If you want a game that’s more of an experience than simply something to kill time, if you want something that showcases how artistic games can be, if you want an action platformer with plenty of approaches to combat, I can’t recommend enough that you pick up Ori and the Will of the Wisps.
If you have NOT played the original Rune Factory 4 however, I highly recommend picking this up. The writing is charming, the gameplay is a wonderful blend of pleasant and exciting, and all the interconnected systems mean even if you’re not directly working on your favorite aspect, you’re still working towards what you love.
Little nitpicks aside, I love this game. It juggles a bunch of interconnected systems well, combined with a light-hearted sense of humor and plenty of little bits of polish here and there that really show the love the developers put into the game.
On the whole, this game is a case study for how the small details truly make the game. It hits all the broad strokes well, and it has a solid foundation. With more polish, I would genuinely call this a good game. Unfortunately, as it is, it just comes across as a jumbled mess that slingshots between unfair and trivial, without enough fluff to make up for it.
There’s a bit of polish it can use here and there, but it’s certainly one of the better visual novels I’ve played this year.
Barring some bugs that will hopefully get patched soon, I really enjoyed my time with Interrogation – You Will Be Deceived. The interconnected systems that give consequences even to your “kind” options really make me want to dig in and figure out just what effects all my actions have.
Unfortunately in the end I just can’t recommend this. It’s beautiful, and with a bit more polish I would call it a fine way to experience a classic tale. As it stands at the moment, though, the bugs are an active detriment and the actual gameplay, the stuff that differentiates this from just reading a book or watching a movie, feel like they detract from the story more than add to it.
Barring a few minor issues here and there, Corpse Party: Blood Drive continues to be one of the most enjoyable visual novels I’ve played. It’s campy, gruesome, a little fanservicey…so a lot like the scary movies I grew up with through a different cultural lens.
Cat Quest II is relatively short, but I’d argue it’s as long as it needs to be. I didn’t feel a need to break from the adventure solely for the sake of grinding, and I finished before I grew bored of the simple gameplay loop.
Monster Hunter World: Iceborne has taken a game I love and improved upon it. While some of the changes may be scary for balance, and they’ll all take getting used to, this was the most fun I’ve had with the series in a long while.
I was a fan of the original Catherine, and I’m pleased to find the changes are mostly for the better. If you like puzzle games, specifically ones about finding patterns through the noise, and don’t mind potentially uncomfortable questions about mature topics, I highly recommend picking up Catherine: Full Body.
The gameplay itself is enjoyable, so if the repetition doesn’t bother you, you’ll probably enjoy it. If it does, you’ll probably just have a few fun hours and that’s about it.
Overall, Persona Q2: New Cinema Labyrinth is a blast for fans of either the Persona or Etrian Odyssey series. What few complaints I had have their workarounds, and even when I was level grinding, the music and battle system made it a joy.
One of the things I love about 2D action games is learning a level like the back of your hand, and what I love about roguelikes is picking a starting build and trying to go as far as you can with it. This marries the two into something that, while it may not be for everyone, is definitely for me.
The base they’re working on is so shallow that I can’t say for sure whether it’d be a good game if they did everything I asked for. In the end, all I can say is maybe make sure you’ve got more of a game before you throw it out onto the store.
Toejam & Earl: Back in the Groove is definitely an odd title. It has a focus on exploration over combat, and embraces randomness in a way that keeps things exciting. While it’s likely not for everyone, it’s definitely a unique game in this day and age, and is worth a shot for that alone.
If there’s one take-away I have about Travis Strikes Again: No More Heroes, it’s that it feels like a lower budget take on the series. I’m reminded of when a series on the PSX or GameCube would get a game on the GBA; It’s noticeably different, and not as highly polished, but in the end it’s still fun for what it is.
Overall, Corpse Party: Book of Shadows is a spooky and unsettling experience, but it’s not without some flaws. There is the occasional line that’s at a significantly lower volume than those before or after, making it hard to hear. The exploration mechanic also becomes quite repetitious over time, especially when events in an episode make it so any room could have something new in it, requiring players to go back and check every room they have access to for anything new.
All told, Yomawari: The Long Night Collection is an enjoyable title for any who want to get into the Halloween spirit and don’t mind a fair amount of darkness and blood. Those who played the original versions on the Vita may wish to give this a pass, but for any who missed out before I highly recommend picking it up.
At the end of the day, the one thing I can definitively say is that it is a game that I enjoyed, but also one where I can very well understand if others dislike it.