Throwback Thursday - Limbo

Welcome to another Throwback Thursday, our weekly look into my Top 100 games and general nostalgia, now examining the cream of the crop with the Top 20.  While this game is only rated T for Teen, there are many gruesome variances of death sequences to be found in this somber world.  This blog is rated E for everyone's safe and enjoyable viewing, but I'd advise some parental discretion for playing this game.

Speaking of which, taking a stab this week: The game of brutal deaths and fun with physics that is Limbo.

Released on July 21st, 2010, Limbo starred as the eye-catching new indie game of Xbox's "Summer of Arcade" promotion.  And boy did it turn some heads, with its simplistic and yet incredibly gripping art style and gameplay mechanics.  By stripping down the components of its design, this is a game that manages to be both surprisingly accessible and deeply engaging.  As a puzzle-platformer, players explore this entrancing world filled with all sorts of interesting puzzles, either comprised of new ideas or familiar elements with new layers of complexity.  The main basis of most of these puzzles and the game centers around a trial by error system (or "trial by death" as the creators put it).  This may sound frustrating dying over and over again, but such is kept from feeling grinding thanks to generous checkpoints and the many varied horrific, yet strangely captivating deaths.  The deeper you dive into this haunting world, the more you develop a sense for anticipating these devious traps and a satisfaction for overcoming such.

Throwback Thursday - Inside

Welcome to another Throwback Thursday, our weekly look into my Top 100 games and general nostalgia, now examining the cream of the crop with the Top 20.  While this blog is rated E for everyone's safe and enjoyable viewing, I should mention this week's throwback is rated M for Mature.  Parental discretion is advised for playing this game.

Speaking of which, making the sprint this week: The game of moving right and curious sights that is Inside.

Released on June 29th, 2016, Inside is the highly anticipated follow-up to Playdead's critically acclaimed hit Limbo back in 2010.  At surface level, this game bears many similarities to its former counterpart: A boy who wakes up in a mysterious forest and sets off on some unknown driven purpose, solving various puzzles in which to press forward and satiate an unyielding curiosity.  However, Inside tells a story distinctly its own and raises the bar over that of Limbo in most every conceivable way.  The animation is some of the best animation to be displayed in any medium; the way in which the boy perfectly reacts to the world around him to the haunting marches of the brain-dead bodies.  Even as a 2D platformer, the world is richer and fuller than most any game you could hope to explore, completely enamoring the player with its beautiful, cinematic framing and perfect pacing.  The sound design, so wonderfully rich and chilling.  The narrative, so strange and yet so incredibly captivating, you can't help but keep thinking about long after the credits finish rolling.  It's a game that begs further discussion and an unhealthy amount of further diving into every facet of this world for deeper meaning.

Little Nightmares Review

Genre: Puzzle-Platformer, Horror
Players: 1
Playtime: 4 hours (Includes beating the game and finding a few secrets)

Little Nightmares invites players to run and hide in a world that is filled with unspeakable horrors and grueling imagery.  It may be easy to make comparisons to games such as Limbo or the recent Inside, but Little Nightmares makes its own mark with a distinct style of suspenseful and stealthy gameplay mixed with bouts of frantic chases from unsettling figures.  It reminds us of how strange and frightening the adult world can be through the eyes of a child.  So if you enjoy playing games as small defenseless protagonists with a aesthetic art direction that feels like something from Nightmare on Elm Street mixed with Tim Burton, keep reading the pros and cons below as this game may be right up your foreboding alley.

Celebrating Two Years of Switch - Top 5 Games

The Nintendo Switch has become a gaming hardware sensation as it now celebrates two years since entering the market this past Sunday.  Thanks in part to its versatility in games and gamers of all play styles, it seems just about every game is a perfect fit and desired wish-list to be put onto this system.  So whether you've been along for the ride since its launch or are now debating to jump aboard this dreamy hybrid console, let's take a look back at the best of the best this system has offered up.  As is often the selling point of most any console, we'll start by taking a look at the exclusive (or mostly exclusive) titles available only on Switch.  These are my Top 5 recommended Switch Exclusives:


(Updated 12/27/19 - Removed Golf Story in exchange for Luigi's Mansion 3)

(Updated 4/23/19 - Removed PlayDead's Limbo / Inside in exchange for Cuphead)

-1- The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

Although technically also a bit of a swan song to the Nintendo Wii-U, Breath of the Wild has become synonymous with the launch of the Switch and perhaps one of the greatest launch games to any system ever.  It has redefined and set a new standard for open-world adventure games, allowing unprecedented levels of freedom and creative play that make way for players of many skill levels and play styles to enjoy play each in their own unique way.  Clocking over 100 hours myself in just my first play-through of this game, this is an epic adventure to behold, and the Switch is the perfect means to tackle shrines and explore new horizons whenever and however long the call for adventure beckons.  Simply put, this is a must-have for any Zelda fan, adventure lover, or pretty much any Switch owner.  For a more detailed review of this grand epic, click here.

Top 100 Video Games

For the auspicious 100th post of this blog, I thought it appropriate to put out my personal Top 100 games (so far).  This list will be updated as we continue our weekly Throwback Thursday segments and can easily be viewed by clicking the new "Top 100 Games" tab on the far right.  If interested in learning more about any of these games, click the link of the game to learn more through other posts from this blog.

Please note for current purposes of the continuing Throwback Thursday, all games on this list will be prior to 2017.  Games released 2017 and after will be later considered once the list is complete.  Please also note that this list is built upon personal opinion and only games that I have played.  The games are also ranked based upon how they hold today, not when they were initially released.  With that in mind, enjoy viewing, discussing, and debating below.

-100- Super Mario Sunshine

-99- Sound Shapes

-98- Diablo II

-97- Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch

-96- Goof Troop

Top 100 Video Games (& 400th Post!!)

Today marks the 3rd anniversary of Hughes 3D - A Gaming Blog as well as the 400th post to be shared per your regularly delivered gaming goodness!  To celebrate, we're giving my Top 100 Games list a much overdo update for all the superb games released up through 2019. (For those who want to view the previous list, see here)

Please note that any games released in 2020 or later will be considered for this list at a later date / time.  Please also note that this list is built upon personal opinion and only of games that I have played.  The games are also ranked based upon how they hold today, not when they were initially released.  With that in mind, enjoy viewing, discussing, and debating below.  And if interested in learning more about any of these games, click the link of the game to learn more through other posts from this blog.

-100- Rhythm Heaven

-99- Splatoon 2

-98- The Sims (series)

-97- The Wolf Among Us

-96- Diablo II

By Design: Making an Impression with Title Screens

As an aspiring game designer, it's important to take note of every component of a game and consider how it can be best executed to make a meaningful and lasting impression.  So where better to begin than with the first thing any player sees when they boot up a new game: The title screen.  Too often, these are subjugated to little more than simple text menus to start and load games with some unmemorable cursor or cartoon hand that points at the available options for selection.  But they have the potential to be so much more.  Title screens can make a powerful first impression into the experience a player is about to embark.  What more, they have the potential to create an imprinted emotion directly correlating to the game itself, as this will be a screen players will visit again and again each time they boot up the game, and even possibly when the credits finish rolling.  So what are some of the creative means in which title screens can be expressed and implemented?  And what types of title screens are best suited for the intended experience?  With these questions in mind, join us in the following design discussion as we take some time to dive into the many types of title screens found in the world of games.

Title screen from Xenoblade Chronicles.