Elementary Gaming

I discuss Chaos;Head Noah, a fascinating visual novel that marks the very beginning of the sprawling Science Adventure universe. I also talk about the necessity of returning your shopping cart. Big spoilers for the ending begin at 22 minutes.

I review Kingdom Hearts 2, for the PS2, which I played via the "The Story So Far" collection on the PS4. And it's beautiful.

Nate discusses Final Fantasy 8 and why it's his personal favorite, in spite of some genuinely odd gameplay choices. Also- the Top 10 Family Guy Moments.

Nate talks about his favorite parts of this SNES masterpiece. He also reveals his top 10 Adam Sandler films.

Nate reviews The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy for the Switch, a visual novel/strategy game hybrid. It's amazing. Big spoilers begin at 40:40, so evacuate then if you haven't played it, but would like to. At one point, I misspoke and called this "real-time strategy"- I meant to say "turn-based". I also said Takumi's last name is "Nishojo"- it's actually "Sumino". I got the last names mixed up...

Nate reviews the survival horror legend Resident Evil 2 for the Playstation 1. It's an excellent sequel. He also discusses the sad loss of coupon dispensers in Cub Foods.

Nate talks about my favorite visual novel/adventure games on the Playstation 4, DS, and 3DS. I could've mentioned Dordogne, but I already talked about it in episode #4, so I didn't. I later learned that Steins;Gate Zero isn't a prequel, but rather an alternate timeline. Also, I should've said "new setting" instead of "new universe" with regards to Ace Attorney Adventures, because they're technical...

Nate discusses the wonder of Mega Man Battle Network 2 for the Game Boy Advance. It's almost perfect. He also fails to appreciate the modern art of a banana duct taped to a wall.

In this riveting episode, Nate talks about all of the games that he played through in 2025, another year of his life that he will never get back.

Nate reviews Yakuza 6 for the PS4- the stunning finale to the Kiryu saga, and probably the best Yakuza game. He also contemplates the art of fine dining.

Nate reviews Final Fantasy 5, the Pixel Remaster version. It's the best one so far. He also searches for meaning in life itself.

Nate reviews Master Detective Archives: Rain Code. It's excellent. Kodaka does it again. Discussion of Big Spoilers begins at 29:30. Danganronpa 3 spoiler mentioned at 31:00.

"The game...is fun. If it's not fun, why bother?" -Reggie Fils-Aimé With this in mind, why bother with Banjo-Kazooie?

In this double-feature, Nate reviews two Nintendo Switch games: Ori and the Blind Forest, and West of Loathing. Ori is great and West is quite good. He also longs for the 2000s.

Nate reviews the 2001 Game Boy Advance game, Mega Man Battle Network 1, which establishes a great foundation for the series but is full of odd design choices. He also laments how many Pokémon there now are, because 151 was a perfect number.

Nate reviews The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild for the Nintendo Switch. He also reads the Sunday comics.

Nate reviews Star Ocean: First Departure R for the PS4, a remake of 1996's Star Ocean. It has a lot of good ideas that it doesn't fully deliver on. He also writes a bestselling novel.

Nate reviews Red Dead Redemption 1, the 2010 classic. He also reads Infinite Jest, just for fun, and finds that about 80% of the book is unnecessary, but 20% of it is great. Note: When I said "continent", I definitely meant "country". Also, you do herd horses at the end! Not cows. I second guessed myself for some reason.

Nate reviews the seminal PS1 JRPG, Wild Arms. He also ranks all of the Simpsons couch gags from worst to best, based on humor and artistic value.

In this episode of Elementary Gaming, Nate talks about two of his favorite game series of all time: Mega Man Battle Network for the Game Boy Advance, and Mega Man Star Force for the DS. He also contemplates the deeper meaning of Amy Schumer's riveting stand-up comedy. Note: The word I was looking for at 18:00 was "isometric". Not sure why I couldn't recall this at the time.

Nate reviews Metroid Dread, which is a really good Switch game that'll go down as a classic for the console. He also bakes some goods for the local bake sale. Note: At 27:20, I say that something is "a really interesting way to end the series". I just meant that this is where the series has ended so far , not that it's literally ending. You know what I mean?

In this episode of Elementary Gaming, Nate reviews Super Mario Odyssey for the Nintendo Switch. It's a classic. He also realizes that every flavor of cheese is bad, except for colby jack and pepper jack.

In this episode of Elementary Gaming, Nate reviews the pixel remaster version of Final Fantasy 4. He also remembers the Alamo, but then sadly forgets about it.

In this episode of Elementary Gaming, Nate ranks all of the games that he beat in 2024, none of which were actually released in 2024. I talk about more in the episode, but here are my top 10: 10. Yakuza 5 9. Dragon Quest XI 8. Mafia: Definitive Edition 7. Mafia 2 6. Owlboy 5. Dordogne 4. Little Nightmares 2 3. Resident Evil Village 2. Uncharted 4 1. Resident Evil Remake

In this episode of Elementary Gaming, Nate reviews Little Nightmares 1 and 2 for the PS4. He also tries to read a textbook from cover-to-cover, but gets bored within the first few pages.