Recent reviews by Mr. Vercetti

the combat is so good it keeps me from carting irl

You know those video game trailers where you see a bunch of cool jumps and explosions, but when you get the game of course you can do jumps and explosions and such, but it is not at all the same?

This game is a video game trailer all the way through. Also - the music is so ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ good. Takes a hour to play through, worth it IMO.

This is a review of base game Monster Hunter World while owning Iceborne - but wanted to write about the experience of the game before Iceborne - which is very much very good.

Highly recommend this game to any one who enjoys real time action as well as to anyone who has been hesitant about getting into Monster Hunter and haven't made the jump - take the leap! It's very fun and has consumed my brain for the past few weeks when I get a chance to play, the gameplay is rewarding, and having gone from Bow to Insect Glaive, dabbling very briefly with Dual Blades, to now trying out Charge Blade, each weapon feels very much uniquely it's own and it works incredibly well on PC (can change controls at your own will practically) and on controller (less control over keybinds on controller but much more intuitive).

The story is alright but it does connect all the monsters you hunt together, and honestly Monster Hunter has never been about story, but always about the hunting aspect. Online play can be difficult to learn how to play with specific friends at first, but once you learn how to share a session and accept quests before departing on the quest itself, you get the general gist of it. Hunting monsters again and again, or attempting a monster again and again is not mind-numbingly boring or infuriating - the gameplay loop is well-done and always enjoyable! If I were to recommend starting out however, do not use the defender's/guardian gear. Stick with monster gear, it keeps the learning curve more curvy and less of a straight shot up once you reach Iceborne.

10/10 Base game experience, would recommend for that alone.

"An immortal demands you fulfill three wishes, and you've the gall to propose a round of gwent?"
"Afraid to lose? No problem. I'll find someone else."
"Believe that's the worst wind-up I've ever heard. Lay out your cards."

TL;DR? Buy it, for the single player alone.

I played this game way back in 2013 when I was much younger and much more easily distracted. I never got around to finishing it. Around 2020ish, however, I had the opportunity to get this game on Steam, and with the impending (now confirmed!) release of the next GTA game in the series, I decided to give it a shot and finish the game fully. Grand Theft Auto V is truly a masterpiece of a game that may have overstayed it's welcome, given the gap between this release and whenever the next release is, but a masterpiece nonetheless, especially given when it released. I have just finished my last mission after 100%ing the game, "What Lies Beneath", and after 100%ing said game (some content is not required given only Franklin's content is required, but I've done all content on all characters), messing around a bit online, and I am probably going to continue to play some online to get the steam achievements, and finally being able to move to the story mode of a new game, I can see what earned GTA it's critical reception.

Let's address the black sheep in the room; the online mode can be extremely rough at times. You should honestly turn off voice chat, and use the unspeakable glitch to get a private solo lobby if you're grinding, but freeroam is still fun in lobbies that are well-behaved, and the heists (at least doing them the first few times) are fun with people who know what they're doing! Like any other game, it's online mode is an absolute crapshoot, the bot spamming problem is a huge problem, and the modders run Los Santos. However, it's still great fun with friends, and if you're willing to play it with friends, 100% go for it. It's well made, the whole map is available to explore, and the missions are fun (the first few times; grinding can be soul-crushing of course). As well, the newest DLC is some actual nice online story DLC featuring Franklin, and you can play as both Franklin and Lamar in it! Not quite the Single Player DLC we were once promised, but still nice to have after all these years.

Now heading over to the golden child; the story. As always, the story is pretty damn good. Franklin, Trevor, and Michael (but let's be honest, Michael is the main character here) bounce off each other incredibly, the graphics and cutscenes are quite impressive for a 2013 game, the driving is wonderful, MOST missions are fun (I'm looking at you, By the Book and Scouting the Port), the open world has a lot to do, tons of collectables to collect, and good side missions to enjoy. Michael and Trevor's interwoven story is always a pleasure to play through and understand, the plot twists make sense and are reasonably foreshadowed. Each character's arc makes sense, with Franklin playing the straight man to this wild psychopath and probable psychopath. You'll start out with Franklin, quickly unlock Michael, and then unlock Trevor after the first heist. I cannot emphasize this enough, if you enjoy the story of other GTA games, watch these cutscenes. It certainly isn't Final Fantasy level of story, but it's pretty damn good, and enjoyable to play through. Most cutscenes aren't too long at all, most missions aren't too long, and I suspect it is most likely around a 40 - 50 hour game if you are just there to play through the story and aren't obsessed with getting 100% or all gold medals on all missions. Of course, there is it's low points, and it's fair share of controversies, but it is a Grand Theft Auto game at the end of the day. Each heist gives you two options on how to approach it, and while there is, of course, a "best way" for the most money out of it, you can replay it afterwards to play the other routes or see other crew choices with no impact financially (tip: Stall out Lester's Assassination Missions for as long as possible. Only one is required to beat main game, and that can be stalled until you need to do Blitz Play. Do the others post-story, to maximize stock profit, otherwise you will be very unlikely to be able to afford the more expensive properties).

The soundtrack is also impressive as always, with my personal favorite radio station being Radio Mirror Park, but there is a music station for everyone. You can even hear Nervous Ron on Blaine County Radio! The online mode has more sound stations as well, but that does require to play online.

Overall, I would rate this game a solid 10/10 for the single player alone. I would rank online lower, but it is the black sheep of the game, and it's completely enjoyable without ever once stepping into online. GTA V deserved all it's accolades back in 2013, and it still deserves them now. A great GTA game, and I cannot wait to see what Rockstar puts out next.

Jailor here, TP/LO on me.

Good game.