Josh Torres's Reviews
Metaphor: ReFantazio is an amazing game. I fully completed it in 75 hours and enjoyed it the entire way through. Though it may suffer from a few blemishes, such as its lackluster graphical fidelity in some areas and performance optimization issues, what it brings to the table is utterly compelling. It is a huge RPG adventure that celebrates Atlus’ history as it combines some of the best ideas from many of its previous titles into a lovely fantasy setting. The amount of detail put into Metaphor: ReFantazio’s worldbuilding and characters is captivating. Plus, the flow of its combat system’s interactions with the extensive Archetype job classes is a ton of fun. I’m always a big fan of when developers decide to tackle a brand-new IP, and Atlus knocked it out of the park with Metaphor: ReFantazio.
Gundam Breaker 4 is like watching an old friend rebound from tough times. It may not be as great as its mainline predecessors in some regards, but it is a solid course correction from the last few dire entries. The repetitive stages and diluted weapon options are a noticeable step back, yet so many quality-of-life improvements to this new entry in the gunpla action RPG series make it much a smoother experience to play. While completing the main story took me roughly around 17 hours, I'm just about to reach the 60 hour mark because I keep making entire new gunpla builds to take on the highest difficulty stages on their own. It takes virtual model kit building to the next level and the potential of crafting something truly masterful, or horrific, is only limited by a person’s imagination.
This debut project from Austrian developer Microbird Games presents a charming title with creative, tightly designed dungeons that brilliantly utilize region-exclusive magical spells to interact with the environment in clever ways.
Tsukihime -A piece of blue glass moon- is simply a fantastic visual novel to read from beginning to end. It is single-handedly the closest example of what a modern AAA visual novel would entail; the amount of care put into its production values is incredible in the realm of visual novels. The English localization does a magnificent job matching the tone, spirit, and meaning of its source material as every character’s personality shines through their dialogue brilliantly in English. A few blemishes in the clumsy nature of its flowchart navigation hold it back slightly, but I couldn’t be happier with how the official English release of the Tsukihime remake has beautifully turned out.
Level-5's giant robot action RPG is one of the most fully-featured games in the modern era with a compelling story, fun gameplay, and loads of in-depth customization systems that makes this hidden gem, unexpectedly, one of the best games of the year so far.
Team Ninja's ambitious open-world action RPG is one of the best games about the Bakumatsu era ever, but its repetitive, uninspired open-world activities bog down what is an otherwise captivating experience.
Developer Fool's Theory has crafted a solid RPG set in 1905 Warsaw that, at times, can feel like as much of an awesome documentary as it is a video game.
With a fantastic premise that earns its dual protagonist direction in Ichiban & Kiryu, major combat system refinements, plethora of engaging side activities in its new beautiful Hawaii locale, and developments that enrich the Yakuza-era legacy, Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth is one of the best games RGG Studio has ever made.
Although a solid entry, this title serves as an intermediary of Kiryu's actions between Yakuza 6 and Yakuza: Like A Dragon so its endpoint is inherently predictable and as enjoyable as it is, the narrative is relatively thin in exchange for a wealth of side content to pad it out.
This turn-based horror RPG took its sweet time to full release, but it was well worth it with an addictive gameplay loop, a compelling battle system, and a stunningly beautiful visual aesthetic.
A disappointing game adaptation for one of the best Dragon Quest spin-off series that possesses major structural and gameplay shortcomings.
While there are admirable aspects about Arcadian Atlas on a conceptual level, several usability issues and an imbalanced gameplay experience merely makes it mediocre.
There have been a good chunk of high profile action RPGs recently and Remnant II triumphs them when it comes to providing a fulfilling RPG experience.
Paranormasight: The Seven Mysteries of Honjo is a surprisingly excellent horror mystery-adventure game that's tricky to talk about, and is an easy recommendation to anyone that's the slightest bit interested in it.
Like a Dragon: Ishin turns back the clock to the Bakumatsu period in Japan and its new remake is an excellent revitalization of an already solid entry in the Like a Dragon / Yakuza series as it finally launches in the west for the first time at last.
Despite a troubled road to release, Marvel's Midnight Suns is an excellent tactical RPG that delivers an awesome roster of heroes with a compelling battle system throughout its lengthy campaign.
While Reborn is largely an excellent re-release of Tactics Ogre (again), many of its gameplay alterations give it new flaws that will have me making caveats in recommending it (again).
While the combat to this Valkyrie Profile action RPG spin-off is top notch, the rest of the game ranges from mediocre to merely serviceable.
Although it has some interesting ideas as a survival action RPG, Binary Star Falling into Darkness will primarily appeal to hardcore Made in Abyss fans and offer very little to newcomers.
Artdink's first Gundam game in a decade is surprisingly a challenge as a purely solo experience, and playing with others may make this action RPG shine despite its handful of flaws.