Josh Torres's Reviews
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.
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.
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.
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.
With a compelling ensemble and intriguing world to build off of, Relayer has the building blocks of a promising new IP, but too many key flaws hold it back from being truly great.
It only took 30 years, but a brand-new mainline SRW with a nice handful of recognizable anime IPs got an official worldwide simultaneous release and, it's pretty damn good.
Brazilian indie studio Pocket Trap captures the creative spirit of 90's cartoons in this odd marriage between the sport of dodgeball and traditional RPGs.
The long dormant series returns with a brand-new cast and modern advancements to the Sakura Wars series formula that make for a promising reboot, despite some noteworthy missteps.
The latest hit from PlatinumGames is an ambitious action adventure game that largely succeeds in many ways, though it's juggling so many aspects that some fall through the cracks.
Image & Form's latest SteamWorld entry dips its toes into the realm of RPGs as it delightfully integrates a deck-building card game into a turn-based RPG.
For all of its striking visuals and sophisticated animation work, Death's Gambit suffers a bit of an identity crisis among fundamental control flaws.
Octopath Traveler is an excellent game, but the elasticity of its structure proves to be the one unassailable hurdle between it and becoming a classic in its own right.
Absolver has some light RPG elements despite its focus on PvP, but the real star is its complex battle system.
Massive enhancements to gameplay make this a wonderful action RPG to play, but its disappointing story holds it back from greatness.
Caught between a rock and a hard place, Fate/Extella’s fundamentals are solid and fans will certainly love it, but newcomers to the Fate series should beware.
Though it's not titled Valkyrie Profile, this RPG succeeds in expanding the systems of its spiritual predecessor under an unusually refreshing premise with a few structural blemishes.
While some of its flaws may leave some areas feeling half-baked, Zero Time Dilemma will be something that won't be leaving our minds anytime soon.
Despite being a spin-off, it certainly carries the heart and soul of a Dragon Quest game.
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.
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.