one of my favorites in my collection. the thousand year door has earned its reputation a hundred times over and it still holds up. it's such a funny game with a lot of fun to be had, and a lot of variety in the kind of fun you're having. it's absolutely one of the highest quality games nintendo has ever put out. it got a remaster for the nintendo switch lately, which is very cool, but i can't help but feel like the visuals are a little too polished for my liking. i think this game, visually, is at its best with its gamecube graphics. it feels more cartoony that way. (though - i believe the remaster corrected some bowlderisms from the original english release, more explicitly denoting vivian as a trans woman, which was more clear in the original japanese. a perfect version of this game, to me, would be the gamecube visuals with the more accurate translation.)

despite this game's reputation, i don't recall ever playing it myself -- except i must have, seeing as there was already a save file under my name when i got the game. (only had ten minutes, though. i must not have been able to get very far in my youth.) i have a few sparse, scattered memories of watching my dad play it, though. that was the extent of my knowledge about the game, and i'd surprisingly been able to dodge any spoilers online. i'm very happy i was able to go into the game blind, because it was chock-full of delightful surprises. it's also just a delight to play. the fights in this game are so incredibly fun and almost... rhythmic? you really get into a groove.