ethel weren't completely fleshed-out, but they had fairly well-rounded storylines. Kevin was pretty much a main character, appearing in almost every episode.

Josie doesn't even feel like a main character at this point.

Season Two really regressed in that regard. The show almost exclusively shined its spotlight on the core four. It makes sense in some regard. Archie, Betty, Jughead, and Veronica are the main characters of the comics. But it also shined a light on the supporting characters in Riverdale, too. 

Josie got some pretty good moments in Season Two, but if it weren't for the fact that she was on all the promo, you'd have no idea she was a main character. Kevin, who was actually upgraded to a series main on Season Two, somehow got even less to do, even with an expanded season. (More on that later...) The Pussycats regressed into background characters. Cheryl, who was Season One's most fascinating character, got seriously (and tragically) sidelined for most of the second season.

The murder of Midge Klump, one of the most important characters from comics, did not have the impact it was surely meant to. She was pretty much a background character in any episode she appeared in, never getting any more than a few lines.

With news that Vanessa Morgan and Charles Melton, who play Toni and Reggie, respectively, will be upgraded to series regulars in Season Three, this brings even more concern. While I'm hopeful that this means Toni and Reggie will receive more development and storylines, I wish this show would give more focus on the main characters the show has now. 

Tighter Storytelling

Part of what made Season One so great was that there never truly was any downtime. The thirteen episode season really forced the righters to cut all of that fat in terms of solving the mystery of Jason Blossom's murder. I was skeptical of Season Two being almost double that length, but I had faith in the writers. And I still maintain that the first half of the second season is generally great. But the middle of the season just feels like the writers stalling while waiting for the Black Hood to return.

I had hopes that the expanded season would allow more character-focused storylines, like Chapter Six in Season One. Chapter Sixteen did go for that, having a Kevin-centric episode. Besides that, however, 

'Tales From the Darkside' may be the series' high point.

Is the solution to shorten Riverdale Season Three back to thirteen episodes? Not necessarily. A length like eighteen episodes would strike a good balance, and we see many network shows are starting to adopt shorter lengths. If we must have a twenty-two episode season, I think it's still possible to maintain Riverdale's greatness.

The big issue with Riverdale Season Two wasn't really it's length, but the storytelling. Should we get another twenty-two episode season, I believe having the season comprised of separate, defined arcs, would be the best course of action. Naturally, plot elements should be expected to carry through the whole season, but this would prevent the season from feeling like it's just treading water. And it really felt like the show was treading water in the middle of Season Two.

Bring Back the Fun

The first season was just fun. A pulpy, noire-esque mystery sprinkled within a teen drama show. It had a campy, self-aware tone. The teenagers are far from realistic, but you still had the sense that these were teenagers who were, at their core, good people. Before the second season aired, many on the show were talking about how the show would be going "darker". I was worried, but was sure the show's campy tone would still shine through.

And it did in certain instances (again, going back to Chapter Twenty). Chapter Thirty-One, the musical episode, was a great reminder of what the show once was. But as the season went on, it just kept getting darker and darker. More and more violent. I genuinely think last weeks installment, Chapter Thirty-Four, was a fantastic episode for the series. It was an intense, frantic episode of television. But there was still something missing. 

I almost wonder if the show would've been better off if it had not coupled off the core four so quickly.

Riverdale was described by many prior to its premiere as a "dark and gritty" adaptation of the Archie world. But it truly wasn't. Sure, there was murder and teacher-student relationships, but it never got too dark. A more apt description would be a "modern" adaptation of Archie. Underneath all of the mystery, it was still a relatively lighthearted show that generally held true to the mythos of the Archie Comics world. 

Season Two stripped a lot of that away. Riverdale, both the town and show, became a violent, overall hateful place. What happened to the show where the characters could grab a booth at Pop's, get a milkshake, and escape the world around them for a bit? I get the desire to explore new genres every season. The first half of Season Two had a great horror movie tone. And putting your characters in more turmoil is almost inevitable in long-form storytelling. But it feels as if Riverdale lost its sense of identity in its sophomore outing. )

Let's Go Supernatural Already

Look. We all know Riverdale is going to go supernatural at some point. While I don't expect it to go full Afterlife with Archie for at least a couple more years, the seeds have already been planted. The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina is coming later this year (on Netflix, but still). They may not directly cross over (I still fully expect it to happen), but unless told otherwise, these two shows exist in the same universe.

I don't expect Riverdale to be a series about magic and such. But we've already established that something supernatural is going on over in Greendale. I don't expect it to fully bleed over to Riverdale (again, for now at least), but something has had to make its way across Sweetwater River. 

By that I mean that the Blossom family totally has magic running through it. Cheryl's totally a witch.

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I don't think Riverdale is bad now. But it just hasn't reached the heights of its superb first season. I am worried that it won't be able to recapture that magic, but I'm hopeful too. Riverdale has become one of The CW's most popular shows, so it's probably going to be here for at least a few more years. So hopefully the writers can learn from the growing pains of Season Two and fully rebound when it returns for another year.

What did you think of this season of Riverdale? Did you like it more than I did? What're you're hopes for Season Three? Let me know, and be sure to follow me on Twitter @aidansimonds.

SUPER MARIO ODYSSEY REVIEW

Jump Up, Super Star

Sometimes, a game affects you so much that you need to talk about it, no matter how long ago it came out. That's a game like Super Mario Odyssey, a game that reaches new heights for the series. As a lifelong Mario fan, few games brought such joy as Odyssey did. A tribute to the series' past while also pushing it forward, Odyssey is for sure a masterpiece of a game.

A Brand New Journey

Super Mario Odyssey isn't treading any new ground in regards to its story. It's the classic "Bowser Kidnaps the Princess" tale told since the NES days. This time, however, Bowser's goal is to straight-up marry Peach. Gotta give the guy props for ambition, I guess. Bowser's wedding planing takes him all over the world(?) to various kingdoms to get the necessary ingredients for the perfect ceremony. Thus, Mario must follow.

This, ahem, Odyssey takes Mario to some of the most diverse locales he's ever been too, save for the Super Mario Galaxy series. There's the usual Forests, Deserts, and Snow worlds, but there's also locales never before seen in a Mario game. From the the Tim Burton-inspired Cap Kingdom to the NYC-inspired Metro Kingdom, each level had its own distinct art style and gameplay. It helped that each kingdom had its own unique inhabitants as well. Each kingdom truly felt like it's own distinct place, and with each kingdom being its own sandbox, the kingdoms naturally lent themselves to exploration.

This game takes Mario to locales he's never been to before.

Speaking of which, exploration is the name of the game in Super Mario Odyssey. Where most games would punish you for going off the unbeaten path, Odyssey wants you to do so. More than likely, you'll be rewarded with your curiosity with a Power Moon. Go ahead, explore, and don't worry about dying. The only consequence for losing all of your health is having a meager ten coins taken away. I won't spoil it too much, but in one of the kingdoms, instead of falling off the edge leading to a game over, it actually takes you to a brand new area.

Oh Cappy, My Cappy

Exploration would be pointless if the gameplay weren't great. Don't worry about that, though. This is a Mario game through and through, which means the gold standard of platforming. This isn't surprising. The one constant throughout the whole Mario series has been tight platforming. Each 3D Mario platformer since Super Mario 64 has added a new feature integral to the game, and Odyssey introduces Cappy.

Cappy is your companion this time around.

Cappy, who takes the form of Mario's iconic hat, gives you the ability of possession. Possession adds a whole new dimension to the gameplay. You can possess any creature in the kingdom, as long as it's not wearing a hat. And the possession is the key to progress in these kingdoms. In a kingdom full of water and don't want to worry about running out of breath? Possess a Cheep Cheep and swim away. Have a wall blocking your way that's conspicuously breakable? A Chain Chomp can be flung in its direction to knock it down. Have a cheese wall blocking your way? There's probably a Hammer Bro nearby, who have the ability to break through them. (Yes, this is an actual scenario in the game.)

While possession is Cappy's main function, he does have other, more minor uses. He can be thrown to find some out of the way coins, which can prove very useful. Other uses include killing smaller enemies that can't be possessed, and also being used as a platform to give some extra height. Cappy's a great addition to the series, but I don't necessarily want Odyssey's unique feature to be copied. (Maybe the next Smash Bros. game can have Mario utilize Cappy instead of F.L.U.D.D.?)

Never A Dull Moment

Super Mario Odyssey simply has SO MUCH to do. You can't go around the corner without finding a moon. Some may say that the game is too easy. Odyssey is not a hard game at all. Playing through the campaign was not a difficult task. The true challenge is going outside of the main story. Finding Power Moons can range from a puzzle to mind-staggeringly easy. And that's the beauty of this game.

As I said earlier, Super Mario Odyssey rewards you for exploring, for going off the beaten path. For doing something as simple as jumping rope, or ground pounding an area of the group that is sparkling. It wants you to explore and experiment, and most of the time, it will reward you. I can see some complaining about how many moons there are, and how downright simple it is to get some, but I see that as a strength. 

Odyssey is a celebration of the series' history, and includes the return of some old friends.

Super Mario Odyssey is one of those special games. A defining game of a generation. In a year where Nintendo had already released Breath of the Wild, Super Mario Odyssey stands on that same level. A celebration of the series' entire history, Odyssey looks forward by keeping an eye in the past. Long after the story is played through, Odyssey has so much more to offer. A no-brainer for Switch owners, Super Mario Odyssey is a game that will be remembered.

MIITOPIA IMPRESSIONS

A humorous RPG with tons of charm, but is that enough to give it legs?

Recently, I played through the demo of Miitopia, a new RPG developed by Nintendo for the Nintendo 3DS. As this is a demo, and therefore only covers a small section of the overall game, I have decided to simply give my impressions in lieu of a full review (which may come later once I finish the full game).

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Who would've guessed, that in the year 2017, we would be getting a full RPG starring Miis? Those weird avatars we used to bowl and play golf with are now fighting monsters as warriors and mages. Strange times we're living in.

Miitopia is a turn-based RPG staring, you guessed it, Miis. You (or more accurately, your Mii) play as a hero who has to save Miitopia from the Dark Lord (who can be any Mii of your choosing-so go ahead and make your friend, or ex, the main villain).  The Dark Lord, in a rather disturbing plan, steals the faces of various Miitopia citizens, leaving them faceless, emotionless husks (this game got dark quick). Being chosen by a higher power, you journey across Miitopia to rescue faces and stop the Dark Lord.

Watching the characters interact is one of the game's highlights

Being a game made up of Miis, the game becomes very funny right away. The first face I rescued was Batman's, who is the son of Bella Swan. Town populations are (as far as I can tell), made up of random Miis, while the more important ones can be chosen by you. In addition to the Dark Lord, you can pick the Miis of your party members, a great sage (who I made Rick Sanchez), and possibly others. I made all of my party members friends of mine, and seeing them interact and battle together was a delight.

Despite being a turn-based RPG, player involvement is surprisingly detached. In battle, the only character you directly control is your own, where you can choose from the standard RPG menus (attack, skills/magic, items). However, that's the only character you control. All your party members are controlled by AI, where they'll execute one of those three commands at random. This can lead to some pretty frustrating outcomes at times. When using items, you can only choose to use them on yourselves, so if a party member is low on HP or MP, you can't use any items to replenish them yourself, and instead have to hope that they are smart enough to use one themselves.

The level of detachment is also seen when it comes to upgrading your equipment. Instead of dedicated shops like most RPGs, every time you stop at an inn, you can see what item each party member wants. You don't actually buy the item, instead giving the gold to the character to buy the item. Most of the time they'll come back with the desired item, but sometimes they'll instead buy a completely different item.

Another example of the game's randomness is when it comes to the food preferences of your party members. As you battle monsters, your party will gather various food items, each upping a different stat. The twist is that certain party members won't like certain foods, and that will affect their effectiveness. If they don't like it, you get less, if they love it more, and so on. But you won't know how they feel about it until *after* they eat the food once. So it's all a guessing game.

Most notably, this lack of involvement is exemplified in the game's exploration, or lack thereof. The only time you move your character is in towns or the world map. Besides that, your party just moves on their own, and is essentially a cutscene, with your party members interacting with each other. This is amusing at first, but dialogue begins repeating, and I got the sense that this is something that could get old very quick. Honestly, this just feels like a huge missed opportunity, but I'll get more into why I think this is the way it is later.

The relationship between your party members is a huge component

There are some things I very much enjoyed about this game. I think the job/personality mechanics work great. Each character is assigned a personality in addition to a job, and this can impact how battles play out. For example, a cool character may be more likely to dodge attacks, while a cautious character may bring out an item they need if there are none in stock that they had hidden. Its a very clever system, and one that can add tremendously to the variety of battles.

And it can't be stated just how charming this game is. In my hour or so playthrough, I still hadn't gotten over the novelty of seeing my friends go on this grand adventure, and I don't think I will. Knowing their personalities makes some of the interactions even more funny, and I hope you will be able to give even more Miis roles later on.

Now, I feel this is an RPG created for the casual RPG fan. The fan who doesn't want to spend hours grinding or exploring dungeons. Battles happen at predetermined times, and like I said, there's no actual exploration done in the game. As a huge fan of turn-based RPGs, this is a little disappointing, but I think I'm in for the long haul.

Miitopia has definite faults, but it's a game I want to keep playing. I'm definitely going to buy the full version (and I may have already by the time you read this). It's just so damn charming and witty that I can't help but smile my entire time playing. As for whether this will keep me going throughout my entire play through, well, let's see what my final review says.

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Have you played the Miitopia demo? Or the full game? Let me know what you think about it! You can also follow me on Twitter!

HER STORY REVIEW

Wow.

That’s the first reaction I had when I ultimately saw the “ending” of Her Story, when I found out how the murder at the center of the story occurred. However, this was around the middle of my play through, and though for all intents and purposes I had “solved” the central mystery, there were still so many unanswered questions that I dove right back in.

Her Story is unlike any other game I have ever played before. I am probably going to use “game” in the loosest sense here. You’re not controlling a character, per se, but rather scavenging through a police database and viewing hundreds of video clips. In Her Story, you are investigating the murder of a man, and to do so you must watch footage of the same woman being interrogated at multiple points. The twist is, however, that the footage has been broken up into various clips of varying lengths, and these clips are not immediately available to you. Instead, you need to use the database’s search engine, using search terms to see if that gives you any sort of results.

The main mechanic of the game is searching through a police database.

That’s the beauty of Her Story. I guess the term “risk-and-reward” could be used here, but in the case of “risk”, the only “punishment” is being presented with zero clips. You start of with general terms, such as “kill”, or the name of the victim, to figure out the general details of the case. But then you hear something that piques your interest, and then you subsequently enter that term into the database, and hopefully, you will be rewarded with brand new clips, and with them, new details that had never previously crossed your mind. One issue, however, that I had with the game is how you can just throw any term into the search engine, and these out-of-nowhere terms can present you with previously unseen clips. It’s a minor complaint, sure, but it did take a bit of the fun out of using a small detail presented to you and using that further your investigation. 

Playing Her Story is what I would call going down a rabbit hole. Hearing one term can lead you to discovering other clips containing that term, and those clips may have another term that you look more into, and so on. By the end of my play through, I had entering specific terms, like objects and names of people, which I won’t list here due to them being spoilers. Believe me, you do not want to be spoiled about this game, as this is a game that lives on reveal upon reveal.

The story of Her Story is full of twists and turns that had me legitimately shocked, and I was completely engrossed the whole time. The non-linear story is what kept me engrossed the whole time, and the beauty of it is that while it is a narrative with a set ending, you craft the sequence of events, and one person playing may have a vital piece of information that another may not have even discovered yet.

Hannah (Viva Seifert) is the only face you'll see in the game.

I’ll say this now, Her Story is not a story about solving a murder. You’re not tasked with determining the guilt of the woman in question, that’s already happened. The goal of Her Story is to figure out why this murder occurred. This rests on the shoulders of Viva Seifert, who plays the woman in question, Hannah Smith, wife of the victim. Seifert is the only actor in this game, and as such, the game rests on her performance. And she absolutely nails it. The performance requires her to be both grounded and larger-than life, a performance that is both down-to-earth and larger-than-life. While the story is what kept me engaged, Seifert’s performance is what sold the story.

It’s been a few days since I finished Her Story, but I’m still thinking about it. It's been a long time since a game has gripped me so much. It's not a game that takes very long to play. In theory you could find the ending after a couple hours, but even then, really digging into the game's story took not much longer than that. Her Story is a special game, one that all gamers should play. Not only is it gripping, but it's also innovative. 

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I'm still thinking about Her Story, but thankfully I'm not tweeting about it, so you can go ahead and follow me on Twitter . Also don't forget to subscribe to my Youtube channel! 

VIRGINIA REVIEW

An experience unlike anything I've ever played before.

Virginia is a special game. It's a game I thought about after finishing, a game I'm still thinking about. A game that I will most likely come back to soon. But I also use the term "game" very, very loosely. You have very little control in this game, and it funnels you through its story. Despite the limited control, Virginia is one of, if not the most cinematic game I've ever experienced. It's a brief experience, and one that may not be for everyone, but if you're a fan of games like Gone Home, Firewatch, and the like, I highly, highly recommend this game. 

Anne Tarver

Virginia puts you in the shoes of rookie FBI Agent Anne Tarver, a rookie who is put on the case of a missing boy in a small Virginia town. You are paired with veteran agent Maria Halperin. The fact that Halperin's office being down in a grungy basement, along with you being assigned by Internal Affairs to keep an eye on her, immediately makes you wonder what exactly Halperin did to become so suspicious in the eyes of her superiors. Halperin isn't exactly thrilled to be paired up with your young upstart, doing things such as leaving you with the bill after morning coffee, but the developing relationship between the two is one of the highlights of Virginia.

Both the missing person case and your relationships drive Virginia's story

I'm far from the first to make this comparison, but Virginia is very much in the vein of Twin Peaks. FBI agent investigates in a small town, only to discover a much larger conspiracy. One scene in particular almost directly harkens to Twin Peaks, featuring a torch singer. Now, Virginia doesn't go as in-depth into the psyche of the town and its people as Twin Peaks does, but instead it focuses on what lies behind the surface of the FBI and its agents. I loved learning the secrets our two main heroines hid beneath the surface. Why Anne is plagued with nightmares involving her graduation, and what is the deal with the mysterious woman on Maria's locket? These are answers that are slowly revealed in the course of Virginia's under two hour story. 

This is maybe a bit of a tired comparison, but of any game I played, Virginia very much felt like an interactive movie. This is mostly due to the sweeping score, performed by the Prague Philarhomic Orchestra. The score added another layer of emotion to this tale, and appropriately aligned with what was currently going on in the game. Virginia most definitely has one of the best scores in any game I've played. 

The fact that Virginia lets you connect so easily to its main characters, and makes you so invested in their backstories, is incredible considering that this is a game with no dialogue, written or spoken. This isn't even a case of environmental storytelling, either, this is a narrative-driven game with no words spoken. Surprisingly, the story and development excels, despite the "limitation". There were some parts where some parts were I was a bit confused about what was going on, but these weren't major issues, and I eventually figured out what was happening. I even think that these somewhat ambiguous parts were intentional, and the game seems to encourage repeat playthroughs. 

However, the game, to me at least, falls apart during its last act (the game is divided by days of the week). The combination of the lack of dialogue, plus many things happening at once, made it almost impossible for me to follow. Again, I figured out what happened, but it was just way too much going on for one to comprehend it fully. 

This game is one of the most surreal I've played

The bigger problem was the lack of interactivity. The goal of the game is to go through this concrete story. It's a brief experience, taking me just under two hours to complete. However, for a game about solving a mystery, there was very little exploration. There are some points where you are given a bigger areas to explore, but even then, you are given a specific location to go, and no other room to find other pathways. Other times you are driven down a specific path, and sometimes the location cuts while to another mid-walk. I'm not complaining about being guided through a story, as I adore The Last of Us, but in that game, you are still given large areas to explore despite the point of The Last of Us is to experience one specific narrative. It's a shame, because the painterly world of Virginia is gorgeous. 

 I really, really loved Virginia. To be fair, this is not a game for everyone. The absence of dialogue, in addition to the relative lack of control in the game, will probably be a turn-off for some. It's a game that encourages multiple playthroughs, from its brief playtime to being able to select chapters to play from the menu. Virginia is a special game, and if it even sparks your interest, play it.

A CONFLICTED LOOK AT VIDEO GAME PATCHES

Note: In this post I talk about my feelings on patches, but as many things in life, I ultimately don't have a rock-solid conclusion to this. This is mainly to fuel discussion on a very controversial topic in the games industry. Enjoy!

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Story time! Mass Effect: Andromeda was easily my most-hyped game of 2017. The original trilogy are easily my favorite games of all time, and I could not wait for another opportunity to jump back into this world Bioware developed. In addition, Bioware has become my favorite developer in the game, so obviously I would take any new offering they give to us.

So I got Andromeda the day it released, and despite all of the negative buzz, I still fell in love with it. No, the writing wasn't as strong, and yeah, the facial animations are (were, I guess?) bad, and the game (of what I played) was just overall missing a lot of the charm that made the originals so memorable. But I still fell in love with it either way. I got over the faces easily enough, I loved the squad mates (and the voice work overall), and I had never encountered a major bug like many others had. My opinion on Andromeda was probably higher than most.

Then they announced the patches.

Patches usually don't bother me much. Having consoles that can connect to the internet has allowed developers to update games when they hadn't been able to before. If a game was plagued with glitches, the developers would have the opportunity to go back and fix the game, instead of players being stuck with a broken game, as was the situation in the days of yore. But that has also lead to the Mass Effect: Andromeda situation we are right now.

 Like I said, I haven't encountered the bugs that so many have complained about, but that doesn't mean I wouldn't be opposed to patches fixes the performance of the game. These kinds of patches aren't necessarily ideal, either, though. It is essentially the developers admitting their game was incomplete, or rushed, and are making up for it. This is where Mass Effect: Andromeda makes it obvious it needed a little more time to marinate.

Patching a game to fix performance is one thing, but the updates that Bioware announced go even further. In addition to fixing performance issues and problems with the galaxy map (which was warranted), they announced they're making changes to the game's story and characters, specifically the romances. Many people complained about the male/male relationships in comparisons to other romances. More specifically, many didn't like that they did not appear to be as developed as the other romances. Bioware pledged to fix this, which is commendable, but it also raises many questions.

What does this mean for day-one adopters? If they hadn't played far enough, should they stop until further notice? Or should they continue their play through, and either, A) look up the changes on YouTube, or B) replay the game to see what's different? It's not a great situation either way. But it's one that I currently find myself in. Like I said, I got Andromeda day one, I preordered it (my stance on preorders is a whole different issue, but I knew I was going to get this game anyway, so preordering made sense) and I was expecting to play a game that, even though it had some issues, would still be a worthwhile experience. I was pleasantly surprised by my play through, actually, as, like I've mentioned various times already, the bugs and issues many complained about seemed to be a non-issue for me.

Okay, so this was definitely an improvement

What ended up being an issue was the fact that I decided to pursue a romance with Gil, the engineer of Ryder's shift the Tempest, because there's not many games outside of The Sims that allow you the option of same-sex romances. I didn't look up the romance scenes, but from what I've seen it appears to be lacking in comparison with romances the male Ryder can pursue with his female companions Cora and Peebee. (This article has more on this, but beware of spoilers.) Bioware pledged to improve the romance storylines for male partners for Scott Ryder, and I have full confidence they will make good on this, but this essentially forces me to stop playing, in fear of progressing too far before these changes go live. I don't want to have to worry about playing a game and not getting the full experience, and since this is directly affecting a part of the game I'm personally involved in, I decided to put my Andromeda play through on pause. Which sucks because I planned on making Andromeda the big game I would dedicate most of my gaming time to.

My free time is severely limited most of the time, since I'm a college student who also works two part-time jobs. Because of this, my funds are also pretty limited. Basically I have to plan out what $60, AAA games I want to buy and play throughout the year. I planned to make Andromeda my big game to last me until the summer, where I would finally play Horizon: Zero Dawn, which I put off due to it being so close to Andromeda's release. But now it seems I won't even be playing Andromeda until that point, since ultimately I want to experience what the "finished" product is.

I'm not going to pretend like I have a solution for this, because I think patches can be a good thing. Things like adding a new mode months after release to a game is great! But at the cost of what may as well be an incomplete game, is it worth it? Games like Splatoon and Star Wars: Battlefront are examples of this. Some saw these games as bare-bones at launch, but now looking back at them they are great, complete releases. But would it have been better to just release the game with everything included, if sacrificing a few months to give it that extra polish?

I really do ultimately wish Mass Effect: Andromeda got just a few more months for some last-minute polish, it needed it. But, this is the game we got. It's also laughable to think patches will go away, since they're so ingrained in the industry now. Plus, as long as consoles are connected to the internet (which they will be), it's unlikely to see these habits going away. The only real possible solution is to vote with your wallet, and if a game seems like it wasn't fully baked, maybe don't buy it. I admit to be guilty of this, as I was a victim of my own hype, but then again, as I've mentioned, I didn't encounter nearly as many problems playing it as others have.

To finish, I don't really have a solid conclusion. I definitely think developers have become too over-reliant on patches, and many have used them as crutches and excuses to rush out incomplete games. On the other hand, it has given games a longer life than before, and the chance to be able to fix a game post-release is a positive, in my opinion. I wrote this not only to air out my mixed feelings toward patches, but to also open up a discussion, since patches are a very polarizing topic.

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Tell me some of your thoughts on patches! Love 'em, hate 'em, indifferent, tell me! You can also follow me on Twitter @aidansimonds