PSX GAME RECOMMENDATIONS |

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Games are recommended on a four-point scale like those "strongly agree/disagree" questions you get on surveys. This scale goes "Strongly", "If you like this kinda game", "Watch it online", and "Avoid at all costs" from best to worst. It's one part how likely I am to replay the game and one part how likely I am to recommend it to fans of that game's genre. I'm not in the business of objectivity, just what's fun to me. No reason to play a game if you're not having fun, yeah?

[#] Namcomuseum Vol. 3 (Namco, 1996)

Now this is more like it! Not only has the museum been overhauled (taking you right to the front desk and the lovely Uketsuke Komachi behind it), but the games are better. Volume 3 pairs three heavy hitters—Ms. Pac-Man, Dig Dug, and Galaxian—with three lesser-known titles, the primordial racer Pole Position II, the dungeon crawler The Tower of Druaga and the Japan-exclusive cut chemist suite Phozon. And y'know what? I kinda like them all!

Ms. Pac-Man is definitely the star of the show here, even if the walk to the machine features a horrifying, long-legged version of her and the Pacs' doggy Chomp Chomp doing some kind of hideous can-can dance. The control in this recreation is excellent, better than I've felt on any other version. Galaxian is hard to mess up, and like always, I racked up a nice five-digit score. I was never too good at Dig Dug, but it's another fun one and the recreation is again excellent.

The lesser-known games are honestly just as solid. Druaga is slow at first, but the secret chests gives it much depth if you give it a chance. Phozon is a weird puzzle game where you grab onto molecules and try to recreate the shape you're given, and I actually rather enjoyed it. Pole Position II is another golden oldie, though unfortunately marred by this port's stiff turning controls. Aside from that, this is the Namcomuseum I'd really recommend the casual PlayStation fan hunt down.

Reviewed	Supports analog controls?	My favorite part	Recommended?
January 9, 2022	No	Ms. Pac-Man's excellent controls	Strongly

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