Serra's Blog

It would be disingenuous to argue that the Destiny of today is the same Destiny that Bungie released in 2014 (or even when Destiny 2 released in 2017). It is well documented how the original direction for the story changed in the eleventh hour and Bungie launched the game narratively adrift, cobbled together partially using fragments of their original plan. Still, from that tenuous foundation, Bungie has managed to erect something that is truly good -- a conflict between ancient and antitheti…

Like many, there was a point that I grew tired of experiencing the same Pokémon adventure with only a fresh layer of paint applied from generation to generation. I can actually pinpoint the exact moment it happened -- on Route 17 on Ula’ula Island in Pokémon Moon. That was the first core Pokémon game that I did not finish when I picked it up when it originally released. When Pokémon Sword and Shield were announced, I was excited to play the game on the Switch, but I was not expecting an espe…

2016 saw the release of Overwatch, a brand new Blizzard IP that showed the world what a competitive first-person hero shooter looked like when the well-established Blizzard polish is applied. The game was an immediate success that crushed the competition. It was widely praised for its competitive gameplay, mechanical diversity, colorful setting, and unique heroes.

But that was over six years ago, and the Blizzard of 2016 is not the Blizzard of today -- or rather, the public perception of B…

Late last week I came across an amazing Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles themed mecha figure that is planned to release early next year. And after picking my jaw off the floor and adding a reoccurring calendar reminder to keep an eye open for the inevitable announcement of the Michelangelo mech, I remembered I had never finished my review of the recent Ninja Turtles beat-em-up. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge is the latest entry in a largely forgotten genre that attempts to strik…

At this point, we can all recognize the post-apocalyptic setting. It is frequently featured in dystopian narratives where civilization has collapsed, cities are abandoned and retaken by nature, resources are scarce, and order is replaced with lawlessness. These are the familiar staples of a genre that has, especially in recent years, been heavily used across various forms of media. Kirby and the Forgotten Land takes that well-traversed foundation and puts its own spin on the genre by asking,…

In 2015, Destiny’s first true expansion, The Taken King, introduced players to the pantheon of Hive dieties: Oryx, the titular Taken King, and his two sisters, Savathûn, the Hive god of deception and Witch Queen, and Xivu Arath, the Hive God of War. Although players slew Oryx, Savathûn and Xivu Arath remained as looming presences in the shadows of the franchise’s narrative. Last year, Savathûn took on a more significant role, manipulating and driving much of the ongoing story. Destiny 2: The…

Pokémon mythology straddles the line between unrealistically insane to completely bizarre. The games put players in control of children, ranging in age from ten to seventeen, who capture pokémon to battle and climb their way to the ultimate pokémon master of the region. On one extreme are common pokémon, barely different that ordinary animals in our own world, but on the other are creatures that, according to legends, have defied death, created the land and sea, ruled over time and space, and…

The end of the year is upon us, and like last year, 2021 has definitely been a strange year. The ongoing pandemic, global supply chain issues, and numerous scandals and crises have impacted the gaming world this year. All of those factors have led to a year without a lot of strong contenders for Game of the Year. Like previous years, the lack of great games has led to a limited number of selections this year. Or maybe it is just a sign we are all finally getting old and do not have as much …

Back in 2017, Nintendo surprised fans with a title card for Metroid Prime 4. The original Metroid Prime ranks as one of my favorite games of all time, so you can imagine my despondency when the only significant news around this title over the past four years has been the 2019 announcement that the game was not meeting Nintendo’s expectations and development was restarting. Going into E3 this year, there was a faint glimmer of hope that Nintendo would finally share some positive news on Metroi…

There was a moment a few weeks ago where I had my best Spelunky 2 run ever. I was trying to unlock the third shortcut which required me to carry an item from the first level all the way to the end of level 4-4. By chance, I had acquired a number of great items, the compass, spike shoes, Kapala, and a four-leaf clover. I had made it to the second level of the Tide Pool, level 4-2, saw the exit, and promptly misjudged the distance I had to fall, stunning myself, dropping the crucial item I was…

Conflict and stakes are typically a core element of video games. Some of the most memorable games tell stories about the clash between the forces of good and evil, battling to prevent or overcome great calamities, or the struggle to survive. Of course, there are also competitive games that are built around the conflict of gamers pitted against other players or teams. And then there are games like New Pokémon Snap, games without any of that. What is the point of a game without conflict or st…

After missing 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, E3 returned to the Los Angeles Convention Center this year. This should have been a triumphant return and an exciting week for gamers, but in addition to the fact that a number of companies offered digital presentations last year during the planned E3 period, E3 has been in a weird place the past few years. In the past, there were three big press conferences from Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo and the various developers typically used the exh…

The looter shooter genre is something of a peculiarity. On one hand, there is no denying that the genre has seen a boom for several years now. But on the other, many of these games have been released in an unpolished state, and while some adjust and adapt over time, others fail to meet those initial expectations (or worse). So given this stigma, it is strange that so many offer demos or beta tests which allow players to experience the game and make initial impressions without having to commi…

As I have gotten older, I find myself gravitating towards hobbies where the outcome is affected by the time I invest. The more time I spend running, the better I do on race day; I can create better dishes because I have years of cooking experience; and naturally, I am drawn to games where I can develop my skills and improve over time. If you have ever played a rouge-like, you will agree that this ideology is core to these games. The past few years have seen some stellar entries into the genr…

Here we are at the end of 2020. I think everyone can agree that this past year has been a strange one. As activities in the world and social gatherings were canceled, more and more people embraced gaming as a refuge from the challenges and difficulties of the world. I can personally attest to nearly a dozen individuals who either bought their first systems or returned to gaming after many years. And while there have definitely been some standout games this year, there is no doubt that the o…

After a delay of nearly two months, Destiny 2: Beyond Light has finally arrived. This past year was been Bungie’s first year self publishing Destiny 2 since splitting with Activision and there have been some undeniable growing pains. While Year 3 had its share of flaws, the Fall expansions are the Destiny franchise’s biggest content drops which lay the foundation for the upcoming year and have the potential to be a clean break from the previous year’s issues. Beyond Light is more than just a…

Since 2014, I have had a consistent fall routine: pick up the latest Destiny release and then throw my sleep schedule and anything resembling a good habit out the window to binge for a week or two to prepare for the new raid experience. So you can imagine my dismay when, likely because of the ongoing global pandemic, the upcoming Destiny 2 expansion was delayed by nearly two months. What was I to do? Not spend the fall binging? Maintain my good habits and not grind? Act like a reasonable …

If you have followed any communities around competitive first-person shooters this past year, you have probably seen a flood of complaints about matchmaking. Late last year, there was a surge in skill-based matchmaking, or SBMM, in games like Call of Duty, Apex Legends, Destiny 2, and even Fortnite. But what is skill-based matchmaking, why does it exist, what are the alternatives, and why did it become so prevalent if there was seemingly such vocal opposition to it from players?

Let’s start …

As society came to a screeching halt back in March, and many of us suddenly had an unexpected surplus of free time on our hands, I found myself revisiting the 2013 masterpiece, The Last of Us. The Last of Us was set in a post-apocalyptic world ravaged by a global pandemic. The game followed Joel and Ellie, two survivors who set out to travel across the United States. Developed by Naughty Dog, it was an intense journey, as Joel and Ellie had to face hordes of infected and some of the worst si…

Back in 2005, the opening cinematic of Final Fantasy VII was released as a technical demo for the PS3. It was a visually stunning update that lit a fire across the gaming world as fans begged Square-Enix to remaster the most iconic entry in the Final Fantasy franchise, originally released in 1997. Ten years later, to cheers and roaring applause, Square-Enix answered those pleas by unveiling the first trailer for Final Fantasy VII Remake. And after nearly five years of development, Square-Eni…