Like many games that are smaller budget, when a game has remotely fancy graphics, gameplay tends to almost always suffer. This is no exception, while the space survival idea is cool, from frustrations in the UI, to constantly glitches and freezes it’s hard to even see the game at its best when so many other things get in the way.
Some of the power-ups are fun, like spawning small fighters or missiles, but the core loop of Galactic Glitch is simply far too repetitious, the upgrades are too slow, the meta-progression is glacial, and any driving factor to continue is non-existent. The idea could have been fine, but everything previously mentioned needed major overhauls and pretty much could be summed up by "needing cooler stuff faster" at every stage of the game.
Earth Defense Force: World Brothers 2 a lot of fun, with tons and tons of Easter eggs to prior games, all variations of humour, and loads of weapons and characters. There is very little negative to point at. The raw variety of characters, from the bold and aggressive to the fun and silly, to the dark and serious somehow all fits together. All of the upgrades to acquire for weapons, items and soldiers leads to a great experience of wanting to play one more level shooting up some aliens.
The general quality of Read Only Memories: Neurodiver is surprisingly good. Between the facial animations, likeable protagonist, and general humour, the game hits a lot of key points that are rare nowadays. What really drags things down is that some segments become very hard to advance due to not clicking on the correct object or mixing items the right way. Further, while the day-to-day story is quite entertaining, the larger plot simply takes far too long to develop, which may leave players to check out before it takes off.
Elrentaros Wanderings had so much potential. After one inevitable wall and annoyance too many, the flaws will be too great to ignore any longer and will result in most just abandoning the adventure. From the utterly simplistic town, complete with non-moving NPCs, to various soft locks based on the general lack of a progression system, to simple design choices like the lack of save slots, this feels more like an alpha version or a tech demo, not something that its peers are just far better than.
Nailing all the key aspects of what draws players into the genre, each hour or so run is fast and fun. Amazingly, the characters play wildly different, from zipping all over the board to blanketing it with bombs. While StarVaders is missing that rare chance of a single card or move that instantly becomes overpowered, the power curve is typically satisfying. The only thing holding things back are the frequent freezes and crashes, along with Steam Deck problems of buttons freezing. Thankfully, the save system is forgiving, so these are only minor annoyances.
The atmosphere, characters and general style are all high points, but Ravenswatch's major issue comes from how repetitious the gameplay loop is and that rarely anything new or cool pops up. The base structure is there to have been a really cool roguelite, but as it's far more strict in its roguelike nature, it's tough to recommend in any large capacity, lacking in too many things to encourage frequent plays.
As a side or minigame, Neptunia Riders vs Dogoos might be kind of fun…for about an hour, but as a nearly full price game, something like this is tough to swallow. The whole thing can be beaten in a few hours, and the gameplay is entirely derivative, bland and lacking much in the way of anything interesting. Idea Factory should stick more with the ecchi games or themes, as that's what they're best at.
Some of the art, like the background scenery and the character portraits, is a sight to behold in Astral Ascent. Unfortunately, this is in stark contrast to how the actual characters look, which is distractingly bad. Anyone wanting a Hades-like experience will be happy. With the typical dopamine hits of new moves and upgrades, the complexities of the spell system distracts from some of the simple fun of its progenitor, so if you are looking for an anime-like platformer, this will fit the bill. Astral Ascent is worth checking out, but is not going to blow anyone away.
The opening of Xenoblade Chronicles X is really something. From the pure horror of watching Earth get wiped out, to the first exploration sequence in the dark and the rain, this game really takes players on a masterful rollercoaster of emotion. The only real knocks against it are the occasional oddly placed music track, and the generally boring city sections, with an additional comment that the systems are often so complicated that they get in the way of fighting and exploring. The story definitely comes in waves, so any player should be more interested in the exploration than purely a narrative experience.
Days of Doom had a lot of potential, but an utterly unforgiveable amount of hard crashes 'doom' much of its hope for a decent experience. Even when it is not crashing, there were just too many things that really should have been different. Classes are far too boring, plenty of missed opportunities for more weapons, any skills, or any sort of depth. For people looking for a game that had good potential, but blew it so badly, this is a good example to study.
Ys X: Nordics isn't a bad game, but it's not great either. The graphics don't look any better than when Ys VIII came out years ago on older systems. The story and characters are passable, but in a crowded field of games, this isn't enough anymore. The time spent on this game felt more like a reminder of what it could have been rather than an entertaining adventure. One's enjoyment of this is going to be directly proportional to if someone wants 'more of the same' of the recent Falcom formula. It is clearly selling, so the trend is likely to continue for better or worse, but there is a lot here that is tough to recommend except for diehard series fans.
Fundamentally, Earth Defence Force 6 is 'more of the same' as 5, with an improved story and some very slight changes. The darker story is much more welcome, and the new enemies and weapons give players more variety. Gameplay wise it is going to be nearly the same as the last main entry, with the pretty cool narrative style of the opening levels. It's not going to blow anyone away, but it's very much in the vein of fun that will suck the hours away.
The somewhat random nature of the AI in combat, along with the linear story and the short gameplay might sound like turn-offs. However, the feline-heavy adventure is oddly fun despite these issues. Seeking upgrades and winning levels makes this low price sci-fi release more enjoyable than some longer AAA titles, proving how strong the indie scene can be. You don't have to be infected with toxoplasmosis to enjoy Space Cats Tactics.
There are many times that it is fun to just stop and look around, and the story and characters are a fairly tight package, which is appreciated. Battles are fast, if a bit consistent of spongy enemies. Its mobile roots are obvious, in relation to how equipment, upgrades and other characters work. Overall, there is not a huge sweeping story that will stay with you, but it's a coherent, high quality RPG that is solid across the board.
Arcadian Atlas had some solid concepts, the sprites in particular deserving serious commendation for being a highlight of the game that sprite fans will love. Unfortunately, from there the quality really slips; unreadable text, a lacklustre class and skill system, and disjointed art to name a few of the multiple little issues that drag the game down. there are too many little issues that drag the game down and prevent it being fun. The developers seem responsive and some of these issues may be addressed in future updates, but given that the game is being sold for a mid-range price, players should expect a better package.
The graphics and the base structure of Bravery and Greed are pretty good. The issues really come down to simple things like the entire point of collecting gold being almost useless, and the unlock systems leaving so much to be desired. The online is dead short of finding someone through Discord. It's sad because the game actually has the potential to be really good, but just needs a few overhauls to get there.
Graphically, some of the areas look great, and the story is interesting at points. The biggest problem that really drags down the experience is that combat is basic, repetitive, and ultimately uninspiring. The slot system is far more annoying than anything, and for how often players are in combat, it burns out quickly. Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion feels more like a game that would be better to watch for the story, while skipping the gameplay. Zack deserved better than this.
The Gunvolt series was one of the better, and cooler, platformer series in recent history; unfortunately, the most recent games have just been entirely mediocre. Much like the previous Luminous Avenger, all the pieces are there for an absolutely fantastic game, but it never comes together. Regrettably, the story in Azure Striker Gunvolt 3 is the weakest in the series, and the two main characters are far more annoying than entertaining.
The Valiant's story is actually pretty interesting, but the gameplay (one of the core aspects of strategy titles) is just very middling. Unit issues like pathing and not all of them fighting, the fact that there's not much to really do, and the very "samey" combat unfortunately side-line the story. This feels a little too unpolished to have been released yet.