Taking into account everything No Straight Roads does right and wrong, it truly does feel like a game from the 2000s that I would be nostalgic as hell for.
For all of my criticisms, I can’t stress enough how much potential I see in Necrobarista. From its fascinating supernatural setting to its amazing and dynamic art style, a sequel to this game would be an instant buy from me. If it’s going to stay as a standalone though, it needs more substance. Either way, I am excited to see more of Route 59’s work. They’ve created an incredible world and an even more incredible visual novel style.
Paper Mario: The Origami King is a great game with plenty of reasons to keep you exploring – it’s just missing that Wow factor that Paper Mario needed to put it back on top of the charts. Just don’t come in expecting it to be like the old games and you’ll have a great time.
My recommendation is for the mobile versions, as the graphics and the tap-and-swipe controls are clearly optimised for it. It’s a reasonable price on both mobile and PC though, so take your pick of platform.
The premise, art, music, and potential are all fantastic. But when it came time to actively engage with the game, I was hindered by unremarkable characters and poorly-conveyed puzzles.
"... if you want a relaxing lifestyle experience that’ll last you years, I can’t recommend this enough."
Whether you want to learn Japanese or not, I would recommend Kana Quest. Just make sure you play with earphones for a taste of those chilled out jams.
Arc of Alchemist could have been a fun tactical RPG. Trouble is, it’s squashed between outdated exploration, a half-formed battle system, and a general lack of polish that altogether makes the game’s flaws impossible to look past. Within the context of the many fantastic JRPGs that are out there, I can’t pretend Arc of Alchemist is worth your time.
Neo Cab makes me wish that big-budget publishers did games of this nature.
...interesting maps and epic military adventures from older titles, while building on the newer aspects we’ve come to expect from the 3DS games.
The Sinking City doesn't quite hit any of the marks it tried for, but fans of the Eldritch might still find a lot to love here.
It’s written extremely well, but I’m sure some players will be frustrated when the game doesn’t answer some of the questions that it raises.
Despite not going as far as I feel it could have, Yuppie Psycho had me laughing and running scared in all the right places.
It's Persona, but not quite as good. In the end, I cant help but compare the two games. Its not going to replace Persona in your heart, but its a good sweetheart of a distraction in the meantime.