The Legend of Heroes: Trails to Azure is a beautiful turn-based RPG that encapsulates what makes Falcom's Trails series so great. The Special Support Section proves to be one of the most memorable casts of characters in gaming today. Addicting gameplay, an enormous offering of content, and a host of new features make this one of the best entries in the whole series.
Like a Dragon: Ishin! is another incredible action game produced by SEGA and Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio. Sakamoto Ryoma's journey is emotional and action-packed, hitting all of the right chords for an excellent Yakuza / Like a Dragon title. This game is welcoming to newcomers while rewarding longtime fans for their continued support of the long-running series.
Persona 4 Golden is a superb JRPG that stands the test of time with a brilliant cast of characters, fulfilling main story, and addicting gameplay. This excellent JRPG is finally portable again on Nintendo Switch, providing one of the best ways to play Persona 4 Golden with its new quality of life improvements and features. This is a must-buy for JRPG veterans and newcomers alike.
Persona 3 Portable ages like fine wine as an excellent JRPG that caters to handheld play sessions on Nintendo Switch and Steam Deck. The game's iconic style, incredible story, humorous cast, and emotional moments are beautifully remastered for modern platforms. The remaster's new features and quality of life improvements make this version the best way to play Persona 3 right away.
Samurai Maiden is a really fun girls sword-fighting action game that focuses more on characters and combat than a strong narrative experience. The fully voiced dialogue, frantic combat, and endearing cast of characters make for a solid action game experience from D3 Publisher and SHADE. Nintendo Switch performance is lacking with its frame rate stutters and dips, however.
Persona 5 Royal is a wonderful experience on Nintendo Switch with its beautiful visuals and fun turn-based combat holding up quite well. Players can experience a captivating story on the go or at home with tons of new features unavailable in the original Persona 5. This is a must-buy for RPG fans who have yet to experience the tale of the Phantom Thieves or for those who want to relive the journey on a portable device.
The Chaos;Head Noah / Chaos;Child Double Pack provides many hours of thrilling stories and unnerving twists. Although the English release of Chaos;Head Noah is not ideal, it's worth experiencing for fans of visual novels such as Steins;Gate. Chaos;Child is another great entry for the Switch and a worthy sequel with investigation elements. The games would greatly benefit from patches and fixes.
The Legend of Heroes: Trails from Zero is another excellent Trails JRPG with a memorable cast of characters and an engaging narrative. The game stays true to the identity of the Trails series while foreshadowing implications for subsequent games. A strong and well-rounded JRPG awaits in Crossbell following the success of the Trails in the Sky trilogy.
Soul Hackers 2 modernizes the Devil Summoner formula while retaining the unique cyberpunk aesthetic of Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers. Ringo charges into the Devil Summoner underworld with an interesting narrative and signature Megami Tensei series combat. Soul Hackers 2 is worthwhile experience for JRPG fans wanting another great ATLUS adventure.
Like the original release, El Shaddai is a great game with constrained potential due to the unfortunate circumstances that may come with game development. The Steam release gives new players a chance to explore what this cult classic is all about while giving old players the opportunity for a replay. This character-driven action game is a really fun time that doesn't overstay its welcome but may make players crave more.
Shenmue III is a real treat for fans and the best entry in the series so far. Improvements push the series in the right direction but it's not very friendly for newcomers. However, the overall game is an engaging experience from start to finish. It delivers what was promised by YS NET as the next chapter of the series.