Yvonne van Geloven's Reviews
Let's recap here: a small development studio, an amazing looking game that has lots of depth to it. A great story line and puzzles that exercise the grey cells. An added element of narration making it even better. Main characters that instantly make you feel protective. A long enough adventure with the right price tag. And even when I have other games waiting, Woven is taking over my entire spare gaming time. I think you know what I'm going to say next: this game deserves all the attention it's surely going to get. For me, it just has to be the highest praise, this is one of the best games I have played this year!
Even though there are more of these kind of puzzles out there, Travel Mosaic: A Paris Tour, for me, adds good fun, color and a great challenge. It’s colourful and bright and the gleaming dots that plop into place make a very satisfying plopping noise. The background music is nice and changes with the puzzle and the tourist attraction. The addition of info about the tourist attraction is a nice touch. Playing on several layers with several colours makes Travel Mosaics stand out even more. And these grids are no walk in the park. They get bigger and more challenging as the levels go by. If you are a puzzle enthusiast and like excersizing the grey cells, I can really recommend Travel Mosaics: A Paris Tour.
Waku Waku Sweets: a cooking game that came to the 3DS in 2018, and followed on the Switch that same year. The most well known cooking game is Cooking Mama, one that my daughter loves to bits. But now that Waku Waku Sweets on Switch has landed in retail as well, let’s see how this “other” title holds up: is it a clone, or does it bring something new to the table?
If you are an Atelier fan, Atelier Ayesha is a good addition to your collection. In every Atelier game the synthesis and battle system is slightly different. Still, I feel Atelier Ayesha is the game that made an impact on me mainly because of the story. Plus, every Atelier game is unique because of the character, and Ayesha really is my kind of girl! So I’ll stick to my verdict from all those years ago:
Adventure game bayala is based on the movie bayala – a magical adventure. What’s more, the movie, and the game, are based on the lovely figurines by Schleich. And who doesn’t know about these wonderful toys? Somewhere on the forum of a gaming site I found a comment on the announcement of bayala that said something along the lines that this is the kind of game that you play when you aren’t a real gamer. I must say I totally disagree. I think all games are good games as long as the audience that it was intended for enjoys playing them. Sure, this is no Breath of the Wild or Monster Hunter, but that is not the purpose of the game. This is a game made for fans of the movie and fans of the toys. And the developer did a very good job at it.
This game will stay with me for a long time, even if it’s only three hours in play time. It’s a game about old age, about loneliness and losing the people around you. It’s also a game about stubbornly carrying on and about old friendships. Don’t play it if you are looking for a farming sim. Don’t play it if you are looking for a time management game. Play it if you want to experience something special, but do consider which device you will play it on.
The storyline is different, and the fact that both protagonists spend their time working for a company sometimes makes it feel more like a management game. But the characters that accompany you on your assignments are likeable and each have their own story to tell. The fans of the series will see many familiar faces, like Marion, Linca and Wilbell. I like the interaction between Escha and Logy and the mystery that has to be unraveled. The visuals, gameplay, soundtrack and combination of synthesising, battling and the story made it into a great experience for me.
You could say that this third game of the Dusk series is the best one, with the movable camera and so many familiar faces that you already know from past games. I however would be hard pressed to choose the one I love most. It would feel like pointing out my favourite child! Maybe I should conclude that Atelier Shallie offers the most for your buck, as the storylines of the two heroines differ enough for you to play the game twice. If you like turnbased RPG with crafting included, and aren’t afraid of lots of texts, these three games are great ones to find out if you are an Atelier fan yourself.
Don’t go into the game thinking you’ll do some mindless gaming. Because of the mixed up timelines, familiar faces and tie-ins between the three couples Half Past Fate needs your attention. Like I did, you’ll no doubt have a favorite couple. Whether it’s Rinden and Mara, Bia and Milo or Ana and Jaren, all the stories are interesting. If you like story based games, solving puzzles and are in the mood little romance to go with it, you really can’t go wrong with Half Past Fate.
Summer in Mara is a simulation adventure of the kind that the Switch still needs more entries of in its library. When you debate whether or not Summer in Mara is for you, you have to keep this in mind: you don’t play the game to go from A to B. You don’t play it to just to do all the quests and live the adventure. No, you do the quests to make the Home Island of Koa more beautiful, more bountiful and a real home. And meanwhile, you discover new islands, learns the story of new people and live through new adventures. We have all been a little spoiled in simulation gaming by Animal Crossing: New Horizons but you must remember this game is made by a small studio. It is clearly a project of love, so well made into the little details. Yes, there are some bugs to repair and there are some parts I’d like to see added, like a fully functioning inside of Koa’s home. But that doesn’t detract from the fact that I love playing it:
I am enjoying my time in Mineral Town. The game is charming, the characters feel real and who can resist those round cute chickens and cows? No doubt this game will bring many happy memories to gamers who started their gaming life playing this game on their GBA. If, like me, you have never played it before, you can expect a good farming sim on the Switch. It doesn’t have the building aspect of later Story of Seasons games and if you are a Stardew Valley fan, you may find it too light hearted. But Friends of Mineral Town is a good Story of Seasons entry with heaps of nostalgia to boot.
Love romantic stories? This is one with a twist. Not into overly romantic? This visual novel brings an interesting story to the table, so it may still be one to go for. Can you tell I’m loving this game? Aksys have a tendency of bringing us the best visual novels, and Café Enchanté is no exception.
This isn’t your average Visual Novel, no over the top romance with hot guys, but a more realistic approach to friendships and potential relationships in old age. Though in some of the chapters, realism is far away! Poignant, sad at times, and with some dollops of sarcastic humour Later Daters makes for a special game. A pity that it’s so short, even with the DLC added.
When I reviewed the mobile game on the iPad I wrote: “I can’t help but think that this game would be a wonderful game to add to the Switch library”. I got my wish, Evolution is a great board game turned into a video game. It will give you the choice of what platform to play on, depending on the money you want to spend and your eyesight!
It’s fun to follow the journey Gust is making with their Atelier games from the Arland trilogy to the Dusk trilogy and now the Mysterious trilogy. And what’s more: all these games are now available on the Nintendo Switch in their definite edition. Atelier Sophie: the Alchemist of the Mysterious Book DX starts the series off in the direction of more sim-like elements, and presents us with a lovely “slice of life” story. No wars or terrible happenings, but a good interesting storyline following a girl who wants to learn how to be a great Alchemist.
No matter how I try, these reviews of Atelier games always end up being long….so if you read all the way through, then thank you for sticking with me. Atelier Firis: the Alchemist and the Mysterious Journey ticks all the boxes of a great coming of age story with good synthesis and turn-based battles. This game has a great sense of exploration in this open-world and makes for interesting and extended gameplay. The prologue is too long (3 hours!) and Firis is a bit of an airhead, but overall: I like it a lot
The original game was released in 2018 and it was the first ever Atelier game to make it to the Switch. Back then I felt that it was a pity that this would be the one to serve to Nintendo gamers as a first experience. Protagonists that are not the most lovable girls I’ve met in the Atelier series and no English voices. I must say though that some of the chats the girls have are quite funny. But, replaying it now in the order of the Atelier Mysterious trilogy I feel more kindly inclined. I can see how Gust tried for an open world approach in Atelier Firis and though they abandoned that in this game, they made up for it using the Mysterious Paintings. Even though I liked the two earlier games, Atelier Sophie and Atelier Firis, just a little bit more, Atelier Lydie & Suelle: the Alchemists and the Mysterious Paintings is still a lovely game in an amazing series.
Stray Cat Doors 2 is a lovely game, gorgeous looking visuals, a nostalgic sweet feeling to the adventure and great puzzles to solve. Just the ticket when you get home from a stressful day at work and want to relax. If you like Escape Room games this one might be for you if you don’t mind the cutesy feel. If you like wholesome gaming and solving some light puzzles, this is definitely one to go for. The only minor remark I have is that the English translations could be better. But Pulsmo did a great job once again, expanding on the great gameplay of the first one!
Arcane Arts Academy is a good fit on the Nintendo Switch with the multiplayer added if you can manage the button control. Personally, I much preferred to use the touchscreen though. The price for the Nintendo Switch version is lower than the full price on mobile which is a plus! I wouldn’t advise playing Arcane Arts Academy as a relaxation game, as you need your full attention and clear mind to manage the often frantic levels. What is nice though is that you can adjust the difficulty in the settings allowing you to gain the stars you need to pass the level more easily. The story is good, and the challenge is great, as it always in these perfect mix of simulation/management games. If you like these type of games I’d say you can’t go wrong with Arcane Arts Academy at this price point.
Bear’s Restaurant is a game about loss, regrets, redemption and death. But it’s also about the power of love that will conquer it all. This is no relaxing and laid back story, but one that will make you sad. It will stay with you for a long time, particularly because of the beautiful ending. If you like story-driven games and aren’t afraid to explore deeper feelings, then give Bear’s Restaurant a try. It’s available on mobile where you can try the first part for free, unlocking the rest and the sequel story, The Nihility, being a paywall. The Nintendo Switch version has everything included! It feels strange to measure how much you like such a sad story, but the way the developer manages to bring such a deep story in a relatively simple way is pretty amazing.