Sophia Edwards's Reviews
Both a great action game and a really fun strategy game, 'Empires' might not appeal to most 'Warriors' fans, as the new elements can seem intimidating and almost jarring when put next to the combat, but for those who put the time in, there's a lot of complexity and fantastic ideas to be found here, making this one of the best 'Warriors' games to date.
It's unwelcoming and occasionally too difficult for its own good, but overall, 'Stranger of Sword City' is an accomplished dungeon crawler made by a team who clearly understands what makes the genre special. It's both a terrific JRPG and an excellent showcase in building a genuinely scary atmosphere with limited resources. While their earlier effort 'Demon Gaze' is definitely an easier game to recommend, there's plenty here that makes this special, and I can't wait to see what comes next from this developer.
While 'Fire Emblem Fates: Conquest' can stumble in a few places, namely the melodramatic plot and a few structural annoyances, this is ultimately a great SRPG that should please series fans. Some of the newer mechanics don't work quite as well as they should, but the tweaks to the core gameplay go a long way to making this a challenging, and immensely satisfying game.
An extremely strong start to a promising series, here's hoping we see Square Enix give this formula another shot soon.
In spite of some odd quirks, and a little bit of age starting to show, 'Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen' still feels incredibly fresh, is tons of fun to play, and is a great addition to the wealth of the PC platform. It can take a little while before things really start to get going, but once they do, it's a compelling game that has a lot to love for both action and RPG fans. If there's ever going to be a 'Dragon's Dogma 2', it could turn out to be something of a masterpiece.
'Attack on Titan' focuses on a single idea and nails it absolutely perfectly. The game runs the risk of feeling repetitive at times, but it smartly mitigates that by injecting enough variety into each mission and playable character. While the game isn't without its flaws, at its best, it's an extremely exciting action game with some of the greatest movement mechanics I've ever seen. 'Attack on Titan' is both perfect for series' fans and a terrific game in its own right, and absolutely shouldn't be ignored.
Marrying the best ideas from 'Minecraft' with the structure and charm of 'Dragon Quest', 'Builders' had its work cut out for it from the start. The team behind it, however, have gone the extra mile in developing a game that feels wholly unique and endlessly endearing. It's by no means perfect, and has ideas that could stand to be improved upon when the game eventually gets a sequel, but what could've ended up as a cynical cash in has instead wound up as one of 2016's most interesting games.
A lovely little low-key JRPG that feels like the work of a small, passionate indie developer that just wants to pay homage to the classics it looks up to. 'I Am Setsuna' isn't a revolutionary game or a rebirth of the genre, as the marketing seems to imply. What 'I Am Setsuna' ultimately ends up being is a remarkably well-made, charming game that's endlessly endearing and entirely devoid of cynicism.
Despite some minor issues, 'Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA X' is a lovingly produced, beautiful, and extremely fun rhythm game that stands as possibly the best on both PS4 and Vita so far. For those who haven't experienced the series before, there's no better time to jump in, and for those who have, this is one of the most refined takes on the formula to date.
Even better than the terrific first episode, the Sapienza mission might be a series high point. While there are still some technical issues, and the lengthy load times hamper things in a game where reloading to give things another shot is such a big part of it, the overall experience has been incredible so far. I can't wait to see what comes next.
A tremendous remaster of a really great game. 'Resident Evil 0' might be a little too difficult at times, and the inventory system really could've used some tweaking, but there's never been a better way to experience this survival horror classic. If you've never played the game before, it's a fantastic time, and if you have, it's hard not to appreciate just how much has been done to make this version of it extremely worthwhile.
A fantastic reboot that revitalizes an aging series wonderfully, the 'Hitman Intro Pack' is packed with personality, intelligence, and absolutely wonderful gameplay. This should easily satisfy series veterans and newcomers alike, and gives me a ton of hope for upcoming episodes. I can't wait to see where IO goes from here.
While it occasionally buckles under its own ambition and the game falters somewhat as the plot ramps up, overall 'Final Fantasy XV' is a beautiful, exciting game that I dearly loved. It may not be the best game I've played this year, but it is almost certainly my favorite, and Square Enix has built an incredible, extremely unique open-world. While I'm not sure I want 'FFXVI' to follow suit and be an open-world like this one, I'd absolutely love to see them expand upon some of the ideas presented here in future. A remarkable return to form for a franchise that many felt had lost its way.
One of the best games on the 3DS has been bested with 'Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse ', and the result is an exciting, smart, and amazingly complex RPG. I can't think of a game I've enjoyed this much in 2016, and I'm already looking forward to diving back into this again in the near future. While it's worth playing its predecessor before diving into this, Atlus has done a good job of ensuring that the game stands on its own perfectly, making it accessible even to series newcomers. For those who like JRPGs in the slightest, 'SMTIVA' is absolutely worth playing.
From a studio I’d never heard of and who, in turn, I expected nothing special from, 'Furi' makes me feel like a fool for ever judging it so harshly. Very possibly the best action game this generation so far, this is a rare example of every facet of a game's design working perfectly to create an amazing whole. This is an outstanding effort from a studio I’m going to follow wholeheartedly from here on out.