If you want an easy way to play the first few Sonic games on your TV and have a good experience, Sonic Origins is exactly that, with some cool extras to sweeten the deal.
The Sickos need love every now and then. Capcom Fighting Collection is a weird, wonderful compilation that never would’ve existed ten years ago. And at the very least for the broader fighter audience, Red Earth is cool as hell and arguably worth the price of admission by itself.
Shredder’s Revenge feels like it was made by people just like me, for whom Turtles in Time was a formative experience. It’s like a tidal wave of nostalgia crashing into technological advancements, new ideas, evolved talent, reverence and a dash of ironic self-deprecation.
This one’s a cute, little side-scrolling JRPG that’s mostly here to introduce the world and have a good time. And yeah, that tracks.
If you’re jonesing for some super niche JRPG grinding time, we definitely recommend Volume 2 if you can only get one. Makai Kingdom is a goofy romp that’s different enough from Disgaea to stand out, and Z.H.P. is just utterly unhinged in the best ways.
It’s a fascinating game that has a little more of a brain compared to its peers, but it is admittedly missing a wow factor or compelling hook to really drive the experience home
The writing team at Square Enix fed the 1987 Famicom classic Final Fantasy through a wood chipper running on a neural network forced to watch Army of Darkness more times than I did in high school. This game’s scenario popped out and it’s wild, awesome and hilarious.
If being screamed at by giant crows appeals to you, then boy howdy here’s a videogame for you specifically.
So while some of the older game vibe hurts it some, there’s also a lot to this game that simply isn’t in other ArcSys or anime fighters. That helps this game retain its identity and stand as a must-play for Persona fans. Once rollback kicks in, there’s a good argument to be made for keeping Ultimax going for years to come.
Atelier Sophie 2 resulted from Gust dropping the first game in an alchemy pot and boosting its quality and traits. It’s an interesting dedication to a years-old Atelier, revisiting systems even if they seem “dated” compared to the Ryza games, but altering them to still bring some flavor and iteration to the table.
So that’s Monark, a game that really doesn’t do much for me. But at the same time it’s a fascinating game that wants to do things a little differently. You won’t play another JRPG operating like Monark anytime soon. Monark doesn’t hit the mark but it shows us there are folks in the industry taking these swings, even in historied spaces like JRPGs. And there’s a demo, so I sincerely reccommend giving that a whirl and seeing what you think.
This is definitely the best KOF has ever been in 3D, and as a newcomer to actually learning how to play well, I’ve had a blast.
With a high barrier to entry and not much of a story to tell, Sifu is going to have a limited audience. That audience will love it, but a lot of curious onlookers will be turned away at the door.
SNK vs. Capcom: Card Fighters' Clash is definitely one of the most celebrated cult classics in the NGPC library, and starting the year off with it feels like a smart move.
Even when the story is about something serious or surprisingly dark, the endearing relationships between the girls and the whimsical environment they explore throughout the game do everything they can to chill you out.
If I could describe the latest MegaTen joint with one phrase, it would have to be “a lot.” This game is a lot.
There are bits and pieces that are cool or interesting, and others that are either duds or just too awkward to pass off as decent storytelling.
Gley Lancer may be one of the best examples of official emulation, like, ever made.
Metroid Dread feels more like a tribute to those games than the next in line. It’s all flashy and high octane, turning Samus into a Hollywood action hero who kicks ass and takes no shit. It’s “Metroid is awesome” blown up into a major game release, with some canon-extending cutscenes bolted on.
Super Monkey Ball Banana Mania is a moment of stubborn insistence these games are dope, and it does everything it can to justify its stance. It’s the truth, after all, and it’s nice to see how gracefully Banana Mania achieves its goal. It’s a feel-good moment on the Super Monkey Ball timeline.