While that might sound like a catastrophic weakness for a tactics game, it’s really not and hidden well. Look at how compelling Advance Wars or Final Fantasy Tactics is despite the simplicity of the enemy AI and the actual on-field tactics. Warhammer 40,000: Battlesector aims for a similar casual tactical feel as those kinds of games, and, thanks to the excellent and authentic depiction of the grimdark 40K universe, nails it. This is just plain good tactics play, and sometimes that’s enough.
The core fundamentals of Monster Rancher are delightful, and while this collection has its issues, there aren't all that many modern equivalents to what it offers, so they hold their value well. Whether this is some kind of elaborate market research with Koei canvassing interest for a potential new Monster Rancher, or a simple acknowledgement that the series still has fans and they'll buy anything Monster Rancher-related, I don't know. I almost hope they don't make a new Monster Rancher, because the appeal of these games is in their simple charm. Simplicity that modern game development can't get away with. In that context, I actually believe that Monster Rancher 1 & 2 DX will be the best of this series. Putting aside the inability to summon monsters via CD, both games have aged like the finest of wines, and remain some of the best examples of design from their era.
Slap Them All is by no means perfect. It's shallow, even by genre standards, lacks the all-but mandatory four-player option, has been balanced for two players to the point that it doesn't really work as a single-player game, and fails to give players any reason to give it a second go once powered through. And yet at the same time, it is the best use of the beloved Asterix & Obelix property that we have seen in years and for us long-suffering Asterix & Obelix fans, for that reason alone Slap Them All is a gift.
Real Boxing 2 is everything wrong with mobile gaming, and while it's free of the microtransactions on Nintendo Switch, all that it has to offer is an endless parade of matches that display no personality. I'm no expert on boxing, but I know enough about the sport to know that boxing fans aren't going to find this satisfying on any level.
To be blunt, I would never call Ultimate Summer Camp a deep or important game, but it is pure, undiluted fun. It's not trying to be deep or smart, but rather a bubbly-light bit of nonsense with a healthy dollop of fan service, and it delivers that with some spot-on delivery. Think of this as a reward for making your way through the 60-odd hours it takes to get through the Danganronpa series and the relatively serious and deep-thinking themes that those three titles explore. After that, you deserve a reward, and as a positive foil to them, this is the perfect delivery mechanism. So don't judge this in isolation. Consider that Danganronpa Decadence contains all those other games as well, and that you really ought to have played through them all before even stepping into the joy of this thing, making the overall collection the best that has been released on the Nintendo Switch to date.
The appeal of Date Night Bowling is incredibly limited. It's for people that want to play a game with their romantic partner, and need something that both can enjoy equally, regardless of their gaming experience. At the same time, it's for those that don't want to become too competitive or heated. And both people also need to be old enough to enjoy the 80's and 90's vibes and aesthetics. It's inoffensive enough in fulfilling that very narrow role, but its concepts fall down badly when you're playing single-player, or with anyone other than your significant other. Throw in a dearth of depth and character, and even when you are playing it in its optimal environment, you're going to wish that you decided to take date night to a real bowling alley instead.
BloodRayne 2 does clean things up in comparison to the original. It plays better (platforming aside), and is generally a more coherent experience. It gets rid of the Nazis (largely), but ups the sex. And yet it loses a little X-factor in being better. Rather than aiming for cult appeal, BloodRayne 2 aspired to be an actual game and where the first succeeded at being what it wanted to, the second did not. However, as I said at the start of this review, because it is a better base game, and its themes have translated across better into 2021, it is the better of the two to play today.
There's nothing overtly wrong with BloodRayne: Revamped. It is an opportunity to replay a trashy (by deliberate design) early example of a B-grade "exploitation grindhouse" video game. These kinds of experiences only really became viable with the power that the PlayStation 2 generation brought to the party, so BloodRayne really is one of the first of its kind, and there's historical value in that. It could have done with a more substantial remake than this, though. If there was anything from back on the PlayStation 2 era that would have really benefitted from a full, top-to-bottom remake, it's the "sex sells" stuff like BloodRayne must surely be at the top of that list.
It's a succinct and heartfelt game with a gorgeous aesthetic and an evocative narrative. The Kids We Were seems destined to be a thing that people will overlook, but I really hope that they don't. The way it taps into both a sense of nostalgia for youth and the Japanese nostalgia for the golden 80's might not be the most original narrative angle ever, but it's a story told so well that you won't be able to put it down.
I hadn't played the analogue board game of Root before this digital adaptation, but I'm going to buy a copy for the Christmas party circuit now. While it's not too complex, there's plenty of depth to Root's systems, and the careful balancing between them, despite their very different play styles and objectives, makes for a strategically chaotic, but massively entertaining experience. This is a masterful bit of game design, recreated with love for the play anywhere Nintendo Switch experience.
These gripes aside – and I realise that I’ve griped a lot in this review – Pokémon Pearl remains an excellent game, and the remake is of a very high quality. I’ve been able to reunite with Piplup, relive a very fondly-remembered adventure, and while there have been some tweaks that I’ve been less than amused by, on balance the developers have retained the qualities that made that game such a fondly remembered one.
Football Manager 2022 Touch is a wholly inadequate release, given it costs the same amount as last year's edition while also being last year's edition... and yet I won't be able to drag myself away from it for many months ahead.
After so many great and forward-thinking RPGs and JRPGs in the past few months, it has been genuinely nice to play something that gets back to the basics, as Mercenaries Rebirth does. Don’t go in expecting a great game, because it isn’t that, and if it’s like the previous four, you’re going to largely forget about it altogether by the time the hypothetical Mercenaries VI rolls around in a year. But I do firmly believe there’s a place for these kinds of games, as they're a low pressure, undemanding and brightly entertaining celebration of a genre that we all love.
SMT V is perhaps a little too smart for its own good, and might alienate some people in the process, but it’s also refreshing to have developers create something that actually dares to have that level of confidence in their audience. This is a game that makes few concessions and compromises, but it is rewarding in kind and has a kind of elevated gravitas that marks it out as a rare and special thing indeed.
There will be essays written on Disco Elysium. This is one of those games that will be studied in universities as Citizen Kane is studied in film and D. H. Lawrence's work is all-but unavoidable if you study literature. It's not necessarily the most outright entertaining thing the medium has ever produced, but it's an important work that explores the boundaries and potential of video games, while also having the nuance and layers it needs to challenge players to think beyond the joy they get from pressing buttons. Even if you have to play the Switch port, as inferior as it is, you should make sure that you play Disco Elysium on something.
That aside, Asmodee continues to demonstrate why it is the best digital board game developer going around. Gloomhaven itself is a little insular compared to the likes of Game of Thrones, Arkham Horror, Ticket to Ride, Pathfinder and Lord of the Rings, so I suspect it will appeal to a narrower band of players than some of Asmodee's other adaptations, but the faithful quality of that adaptation and the stellar production values make it an easy sell to existing Gloomhaven fans, and the ideal way to those that were intimidated by the size (and cost) of the box when they've seen it in their local game store to give it a go in the first place.
There’s not much else I can say about Blue Reflection: Second Light. I often say that the original Blue Reflection is the most beautiful game. I say that because while it obviously didn’t compare to the AAA-blockbusters in terms of the money that has been thrown at it, the art direction was so pitch-perfect and downright beautiful that the technical limitations were irrelevant. Second Light clearly had a bigger budget and made the most of that to present a more refined and confident take on the Blue Reflection vision. The story is a vibrant, the JRPG action is classical and engaging, and the aesthetics are pristine. Getting something this wholesome and pure is a rare treat in an industry obsessed with hard and serious storytelling and adult themes, and I strongly suspect that, just like the original Blue Reflection, I’m not going to be able to get Second Light out of my mind for years to come.
So, while Voice of Cards could be refined as a game, the vision is impeccable, and while the game's not as outrageous or subversive as NieR and its sequel, it still represents Yoko Taro's unique qualities as a game designer and narrative writer: he is forever experimenting and pushing boundaries. Voice of Cards is almost subtle in this, but the way that it aims to work collaboratively with players to share a story, rather than tell it, is a delightful departure from the norm for the JRPG. I don't think anyone expected him to follow up NieR with a "card game," but Yoko Taro has hit onto something very special here.
As interesting and tactical as that combat system is, I couldn't get past the fact that Disciples: Liberation was asking 80 (or more) hours of a person's time with so little payoff. I just found the whole thing too relentlessly miserable to connect with. It's possible to create a dark setting and still have moments of warmth, beauty and joy. Tolkien understood that. Perhaps those that have been inspired by him should be more diligent students.
I haven’t played a visual novel that goes about its thing with quite so much glee in quite a long time. Comedy’s always hard to get right, especially when there’s an underlying subversive quality to it, but Cupid Parasite never falters. It tells a great story in there among the humour and backs it up with an impeccable style and verve. This is one of Otomate’s finest.