The Tuesday 10s: My Most Anticipated Games for the Rest of 2025

There are but three more full months in 2025 to be had, and despite this relatively short time span, there is a massive amount of great games launching from now until 2026. That makes sense, as it's the most wonderful time of the year--the busiest release season in gaming, after all! 

Today, the Tuesday 10s return with a glimpse at the ten titles that I am most anticipated and hyped about for the rest of 2025. From a plethora of platformers to new remakes of old loves, as well as some speedy racers, this list contains a wide variety of gaming goodness to see off the year that was 2025. The following list is in alphabetical order of game names.

Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles (Multi)

 

One of the seminal games of my youth, Final Fantasy Tactics remains one of my most treasured tactical game experiences. Between its myriad memorable battles, sensational soundtrack (one of my favorites within gaming), and narrative that I've only grown to appreciate more as an adult than I did in my younger years, Final Fantasy Tactics is an epic in every sense of the word.

This remaster, Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles, heads to basically every current platform with an updated graphical style as well as the old style for purists or simply folks who prefer the original look. Voice acting throughout is included, too, and it sounds glorious, in all honesty. The Ivalice Chronicles from the looks of it appears to be what you get when you improve upon near-perfection. Fans knowledgeable of a certain Wiegraf series of battles probably know what I mean by "near-perfection"!

Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment (NS2) 

To be perfectly honest, I could not care less about the Imprisoning War or learning more lore behind The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. That just doesn't interest me in the slightest, nor does following along with the whims of Nintendo with the lore of The Legend of Zelda series. Where in the timeline does THIS take place? I do not care in the slightest.

I DO, however, care about the Hyrule Warriors series, and while I'm a bit remiss that we're not getting more in the way of the original Hyrule Warriors, instead adhering again to the Breath of the Wild / Tears of the Kingdom cast and story rather than the entire franchise, I'm eager to participate in epic, grand-scale battles across Hyrule. There's something to Musou-style games that tickle the pleasure part of my gaymer brain, and Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment looks to do that yet again with one of my favorite franchises in gaming. Can't complain about that!

Kirby Air Riders (NS2)

The madman Masahiro Sakurai and his team at Sora are back it again. Right from the word "go" and from the information revealed in the first Nintendo Direct dedicated to the game, we know Kirby Air Riders is a racer that is absolutely going to be stuffed with content. Heck, if I didn't gather that from the first Nintendo Direct, the announcement of a second Direct dedicated to the game would have hit that point home big time. Essentially taking the GameCube cult classic and packing it with more, more, more in the way of modes, characters, and features (including a second button to be used during gameplay--you're getting crazy, Mr. Sakurai!!), Kirby Air Riders is destined to provide plenty to love for fans of the original, as well as newcomers experiencing this Kirby racing spin-off series for the first time through this sequel.

Metroid Prime 4: Beyond (NS2, NSW)

Metroid Prime and Metroid fans in general have really been put the ringer with waiting for the fourth installment of Metroid Prime. Fortunately, the long worldwide nightmare is almost over. ...Maybe. Unless after all this time the game doesn't live up to the impossible expectations thrust upon it. Now, wouldn't that suck!

But, I'm forever an optimist, and I do have faith in Nintendo and Retro Studios to deliver. For almost two decades we've been teased by the return of Sylux, and now his main villain arc is presumably here with Metroid Prime 4: Beyond. Throw in eye-watering visuals, especially on the Switch 2 version (with graphics and performance options available), optional JoyCon 2 mouse controls, and Samus on a bike (!!), and you have an entry that I truly hope turns out wonderfully. And not just for me, of course, but the entire Metroid fandom. Another win for all of us is deserved!

Mina the Hollower (Multi) 

From the team behind Shovel Knight comes a new game after all this time--Mina the Hollower. Featuring gorgeous pixel art modeled after the Game Boy Color (though using tricks beyond its full capabilities), a massive world to traverse and explore, combat with creatures of all shapes and sizes with Mina's magical whip, multiple Trinkets that can change up a given player's play style in a snap (or maybe a crack of the whip), and you have a game that promises to delight. I can think of no better treat to trick out on when it releases this Halloween than Mina the Hollower.

Pac-Man World 2 Re-Pac (Multi)

I very much enjoyed Pac-Man World Re-Pac, a remake of the PlayStation 1's Pac-Man World. The hope with that remake was that Bandai Namco would eventually get around to remaking the more cult-favorite of the bunch: Pac-Man World 2. The Nintendo Partner Direct from this past July revealed this hope would prosper into a dream come true for fans with Pac-Man World 2 Re-Pac. Featuring a more 3D world rather than the side-scrolling 3D style of the original Pac-Man World, this remade sequel boasts new improvements to bosses, to accessibility with the new Fairy Mode, and even a light co-op mode with one player taking on the role of Pac-Man while the other controls a drone. I never did finish Pac-Man World 2, but with these upgrades and improvements, I'm looking forward to trying when the remake releases this Friday.

Pokemon Legends Z-A (NS2, NSW)

As a big fan of the previous Pokemon Legends game, Pokemon Legends: Arceus, I'm certainly looking forward to exploring Lumiose City, a veritable Pokemon playground to explore and do battle in. Plus, it won't hurt that with the Nintendo Switch 2 version of the game that Game Freak's latest will hopefully run at minimum competently on the hardware, unlike certain recent efforts from the dev. Sorry, not sorry. Regardless, I'm more than ready to once again hop into real-time action battles, where positioning and timing are key factors in the difference between victory and defeat. Throw in the multiplayer Battle Club mode, where battles against wild Pokemon or other players occur, and you have one pretty promising Pokemon package with Legends Z-A.

Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds (Multi) 

 
Firstly, let me just mention that I do not care about any forced, cringe, manufactured rivalry between this next game and Mario Kart World. I'd rather be happy for multiple great kart racers in a single year than engage in some juvenile made-up war to pit two awesome games against each other, so please miss me with that console war-like nonsense.

Now with that out of the way, Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds sports a colorful cast of characters to customize their rides and speed into one of over 21 unique tracks plus the dozen or so eponymous "CrossWorlds" which take the action on the second lap to a completely new and different locale, albeit briefly. This makes races all the more dynamic and interesting. With crossplay across every platform, this Sonic racing iteration certainly shouldn't see its online population dying in weeks like Team Sonic Racing's did. In fact, I'm positive that with SEGA's determined support of this game, that we'll see a long-lasting racer here, which I'm all for.

Super Mario Galaxy + Super Mario Galaxy 2 (NSW)

Let's start off by mentioning how much Nintendo sometimes has me by the throat. It's sad, really. All the company had to do for me to bite down was put together two of my favorite 3D platformer into one slightly updated package on the Nintendo Switch for Mario's 40th anniversary. Seventy dollars USD, you say? I shamefully submit and will pay that for this, Super Mario Galaxy + Super Mario Galaxy 2. Yes, I am part of the problem, I admit, and for that I profusely apologize. But, BOTH Super Mario Galaxy games--two of the finest, most masterful platformers ever conceived? I have no regrets!

Yooka-Replaylee (Multi) 

2017's Yooka-Laylee was Playtonic's answer to Banjo-Kazooie. Heck, it was a spiritual successor, after all, with various staff who had worked on Rare's platforming classic having had also worked on Yooka-Laylee. That said, the final product wasn't everything that it could have been. I guess even Playtonic knew this, hence a remake of the game less than a decade after. 

Enter Yooka-Replaylee. It's not just the same base game with prettier, more modern graphics and visual effects. No, instead, the team at Playtonic added much more in the way of content--new Pagies (the Jiggies of the Yooka-Laylee series), new challenges, and new mechanics, too! That's on top of remedying and fixing many of the issues and problems that the original Yooka-Laylee suffered from. Even as someone who enjoyed the 2017 original, I'm super excited to be able to return to the world of Yooka-Laylee in this fully remade and newly realized title. 

Tinykin (Multi) Review

Our next review takes us time traveling back to 2022. Sometimes a writer just wants to revisit a fun game and write a review about it! That's exactly the case with this particular game and review. It's Tinykin time, friends!

Honey, I shrunk with some 'kins!

Tinykin is by no means a really recent game. It released in August 2022, but sometimes I feel the urge to review a game not because I want to question and evaluate its quality. No, instead this review is more to beam and boast about the game--as it's one I very much have enjoyed--so much so that I've played it across three platforms to 100% completion, the most current of which was the Steam version. Thus, to say that I have a fondness for Tinykin is a bit of an understatement. While it's by no means my perfect game, it's definitely an entertaining one.

If you're not aware of what Tinykin is, then allow me to enlighten! Not only is it a game but it's the namesake of the little creatures that our hero and intrepid explorer Milodane that assist him along his journey throughout a house while he's in teeny and yes, tiny form. Perhaps a relatable analogy would be that the Tinykin are the Pikmin to Milodane's Captain Olimar. That notwithstanding, Tinykin's comparisons to Pikmin as a series almost totally end there, save for the Tinykin also being able to retrieve items and objects for our plucky protagonist.

Each room of Tinykin's world (house) is interconnected and full of places to discover.

The meat and potatoes of Tinykin is that it's a platformer first and foremost, and one where you explore various worlds--or in this case, rooms of a house in miniature form, to solve environmental puzzles, take on NPC tasks, and complete the overall objective of the room. Whether that's getting things set up for a party around a bathtub for a sudsy shindig, or baking a cake by tracking down and retrieving the ingredients, mixing them up, and putting the ingredients in the oven to bake proper, there is a fair amount to do within Tinykin's sprawling, expansive worlds.

Tinykin come in various forms, usually one form introduced per world (or room). There are your standard pink Tinykin that can grab, retrieve, open/unblock obstacles, and other helpful tasks, while red Tinykin merrily explode upon contact with targets they're thrown at, such as candles, destructible objects, etc. Then, you have your green Tinykin, which can be assembled one on top of the other to create makeshift ladders for Milodane to climb. The more Tinykin in his possession, the higher he can climb to reach otherwise inaccessible areas needing some extra verticality to reach. 

These rambunctious red Tinykin really love to bring the boom.

From there, you have blue Tinykin which are electrical, able to hold charges, and when placed between an electrical outlet and something needing power piped to it, the blue Tinykin can be tossed and arranged to form a chain to bring the power to it. Finally, yellow Tinykin serve as makeshift bridges, though only at specially marked locations.

This gap is not a bridge too far for these yellow Tinykin!

The Tinykin are born from eggs, and ready to be hatched by Milodane discovering them all throughout the worlds of the game. Tracking down enough Tinykin to get a task at hand completed requires a fair amount of careful exploration, as the eggs are practically everywhere. So, too, is pollen, the currency used to upgrade Milodane's bubble ability. 

Yes, Milodane isn't completely helpless to get around the worlds without his Tinykin friends--he can jump in the air and glide for a limited amount of time in a bubble. The more upgraded the bubble is, the more Milodane's bubble will carry him across hazards like water, spikes, and long drops from high up in the air. Milodane can also access a surfboard in the form of a clever bar of soap, not just to slide along surfaces more swiftly, but also to grind along special pieces of string that serve as shortcuts from various points of interest in each world.

Eat your heart out, Sonic the Hedgehog.

But, going back to the pollen and Tinykin eggs, it can be quite challenging to go for 100% completion in this game. There is no radar to determine where missing eggs and pollen are located in a given world, so while you have a tally and total available to you for what's missing, you're practically on your own to track down where those last eggs and pollen particles are in a world. Again, as the worlds/rooms in Tinykin are so open, large, vertical, and expansive, this can be mighty overwhelming to comb every inch, corner, nook, and cranny of these otherwise platforming paradises.

Tinykin has no combat to speak of--enemies are pretty much limited to the aforementioned hazards of water, spikes/thorns, and gravity. This approach may not be compelling to some players, but for me, I felt that combat wasn't at all needed nor something I missed in this game. It was just a chill vibe to leap around levels, searching for Tinykin and pollen, solving various characters' dilemmas, figuring out solutions to puzzles, and discovering secret areas that were quite commonly off the beaten path. The rewards for exploration were so enjoyable to me, that I didn't even second guess the decision to not have enemies of the traditional variety.

Keep your eyes peeled for secret alcoves and other hidden areas 
within the game world. They're all over the place!

The length of Tinykin's adventure isn't too terribly lengthy. For most players, they may be able to beat or even complete the game in less than ten hours. That's a perfect length for me, in all honesty, as the game does not at all outwear its welcome whatsoever. The December 2022 addition of new costumes and rather tricky time attack challenges--both optional content--delivered even more replay value to this already enticing package. Heck, by virtue of me enjoying three separate playthroughs across three years, that should say more than enough about how easy it is to come back to this game.

Tinykin's world is immensely populated with 3D objects and backgrounds to platform and otherwise play around on, while its characters are 2D. It's a very Paper Mario-esque presentation, and it works wonderfully. It amazed me how I could stand atop one of the later level's peaks, essentially, and see so much below Milodane and in the distance, as well. The draw distance in general is phenomenal. There is so much going on, it's any wonder it doesn't fall to pieces in frame-rate. Musically, the score is appropriately bouncy and never grating. Perfect for spending hours in each level.

The draw distance is absolutely awe-inspiring. (This is the Steam version, as an aside!)

Sure, 100% completion in Tinykin can be a bit tedious and irritating to track down a handful of missing Tinykin eggs or pollen particles hidden throughout levels, as it can be reminiscent of looking for a needle in a haystack. Of course, I don't really know anyone who has needed to do such a task with looking for needles in haystacks, but it's a colloquialism for a reason! Otherwise, Tinykin is such a charming and clever platformer that I love returning to it every now and then. Not all will vibe with the lack of combat, but if the idea of exploring expansive worlds full of objectives to complete, items to find, platforming challenges to perform, and secrets to discover, then you probably already have jumped into Tinykin. If not, I wholeheartedly recommend you do!

[SPC Says: A-] 

Conker's Pocket Tales (GBC) Retro Review

You know, I haven't delved too much into Conker as a series. Sure, I've raced as him plenty of times in Diddy Kong Racing, but what makes this squirrel tick? Well, by 2001 it was booze, but what about before that? I was always curious to check out Conker before he turned inebriated with Conker's Pocket Tales. Let's dive in like a squirrel burrowing into dirt with the SuperPhillip Central review!

It's his party and you can RSVP if you want to.

 

Before he became an alcoholic, foul-mouthed, crude-acting, urinating squirrel (not the way I thought I'd ever start a review in all my 17+ years at SuperPhillip Central), Conker was a peaceable, cute, and sweet squirrel. He spent some time on the racetrack with Diddy in Diddy Kong Racing, and yes, even starred in his own adventure prior to 2001's infamous Conker's Bad Fur Day, where his sunny disposition took a mature-rated turn, to say the least!

Conker's Pocket Tales was that aforementioned adventure prior to 2001, and it launched on the Game Boy Color, presenting a top-down perspective not unlike what you'd see in standard The Legend of Zelda games. Really, one could say that Conker's Pocket Tales is a creative mix between Link's Awakening and Banjo-Kazooie--that meaning you explore an interconnected overworld pieced together by different areas, and collect presents as the main method for progression.

This barn leads to the first major realm of Conker's Pocket Tales.

Before we get into all that, however, why is Conker collecting presents in the first place? The Evil Acorn has interrupted Conker's birthday festivities, stealing his presents, AND kidnapping his girlfriend Berri. I'm starting to see why poor Conker turned to the drink! No matter--that's neither here nor there! With presents to recover and girlfriend to rescue, Conker is on the case!

Conker has a full kit of moves almost immediately from the start of his debut adventure--from being able to walk, run, jump, ground pound, and dig in specially marked soft spots of dirt that essentially serve as teleportation points between one another--our squirrel pal has plenty to rely on. Soon after starting the story, he gains new tools to his trade, such as a slingshot that relies on acorns found within the world (that also replenish and respawn upon advancing far enough away from them) to fire, as well the ability to swim and dive.

Oh, Conker's trusty slingshot--what would he do without you?

Instead of a traditional health gauge or bar, Conker can collect special acorns that for each he collects, grants him an extra hit--easily allowing him to take damage in the double digits, as long as you keep collecting acorns and as long as you don't take too much in the way of hits. Easier said than done, as while the feel of Conker's Pocket Tales is pretty nimble and good-feeling, the real estate on the screen isn't the best. Conker himself is rather large for the tiny Game Boy or Game Boy Color screen, offering not a lot in the way of time to react. Slowly but steadily usually wins this race, and keeps Conker from too much damage in this case, as well! 

Speaking of damage, there are all sorts of hazards and enemies to look out for within Conker's world, from bullet-spewing plants, to trooper ants just marching back and forth in a line, slithering snakes, wicked wolves, and bosses that serve as the exclamation point of each of the realms that Conker visits outside of the main overworld's expanses. These are generally breezy affairs, save for one that takes place in a swamp. Between the hit detection and the means to defeat the foe (midair stomps that usually result in Conker frustratingly taking damage).

Conker plays leapfrog (leap ant?) with this enemy.

Conker's Pocket Tales finds Conker scooting and sauntering about the overworld to the previously mentioned different locales and realms scattered about, from a town straight out of the Old American West, to a maze-like medieval castle filled with tricks and traps alike. The goal of each area is to find and pick up eight blue presents within each. In fact, that's not just a goal but a requirement, as Conker isn't allowed to leave a given area until this task is complete. Generally, presents are discovered sprinkled about the worlds, whether literally sitting out in the open, rewarded for completing puzzles (usually block-pushing or switch-stomping affairs), or handed out by NPCs for helping them with their troubles.

A castle so hazardous, even its furniture is trying to hurt poor Conker!

Whereas playing Conker's Pocket Tales on the Game Boy only allows saving at certain points, the Game Boy Color--the way the game was intended to be played--sports saving anywhere. This comes through in a pinch and is perfect for the take-anywhere utility of a handheld device, for certain. Game overs do sort of annoy, as the time it takes for the game to roll through its opening title and allow you control to the main menu is a bit lengthier than I would have liked. That said, you do get restored to your previous manual save point with five health acorns to begin where you left off after a game over, so it's not too terribly easy to soft-lock yourself.

Rare seldom disappoints on a tech level with its games, and that is no different here with Conker's Pocket Tales and the Game Boy Color hardware. Sprites are large and detailed, worlds are easily distinguishable and also carry a fair amount of detail, characters and enemy sprites animate well for the hardware, and Eveline Fischer and Robin Beanland's co-produced soundtrack for the game delivers all the right, catchy notes on the Game Boy Color's sound chip. 

Do you like pushing boxes? Oh, does Rare have the game for you!

While the tech is impressive, Conker's Pocket Tales' runtime isn't so much. For the most part, the game is a breezy experience, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. That's considering that even with its 5-7 time to beat the game, it still feels like a repetitive experience, particularly with all the button-stomping and block-pushing puzzles alongside the occasionally tedious backtracking in the package. 

That said, younger players in the day would have discovered something fun to be found with Conker's Pocket Tales. I wouldn't necessarily have them quickly or eagerly graduate to Conker's Bad Fur Day from there, but for a first outing and adventure, Conker's Pocket Tales was a good start. What it lacks in length and screen real estate due to its larger-than-usual sprites, it makes for with charm and labyrinthine level design. Is it worth tracking down to, in turn, track down all of its presents in blue and optional red forms, as well as its party invitations for 100%? Ehhhhhh... let's just say you don't necessarily need to feel bad for skipping out on RSVPing here.

[SPC Says: C] 

Yellow Taxi Goes Vroom (PC) Review

We've had a lot of racing games over the summer here on SuperPhillip Central, and that was genuinely, entirely unplanned. I guess I was in a racing game mood, to be fair. Fortunately, we're definitely entering new territory here with a 3D platformer! ...Of course, it just HAD to be one on wheels where you RACE around at times, right? Either way, this one is a serious winner. Here's my review of 2024's Yellow Taxi Goes Vroom. 

All's "fare" in a 3D platformer when you're controlling a crazy taxi.

The collect-a-thon-style 3D platformer was once well-trodden territory in gaming. Between Mario, Banjo-Kazooie, the original Jak & Daxter, among countless others, the late '90s and early '00s were inundated with them. For someone like myself, a massive fan of the genre, it seldom got old, so when the genre took a bit of a hiatus come the PS3 and 360 era, to say I felt left out in the cold would have been an understatement.

Now, Nintendo never really left the genre for the most part, but it does seem every other major publisher did. Enter indies, the home to some of the most imaginative and creative titles to come out of gaming this past decade and some change. Released last year by developer Panik Arcade and published by Those Awesome Guys is none other than Yellow Taxi Goes Vroom, an indie title priding itself as collect-a-thon 3D platformer. However, this taxi's got tricks to it to separate it greatly from the pack and past 3D platformers of days old.

Yellow Taxi Goes Vroom immediately casts aside one's notions of what a 3D platformer could and should be by getting rid of one of the genre's most seemingly--until now, that is--necessary mechanics: jumping. Yes, our yellow taxi in Yellow Taxi Goes Vroom has no traditional jump button. Instead, the aim is to launch it from ramps to access higher areas and perform platforming through flips and other mobile maneuvers. 

Race along rooftops, reach dizzying heights, and more as your windup taxi!

One of the greatest delights in my time with Yellow Taxi Goes Vroom was the discovery that there was so much more to the move-set of my little taxi than just the sole major move that its learns near the beginning of the adventure--the Flip-o-Will. The Flip-o-Will itself adds an immense amount of kit to the yellow taxi's repertoire; you just won't know it immediately. Through stumbling across miniature robots throughout the hub world of the game, you learn various tips and literal tricks through the numerous NPCs' dialogues. 

Rather than outright spoil the surprise for you by mentioning everything that your little-taxi-that-could can do, let's just say that with the tips, tools, and tricks that you pick up through the game imparting you with its knowledge, you'll be able to reach areas that you thought were practically impossible to access and reach. 

I played through so much of Yellow Taxi Goes Vroom not comprehending how the heck I was supposed to access high-up platforms, collectibles taunting me just out of reach, and areas that looked promising but were too complex for my current level of skill and knowledge. However, by the time I reached the game's ending, I was boosting off ramps, literally having a flipping fun time, and making complex and otherwise challenging feats of platforming prowess on my taxi's four wheels and doing it like a pro! 

My taxi didn't NEED a hat to look stylish--it was the bomb already without one.

There's definitely a high skill ceiling in Yellow Taxi Goes Vroom, and if you don't have all of the knowledge required to reach it, you'll easily miss more than half of the game's content. That's not to say you won't be able to reach the game's satisfying conclusion or even have a great time at first. You most likely will. It's more that learning the ins and outs of your taxi's true potential only adds to the fun and allows you to better appreciate the game's mechanics fully.

I mentioned that Yellow Taxi Goes Vroom is a 3D collect-a-thon platformer at heart, even if you aren't utilizing a traditional jump to leap all over the game's expansive, colorful levels. So, the question presents itself: What are you collecting? The main collectible--the Super Mario 64 Power Star equivalent or Banjo-Kazooie Jiggy equal--is that of Green Gears. They're everywhere in Yellow Taxi Goes Vroom, and collecting specific amounts of these opens up new transporters to even more new levels. While some levels can house a handful of Green Gears, others can easily run to numbers in the twenty-somethings.

Green Gears are your Power Star equivalent here in Yellow Taxi Goes Vroom.
So... get in GEAR and go get them to unlock more levels!

Apart from the Green Gears, there are myriad coins to collect, which can be used to cash in at various hat shops to purchase new cosmetics and headgear (...roof-gear?) for your windup taxi (these are also sprinkled throughout levels to purchase, too), well-hidden, difficult-to-acquire Golden Bunnies which serve a post-game purpose, and other various doodads as well. 

While most levels allow pure exploration, some have a timer ticking down on them. These specific levels require you to engage in some Crazy Taxi-like shenanigans, picking up passengers and delivering them to their desired destinations in order to add precious seconds to your overall timer (and in some cases, reward you with a Green Gear). This is all the while exploring these particular Crazy Taxi-style stages for Green Gears and all of the other collectibles mentioned previously. They're traditional exploration-based levels, they just put you in a modest crunch for time. 

The characters in Yellow Taxi Goes Vroom are just as wild and wacky as the game premise itself.

Yellow Taxi Goes Vroom does not feature a typical lives system. Instead, it utilizes something akin to Super Mario Odyssey, where deaths (falling off the level, running out of time, slamming into spikes, or otherwise being obliterated) cause you to lose a certain amount of coins. This adds up a bit, especially when you're gunning for more expensive taxi-wear (hats and gear), but plentiful checkpoints means that the frustration is usually rather limited. 

Speaking of, be ready to lose lots of lives to those lasers!

I will say, though, that in later challenges and levels that losing lives becomes quite commonplace. Some of these platforming prospects the game tasks you with are downright diabolical and require having all of the aforementioned knowledge of your taxi's full repertoire at your disposal--AND doing it perfectly. That said, these are essentially all optional for 100%, but if you're like me--and as always, God help you if you're anything like me in general--you'll have so much fun with this game that you'll have a blast aiming and possibly achieving full game completion.

Yellow Taxi Goes Vroom has humor that stretches from east to west and north to south in the sense that it goes all over the dang place, and some jokes and references will hit, while others that rely on memes may not so much. At least that was my experience with the game. The story is more of a comedic vehicle to give some meaning to your yellow taxi's adventure, though it does hit with its satire. After all, what else can you say about tackling the evil scientist named Alien Mosk behind an equally evil megacorp named Tosla? It sorta hits too close to home for a lot of us here in the States... Either way, whether or not the comedy and humor hits for you will vary depending on the player.

Does your taxi even LIFT, bro?!

Turning our taxi and attention onto Presentation Street, Yellow Taxi Goes Vroom has a highly stylized, three-dimensionally pixelated look to it. It's super pleasant, a bit chunky in all the right ways, and is fantastically fluid in motion without any hints of slowdown to speak of or notice. Meanwhile, the sound design rocks with appropriately chiptuned tracks at times, while others like at the Tosla Corporation building itself sound suitably overly dramatic with intense orchestrations. No doubt the composer had fun with this one, especially a level that quite literally flat-out goes to the dogs with synth puppy and doggo woofs and barks taking on the main melody throughout.

I expected to find a fair amount to like about Yellow Taxi Goes Vroom--it's a 3D platformer of the collect-a-thon variety, it's innovative, it's creative, it's wacky and wild (sometimes to a fault), and it's teeming with secrets throughout its well-designed levels and worlds. I did NOT expect to just absolutely LOVE what I discovered with the game instead in my 10+ hours of playtime with an innocuous, little windup taxi. This is a fabulous game, and it certainly put the developer Panik Arcade on my radar for whatever they cook up next. 

[SPC Says: A-] 

Hydro Thunder (N64, PS1) Retro Review

What's that? Did you ask for more racing games for review on SuperPhillip Central? I think you did, but if you didn't, I'll blame the water that's lodged in my ears for not hearing correctly. This aforementioned water comes from the aquatic racing action seen in Hydro Thunder, particularly the Nintendo 64 and PlayStation 1 ports of the arcade classic! Let's get to racing with the retro review.

H2OMG, what wet and wild racing!

Back in the 90s, racing games of all types were commonplace in the gaming market. Less so nowadays, especially when you consider the deluge and embarrassment of riches we had back in the day. It wasn't just games going after the Mario Kart crown with mascot-based kart races, either. You had snowboarding, futuristic racers, and yes, even water-based ones like Midway's Hydro Thunder series, taking the racing to the waves in powerboats. 

Originally an arcade game and a classic at that, Hydro Thunder would make its way to home consoles, first with the Sega Dreamcast getting nearly a 1:1 port in 1999 with ports to decidedly hardware--the Nintendo 64 and PlayStation 1--just about a year later. The latter versions is what this retro review is based off of. Hydro Thunder is known for its blistering fast, speedy, aquatic gameplay, so how does that transfer over to the N64 and PS1? 

There's not a pot of gold at the end of this rainbow, but there
may be a worthwhile shortcut. (Hint, hint.)

The basics of Hydro Thunder generally have you taking on 15 other powerboats in a race from point A to point B. Two of the races, however, forgo this linear design and serve as circuit tracks in a stadium. Either way, you're battling both the competition and a timer that ticks down, extending your time remaining as you pass checkpoints throughout the race.

The Arctic Circle may be notoriously cold, but it's sure to heat up with some intense racing.

Sprinkled among the tracks of the game are large, spinning boost icons coming in blue and red varieties. Upon passing through them, your boat gains the ability to boost to not only speed up but speed through obstacles and even opponents on the aquatic track. Blue boost icons are more plentiful and easier to access than their red counterparts, but the red boost icons provide nine seconds of boost energy whereas blue boost icons only give three seconds more. Suffice to say, a big part of Hydro Thunder's racing is rationing your boosts, smartly and strategically using them to gain on the competition.

Hydro Thunder is a hard game, no doubt. You'll seldom find yourself with a big lead. In fact, the majority of races will be you at the back of the pack, slowly overtaking the competition, and usually finding yourself passing first place at the homestretch just before the finish line. That's even if you can manage first place, as again, Hydro Thunder is difficult, punishing players for even the smallest mistakes. This can be a frustrating aspect of the game, but it's all the more rewarding when after dozens of attempts of keeping your head above the water against the CPU that you finally achieve first place and are victorious.

Whether you know the track by heart or are just learning it,
this race will probably be "Greek" to you regardless.

 

Hydro Thunder is arcade-y in feel as all get-out, and essentially the game feel is quite good, making a tremendous splash for a first impression. Depending on the level of boat you choose--from easy to medium, medium to hard, and hard to bonus (the latter are wackier designs, such as a fisherman in a paddle boat or an iceberg-fearing ship called the Tinytanic)--these control either well but lack speed, or in the case of hard-ranked boats, are fast but lack great control. 

There are 13 tracks within Hydro Thunder. Each present multiple opportunities to seek out and pull off insane shortcuts, as many of them require precision maneuvers to nail--whether that be getting big air off ramps, threading the needle through precarious paths, discovering sneaky, hidden routes off the main path, or utilizing the Hydro Jump mechanic, which requires you to have boost energy in your gauge while pressing the boost and brake buttons simultaneously to "lift" your powerboat off the waves and into a leap. This allows you to reach areas you otherwise would not be able to, though it's also a bit clunky in practice to use. Often, even with plenty of the required boost energy to utilize, I'd find myself either just boosting or worse, just braking without getting any lift.

The race has only just started, and already we're jockeying for position here.

The tracks within Hydro Thunder unlock in groups, and the requirements to unlock them get tougher and tougher as you go down the line. There are three easy tracks, three medium tracks, three hard tracks, and finally, four bonus tracks. To unlock the medium tracks, you need to finish each of the three initial easy tracks in at least third place, whereas the hard tracks unlock upon reaching second or better in the medium tracks. Understandably and through one's divine powers of deduction, those bonus tracks require you to win the hard races outright to unlock them.

While easy tracks like the tropical Lost Island feature light turns, wide straightaways, and are generally shorter affairs, harder tracks like Venice Canals and Ship Graveyard showcase tight, hairpin turns, incredibly narrow stretches of track where it's difficult to jockey for position, and are longer than your standard easy and medium level tracks. The grandest track of them all, and also the last track to be played in the game, Nile Adventure, is one serious endurance race, a wet and wild ride along the Nile through jungles and the tight turns and corners of an ancient temple. Most of the races feel like aquatic adventures, and they're absolutely exhilarating to race on, even upon the tenth or even twentieth attempt!  

Starting at the top of this canyon at sunset, this wet race ends at its bottom by nighttime.

Compared to the arcade and Sega Dreamcast versions of Hydro Thunder, no doubt you could expect that on weaker hardware, a fast-paced, more CPU intensive game like Hydro Thunder would tax the Nintendo 64 and PlayStation 1. This expectation would line up with reality, as the game decidedly feels slower than its contemporaries on stronger hardware. That said, the game still runs well, features fast, good-feeling gameplay, and makes a nice case for itself as a speedy racer on the N64 and PS1.

Meanwhile, on the sound side of the game, the announcer is mostly what you'll hear above the constant revving and roaring of your various powerboats' engines, stating when you overtake other racers, when you find a secret shortcut, and other things of note. Sometimes you'll also get verbally assaulted by police boats that chastise you for speeding and racing in an unauthorized zone, by which it is then oh-so-satisfying to boost into the boat to cause it to tumble and careen into the air. 

Hydro Thunder is a tough and challenging aquatic racer, but it's also highly rewarding with its skill-dependent, strategic boost-rationing, and smart shortcut-taking gameplay. Its 13 races will keep you playing for a good while, as you discern where it's best to boost, smartest to overtake opponents, and where all those stealthy, second-shaving shortcuts await you. It's not technologically as impressive as the arcade or Dreamcast versions, understandably, but if you lack a means to play those, then the N64 and PS1 ports are more than worthy supplements for some powerboat-ing shenanigans. This is an arcade racing game that neither sinks nor swims--it positively shreds!

[SPC Says: B]