Another day, another end of the month blog post. I don’t know about anyone else but it feels like March went on forever. Having said that, I really didn’t play too many games this month, and there is a bit of a theme for the games I did play. On that note, let’s jump straight into it!
Just like the rest of the world, I ended up grabbing a copy of Resident Evil Requiem at the very tail end of February. I ended up really enjoying this one. Grace was a standout for me, I really liked both her gameplay and her character. The care centre is easily the best part of the game, and the best that Resident Evil has been in a long time. I wasn’t overly fond of the Leon segments, and felt that the game didn’t need to rely on action set pieces as much as it did. However, I will say that the game is a must play for any horror fans, and I certainly see why it has sold as many copies as it has. I settled on a 8.7/10 for Requiem, I really liked it, but just wanted more Grace gameplay. If the rest of the game held up to the care centre segment, we’d have been talking 9.5 at least. Still, play this one if you get the chance!
Unfortunately I’m not quite as good at these games as I used to be, so it was Standard difficulty for me. Insanity run pending however.
After playing through Requiem, I set my sights on a game that is on the “must beat in 2026” list, and after 5 years, I figured it was finally time to tackle one of the PS5’s heavy hitters, Returnal. I’d tried to finish Returnal a few times, and hit a roadblock every single time. But this year, I decided I’m going to finally beat it. 40 hours later, and I did beat the game! Returnal was a very, very tough game, but also felt incredibly rewarding when it goes right. When a run goes right, it can feel like you are invincible. Except you’re not, and within a second, one wrong move and it’s all over. It almost feels like a mix of a brutal bullet hell and an elegantly crafted roguelike. I really did enjoy my time with Returnal, and now with Saros around the corner? I think I’ll have to pick that up! I went with a 8.5/10 for Returnal, the difficulty can definitely put some people off. But if you have the patience, it can turn into a beautiful experience!
11.2% of people managed to get to the end of Returnal. To be fair, that is slightly higher than I was expecting with the difficulty spike! Maybe I’m just bad.
Going back to the theme of this blog post, it really was a Resident Evil month for me. I realised I hadn’t played the Xbox One remaster of Resident Evil 5 just yet. I decided to jump in feet first and give it a spin 13 years after I’d played it previously. Resident Evil 5 does still hold up in my opinion, it isn’t perfect, and it certainly isn’t scary but it is a enjoyable experience, and one I’d recommend if you’re crazy about Resident Evil or just love co-op games. This game does feature some of the staple Resident Evil characters, Chris Redfield plays a starring role for example and even Jill Valentine shows up later in the game! I decided to tackle the DLC for this as well, seeing as I’d never played it before. Both packs were incredibly short, but I thought Desperate Escape was the better of the two. Lost in Nightmares felt a little bit too short for what it was trying to be. Overall, Resident Evil 5 garnered a 8.0/10 out of me exactly, it’s definitely a product of the Xbox 360 generation but that actually does gain points with me.
It’s a lovely touch to reuse the old Xbox 360 achievement pictures in the updated Xbox One art. Keep it up!
Time for a quick break from Resident Evil for me to discuss the physical games I’ve picked up this month! And when I say “games”, I do actually just mean “game”. This month’s only physical pickup was Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age on the PS4. For everyone that actually cares about my pickups however, don’t fret! April is set to be a busy month in that respect, with new releases dropping, and a visit to the Gaming Market in tow. Keep your eyes peeled!
Finally, the last game I tackled this month was Resident Evil 6, I did say there was a theme this month. Sadly, I’m going to have to end this month’s post on a bit of a downer. Resident Evil 6 is absolutely not a high point for the series. I really had to bash my head against the wall to finish this one, and there was many times I almost dropped it completely. Like Returnal, this was another game I’d started before but dropped, and unlike Returnal, this one could have potentially stayed dropped and I wouldn’t have missed out. The story is all over the place swapping between characters, the characters themselves are pretty dull too. No scare factor, it really is run and fun for 16 hours. Yes, it is that long. A series known for the games being rather short but very replayable has a game that’s actually quite long and not replayable at all. I don’t know why they deviated from the formula so far for this one. I ended up going for 5.5/10 for this one. I was torn between 5 and 6 for a while so I just decided to split the difference. I don’t think I’ll be picking up Resident Evil 6 again in a hurry. I know my review is pretty scathing so to see a score that is “average” may make that seem unfair, but it’s important to place the game in the context of the series. Many of the games are excellent horror adventures. Resident Evil 6 definitely functions as a game, but it misses the bar that previous entries have set quite high.
Normal is certainly good, but I’m not sure the game is.
With Returnal being beaten, this means that the pledge games for 2026 now looks like this:
- Silent Hill Downpour
- Yakuza 6: Song of Life
- Hollow Knight: Silksong
- Sly Racoon
- Xenoblade Chronicles
- Shadow of the Tomb Raider
- Call of Duty: Vanguard
- Jak and Daxter
That brings us to the end of March, and into a whole new season. Spring is upon us! April looks set to bring some incredibly hyped new titles, including Tomodochi Life which I’m very excited for! With any luck, April’s blog and pickups should be stacked. And if it’s not then, you’ll just have to forgive me.
Love,
Squash