Review of video game Cave Story by Chandler Wang

 Cave Story is an older game, but it's very fun and has a lot of charm to it. It was created entirely by one person, Daisuke "Pixel" Amaya, in his free time after work. It's a retro platform shooter game with unlockable weapons, and a fairly traditional single player gaming experience with save points, boss fights, unlockables, and easter eggs. Thinking about it, the kind of charm that radiates from Cave Story is quite similar to Undertale, and both were created by one person. It's a unique story where each line from each character is created with personality, and doesn't have the rigidity of games that are developed with entire teams. The game is goofy, each character is made to have their own distinct personality, and there are lots of interesting ideas spread throughout the game's story. Years after finishing the game, I can remember the distinct Cave Story world with its nuances and its details, and the game fits so much in its compact world. It can be a fairly challenging game, especially if you are aiming to complete the hardest of the game's three endings (which I didn't even get close to beating), but it's a very simple but satisfying playstyle. The game does a very good job of keeping each weapon distinct and unique, just as it keeps each character, fight, and area different and fresh. The game also has a soundtrack that is great at embodying the tone of each moment, and every start to a boss fight or entrance to a new area or introduction to a new character is supported greatly by the music. Since the game is so old, it's completely free, and you can download it on your computer quickly and without spending a cent. It's a great game that embodies a certain charm that only more personal projects seem to have, and writing about it has made me want to play it again. 9.5/10.