Nick Mangiaracina's Reviews
Dragon Age: The Veilguard is an exceptionally polished game with an extremely satisfying combat system, lovely and interesting companions, and a stylistic new look that gives this long-running series a much-needed fresh coat of paint.
Life is Strange: Double Exposure is an incredibly beautiful game with interesting time mechanics and strong narrative hooks that eventually lead to a dissatisfying ending.
A winding and divergent narrative, Slay the Princess - The Pristine Cut is the ultimate version of Slay the Princess and one that I would recommend to almost anyone.
Earth Defense Force: World Brothers 2 offers a brand new story, and lots of new brothers and enemies. While the online community leaves a lot to be desired, World Brothers 2’s improvements over the first game remain significant enough to recommend.
Visions of Mana is a competent, visually beautiful, and fun game that might have stood out were it released any other year but this one.
I think if you even have an inkling that Bloomtown: A Different Story is your jam, you owe it to yourself to try it out.
Yars Rising gives you a straightforward experience with enough side content to add layers to customization without giving the player too much power in the end. It was a great experience and I had a really great time playing Yars Rising.
I loved Vampire Survivors on release but with everything added since Vampire Survivors is just as addictive and enjoyable as it was on release and well worth the buy now that you can enjoy it on any platform of your choosing.
Demon’s Mirror didn’t vibe with me, and while I appreciate the effort to mix up these two gameplay styles, the friction between the two left me annoyed and drained.
Overall, I have to say I’m pretty disappointed with Umamusume: Pretty Derby - Party Dash. The game is quite good looking and has a lot of fanfare for fans of the Uma Musume series but provides an extremely hollow experience full of basic UX missteps and a complete lack of depth. Golshi’s Grand Adventure 2 isn’t enough to save this game and the price tag for what’s being provided is absolutely absurd.
While not my favorite Shin Megami Tensei game, I cannot recommend Shin Megami Tensei V enough. And with the Canon of Vengeance included, it’s a must for any RPG fan.
Cat Quest III offers a decent amount of gameplay for the price, a colorful, consistent, and fully realized art style, and a game that can be completed 100% with a friend.
Thank Goodness You’re Here! is an incredible experience in both humor and execution. This is what a game looks like when it’s firing on all cylinders, it’s a tour de force of art, music, platforming, and puzzle solving.
A thought-provoking experience that had me questioning the reality Karra was living in throughout most of the game, Nobody Wants to Die is a must for mystery, adventure, and noir fans.
Being free-to-play, it’d be hard for me to tell you not to give The First Descendant a try. Even after forty hours, I’m still looking forward to spending more time in Ingris and unlocking more Descendants.
Until Then isn’t the best narrative adventure game I’ve played but it’s definitely one I’ll remember for a long time. Don’t sleep on Until Then, it’s a worthwhile experience.
Still, Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door’s remaster is an exceptional game, remaster, and tribute to a revered entry in a popular series. Sleeping on this entry, as an RPG fan, would be a big mistake.
As for Read Only Memories: Neurodiver, it’s a very tight, focused experience that’s a lot of fun and has a great style and flair for its setting, and I loved it. I just wish there was more to it.
While I can’t recommend Slayers X: Terminal Aftermath: Vengance of the Slayer, the game is simply too novel a concept to not talk about and at the very least, deserves your attention. What you choose to do with this knowledge now is up to you.
Dread Delusion fills a specific niche that hasn’t been touched in decades. While I wouldn’t recommend this game to just anyone, Dread Delusion sets a high bar for adventure RPGs and utilizes its art style to perfectly capture the era of gaming it draws inspiration from.