The Suikoden games often go out of their way to do these things, and that’s the kind of grit I miss from the genre. This is a fantastic remaster for Suikoden I and II, which are two of the greatest JRPGs ever made. The stars shine bright in this franchise, and I hope to see Suikoden III make a return now after this incredible change of events.
While Sword of the Necromancer: Resurrection seems like it faces a lot of issues, it manages to still play like a very fun dungeon crawler. Some of these hiccups might even grow on the player, like the very strangely paced combat and proper use of controlling the monsters. The UI is ugly and could use some finesse.
The Legend of Heroes: Trails Through Daybreak II has a list of content that is truly the stuff of JRPG legends. Aside from a few stale moments between the more important tidings of Van’s investigations, this is the single-player JRPG to play this month. Case closed.
Farmagia could have benefited if they made it a turn-based RPG or slowed down the speed of what’s going on. Having nearly 100 monsters plus the monsters you face going at the speed of The Wonderful 101‘s gameplay might not be the most palatable thing for younger kids. Farmagia’s mixture of so many ideas was not the issue, just the execution.
Metaphor: ReFantazio has memorable music, a safe take on a job class system, a charming cast that does not resort to being a dating simulator, and a snappy, fluid, and tactical turn-based combat system. Fantasy isn’t dead, it’s so back.
Those who simply wish to marvel at a Korean goddess and not concern themselves with a game’s finer details, then Stellar Blade might be the game. It’s a game that wants to be a masterpiece but simply isn’t. It isn’t a bad place for SHIFT UP to start, but don’t censor anything next time.