Am I too hard to please?

[Princess Rescuer]

I am not a fan of the new Umihara games. That much is clear. Does this make me hard to please? Not really. The original 3 games are not perfect by any means. They're wonky and the difficulty and quality of fields is uneven, yet they occupied me for years due to how gamey they are and how there was always something new to discover in them. What has thus far concluded the series is a linear, restrictive, easy game with no replay value where having enough food will prepare you for anything.

My standards aren't high, they're just different. For a time, they were pretty low actually. Going away from Umihara Kawase games, here are some games/series I liked: Cosmic Race, Sonic the Fighters, Mr. Driller, Simple 2000, WarioWare Mega Microgames, Sukeban Schachou Rena, Little Deviants. By no means the most well-received games/serieses. What I like about them is that they're "gamey" at least. They don't have a cinematic story and they don't require that great a level in investment. Plus they're regularly cute and charming. These are by no means games that are glowingly received in reviews in any way, at least compared to modern games such as Breath of the Wild, Mario Odyssey, Uncharted, God of War, and The Last of Us.

Sonic the Fighters is regularly said to be a bad Sonic game by retro standards by most fans. Too simple and button-mashing. It's my favorite Sonic game, bet you won't find anyone else saying that. Simple 2000 games are silly, fanservicey shovelware games with laughable polish and production values. Little Deviants is the failed Vita starting as it means to go on. Sukeban Schachou Rena is a laughably unpopular Wii title that only sold 100 (!) copies in its opening week and became known as meme material more than anything. It also includes the Third Quiz, the worst minigame in existence, worse than any control stick spinning or button mashing minigame. (and I've beaten it. Twice.) Even decently well-received ones like Mr. Driller and WarioWare never get the same level of renown as a Zelda or (3D) Mario. More on that later.

And then there's Cosmic Race. A wretched game by any stretch of the imagination. One of the most notorious games on any Playstation console. One of the first "asset flip" games and it shows. A "So bad it's horrible" game through and through. A game where you'll turn it on, go down to the ground with the X button expecting it to accelerate, run out of time, and turn the game off LOL! Except it's not all that bad. Control wise, once you figure them out, you adapt very quickly. The worst thing you can say about Cosmic Race is that it's boring and doesn't have much replay value. It works though and there's no tutorial. It's a GAME at least. I'd certainly much rather play it than walk and listen to characters babble.

Not only are these games I mentioned not all that bad, I would rather play them than modern "masterpieces" like Mario Odyssey. I DESPISE that game. The bulk of the content is tedious fetch quests and inane minigames that have nothing to do with platforming or adventure. And those are the more involved content of the game most of the time. Elsewhere you're just tripping over moons that you don't even have to try to search for. That's the kind of epic quest to rescue the princess isn't it? wandering around, pacing in circles, kicking rocks, doing little footraces, jumping rope, driving an RC car, and sitting on a bench with someone! I am the legitimizer of 100%ing WarioWare, where you have to do each microgame separately for hours- after unlocking them- and even I find Odyssey to be tedious. How does this game get glowing praise from so many people, especially reviewers who play many different games and don't just get 3 or 4 a year?

Maybe I just don't see eye to eye with most people when it comes to gaming. I just like seeing well-liked games get taken down a peg and like seeing an astute gamer find something to like about maligned ones.

[Alc]

Even decently well-received ones like Mr. Driller and WarioWare never get the same level of renown as a Zelda or (3D) Mario.

Well... yeah? Don't get me wrong, I like Mr Driller, used to play it on the Dreamcast back in the day. But I'd never, ever expect that game to be compared to a main line Zelda or Mario entry, because one is a niche puzzle game put together by a handful of Namco staff and then dumped more or less unchanged to various consoles over the years, and the others are Nintendo's flagship killer apps; the latter there must have a budget that eclipses the former by at least an order of magnitude, if not two. These are two different types of games. Both can co-exist. A smaller game in scope and budget can still be a success if it reaches the right crowd.

(We don't talk about the 360 port of Mr Driller. I was really looking forward to playing it with a couple of my friends, but the netcode was just absolutely useless.)

How does this game get glowing praise from so many people, especially reviewers who play many different games and don't just get 3 or 4 a year?

I had fun with Mario Odyssey, you're right in that it's not a masterpiece, but it's amusing and charming, it's varied, highly polished, and it doesn't outstay its welcome. I was not unhappy with it. There are plenty of very "gamey" challenges after the main game concludes, by the way. I would agree with you when you say that that your expectations differ from most people. As long as you are aware that these are both just opinions then it's fine.

[Whendaleksattack]

Sonic the Fighters is regularly said to be a bad Sonic game by retro standards by most fans. Too simple and button-mashing. It's my favorite Sonic game, bet you won't find anyone else saying that.

I actually kinda like Sonic the Fighters (or Sonic Championship) a bit. The game still has its flaws mind you, but I just... like it for some reason. I haven't played it in a while though I can probably still wreck everyone with Amy 

As for Odyssey, I enjoyed it a lot (since I am a huge Mario fan), but not to the same extent as Galaxy 1 and 2 did, which are still my favourite Mario games, if not my favourite games I've ever played. Everyone has different and unique opinions, different likes and dislikes, that's what makes us different from one another. I've got some questionable opinions (I actually think UK Portable isn't that bad for one), but hey, it's just my opinion.

Speaking of Galaxy, I should get the CD soundtrack for both games. I absolutely love the music (especially Puzzle Plank and Buoy Base's tracks).