While we here at Operation Rainfall love covering the latest in gaming news and sharing our reviews of titles new and classic, we also just enjoy playing games in our downtime. So with that, sit back, relax, and check out what the oprainfall gaming crew have been up to this week!
We did it! We finished Resident Evil 8 and its DLC! What a crazy, incredible ride this series playthrough has been, and what a way to end it (kind of, we still have Separate Ways to play through). Ethan Winters has officially tied with Leon Kennedy as my favorite RE boy. He’s the best dad and I love him. As I noted in my previous write-up, I enjoyed how RE8 delivered varying horror experiences through the four lords’ levels without really losing the core identity of “this is a man on a mission to save his daughter.” When RE6 tried to be a bunch of horror experiences, it did so in a haphazard, disjointed fashion, but with Ethan he had to trudge through all of them, weaving back and forth along familiar paths as he unlocked more and more of the village’s secrets, and it made for a more compelling game. I do feel like the end suffered a little from the excess craziness of the RE5 and RE6 era, despite how much I loved the bombastic nature of it all. It felt thematically relevant for Ethan to overcome all the fear and horror and just Big Damn Hero his way to save his daughter. The final boss was also one of the most beautiful in the series, and left a massive impression despite her relatively small screen time. The ties back to Spencer and Umbrella were tenuous at best, but I felt they fit the lore better than some of the ham-fisted attempts previous games had made.
Then it was on to the DLC, and what a fun, bite-sized bit of horror that was! A revisit of some of the main game’s best moments, Shadows of Rose played dual duty as a creepy exploration of the village and an introduction – and conclusion – to several characters from RE8. The enemies felt far more reminiscent of RE7‘s shambling molded, and I liked how the familiar areas were transformed to create a sense of unease and disorientation. It’s also the reason Ethan became tied for my No. 1 spot. Excellent character writing. Rose is just like me. I really, really enjoyed my time with RE8, and I’d rank it third in my list of Resident Evil titles, with RE2(Remake) and RE4 Remake taking first and second spots, respectively. RE8 captured all the camp and fun of RE4 in a novel, bonkers way that I honestly didn’t think could work and yet had me on the edge of my seat completely suspending my disbelief. I’m excited to see what Capcom has in store for RE9.
On the exact opposite spectrum of gaming, we got Super Mario Bros Wonder and playing it in local co-op is the absolute best kind of chaos. The game pops with color and has some truly inspired level designs. The Wonder Flower gimmick is quirky but doesn’t overstay its welcome, and the fact it’s different with every stage keeps it from getting stale. My son has been playing it non-stop since we got it, and for me that’s high praise as to how well the game was made. I haven’t actually played it solo yet, but I’m looking forward to sitting down and messing with the various badges and secrets the game has to offer. This is a must-grab if you enjoy playful platforming and chaotic multiplayer action. – Leah
What games have you been playing this week? Let us know in the comments!
You can read previous Week in Gaming entries here!
