Today I beat what is likely my last game of the year: Gravity Circuit. This one was an impulse sale purchase, but had caught my attention multiple times over the year.
I'm normally not a Megaman player -- over the years I've dabbled in a couple titles, but generally wasn't a fan of the shooting mechanic. Megaman Zero was more of my speed (he uses a sword instead of a blaster), but those games always felt a little too hard on the difficulty side for me.
Gravity Circuit is basically knock-off Megaman Zero, but ditches the awkward sword / spear attacks for a simple punch combo that felt absolutely fantastic. Actually, every control felt exactly like it should, and starting the game I was surprised how I was instantly comfortable with the character movement and combat (with the exception of the grappling hook which I very much disliked!)
I had a blast getting through the game. The developers clearly put a lot of love into every aspect -- the bosses had little stories (just enough!) and were tough, rescuing the bots was always super satisfying, and the little base hub and skill unlocks were fun to play with.
While the majority of the game wasn't terribly difficult, I really struggled with the final couple bosses, and by the time I finally beat the last one my thumbs were sore and my heart was pounding. It took me at least 20 attempts and many experiments with different upgrades to cheese as much as possible!
Overall it's a fantastic (and gorgeous) title, and I'm glad I found time to sneak it in!