Pierre-Yves Lanthier's Reviews
Whether using one headset or another, fans of rhythm simulators and European power metal should definitely check out this Viking visual styled head banger.
So overall, Death's Door offers up a hefty challenge in a top down action adventure through an interesting world. Will it be too hard for some? Maybe, but, with plenty of ways to upgrade your character, tools and magics, there's a way to stem the difficulty but you'll have to go a bit out of the way of the general adventure for that one.
Overall though Wildermyth was amazing. The visual presentations mixed in with a procedural storytelling that adapts to your characters choices as well as your newer characters that join up was just brilliant. Add in a very well done combat system and there’s more than enough here to keep anyone occupied for a good long time as no two playthroughs should be the same.
Having only gone through one of the possibilities that Where the Heart Leads has to offer I was sold. Over the course of that dozen hours alone, the interactiveness that Whit has with the environment mixed in with the well written characters and the emotions that they bring as you live through this slice of life is both engaging and moving as I found myself happy, heartbroken, and even angry at times with some of the members of Whit’s family and community. Unlike real life though, you can go back and see how differently things could play out and I plan to travel both the higher and lower moral grounds still left untraveled.
On a whole, Dark Deity does offer up a solid turned based tactical experience with plenty of units types to choose from as you move from one theatre of battle to the next. Adding in elements like character bonds which adds in a depth to the story is nice but at times I do wish there had been a bit more side content and not simply going down the road from one giant battle to the next hoping that you both had enough time to finish it and that the system didn’t crash as there’s no way to save while in the thick of it. This all said, I enjoyed my time with Dark Deity and I do hope to see more from these developers down the line with a sequel or a spiritual successor to this decent homage to Intelligent Systems’ Fire Emblem series.
Overall, Disgaea 6: Defiance of Destiny is a solid entry into the Disgaea Series. Fun characters, great dialog, amazing voice overs, it hits all of the notes. While there are some issues on the performance side on the Nintendo Switch, it’s never enough to completely remove you from the experience and with plenty of new additions such as an auto-battling system to do your Netherworld grinding for you, you may not even notice as you gawk seeing the millions of hit points disappearing per turn!
It's really hard not to recommend ENDER LILIES: Quietus of the Knights. From brilliant level designs over into a properly evolving gameplay and combat systems only ever supported by great musical arrangements, if there's one thing any fan of the style should sit down to this year? It should be this. Not a fan of the style? You should give it a go as even without the Souls-esque and Metroidvania nature's, there's a solid 2D action adventure platformer just waiting to be explored.
So overall, Solasta: Crown of the Magister does an excellent job at bringing a tabletop experience over to the digital realm. While it may not be perfect, that’s more of a detail as it’s still being worked on with new features to come down the line such as the Dungeon Maker and a Sorcerer class to add to the already existing six available. Will more come? That’s to see down the line but for now? Solasta offers hours of brilliant tabletop goodness all from the comfort of your chair.
So while the running and gunning is generally pretty smooth short of the framerates, there are a lot of other small to medium details such as can bog things down a bit as they are a tad clunky and can only be done from the main hub. It would have been much better to have an actual inventory system window that also allowed for you to see all of your current upgrades instead of having to go back to the vendors to see all of these details. Overall though, what’s present is pretty solid and I came away fairly impressed at the gameplay as even hours down the line it keeps on being robust enough with the new upgrades as they are acquired.
So overall, while I personally would have enjoyed a brand new Neptunia title for the launch of the Goddess shenanigans on the PlayStation 5, Neptunia: ReVerse is a good place to start for those that would actually have no idea of the series. What better way to start off than the beginning? For returning fans though, I would say that if you’ve been wanting to return back to the beginning as it’s been several years Neptunia: ReVerse is worth it especially on a much larger screen and some added bonuses to get the adventure started off faster with some help from the other Neptunia-verse Goddess.
That's really all there is to it. Earth Defense Force: World Brothers is simplified fun and even at its toughest running on normal, players shouldn't have an issue dispatching the newest set of does to attack Planet Earth. The only real issue is the pacing of the upgrades but once you're passed that there's nothing to worry about other than how many missions can be crammed into an evening.
So overall, while it does a great job at telling the story of two brothers and their relationship for better or for worse which adds replayability to see how different decisions will impact it, Beautiful Desolation will not be for everyone. With some complex and often convoluted puzzles offering zero hints of how to proceed and often seemingly empty environments with nothing to do, it’s hard to recommend it to everyone, BUT, if you are a fan of well written narratives, cryptic puzzles, and some very well designed anything but human creatures, I wholeheartedly suggest taking a few cracks at this adventure and what it offers.
So overall, while the graphic upgrades to Days Gone on the PC (as long as the PC can handle it) are amazing especially compared to either a Sony PlayStation 4 or PlayStation 4 Pro, Days Gone is still the same title and that’s not a bad thing. Between the non-linear storyline that lets you explore at your own pace and the solid gameplay design that is just as easy to handle twenty, thirty, or forty hours down the line as it is in the beginning, there’s plenty to do, love and explore in a world that’s seen better days.
Overall Resident Evil Village is a fantastic entry into the realm of Resident Evil. It continues the storyline, it causes more questions than it answers, it allows for future entries to pick up from both the pre and post credits, and it was fun. Do I wish that Ethan Winters had more personality like our once again returning Chris Redfield? Yes. Was it enough to take me away from the gorgeous mountain views and the terrifying creepy haunted mansion on a hill? No, it sadly wasn’t and I really never want to see that house again!
Overall while short, Effie is a cute little throwback adventure that’s easy enough to pass through in an afternoon. With some fun puzzles, easy combat and interesting boss fights, I just hope that the Switch version is patched to offer the same smooth experience that was showcased in the opening trailers.
So overall, while Golden Force does have some shiny moments, a lot of the adventure falls flat which is unfortunate as it has multiple elements that could have made for a stellar retro inspired adventure.
So overall, I would have a hard time recommending The Skylia Prophecy to anyone who's not seriously up for a major and almost hardcore challenge. The core mechanics are stiff, certain ways forward can take you to your grave in literally one shot if you're not lucky when doing what you need to, and the ways forward are often blocked off due to a lack of mana giving you no other option than reloading and doing it over again as there's no way back. It's really unfortunate because I had high hopes for this retro Castlevania inspired title.
Lust From Beyond is definitely not for the faint of heart or for the weak stomached but it is an interesting dive into the realms of the occult and insanity that can appear especially when dealing with the likes of H.P. Lovecraft, H.R. Giger and Zdzisław Beksiński. Interesting puzzles, crazier environments and even more psychotic cultists and monsters trying to hunt you down, there’s a hell of an adventure to be had if you’ve got the stomach, and the age, for it.
Overall Samurai Shodown for the Xbox Series X is a pretty good 1v1 versus fighter. While I may not be able to compare it to the previous generation, it does a fairly good job at what it sets out to do whether you're planning for a night in for some couch versus or if you're feeling confident enough to take your skills online.
Anodyne 2: Return to Dust is a good example of taking chances with blending in several styles in order to tell a story. While the concept itself is nothing new, often it’s taken too far and too many styles are attempted and the whole experience just either comes apart or is a mess to play. Thankfully, that is definitely not the case here and I both look forward to both the developer’s next project and to finally sitting down to the original Anodyne.