Heather Johnson Yu's Reviews
I really, really, really wanted to like Syberia 3. It had everything that would have interested me – Eurasian people in a Russian-esque setting with a brainy American girl as the lead. What I wanted and what I played, however, were two different games.
Samurai Warriors: Spirit of Sanada has taken some fantastic elements of other games in the series and made a great little musou out of a really interesting part of Japanese history.
Coffee Talk may remind players of The Red Strings Club or VA-11 HALL-A, and while it certainly looks the part, it’s as different as a cocktail is from a cappuccino. If you understand the absolute joy that comes from sipping your favorite brew in a coffee shop window, listening to lo fi beats as you watch city lights twinkle while rain lightly falls from the heavens, you will immediately understand Coffee Talk. Perhaps it’s an acquired taste; those with refined palates will easily see how perfect Coffee Talk is — not too sweet, not too bitter — but a bold, refreshing experience that leaves players immensely satisfied until the very last drop.
Without a doubt, LUNA The Shadow Dust is the most beautiful game I’ve played in a long time. A scintillating yet simple story told with no words, only the deepest emotions conveyed through glorious art and hypnotizing music, I was legitimately moved to tears multiple times. Of course, a few of those tears shed were in frustration over a puzzle or two, but in the end, it only extended my time with a phenomenal masterpiece crafted by video game artisans. A powerful, cautionary tale of those who forget that the brightest lights yield the longest shadows, LUNA The Shadow Dust is worth every single penny and will no doubt stay with players for years to come.
Death and Taxes has so much more going for it than I’ve even been able to discuss. The art style is fantastic, the voice acting is perfection, the music is brilliant, and the mechanic is sure to delight any Papers, Please fans. But what really, really stuck with me was not only how it dove deeply into existentialism in an entertaining way that didn’t get mired in the macabre, but how it quietly — so subtle, you could miss it — elevated the feel right back up at the end, aligning morals back to a human scale and setting the expectation and desire to do better.
It’s not often that a decades-old game ages as well as we remember through our rose-colored glasses; fans of the original Sonic the Hedgehog 2 would then feel pleased to hear that SEGA AGES Sonic The Hedgehog 2 gives players the best of what they remembered and then some. With the quality of life improvements and the surprise additions of Super Sonic and Knuckles, among other features, SEGA AGES Sonic The Hedgehog 2 was handled with the love and care such a treasured gem deserves.
If you’re looking for a space survival FPS that’s new and gorgeous without needing a huge time investment, Antares is definitely something to check out; for anyone else, consider watching some playthroughs before investigating this spooky space station.
Murder By Numbers is definitely your game if you love picross and Phoenix Wright — heavy emphasis on that order. With a seemingly unending amount of picross puzzles at your disposal and plenty of murders to solve, Murder By Numbers accomplishes everything it sets out to do (and then some).
If you have an interest in learning kana and are truly committed to doing so, Kana Quest will certainly aid you in your studies in a fun, memorable way.
If you are looking for a semi-open world RPG that doesn’t hold your hand, plays like a very old school title, and will shock you with how revolting it tries to be, you might actually like The Pale City. If you’re an avid bookworm who mostly enjoys a story aid over a fully-fleshed out game, I can see this being right up your alley — as long as you enjoy the macabre. For anyone else expecting Baldur’s Gate or the like, consider watching a let’s play before making the purchase, and that advice goes double if you have a short attention span.
In Other Waters is a thrilling, non-violent gem focusing on discovery of life among the stars in a place humanity didn’t think to look. This game proves that sometimes simplicity is best, its minimalist approach to complicated technology an absolute triumph. The immersion is incredible, considering the genre, and the concept is dramatically fresh to the point where I literally feel in awe of how much has been accomplished by so little.
Here’s the way I see it: 2013 was a different time, and maybe gamers who poo-poo’d this wonderfully wacky title were expecting something a little more straightforward from their GTA lookalike back then. In 2020, however, it’s the absurd that captivates, and The Saints Row IV: Re-Elected has stood the test of time in that particular regard. The fourth installment of the Saints Row franchise aged surprisingly well, and playing it again for the third time was a lovely walk down a familiar road. If you’re a long-time fan of the franchise and didn’t love the total deviation from the first few games, now might be the time to pick it up and try it again; if you’re new to the series, you’re in for a dramatically deranged treat.
Through The Darkest Of Times is a must-play title that will absolutely blow you away, leaving you with mixed emotions of despair and hope that will stay with you long after the credits roll.
With a colorful cast, incredibly high replay value, and diversity for miles, Later Daters is a surprisingly deep dating sim that unfolds over time. I personally feel it could do with a bit of better marketing in terms of communicating that this is, in fact, a partially finished game; additionally, with LGBTQ+ representation featured more prominently than most games that offer such narratives, the trailer and descriptions could stand to present just how much this aspect of diversity takes the driver’s seat (and they’d certainly benefit from it as it’s a selling point). Nevertheless, Later Daters is a total catch that serves as an important reminder that love knows no age.
Ministry of Broadcast is a game like no other. Strangely cerebral and creatively deranged until the last possible moment, Ministry of Broadcast will absolutely challenge the platforming fans while providing endless amusement and frustration to the problem-solving crowd. The overall storyline may not make the most sense, but the immersion is definitely there and you’ll be too busy trying to get through it alive to pay much attention. Above all, you’ll walk away from the experience wondering if you really beat the game or just survived the ordeal. If you’re a fan of platformers, pixel art, or just really want to give your brain a brutal workout, you must pick up a copy of Ministry of Broadcast.
A seemingly casual experience that sucks you in once you start, Ancient Enemy is the perfect game for players who don’t have a lot of time on their hands but still want a solid gaming session. If card-based RPGs are your thing, you’re definitely going to want to add this to your library; if you’ve ever wondered about the genre, this is the perfect title to wet your beak.
Deep Silver and Volition have something really special with the Saints Row franchise, and it honestly doesn’t get any better than Saints Row: The Third Remastered.
From start to finish, Astrologaster delivers; if you enjoy games off the beaten path that so brilliantly achieve all their goals, then our astrological readings indicate you’ll love Astrologaster. It’s in the stars!
From giant babies to vampires, from talking cats to cats with two buttholes, to snakes in toilets and a guy wearing the exact same pattern as the wallpaper in an attempt to hide from his murderous roommate, Sludge Life is wonderfully mad.
I don’t deny the hard work that the developers put into porting Masky to the Nintendo Switch; however, I can’t understand why its current pricepoint is five times more expensive than the Steam version. Had it been cheaper — even $2.99 — I would think of the Switch version of Masky much more positively, but for a game that will likely be played for less than an hour and then retired forever, it really shouldn’t cost so much. If you have any interest whatsoever in an insanely easy pick-up-and-play game, Masky satisfies, although I recommend getting it for mobile — for free — instead.