It's that time of year yet again! Now to copy over this post from ludist210...

Backlaugust: The Official Negative World Month for Decimating Backlogs!™ is back again for more action! So start looking through your backlog and get started! The idea is to finish games during the month of August.

Here are the "rules":

Games can be on any system, not just Nintendo systems. I know we're a Nintendo fan site, but most everyone here is a multi-console owner. So play a game on any system you want.

Let us know what you're playing. Mostly just so we can cheer each other on.

Play games you already own. A lot of people tend to buy a game then not play it, or play it for a significant amount of time and then put it down. This is what we're aiming for. Games that launch in August don't count.

Try to pick up games you aren't actively playing right now. Games you're currently playing can be allowed, but in the spirit of Backlaugust, let's try to make them games you aren't playing at the moment. Make it a game you haven't touched in a month or more if possible.

When is a game done? That's up to you! Mark a game off your backlog when you've seen the ending or end credits, or once you've seen enough of the game in a game without a "proper ending" (like an arcade-type game). You don't have to do or get everything unless you want to.

Finished games will be posted in the OP. Because everyone likes to see their accomplishments recognized. Just post when you're done and I'll try to update daily.

Last year, we finished a whopping 17 games. That might be a tough number to top, but if everyone pitches in, I think we can do it!

THE FINISHED PILE:
1. Axiom Verge - PC - Pokefreak911
2. Pokémon Violet - NSwitch - r_hjort
3. Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 - NSwitch - Mop it up
4. Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster - PC - PogueSquadron
5. Tomb Raider - PS5 - TheBigG753
6. SteamWorld Build - XSX - Mop it up
7. Metroid Prime 2: Echoes - GCN - Pokefreak911
8. Princess Peach Showtime! - NSwitch - DrFinkelstein
9. Super Monkey Ball: Banana Mania - NSwitch - DrFinkelstein
10. Metroid Prime 3: Corruption - Wii - Pokefreak911
11. Animal Crossing: New Horizons: Happy Home Paradise - NSwitch - DrFinkelstein
12. Death's Door - XSX - Mop it up
13. Monster Hunter Stories - NSwitch - ludist210

URL to share (right click and copy)

I played the demo of Steamworld Build ages ago and really enjoyed it, but have yet to play the full game. Its my sort of game so I already sorta can tell I will enjoy it.

I have picked up Metroid Prime 2 again after years of ignoring it. Playing on Gamecube emulator instead of Trilogy on Wii U and am enjoying the controls with controller way more than with wiimote. Hopefully will finish in time to add it to the list.

Metroid Prime 2 has been beaten! Was technically on Gamecube (just ignore the emulator bit).

I have many issues with this game, will make a post on the game page about it however. Overally I liked it, but it is on the lower end of the Metroid games for me. May even be at the bottom out of the ones I have played

I've completed Princess Peach Showtime!

This game has more variety and surprises than I ever expected it to. Peach's headlining title is not particularly challenging but still fun to play through and great for less experienced gamers too.

My primary gripe with it is just how sometimes you can easily miss something. As far as Maine collectibles go and to get it later you have to go through the whole stage again, dealing with cutscenes, hoping you don't somehow miss it again. Again. It's less of an issue if you know where it is, but if you have to search for a secret, it's frustrating to realize that you once again missed it.

Nonetheless, I had a good time and it was a pretty cute experience.

I started up Super Monkey Ball Banana Mania tonight. Another backlog game. Not sure I can beat it before the month's end but I'll try.

Oh,... So I beat Super Monkey Ball: Banana Mania. I wasn't that far from the end of Story Mode when I picked it back up and apparently story mode is just the second game. And to play the first is in the Challenge Mode... But then there's a second Challenge Mode that's the second game again... Wtf.

They should have just put both games together in order and ignored the 'story'. Since my goal was to beat Story Mode, I'm calling this beat and moving on. Hopefully I can get Banana Rumble which I hear is great.

Also,... Man... This camera is so shit in SMB:BM. Not the main camera, but the stage view. Just junk. I don't get how they stayed on that as their final version.

Count it if you want or not, But I'm working to finish that Animal Crossing New Horizons: home decor DLC. If I finish it, I'll look up what the heck it was actually called. I was always a few homes and facilities away from completing it and I still don't know what the actual prize is for doing so. So while it's not a full game or anything, it's still a campaign of sorts and it's in my backlog. I've done work against it in the last couple days and I think I might be right near the end. So I might be able to squeeze this into the month.

I played through and beat Metroid Prime 3: Corruption with Primehack (custom emulator to let you play Prime games with KBM). You can count this on the list or not, but thought I would share anyway. Only real game changes it makes is it gets rid of all the motion control 'puzzles' and just makes them a button push.

After playing all the games with the different control schemes (except Prime remastered with Gyro, that may be next) I think I like KBM the most, and controller second.

Overall thoughts on Corruption is its good. Its interesting because it doesn't hit any of the highs of the previous 2 games, but also has almost no low points. I enjoyed it quite a bit, although I do have some issues with the games structure.

Highly recommend people check out Primehack if they haven't already.

@Pokefreak911

Never heard of Primehack. Sounds interesting.

Glad you had a good time with the series!

@DrFinkelstein
Primehack is available on MacOS if you do get curious.

I think I prefer the 2D games over Prime, but I do still like the Prime games. Just not as much as others.

@Pokefreak911

You remembered me being a Mac guy. Much appreciated.

Are you planning to pick up Prime 4 then?

As for me, consider Animal Crossing: New Horizons: Happy Home Paradise completed. I had that DLC sitting nearly finished for like two years. Finally did what I needed to reach the equivalent credits for it. I liked the reward for that accomplishment.

@DrFinkelstein
You are like the one person I know being a Mac guy, it's like a unique identifier at this point xD.

Definitely going to grab Prime 4. I just adore the Metroid universe and story so more things in that world is always great.

I'm okay with this. I'm a Mac guy who vastly prefers my Android phone, which is probably not that uncommon but it feels like it is.

What's your take on Dread compared to the older 2D Metroids and compared to the Prime series? For me, while I've been itching for a long time to play Prime 4, I think Dread was just an excellent future insight into 2D Metroids going forward. I loved it (even if I love the pixel art from Fusion and Zero).

@DrFinkelstein
Yeah, I remember hearing about their first game in the "series" being SteamWorld Tower Defense. It was for DSiWare, though I'm not sure if it were one of the games compatible with 3DS since I was never motivated enough to look into it. Either way, it's (legitimately) lost to time now...

DrFinkelstein said:

My primary gripe with it is just how sometimes you can easily miss something. As far as main collectibles go and to get it later you have to go through the whole stage again, dealing with cutscenes, hoping you don't somehow miss it again. Again.

Yeah, that seemed to be the main problem with it from what I could tell when I saw Terra playing it. Haven't tried it meself yet but I'll probably ask her to be my checklist if I have to replay a stage.

DrFinkelstein said:

As for me, consider Animal Crossing: New Horizons: Happy Home Paradise completed. I had that DLC sitting nearly finished for like two years. Finally did what I needed to reach the equivalent credits for it. I liked the reward for that accomplishment.

What's the reward? Don't leave us in suspense!

I haven't ever tried any Monkey Ball game yet, I really should. It's too late for this Backlaugust though, so maybe next time...!

I'm not going to be able to beat any more games from my backlog this August. I'm sorry for ruining Christmas for everyone.

Wanted to keep playing La-Mulana 2, but then I ended up replaying Batman: Arkham City for some reason, tried to get into Grounded, Fire Emblem: Three Houses, and now Emio: The Smiling Man is on its way. Plus, my life's gotten real busy recently. Can't we extend Backlaugust into Backptemb..log...or something?

DrFinkelstein said:

What's your take on Dread compared to the older 2D Metroids and compared to the Prime series? For me, while I've been itching for a long time to play Prime 4, I think Dread was just an excellent future insight into 2D Metroids going forward. I loved it (even if I love the pixel art from Fusion and Zero).

Dread is fantastic and easily up in the top 3 of the series, but I do need to replay it. I also want to replay Zero Mission and Prime 1 and see what I missed with them that makes them so beloved.

Funnily enough (that phrase always sounds off to me) I'm replaying Dread right now for my kids. It holds up well overall! Tight and fun, like a rollercoaster, but with plenty of content. You're pretty much always finding new stuff.

MercurySteam's philosophy for level design is a little different than my ideal for the series though. It's not strictly linear but I pretty much ALWAYS know where to go because of how the game funnels you around. It's a little too streamlined for its own good at times and it makes the environments feel much more disposable. Like places to quickly get through rather than to fully absorb and become familiar with like in the series' best. Also the music is cheeks, but it's still probably my favorite game of 2021.

@TriforceBun
Mercury Streams biggest issues seem to be with music and level design. Playing through Samus Returns right now and so many tracks are just reused from other games in ways where they don't fit or sound as good.

The level design also suffers, not just from the usual M2 issue of being a linear column, but from the areas being too large and over designed.

Dread allowed them to have the areas more connected, but they seem terrified of making the player backtrack and just put teleporters connecting the areas. Super not having fast travel meant that they had to come up with creative connections between areas, and when you do backtrack you have entirely new abilities so you can find upgrades and new routes. Backtracking is good sometimes!

Mop it up said:

What's the reward? Don't leave us in suspense!

Well... It's a bunch of dancing emotions paired with a very fun dance party to celebrate the finale of your efforts. DJ K.K. throws a rave on the beach.

For my final completion of the month, I've finished Death's Door. I first heard about it when seeing a lot of people compare it to Tunic, and the two do have some things in common such as their Zelda inspirations and drab, plain art style. The combat is a little more involved and flows better, but still feels tedious at times with the large amount of hits that enemies and bosses take to defeat. The game is more linear than I was expecting, but there's still a little bit of exploration in each area, which I like. Some of the wacky characters belie the serious and dark tone, though the game does seem to treat the subject of death with a certain brand of irreverence. Overall, Tunic has the more interesting premise, but Death's Door has the better gameplay, making them tough to compare. I'd probably rate the game Breadcrumbs out of Feeding Birds.

@Mop it up

I just started a new run of Death's Door last night. How funny.

Death's Door is my preferred game over Tunic due to the gameplay but I did enjoy both. Death's Door is just a fantastic game and I love it dearly. Glad you had a good time out of it. I'm doing better at the start this time than when I first played it but the bosses do have that tedious factor with the hits, I can see that. I just saved for the night right before the fight at the bottom of the basement furnace.

How did you manage your skill upgrades? Max any of them out? I've got each one level up and the strength one on a second level. I can't re now I did it the first time around.

I'm playing on Switch right now which feels good for the most part. When I first played and beat this I had done so on GamePass.