With Astral Chain coming out right around the corner for the Nintendo Switch, I couldn’t help but think about all the amazing games PlatinumGames has pumped out over the years. Some revered greatly, others panned by critics, but to me insane infatuation. These are my five favorite games from my favorite developer.
5) Anarchy Reigns
This title unfortunately fell by the wayside for PlatinumGames there wasn’t any critical acclaim that I remember and no one I knew was talking about. When the game was released in 2012 money was tight for my family and I, so I couldn’t buy it at launch or even new, I found it at my usual used game place and was thrilled to finally put it into my Xbox 360.
Platinum Games gifted the gaming community a gorgeous 3D brawler in the vein of Double Dragon and such. However, if you know Platinum Games they like to go the M rated route, which makes this one of the goriest and funniest games I had played at the time. You play as the lead character from Madworld, Jack Cayman but this time in color and this time he’s looking for a fugitive named Maximillian Caxton.
This game somewhat plays like Resident Evil 2, where there are two campaigns the “Black Side” with Jack and the “White Side” with all new protagonist Leonhardt “Leo” Victorion. The campaigns do intersect as you play them and once you complete both you get to the play the “Red Side.” This game is a blast to play and even more fun to replay, if you’ve not tried it and own a 360 or Ps3 you should seek it out.
4) The Wonderful 101
This Wii U exclusive title was actually really difficult for me to get into. While I appreciate controls that integrate certain hardware, those controls made the game a tad difficult for me. You had to create certain things with all your heroes by drawing on the gamepad, from what I remember if you’re off just a smidge it won’t create the item. During one of the missions you had to make a bridge with the heroes and I just couldn’t seem to draw the bridge correctly so time would run out and I would have to restart.
I’ve never completed this title, but I loved the concept for what it was. You were one of 101 heroes that would band together to fight evil. The story was fun, the character design was great, and even though I couldn’t master the controls, they were intuitive, unlike Star Fox 0.
3) Transformers: Devastation
I am a huge Transformers fan, I grew up watching the television show on Saturday Mornings, I have my old toys in the garage, I somewhat enjoyed Michael Bay’s take; but when I heard PlatinumGames was making a brawler with the Generation One characters. I simply couldn’t wait. The look of this game really pulled from the original cartoon and I loved staring at, the sound effects and voice over acting was superb and the controls were great.
PlatinumGames knows how to make a brawler, the controls were tight and certain special buttons really drew the nostalgia out for me. What I didn’t enjoy about this game was the repetitiveness of the game and the sudden difficulty spikes. I’m so-so at hack and slash brawlers, but man there were some bosses I spent hours on, Bayonetta was easier during boss fights than this game at some points. Still, I’m itching to play this again for some reason.
2) Vanquish
It was very hard for me not to put this on the top of the list, but the power of number one and the sequel it garnered put that game on the top of this list. Vanquish is one of my favorite run and gun shooters ever created, and I’ve played my share of run and guns.
You play as a gruff military type who has an experimental D.A.R.P.A. exo-suit that really amps your skills. With this run and gun you actually have to run, you get penalized if you actually hide behind walls and such like in Gears of War. The suit grants you the ability to slide around the battlefield, slow time down and mow down your enemy in a split second. This is one of the few games I actually had to pause and walk away from because so much is coming at you during these boss battles.
Lights are flickering from the suit, the bullets are flying, the missiles are flying and so on. This is one of the fastest games I’ve ever played, and man you need to be quick. If even think you have some of seizure affliction, don’t get NEAR this game, you’ll be zonked out almost immediately.
1) Bayonetta
I am a huge fan of Bayonetta, I find it weird because I had a tough time playing through the original Devil May Cry games because of my horribleness at this genre. I began to get better at hack and slash when I played and beat Dante’s Inferno and the much hated DMC, so my time with Bayonetta wasn’t a painful one. This story is so out there I love it, you play as a witch who was found in a lake with no memory of how she got there in the possession of one half of the Eyes of the World.
Keep in mind this takes place twenty years before you’re able to take control of our heroine. Your informant and the man who found you, Enzo, tells you that the other half is in Vigrid, so that is where you head. You fight all manner of beast throughout this game, all the while being hilarious and insanely replayable. I need to replay this game several more times to open up more and more of what PlatinumGames gifted us. I also need to beat number 2 before number 3 is surprised dropped for the Switch!
Now, I know I’ve missed some biggies, I didn’t even mention Nier: Automata which is due to the fact I’ve not even opened my copy yet. I’ve been trying to beat the original Nier on the Xbox 360 for a year now and may just decide to pop in PlatinumGames’ take on the world. And I also didn’t mention Metal Gear Rising: Revengance due to the fact I’ve not played that either seeing as I’ve been trying to beat all the Metal Gear games in order for probably over a decade. I plan on playing them, but I’m yet to get to them, soon….ish.