Let's talk about Tekken 7 [SPOILERS]

After 2 years of waiting for the home console version, was it worth it?  Yeah, I'd say so.


I honestly wasn't that excited for Tekken 7.  I wasn't even planning on buying it until it was much cheaper.  I don't know what compelled me to pick it up, but I pre-ordered it and hoped that I wouldn't be disappointed with it like I did with Street Fighter V.  I played through Story mode and was sadly disappointed with it.  It wasn't as contrived as Street Fighter V's story mode, but I didn't really like the reasons that panned out the events that has happened.  Heihachi threw Kazuya down the mountain because he knew he's survive the fall?  WHAT?  I think "trying to kill him" would've been a better reason as evil as it seemed.  And I find it strange that Kazumi wants to kill Heihachi because "he'll be a threat to the world" AND YET STILL HAD A SON WITH HIM!  Things don't add up and it bugs me.

As for the game itself, it's oddly refreshing and feels new to me.  The core basis of Tekken is still there, but the addition of Rage Arts (a revenge super) is an interesting new mechanic.  The cast of characters is much smaller than Tekken Tag Tournament 2, but has a decent variety of unique styles to choose from.  The graphics are beautiful playing on my own monitor (didn't seem much different from TTT2 watching on stream).  The music is some of my favorite in the series aside from TTT2's music.  But what really got me into the game (and still has me playing the game) is Treasure Battle.  It's a mode where you fight one opponent after another and the more wins in a row you get, the better your rewards.  The only consequence of losing or quitting is breaking the bonus chain (and maybe your own pride).  You can use the fight money you earned to unlock items and outfits to customize your characters, unlock images and videos from the gallery, or unlock banners and stuff for your profile card.  It's the incentive that drive me to keep playing, the bonus chain that makes me want to get better, and the depth of each character that makes me want to learn another character so I can play some more treasure battle to unlock stuff for.  This is what I was hoping for from Street Fighter V: being able to enjoy the game with single-player content and earn in-game currency to unlock new content to further enjoy my experience (this might still be possible with Street Fighter V: Arcade Edition update coming next month).  Tekken 7 lacks content with modes and characters compared to its predecessors, and yet I'm so drawn to it.  I think I've played Tekken 7 the most among the fighting games I bought this year.

Let's talk about Sonic Forces [SPOILERS]

Sonic Forces was another game that had a lot to live up to because of how well Sonic Generations was received, how poorly Sonic's franchise has been perceived the years after it with Sonic Lost World and Sonic Boom, and how incredibly well Sonic Mania sold just a month before it.


Sonic Forces has a similar concept as Generations where you play as Classic Sonic and Modern Sonic along with the player's own original character (OC).  Stages are separated between character types: Classic Sonic Stage, Modern Sonic Stage, OC Stage, and OC + Sonic Stage.  Classic Sonic stages focuses on platforming.  Modern Sonic stages focuses on going fast.  OC stages focuses on semi-exploration and combat with wispons scattered throughout the level which are power-ups that allow you to get to hard to reach areas.  OC + Sonic Stages are a mix of combat and going fast.  Sonic Forces had a lot going for it and did some things right.

Pros of Sonic Forces:
+ Incredible graphics.  The environment is so beautiful!
+ One of the best soundtracks I've ever heard in a Sonic game!
+ Making an original character is incredibly entertaining in of itself
+ GOTTA GO FAST!  I adrenaline rush of the speed without losing control of Sonic
+ Some stages have some really nice paths and secrets to them
+ Creative ways to deal with enemies with the different wispons
+ They took out the lives system.  There's really no point in it for this kind of game
+ Jump into a spin dash (from Sonic Mania) is a nice addition

But as I played the game, I started having problems with it.

Cons of Sonic Forces:
- An edgier than edgy story.  Sonic is captured, Eggman takes over the world
- Builds the expectation that you'll get to fight all previous games' bosses (you don't)
- A lot of Classic Sonic stages are rather boring or have tedious platforming
- Most Classic Sonic music range from boring to "ugh" (EXCEPT FOR GHOST TOWN!)
- Levels are super short.  They average between 1-2 minutes.
- Color blend too much.  Dark enemies blended in with dark backgrounds, ugh!
- Unskippable in-game cinematics
- Lack of creative Boss fights.  Metal Sonic, Infinity 1&3, and Final Boss fights are the same!
- As fun as creating original characters are, the options are limited
- Some stages lack variety in paths
- Super short game, even for $40.  It's about 5 hours long leisurely.


Despite the game's shortcomings and flaws, I had so much fun playing the game.  I kept creating new characters, kept improving my times, and tried to find all the secrets until I reached 20 hours of gameplay time.  I loved going fast and trying to find ways to go even faster (but never faster than people on the leaderboards, holy smacks).  But beyond anything, I really love the music so much.  I think it's some of my favorite music I've listened to this entire year.  I might revisit the game one day because of how much fun I had with it.  I quickly played through it and deleted it because I was running out of hard drive space.

Seriously though, listen to the music: