Thomas Knight's Reviews
It’s impressive to think just how far the Legacy Collection branch of Mega Man has come since that original package with the first six Classic Mega Man games. What were once competent, if somewhat safe and boring, compilations now feel like proper celebrations of Mega Man’s diversity and rich history. Mega Man Star Force Legacy Collection, to my delight and surprise, is perhaps the collection that best exemplifies this. Even despite the series being more lowkey and less popular than its big brother on GBA, Capcom still saw fit to give it the royalty treatment. While it’s certainly debatable whether it’s the best collection in terms of the actual games on offer, I would go to bat and say this is the best collection they’ve ever done in terms of tender loving care. The improvements to presentation, including sound and drawing quality, makes each game feel like it jumped a generation ahead. Considered gameplay tweaks that were thankfully made optional helps to also smooth over frustrations of the original games, especially in Star Force 2’s case. A suite of artwork, online features, and bonuses all around makes this the best way to experience these games, even accounting for changes made to accommodate the transition to one screen. It helps that these games are, foundationally, all a lot of fun in their own ways and feature writing that far surpasses the Battle Network series in terms of character writing, meaningful theming, and a grander sense of emotion. Star Force 3 in particular is one of the very best games in the entire Mega Man franchise, being the peak of the series’ gameplay while also offering a very strong narrative conclusion to the whole package. If this is the quality Capcom will be moving forward with in their Mega Man collections, then the Legends series is in great hands.
The routes in Making*Lovers: First Blush vary from a comforting experience with low-stakes domesticity to high-energy comedic antics, with varying levels of plot-importance depending on the route. This variety ensures that each route feels distinct, but it does lead to what feels like an inconsistency in the quality of routes. Tedium started to creep in as I read some routes where the slice-of-life moments and comedy didn’t entertain as much, while others were a lot more engaging. Still, as long as you enjoy more character-driven romance visual novels with a focus on those comedic slice-of-life moments, you should find something to enjoy here. Even if they vary slightly in style at times, SMEE titles are always good for humor, and this is no exception.
Karigurashi Ren’ai: Living on Borrowed Love is full of comedic situations and amusing bickering between the cast. While the jokes don’t always land, it’s certainly plenty of laughs overall. The home rotation premise was used particularly well to keep things constantly changing throughout.
Etrange Overlord is an interesting idea, essentially telling a light novel villainess story through the medium of a game. However, it doesn’t really deliver its message, in part due to the short playtime, minimal story scenes, and the use of some of its time on skits and silly moments, which could’ve been better used to develop its themes. However, the humor and Étrange as a character do somewhat save it. The gameplay is also simple and lacks overall difficulty, but it is action-packed and genuinely fun for what it is. Dashing about the various level mechanics and grabbing items from the conveyor belt makes for a great time, and the levels are short enough to never overstay their welcome.
The Demon Queen’s Dire Dilemma is a rather short and amusing OELVN. It’s lighthearted, has a fun premise, and doesn’t overstay its welcome. The dynamic between the “failgirl demon queen” and princess-turned-maid makes for an entertaining time reading this title.
Dracu-Riot! nicely mixes an engaging supernatural action plot with a slowly unveiled mystery and plenty of moments of romance and comedy. Some routes do cover the same or similar secrets as each other, but even when this happens, it’s explored in a different way and still makes for an interesting read. Backed up with high production values and a modern engine with plenty of features, it’s a visual novel worth experiencing.
While I was a little skeptical of the new direction for Dynasty Warriors: Origins at first, I found myself thoroughly impressed after diving in. The more complex take on hack-and-slash combat kept me playing this for hours at a time, and the plot and character moments kept me gripped, even as someone familiar with the series and various takes on the story it’s based on.
Dynasty Warriors: Origins Visions Of Four Heroes is a nice addition to the main game, but it has its highs and lows. The highs, such as Zhang Jiao’s story, a few additional moments in other scenarios, and just being more of the already excellent Dynasty Warriors: Origins make this package hard not to recommend. But the price is somewhat high, and some of the new additions aren’t really the highlights I would’ve hoped for.
While full of comedy and amusing situations which are enjoyable in their own right, Ren'ai 0 Kilometer has some moments where we get a real insight into the characters and their relationships. It’s an interesting look at the bond between sisters, the forms that familial love can take, and the odd bit of drama to spice things up. The visual novel itself is quite dated in some ways, and the modern release of it by kawaiinium certainly has some issues that I would’ve liked to see ironed out. Despite this, it’s still worth experiencing.
Fragile Feelings is a somewhat different take on the common yuri setting of a girls’ school, focusing on a young assistant teacher and school nurse. Despite failing to immediately grab my attention and a slow feeling through much of the visual novel, the relationships between the characters and writing kept me interested enough to want to find out more until it started to become more and more interesting. While I have some minor gripes, by the end I felt like it was certainly worth reading through Fragile Feelings.
FOCUS on YOU is a short experience, but a very pleasant one. It’s very easy to recommend, especially to fans of titles like dating simulators and romance visual novels, except for one big point: it’s significantly overpriced for just over an hour of a very limited experience, even if just how niche this is justifies it to an extent. Still, Yua is adorable, and it’s a great showcase of what can be done with romance games in VR.
LOVEPICAL-POPPY! doesn’t miss a beat with its comedy, and it’s a fun time whenever spending time with any of the heroines or the other members of the dorm. There are plenty of romantic moments as you get into the heroines’ routes, and the gameplay systems are used well to see their inner thoughts as they fall in love. The routes and heroines all feel distinct, and while I’d consider some better than others, each has something that I enjoyed about it.
A Maiden's Serenade explores Takumi's relationships with five very different heroines and grows together with them. It has plenty of amusing moments and a particularly fun friendship dynamic, but it also explores jealousy, family issues, and the difficulty of understanding each other. Some parts were a little lacking, but overall, it was a good read focused more on relationships than anything else.
Galaxy Princess Zorana is a worthy successor to Long Live the Queen and a great game in its own right. The combination of stat management, tons of potential paths to explore, and secrets to find even after I was crowned kept me playing it for hours. Just be aware, the path to the throne is not a simple one, but through trial and error, you’ll soon hear those important words; All hail Zorana, Empress-Elect of the Celestial Empire.
Whether you're new to Zelda, new to Warriors, or a veteran of both, Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment is a joy to play. With surprisingly deep combat for a Warriors game and an incredible amount to unlock, it'll keep you playing for hours on end.
Pokémon Legends: Z-A departs from the mainline Pokémon titles and succeeds in telling its own story, with a very engaging battle system. It has a great gameplay loop that kept me hooked from start to end, and plenty to find in a small city. While not perfect, it feels like a new take on Pokémon, with elements I'd love to see carry over to the next mainline installment.
Heroic Songs: the Remix! is an incredibly casual experience. The story is fairly minimal and laid back, the city-building gameplay is far too easy, and the concerts require no effort and are over in a flash. However, there is some charm to the characters and amusement to be found in their antics.
Atelier Resleriana: The Red Alchemist & the White Guardian takes a step closer to some of the older Atelier titles with its more in-depth systems, yet it doesn't move too far into the complexity that had many reaching for the nearest guide on alchemy. It's a fun adventure where you can dive in and experience everything it has to offer with some engaging gameplay, or just enjoy relaxing moments with some great characters. Whether you've played Atelier before or not, it's worth picking up.
Hold Me Tight All Night, Onii-chan! is a sweet visual novel with plenty of loving moments between siblings. The adult content is plentiful, and there's not much in the way of a solid plot, but there's a lot of love on display here.
Story of Seasons: Grand Bazaar works well as a farming simulator with more structure and events than many others, which works to its advantage. Certain elements are weak, including the dating and the performance (at least on Switch 2), but it has an excellent gameplay loop, which makes up for a lot.