What really lets Our World Is Ended down is its lack of narrative focus. On the one hand you'd got a compelling discussion about fluid reality - something that, much like AI and robotics, is quickly falling out of the area of "science fiction" and into "we actually need to talk about this, because it's happening" territory. On the other hand, you've got a lot of stories about a bunch of generally unlikable characters and their obsession with breasts.
When I think about the best visual novels out there - the likes of Steins;Gate and Danganronpa, VA-11 HALL-A shares many of the same traits. It's thoughtfully written, to provide some deeper insights and philosophical musics that help to elevate the game above being simple entertainment... but at the same time it does so in a vibrant and deeply entertaining way. And it is impossible to put down.
The result of all of this is a highly limited package that doesn't do Konami any favours. For a company to have such an incredible heritage - including two of the most influential games of all time in Frogger and Track & Field - and then to ignore all of that for a range of early era SHMUPs (and one platformer) that few will remember is bemusing, to say the least. There is some limited appeal in there for people who are fans of the one particular genre, but even then, the package does a very barebones job of celebrating that.
The sheer quality of Rayark's rhythm games override any small issues that I might have with them, and Cytus Alpha is one of the finest playing rhythm games you'll ever come across. It's abstract, minimalist and focused, but it delivers such vibrant rhythm game action that it's impossible not to love.
It's a game (and franchise) that wears its indie credentials on its sleeve, and it's hard to be too disappointed by its flaws for that reason.
The concept of Panty Party is hilarious, though once you move past making jokes about finally getting your hands on Hatsune Miku's underwear, the humour of the game doesn't exactly sustain itself either.
Moero Chronicle is so completely unabashed about its fan service and endless innuendo that it's oddly charming, in its own way. There's absolutely no way that people who don't enjoy fan service for the sake of fan service will get anything out of this game. The dungeon crawling is executed well enough, but it's traditional to a fault. Furthermore, the localisation is so bad that it hurts a lot of the fun nonsense that runs through the script.
This genre is about pretty mundane work, but what makes it so wonderful is it distills that work down to the point that it feels effortless. Sadly, I ended up having to put more effort into My Time At Portia than I do with the actual work I do in real life.
Table of Tales offers a brilliantly modular opportunity to Tin Man Games. As long as it’s commercially successful (and I certainly hope it is), it’s easy to imagine the developer releasing additional adventures, chapters, and tales to this base package
Just as foreign films might be worthy, even essential, even though they lack the budgets and production values of Hollywood, so too does a title like Sword and Fairy 6 deserve to find an audience in the kind of player that is more interested in artistry and theme than how well done the button pressing fun is.
The Friends of Ringo Ishikawa is one of the best examples of subversion within the brawler genre since the mighty Lollipop Chainsaw.
If it takes some JRPG or dungeon crawling mechanics to help broaden the appeal of the kind of storytelling experience that Danganronpa champions, then so be it. Zanki Zero isn't really "new"; underneath the dungeon crawler window dressing it's too similar to its predecessors thematically to stand out as a bold new statement.
It's a fairly by-the-numbers dungeon crawl that borrows the Steampunk aesthetic, and offers some genuinely clever twists, as far as combat goes. There aren't too many dungeon crawlers on the Switch, and even within that category Vaporum is flat enough that it doesn't come out on top, but it's a pleasurable way to bust a few hours on a weekend nonetheless.
Admirable as the attempt might be, though, the game is so unrelentingly unpleasant to play, and so limited in scope, that I think I'll be sticking to the plethora of superb turn-based strategy titles that are also available on the console.
It's rare that I find a game so completely inspiring that it continues to consume my thoughts beyond the game, and encourages me to learn something new. I've always had an interest in Chinese history and artistic tradition. I've always had an interest in poetry. I've never had an excuse to delve into Chinese poetry and the history of its poets before Lyrica. And I'm so thankful that Lyrica has given me the reminder and excuse to do so.
The World Next Door isn't perfect, but is shows that Viz is - for now, at least - willing to take on a project that's a little different and oddball. Colourful, creative, and generally well designed, it's worth forgiving this particular title its teen B-tier narrative tropes.
The pacey, stylish, and colourful action, complemented with the neat strategy elements and interesting - albeit high-energy narrative, combine to make The Princess Guide quite unlike the other JRPGs out there.
Games like Yoshi's Crafted World always get overlooked and quickly forgotten - they're not explosive enough, the graphics aren't realistic, and you can't make memes about how it's "destroying" you. But, this game is the perfect foil for all those other titles being produced, and while it's a different manifestation of quality, it's every bit the standard of any expensive, open-world blockbuster out there.
The bright, charming, and community-focused story, in a world without a great evil or catastrophe to reveal the ugliness of humanity, means that Nelke, like every other Atelier title, is the perfect foil to the unrelenting angst and anger of so many other games out there.
It’s the small moments where you get to simple appreciate Chocobo for the adorable character that he is that it’s at its best, and accompanied by the comfortably familiar and accessible dungeon crawling that it has, this is a relaxing, pleasant, joyful game, and I hope it sells brilliantly, so Square Enix can realise that this is one mascot that shouldn’t be put on ice.