Mechanically speaking, Samurai Warriors: Spirit of Sanada is very much yet another musou game from Omega Force. There's much more to the title than just that, though, as the new focus on just one family allows it to tell one of the most interesting stories from feudal Japan. It's an entertaining history lesson (although as expected it does take certain creative liberties) that also provides a thoughtful look at why war can't always boil down to good versus evil. Despite some dated graphics and gameplay that is sometimes too simple for its own good, Spirit of Sanada ends up rejuvenating a franchise that had been treading water.
Featuring a diverse cast of characters, Injustice 2 manages to provide a great time for both fighting game fans and those who love comic books. Its feature set is among the best in the genre, and fans have plenty of reasons to keep playing even after the story ends.
Akiba's Beat is in a strange position, having been released right after two other Japanese role-playing games dealt with very similar topics. While it doesn't have strong enough writing to eclipse these titles, it does feature a few story beats that keep it from being a D-grade Persona. From a combat perspective, the game feels like a Tales game, but without any of the polish. There's room for improvement in practically every area, but it's still a decent RPG that is worth playing for those that somehow ran out of RPGs in their backlog.
If you've got money to spend, and don't mind waiting for any sort of conclusion, then Hakuoki: Kyoto Winds is the best way to experience the first half of Idea Factory's visual novel. The new scenes help to flesh out the existing stories, and the additional characters help make a familiar story feel new again. It's a shame that all the hard work gets marred by splitting the story into two games, but it's still a very enjoyable read.
Super Rude Bear Resurrection doesn't treat death as a punishment, but rather as an equalizer to the harsh difficulty.
Lethal League joins the ranks of Rocket League as one of the PlayStation 4's best multiplayer games. Underneath the simple control scheme lies a highly competitive game with a tremendous amount of depth. It's a bit disappointing that there's not a bit more to the package, but there's enough mutators that players can make their own mode variants in order to entertain themselves. Overall, it's a frantic game that'll have you cursing and laughing at friends every time it's launched.
The debut installment of NBA Playgrounds gets the fundamentals right, but fails to impress elsewhere. From the shockingly feature poor online play to a single-player campaign that can be completed in a few hours, there just isn't enough content to support the gameplay. It's exciting to think about what a potential sequel could offer, but what's currently being sold is a good, but definitely not great, arcade game that doesn't manage to outdo its fantastic predecessors.
It's not so much that I was left wanting more, but rather that I wasn't fully satiated with what I had.
A lot of video games attempt to say something, but rarely do they manage to leave a genuine impact by the time the credits begin to roll.
Poisoft has shown the ability to create fun portable experiences in the past, but all of the trappings that would normally keep players coming back are missing here.
Dragon Quest Heroes II attempts to build upon the original in some smart ways, but the execution ends up being rather messy. The connected world doesn't provide the player with a living, breathing world to explore, but rather it's reminiscent of a diorama. One that attempts to fool the player into not seeing how shallow and lifeless things are outside of its walls. It's a fun, but flawed, follow-up. One that ultimately feels like a tease, as it adds a few much-needed improvements, but not enough to push it over the edge.
A lot of this outing of The Walking Dead: A New Frontier feels like treading water, as Telltale takes their time building to episode 5. Ending on a cliffhanger, the instalment does its job of upping the stakes for next time. Whether or not the developer can deliver a satisfying finale, however, is still up in the air.
It's not surprising that combining two of the best puzzles games would result in a fantastic game, but it's astounding how well the two games that make up Puyo Puyo Tetris gel together. The game's marquee Fusion mode manages to make two very familiar series feel fresh, and it's some of the most fun I've had in the genre. On top of that, Sega has packed in over a dozen modes, many of which allow players to play straight Tetris or Puyo Puyo. It's truly the best of both worlds, and it ends up creating an essential puzzle game.
Persona 5 is proof that few titles can compare to a truly great role-playing game. Over its 60 hour playtime I got to forge meaningful friendships with an eccentric cast of characters, discover the secrets of Tokyo, and even managed to find some nice restaurants to dine at. The time investment might seem like a lot, but rarely is time wasted when spent with friends. It doesn’t reinvent the genre, as it largely builds upon Persona 4‘s stellar base, but it adds a level of polish that is simply lacking from its contemporaries.
A Rose in the Twilight has some interesting ideas, but poor execution turns it into a massive disappointment. Players won’t find brilliant puzzles to solve like in Inside or Hue, and instead are stuck playing a game that only has a strong atmosphere to offer up. That might be enough for some players, and the game is certainly gorgeous, but when the genre is filled with brilliant games, there’s little value in such a flawed one.
Despite a disappointing amount of interactivity, Above the Law manages to be the most interesting episode yet of The Walking Dead: A New Frontier.
Zero Escape: The Nonary Games fixes some major issues with 999: Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors, but doesn’t go all the way in updating it for current consoles. While the remastered version isn’t perfect (and it had the impossible task of replicating how the original game used both screens of the DS), it’s still the best way to play 999 in 2017. Throw in a mostly unchanged port of the PlayStation Vita version of Virtue’s Last Reward, and the package contains two of the best stories in gaming, albeit one without the ending part of the trilogy. Kotaro Uchikoshi’s fantastic titles should be played by any fan of the medium, just be aware that the final chapter, Zero Time Dilemma, will have to be played elsewhere.
No matter if I was playing or watching, every hour I spent with Everything was an interesting one. Much like life itself, there were moments of beauty and laughter, but also sadness. It's undoubtedly a strange creation, but no other game can allow players to listen to Alan Watts discuss the interplay of difference while watching 10 outhouses perform a dance that results in a baby outhouse somehow being born. There's something special about these moments, and it's why Everything will be on my television screen for a long time to come.
Toukiden 2 is a huge step up from its predecessor, and is a smart evolution of the gameplay that Monster Hunter fans have come to know. By opting for a more story-focused experience, it manages to forego feeling like a grind, and the open-world aspect allows players to really take in their surroundings.
There was a real opportunity for DYING: Reborn to shine on virtual reality, but the end result feels like a cruel joke.