VG247's Reviews
Peach’s foray onto the stage is is full of whimsy and many moments of sheer joy, just as 2023's Super Mario Wonder is, but the difference is that this is Peach’s game – and hers alone. Despite the Sour Bunch trying to sully the Sparkle Theater’s reputation, Princess Peach is here - as a Cowgirl, Ninja, Detective, and so forth - to put a stop to that. And she puts on a wonderful, replayable, empowering performance while doing so.
It's a disappointing change of stance from Team Ninja, and one that could leave them open to an unfortunately mortal blow.
Dragon’s Dogma 2 is wickedly clever, tightly designed, self-aware in all the right ways, and refreshingly unconcerned with whatever the latest trends are.
Standing on its own, Unicorn Overlord is an excellent expansion of Vanillaware’s now-trademark visual style and its newer RTS mechanics, offering both gripping strategy and an atmospheric pulp fantasy world that you're going to want to sink hours and hours into.
It feels like it’s still got some room to grow in certain places in order to reach its full potential, but, unlike real world F1 in 2024, it’s pretty damn fun.
A huge part of me believes that The Outlast Trials - with a little more seamlessness between trials and objectives that aren’t rehashed and repeated - could’ve made an amazing single-player game, with multiplayer as an option. Though even with my qualms, The Outlast Trials is ultimately a game I’ve had a lot of fun with where there’s absolutely no compromise on quality, and Red Barrels should be applauded for that. It has been packed, shipped, and delivered with the utmost attentiveness from its developer. It’s just a shame that when it comes to the replayability of the game, it’s something I’ll likely revisit on occasion with friends as I would Phasmophobia or Lethal Company, and not much more than that.
I will manage to retrieve it eventually though, because if there’s one thing Expeditions and its terrifying muddy siblings will teach you, it’s that eventually overcoming the perils of picturesque, but unyielding nature through sheer relentlessness will never stop feeling rewarding.
For better and worse alike, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is the most impressively ambitious game Square has made since FF’s golden age. It’s glorious, in spite of painful little flaws.
As I approach the end game portion of the game, where we’re supposed to spend many more hours, and tinker with the online experience, which takes away the cool option to switch from one character to another on the go, I fear that the bland and uninspired will eventually overtake the awesome part of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League. It’s an extremely funny, well-made, and once-traditional co-op game stuck in a live service cage that makes it sadder and more tiring as time goes on. Will the most demanding content in the game convince players to stick around and actually engage with the ‘numbers go up’ systems? I don’t think so, but I’m not writing it off just yet.
The problem is that, as many of us know, gacha games are inherently exploitative, and even though I'm confident in resisting spending any money on them, I still feel a bit strange about the pull I'm experiencing towards such a game thanks to a seperate, supposedly stand-alone RPG. Should you play Relink for a taste of Granblue Fantasy's world? I think so! But go in knowing that it won't give you everything you might want, and take it as it is.
At a certain point you have to step back and judge a game for what it is rather than what it isn’t. After all, if you want the female protagonist there’s Portable, and if you want the epilogue there’s FES. But as a stand-alone thing – as a convenient, modern, and attractive way to experience a truly great RPG classic – Persona 3 Reload is a wonderful offering.
The Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney Trilogy is a little less consistent when compared to the two collections that preceded it, but it's still doing the good work of bringing a gem of a series to new platforms and audiences at a time when these games otherwise risk being left behind. Whether its slightly shaky attempts to position itself as a stand-alone trilogy will prove an effective draw for new players remains to be seen, but of course it's an absolute must-play if you're already a fan of the series — and if you were drawn into the franchise through the last two remastered collections and haven't encountered these three games yet, you're in for a particular treat.
Tekken 8 is a faster, hyper, and fuller package than before. A must-grab for fighting enthusiasts.
It’s a game about finding out who your mates are, and that they’ll be there for you no matter whether you need a good laugh, a telling off or a helping hand.
Ultimately, Palworld is good fun. I’m looking forward to seeing how multiplayer works out with my friends. It’s easy to argue that much of Palworld’s best bits feel like they’ve been lifted from somewhere else, somewhere that has not been intentionally disavowed as an inspiration. Palworld definitely has some features worth admiring, and is finally letting keen monster-collectors dabble in the whole ‘what if Pokemon, but dark and violent’ query that many of us have often had, but I’m quite disappointed in how unoriginal it often feels.
Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is a smart game that makes you feel even smarter. It’s a Metroidvania that’s learned from the best, but without sacrificing any element of its own personality – for better and for worse.
The original Granblue Fantasy Versus was, frankly, bodied by Covid-19. At a time when online infrastructure was so important, it was found lacking. Now, it's perfect. It plays wonderfully. It's as if the original release was the first draft. An initial attempt that, while respectable, fell short in key spots. Rising feels like the revised version. A Pythagorean theorem for fighting game accessibility, that manages to balance a good entry level experience with competitive depth.
Like it or not, Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora feels like the perfect companion piece to James Cameron’s movies: it’s big but often intimate. Savage but calm. Familiar but charming. Even without playing a single minute of it, you should know whether it’s something you want to play. If you decide to make the jump, I suggest letting go of cheap analogies and using Na’vi instincts first and gamer brain second.
Though it can be a little easy, the Super Mario RPG remake scratches all the right itches – even a few decades on.
There’s just so much to love about Spirittea, and I’m very glad to be able to say that this adorable rural-life sim has been well worth the wait. As fans of Stardew Valley patiently wait on ConcernedApe’s upcoming game, Haunted Chocolatier, I hope to see plenty give Spirittea a go. It’s certainly one way to bridge the gap while we wait, but you might be pleasantly surprised by just how lovely - and truly addicting - this game and its host of unique spirits and townsfolk are. I mean, I would genuinely live in this adorable town where realities collide, if I could.