John Friscia
- Illusion of Gaia
- Chrono Trigger
- Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete
John Friscia's Reviews
Eastward contains phenomenal art and colorful writing, yet the plot meanders breezily from moment to moment with little care for pacing and an unoriginal core storyline. Factor in average combat and puzzle-solving and a couple bugs that should be addressed, and Eastward is not quite as fun to play as it could be. That being said, a lot of people are going to fall completely in love with it anyway for the things it does right, and you might be one of them.
Ultimately, Mega Man X Legacy Collection 2 is only worth buying if you really love the X series formula and are willing to experience it in bizarre and inferior forms. Mega Man X8 is the singular high-quality X title to be had here, so you have to ask yourself if X8 plus three not-so-terrific titles is worth your $19.99. I love Mega Man in all his forms, so it's worth it for me. But for you? Maybe not.
Ultimately, Kunai is a competent and attractive Metroidvania title let down by uninspired game design, underutilized mechanics, and some bugs. Still, this isn't a bad effort by TurtleBlaze. In fact, I think a sequel that learns from this game's mistakes could be a blast.
In the end, a terrific battle system and great art direction just aren't enough to save Ruined King: A League of Legends Story from its lackluster narrative, clunky UI, and a wide spectrum of bizarre technical issues on Nintendo Switch. Hardcore League of Legends fans and hardcore RPG mechanics enthusiasts will still enjoy the game, but everyone else is better off playing something else this holiday season.
Ultimately, Anuchard is an intensely monotonous game that really only succeeds in its art design and sound. Nearly every dungeon feels the same, and every battle outside of boss fights feels like a mindless waste of time. The story is more ambitious, but it never culminates in something satisfying across its dozen hours of gameplay. This is certainly not a game that lives up to the pedigree of the Soul Blazer trilogy. But perhaps stellarNull can dust itself off and deliver something more impactful the next time around.
Lost in Harmony on Switch tries to do a lot of things and fails at most of them.
Ultimately, PUSS! is an exercise in frustration. Some people will appreciate the zaniness of the design and/or enjoy having a brutal challenge to push through in a blast of 10-20 minutes at a time. Other people will just be annoyed by the entire experience from start to finish, and the small bugs and quirks don't help that. PUSS! is not for everyone, but it's also not trying to be.
Ultimately, Say No! More is short, vapid, and stupid… but it kind of works. Gameplay is basic almost to the point of meaningless, but when combined with its striking art style and funny writing and voice acting, it adds up to an experience unlike any other. Frankly, full price is too much to ask for a game this simple, but definitely consider it during sales.
Land of Screens tells a short, hokey, on-the-nose story about disconnecting from technology and reconnecting with friends and family, and it's not remarkable in any way. Fortunately, the art and sound are excellent, making it a decent way to spend a couple hours.
Trancelation is neither a powerful language-learning tool nor a particularly exciting arcade experience. But if you're looking for a supplement to a language you're already learning, and for some reason Duolingo isn't enough for you, this game will help you with rote memorization of basic vocabulary.
The narrative of Evan's Remains — if you don't skip any of it — probably takes up half the total playtime, if not even more. The puzzles themselves, of which there are maybe 20-25, take around two hours to complete. So honestly, I can't call the game a bad value at only $6.99, considering the price of a movie ticket these days. But there is just little here to recommend otherwise. The puzzles are fun enough, but the storytelling won't be to everyone's tastes. It definitely never strummed my heartstrings.
In its brief runtime, Half Past Fate: Romantic Distancing tries to tell a charming story of romance amid the pandemic, but it's just a waste of an hour instead. Give the original game a try in lieu of this.
Super Dragon Ball Heroes: World Mission is a frustratingly monotonous, plodding, mindless game. Being skilled at hitting the A button at the right moment is more important than the cards you bring into a battle.
I Saw Black Clouds has some bold ideas, but the execution on a structural and technical level is a total failure. Even if the writing, acting, and scene editing were immaculate - which they are not - it would not forgive how all of the decisions the player makes carry no weight. Decisions only have consequences in vague, indirect, unpredictable ways, and it's extremely unsatisfying to have so little control over a story that isn't overly engaging in the first place. The best decision you can make is to just not play I Saw Black Clouds.