“Whatcha Playin’, Pixels?” – March 2023
13 min read
A monthly roundup of games enjoyed by the writers of The Pixels
This month has been an exciting one here at The Pixels! We’ve held our Super MAR10 event, our first theme week celebrating the Super Mario Bros. franchise. We’ve also put up a variety of exciting critiques, reviews and editorials that you dear readers come to expect from us. And there’s more to come with a jam-packed April ahead of us!
As is customary for the end of the month, let’s see what our awesome writers have accomplished this time around. What are they playing? What have they beaten? And what are they looking forward to? All will be answered in this month’s edition of “Whatcha Playin’, Pixels?”
What have I been playing? Well, I’ve decided to give the Resident Evil 4 remake a try, even though I disliked the original! You know what, I quite like it this time around, shooting infected villagers in the kneecaps and round housing them in the chops never gets old I must confess! I do find myself curious as to what that Napoleon-looking bloke looks like in the (slightly) more grounded remake though…
Other than that it’s just DayZ as always! We’re currently teaching my dad to play and, much to my surprise, he’s massively into it! Considering the last game he played this much was Sonic 2 back in 199-something he’s not doing too badly at all!
Having played and enjoyed the Diablo 4 beta over the Early Access and open periods during the last few weekends, I was really jonesing for some more dungeon-crawling ARPG action. That’s why I decided to get into Last Epoch, an indie Diablo-like I initially purchased and dabbled in back during the height of the 2020 lockdowns. It’s evolved quite a bit since then and feels like quite the competitor to modern Diablo-style games like Path of Exile. I’d say it’s definitely worth a look, especially considering that they recently added online multiplayer.
I sincerely hope that March is the last month I have had to deal with repeated illnesses. It seems like every week, someone in the house gets sick and then passes it along to everyone else. Ah well.
Games!
So, starting off, I finished all the extra missions in Crisis Core Reunion and completed the game for good measure. The quality of life improvements in this game made finishing the 9-x-x series missions SO much easier than it was on the original PSP version. I’m happy that Square Enix remastered and made it available for everyone to play.
Next, I finally started a playthrough of Hollow Knight! This one was greatly overdue, as I’ve been told that I would enjoy this one, given my love for Metroidvanias. And, to no surprise, I am enjoying it! Granted, I didn’t get too far into it. I got distracted by some other games on my mind. So, I’ve put this one down for now and I’ll return to it in April.
My first distraction was playing Super Mario 64 because of MAR10 Day! I’ve had the hankering to play more Mario for some time. I blame both the upcoming movie and my son’s growing adoration for the character. This playthrough marks the first time I got all 120 Power Stars! I’m surprised it took me this long to do so, but I’m glad I got around to crossing that off my list of accomplishments.
My second distraction was Metroid Prime Remastered. I mentioned this in my own weekly write-ups, but the level of muscle memory I have for the original game is just plain stupid. I remembered the locations of each tool, weapon and Missile/Energy Tank expansion as if I only picked them up yesterday. The last time I even played Metroid Prime was a good eight or nine years ago! Surprisingly, the base game didn’t feel like a challenge, until I learned that the difficulty was nerfed for the Wii re-release, on which Remastered was based. I had to go play a Hard mode run to get the challenge I craved from the GameCube version. Both Prime and Fusion were my true introductions to the Metroid franchise and I’ve been a fan of the series ever since. Now, bring us Metroid Prime 2 and 3 Nintendo!!
Lastly, the new DLC for Sonic Frontiers was released last week and I just had to incorporate it into my upcoming critique of the game. I really liked how this new content was free of charge. In it, there are new challenge modes to play, a jukebox mode, a photo mode and some quality-of-life upgrades that have improved the overall experience. I’m looking forward to sharing my thoughts on this title in the near future.
I beat two games this month! One is a fun little game called Furi, an indie game developed by The Game Bakers. It’s sort of an arena boss fight game where you can shoot, slash, and parry attacks. I’ve actually been playing this game for a few years now, off and on, replaying the same boss fights. I’m not sure why I hadn’t beaten it up until this point other than the fact that I just didn’t put my mind to it. Regardless I think that Furi’s gameplay is some of the funniest to me.
I also beat a visual novel called ATRI -My Dear Moments-, a pretty short game that took me about 10 hours. I’m actually surprised by how much I enjoyed the ending of this game because narratively, it is all over the place until a certain point, so I’m glad that the ending message made the experience worthwhile. I probably won’t play this game again, but an anime adaptation was JUST announced for next year, so I’ll have to check it out.
I didn’t get a chance to catch up on games played last month so I have quite a few to talk about! I’m gonna start by talking about Octahedron, a 2D side-scrolling platformer on the Switch. It’s part puzzle solving but mostly a fast-paced action platformer where you gotta figure out how to reach the exit while going through obstacles and enemies. The music and visuals make this game an incredible experience on their own, but the fact that the mechanics are very fun makes it a very high recommendation. You can place platforms in mid-air anywhere you want that also have the ability to break objects and fight enemies. It’s a unique mechanic that makes it surprisingly fun and satisfying to traverse the levels. I highly recommend at least checking out the demo.
Hazelnut Hex is the next game I finished, a horizontal scrolling shoot-em-up with a cute graphical style. Breakfast has disappeared and it’s your job to save it by firing your Hazelnut Hex cereal to snap your friends out of their grumpy breakfast-less state. It’s a fairly simple shooter where you choose from 3 different fire styles that are upgraded with pickups. It’s a very short game, able to be beaten in about an hour, but it’s full of charm! The colorful cartoony graphics coupled with the fun characters and upbeat music make it a worthwhile experience if you’re a fan of ‘shmups’!
The last game I’ll talk about is a classic and childhood favorite: Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins! It’s been over a decade since I last played it so I was very happy to see it show up on the Switch Online service! I had almost forgotten how inventive and wild some of the level and enemy designs were. The music is very catchy and was stuck in my head for days after I finished it. My only complaint with the game is that the final level is incredibly long and challenging and for some reason is the only level to seemingly not have any checkpoints. It’s a bizarre choice so I let myself use save states to save me the trouble of having to start over from the beginning every time. It was still a highly enjoyable Mario game that brought back some good memories.
I actually beat two games! The first was Lufia II: Rise of the Sinistrals, a real gem on the SNES. It was my first time playing it and I was floored at how huge it was. The ancient cave is a roguelite minigame with 99 floors. There’s a sonar for finding every last chest. There’s a treasure hunt for dragon eggs. There’s a casino. There are capsule monsters to feed and raise like pre-Pokemon Tamagotchi. My final tally said I’d spent 130 hours in the game and I hadn’t done everything… though I did leave the system on for a whole weekend once so there’s that. I’ll want to return to this one someday and really dig in!
The other game I beat was in a much quicker time. Drakkhen only took around 6 hours with the help of a handy guide. This is the first RPG released for the SNES in North America and it shows its age. But for a PC port to home console, it wasn’t that bad. Its controls were a little more streamlined than Eye of the Beholder. Its AI-controlled party system was a surprise in a game so old. Its overworld of pseudo-3D graphics was definitely retro. Onto Dragon View, aka Super Drakkhen, the sequel, an action RPG crossover with a beat ‘em up!
It’s been a fairly good month for me. I came up with an idea at the beginning of the month to pick out two games from my list of games I’m achievement hunting on, five games in progress, and two unplayed games and try to get as many of them done as possible during March. It…kinda worked? Before I decided to do that, I beat three short, small games: Octodad: Dadliest Catch, Pan-Pan (a puzzle game) and Clouzy! (an exploration game-ish).
Octodad was great, but the other two were lacking in places. Not necessarily bad, but not for me. Pan-Pan is one of those games that if you know what you’re doing, you can beat it in an hour, but if you don’t, you’ll spend hours just trying to figure out what to do next, because there’s no breadcrumbing or directions. The first thing you need to do is on the furthest side of the map, leaving you lost for longer than I was content with. Clouzy! Is super cute and mostly clearer about what to do and where to go, but it was missing a very important step in the tutorial that every review or walkthrough I turned to took ages to figure out or didn’t at all. I eventually found it on accident and had a fine time after, but that hour or two not having any clue what to do was a major downer.
After I decided on my small list of March games, I finished achievement hunting in Octodad and went back to Goat Simulator, which I hadn’t played since 2016, and completed the achievement hunting and DLC there. Two down, seven to go. And then, before I could dive into the rest, I picked up the Castlevania DLC for Dead Cells and spent most of the rest of the month playing that almost exclusively. Whoops. It’s so good though, Dead Cells. I’m awful at it, but it feels so good to play.
The only distractions I had beyond it were Dredge, which you may have seen my review of here (long article short, it’s good!), and Webbed, which I’ve been streaming and should finish up today. All told, that’s six games completed in a month. I’ll just scoot the games that got buried under Dead Cells into April.
Fans of survival horror haven’t had it like this in a long, long time. First, the Dead Space remake, followed by Project Zero: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse and with titles like the Alone In The Dark refresh and Bloober Team’s take on Silent Hill 2 on the horizon.. 2023 is looking like a very strong year for the genre. But of course, I’m sure you know where I’m going with all this. I’ve been playing the absolute daddy: Resident Evil 4.
The original was a game I imported before the UK release because I was that eager to get my hands on it, and it quickly became a 10/10 series favourite for me. I’d even say it outshone the mighty Resident Evil 2. but I probably wouldn’t say that to our very own Bizzaro. That said, if Gamecube Resi 4 was a 10/10, then Playstation 5 Resi 4 is also a 10 but for a few different reasons.
I’m thoroughly appreciating the slight changes and added sub-quests dotted around the map. There are some areas I remember clearly, some I don’t remember well, and some totally new segments. Thankfully at the point I’m up to at the moment (the end of Chapter 8), nothing major has been removed, and all the amendments have been to the game’s benefit. Whether you’re coming into this as a fan of the original, or if you loved the PS4 Resi 2 remake, this is essential gaming and a potential GOTY contender already.
Gaming was truly EVIL this month as my wife and officially started playing Diablo Immortal together…as a couple! Now, check this out. We now live in a world where I can play the same game on my phone that my wife is playing on the PC. This has really come in handy as I have been on the road quite a bit for my job. If my wife needs help in a dungeon, all she needs to do is ask and I can hop on my Crusader to bring the pain to some ghouls alongside my precious Demon Hunter damsel.
The evil didn’t stop there, however. With Diablo being my single favorite Blizzard franchise, there’s no question that I got sucked into the Diablo IV open beta that took place this last weekend. To be honest, I was expecting something like Diablo III, but what I experienced was way beyond anything that had graced the franchise in previous years. Starting a Necromancer, I found the character customization to nearly rival that of Elden Ring. If that wasn’t enough, the levels and maps are enormous, hosting such things as world/raid bosses and limitless treasure. Plus the Necromancer is totally broken and OP beyond belief. Too bad this is just a beta, because you know that will be patched out soon!
I’m slowly making my way through Hogwarts Legacy. The game is good enough, but it’s become a bit long in the tooth, in my opinion. Some of the initial magic has definitely worn off, and I’m finding that I’m ready to move on… but that may be the growing anticipation of releases such as Resident Evil 4 Remake, Jedi: Survivor, and Tears of the Kingdom. Regarding the latter, I’m fighting every temptation to dive back into Hyrule for a Breath of the Wild Master Quest playthrough! Editor’s note: DOOOO IIIIIITT!
One game of note I’ve played this month was the Diablo IV beta. What a game! I spent a weekend with a buddy playing couch co-op, and I cherished every second of it. While I’ll be releasing my impressions in a couple of weeks, I can safely say it has become one of my most anticipated games of the year.
Finally, I have probably spent the most time playing Mario Kart 8 Deluxe’s new DLC courses. I absolutely adore how Nintendo is reinvigorating this game with these DLC boosters. Each course teems with charm. In this pack, the Yoshi’s Island course steals the show. For anyone who enjoys nostalgic nods to former games, that course is a treat. It features red coins, smiling daisies, and many creatures and locales from the game. Even if you don’t like Mario Kart, it’s worth a watch. Of course, with the Super Mario Bros. movie’s focus on go-karting, it seems like we all need to replay Mario Kart to prepare for its release next week!
Seeing as Link’s Awakening is one of my Top 10 games, I figured it was time to give Oracle of Ages a try on the GBC. Only took me 20+ years to get around to it, despite playing Oracle of Seasons back in 2001.
While it’s still odd to see the Capcom logo at the start of a Zelda game, I’m happy to report that Oracle of Ages is just as charming and quirky as its portable counterparts. The time travel gimmick feels like an extended riff on Ocarina of Time’s Spirit Temple, as it’s stretched across the entire game. In that sense, there are essentially two maps to explore: past and present. Do something in the past, and it’ll affect the map in the future. Find a crumbled set of ruins in the present day? Travel back to the past and it’s now an entire building to explore. Controls are identical to Link’s Awakening, so if you enjoyed classic Zelda on the Gameboy, you’ll feel right at home here. Plus, you get to ride in the pouch of a boxing kangaroo! Who wouldn’t want to uppercut an Octorok?!
I’ve also just started on Trophy, an 8-bit run n’ gun platformer on the Switch, though you can find it on multiple systems. If you like Mega Man, this game will teleport you right back to your childhood living room. It plays like a spiritual successor, a tribute to the Blue Bomber’s earlier games. Robotic (well, cyborg in this case) hero firing plasma bursts from his hands? Check. Pixel-precise platforming? Check. Googly-eyed mechanical minions and bosses? They stalk every corner. I’ve only just made my way through the first few levels, but it’s a ton of fun thus far.
What have you been playing recently? Finish any games in March? We’ll see you all again next month!
Ryan Cheddi – our friendly, neighbourhood caffeine addict – is a man of many talents: an engineer, a gaming historian, a fiction writer and a streamer. He is also a self-avowed Sonic the Hedgehog fan. You can check out his cool beans at his site – Games with Coffee – or find him on Twitter as @GameswCoffee, and Instagram as @games_with_coffee. He streams on Twitch, also as GamesWithCoffee.
