Fingal Belmont
If you are already a Sonic fan, Sonic X Shadow Generations will be a no-brainer. It has a wealth of content and variety. Gamers who haven’t played a Sonic game in a long time will find that this is a great entry to get back into the series and become acquainted with Shadow, the franchise’s most entertaining character.
Considering how long this was in development and how little there is to show for it, I can’t help but feel this was a compromised release. If all that you want is Clock Tower in English on current platforms, then that is what you’ll get with Rewind. The base game is still a palm-sweating and butt-clenching horror game, but know that it has all of its warts intact and not enough options to tweak your experience and that it comes with some intensely lame extras.
You’ll be shocked, you’ll cry, and you’ll wonder why. The text-based gameplay will be a hurdle for some gamers to accept, but any gamer with an open mind and willingness to explore will be swept up in the story in Slay the Princess – The Pristine Cut.
The pacing is drawn out and intended to be contemplative, nostalgic, and relaxing. Gathering stuff most of the time and bouts of intense break-neck racing do not always make the best experience and will turn off a lot of players. It is worth sticking with it and bearing with the grind because the story is genuinely interesting and the trolly races are fun.
The Smurfs: Dreams is surprisingly fun and beautiful-looking. This is the best outcome for an IP that is traditionally used as shovelware fodder. It is disappointing that the core gameplay is overly safe and derivative, but the young target audience won’t know that. The lack of effort for the narrative and characters makes it hard for anyone to care about The Smurfs as a concept, but the trade-off is imaginative and wild levels.
The novel premise is executed as well as it possibly could have been. The imagery is haunting, the flavor text is creepy and Home Safety Hotline will make you chuckle when you least expect it.
While the story itself is nothing special, the action is rousing, and the cycle of running through the cave is stimulating. Getting the sexy outfits is the real journey of the game and will take gamers well over 20 hours to earn, which is a huge value for ten dollars.
Ys X: Nordics simplifies and streamlines aspects of its gameplay compared to some of the recent entries, but it more than makes up for it with its fun and epic scale, and flashy spectacle. Adol may be along for the ride in Karja’s story, but her story is compelling and any RPG with fishing in it is always an RPG worth playing.
The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom is an utterly enthralling breath of fresh air for the Zelda franchise. Straying away from swordplay and quadrupling down on puzzles, magic, and monster summons is exactly what these games needed after decades of Link’s games adhering to a strict template.
Bloober Team’s Silent Hill 2 manages to be a worthy alternative that honors the original while also adding enough content to make it justify its price. It’s an epic survival-horror game that’s jam-packed with content and scenarios that will keep players on the edge of their seats and impress with its masterful art direction.
If you have a hankering for some mystery-solving with a strange and fun cast of characters, cheeky puzzles, and light fan service, then Master Detective Archives: RAIN CODE Plus will deliver on all fronts. It looks better than ever and has less downtime while exploring Kanai Ward’s soaked and dank streets.
Shogun Showdown is a challenging game and a hard game to put down. The tactical scenarios during every run are enthralling since even with a less-than-desirable hand of cards, it is possible to overcome with cunning. It’s a deceptively simple game with crude pixel art at first glance that becomes a black hole that pulls you in with its alluring strategy.
Playing The Meating on a modern console strips it away from its only novelty. This is strictly for fans of Crazy Castle who wished the protagonist could jump and do other things. Everyone else will be bored to tears.
The content cuts are disappointing and censorship is inexcusable, yet the core of Dead Rising is still appealing. This is fine if you’re a child who is getting used to gaming. The overhauled visuals and low bar to entry make it easy for kids and grandma to get into. There is not a lot for fans of the original. Unfortunately, the non-deluxe classic Dead Rising is still the definitive experience.
The best things in REYNATIS are the combat and the music. Getting past the initial knee-jerk reaction of the subpar graphics will be hard for most gamers, as will the dull level design and missions. However, those who stick with it and allow the better qualities to settle in and expand will be engrossed by the action and spectacle.
If you can’t get your hands on the original version of Lollipop Chainsaw and you’re very desperate for zombie hunting with panty shots, get OneeChanbara Origin. Maybe if the developer patches things up, RePop might be as awesome as it should be. The missing music will always loom over this port, but is it even Lollipop Chainsaw anymore without it?
Keylocker is a magnificent and creative tour de force. The charming and lurid visuals and music elevate what is already a very thoughtfully designed RPG into an engrossing and humorous adventure that keeps players guessing. The setting and characters are beautifully realized and there isn’t anything like it.
The grab-bag remixes of Yar’s Revenge are surprising and not knowing what is coming next keeps the gameplay engaging, even if Emi’s stealth mechanics are as basic as possible. At the very least, WayForward took an old Atari game that nobody cared about and did something new and interesting with it.
Astro Bot is a crowd-pleasing kind of game, but it is also a very superficial one that you forget about after playing. The haptics and the sensory experience from playing are novel, but after a while, there is not much else to the game. It can be depressing for older gamers who wish the cameos didn’t feel like you were in a wax museum of dead celebrities; a haunting reminder of Sony squandering some of their classic games.
Stealth games are rare these days and Evotinction is a worthy effort that leans more in the direction of strategy than action. The graphics look great thanks to the artists being responsible with their limitations and the music elevates the atmosphere. The protagonist is unrealistically limited by what the game demands and the enemy designs are uninspired. Yet, Evotinction is a game I admire for its ingenuity and tactical gameplay.