Forums > Contributor Zone > RotW: March 29 - April 4, 2021 -- Short and to the point

I'm back in the RotW rotation, and just in time to handle a tough week with four reviews. One of them I wrote myself, so it's out of the running. That leaves everyone else who participated to place, and I have to say: ranking things was downright tough. These were all great reads and told me about games that interest me. Good work, each of you. Now, on with the rankings...

Third Place: Final Fantasy XV: Royal Edition (PS4) by overdrive

This was a solid review that went into detail and told me what I need to know about the base game and how the "royal" edition improves on that, but it felt like it ran just a bit long. I felt like that's something a bit more organization ahead of time--along with some revision--might have helped improve, but it never prevented the review from ultimately doing what it needed to do in fine style. I haven't actually read a lot about Final Fantasy XV, sort of putting it in the category of "naturally, I want to play it, so there's not much point in me reading a review to tell me what I already know." So this review wound up being extra informative for me, and your usual conversational style pulled me through the roughest spots. Nice going!

Runner Up: Loop Hero (PC) by EmP

This is a terrific write-up of a roguelike game that makes a roguelike game sound better than I generally find them to be. There's little in the way of discussion of any technical elements (I have no idea what the game looks like beyond what the screenshots show, no idea how the music and sound effects are), but I leave the review with a good sense of how it must feel to play and actually found myself itching to give it a go myself, even though--as I've suggested--the roguelike isn't entirely my thing. Someday, this will probably be offered as part of one bundle or another and find its way into my collection, and I will no doubt welcome that moment because I'll remember you making me want to play it right here. Good job with that!

Review of the Week: Batman: Arkham VR (PS4) by pickhut

Wow. This game sounds like a waste of time. I think if I was first playing a VR game and I could get this free with it, or for the low cost of $5, I probably wouldn't complain much based on what you've described, but you did a terrific job of making even the relatively low price of $20 sound like a few times too much. Your direct style was very effective here, and I didn't spot any grammatical errors or other issues, which made for a truly effective writeup (at least for me) from start to finish. Even in a tight week, that's enough to earn you the top nod.

Thanks as always to everyone who contributed and made my decision about ranking so difficult. I've enjoyed reading work from each of you for years now, and I hope I can look forward to doing the same for years to follow!

"Too often we enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought." - John F. Kennedy on reality

"What if everything you see is more than what you see--the person next to you is a warrior and the space that appears empty is a secret door to another world? What if something appears that shouldn't? You either dismiss it, or you accept that there is much more to the world than you think. Perhaps it really is a doorway, and if you choose to go inside, you'll find many unexpected things." - Shigeru Miyamoto on secret doors to another world2

Jason goes Day 1 with his first RotW -- can he keep that kind of pace up?

Props to Pick for suffering on our behalf and to OD for running it close.

For us. For them. For you.

Thanks for the win! Back when I got a PSVR, I was fully aware of the game's very short length, so I wasn't too keen on getting it. Though, curiosity once again got hold of me and I went for it. That's the hilarious thing about video games; you can be aware that something is terrible, but actually playing it yourself gives you quite a different take on its terrible quality.

A solid week overall I thought, so good job to EmP, OD, and you on your submissions!

I head spaceshit noises.