Thomas Knight's Reviews
Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma is the most fun I’ve had with a Rune Factory title yet. It’s certainly not perfect with quite a few little issues holding it back, but the core experience is so fun that it didn’t stop me from enjoying every moment. There’s just so much to enjoy here that it makes it easy to recommend.
If a slow-life JRPG and a lighthearted fantasy are your sort of game, FANTASY LIFE i: The Girl Who Steals Time would certainly be a title to pick up. Spend your time gathering, crafting, or taking down enemies, or search out new friends and make your island look great. There's plenty to explore here and you'll have a great time doing so.
Mixing entertaining moments with friends, romance with some lovable heroines, and an engaging mystery to unveil, Happiness! Sakura Celebration is an interesting read. I particularly enjoyed how it used the route structure to reveal different aspects of the plot, building it up as you enjoyed the romance with different heroines. There are a few weaker areas and it won't be for anyone who has an aversion to incestuous routes, but I felt it was well worth the read.
Putrika 1st.cut:The Reason She Must Perish is a gripping drama with forbidden love, religious themes, and mounting tension. While quite dark at times, this is made manageable by the occasional romantic or lighthearted moments which are much appreciated. It's a short story, and worth the few hours you'll spend with it.
Real Anime Situation! DT has its moments, especially when it comes to the comedic interactions between the heroines. It just fails to stand out in most other ways. It's a decent eroge and perhaps some people will like the heroines or situations created more than I did, but unlike Real Anime Situation! 2, I think this one is destined for the bargain bin.
Inhuman Resources: A Literary Machination is a story worth experiencing. With choices that feel weighty, this horror story feels even more unsettling as it's made clear that you're the one taking control of the path your story takes and your actions along the way.
A Sex-obsessed Brother in the Country, and his Traditional, Sickly Sister really was a surprise. It has emotionally touching moments, characters who are easy to root for, and actual romance, along with an abundance of adult scenes. Its newer title Sickly Days and Summer Traces or it’s alternate title of Country Siblings really feels more apt as this does not come across as the tale of someone who is sex-obsessed, but as a pair of siblings who are really in love and need each other for their goal of a happy and healthy life.
Atelier Yumia: The Alchemist of Memories & the Envisioned Land is perhaps not what long-time Atelier fans or even those who joined with Atelier Ryza would expect, but it's an ambitious new take on the Atelier series. It does a wonderful job of creating a sense of exploration and rewarding it, which creates a fun experience. It could however improve certain aspects, particularly around systems like alchemy and how little it links to combat and gameplay, as well as by fixing technical problems. It's something new for the series and a solid base to build on and improve for future titles.
Tayutama -Kiss on My Deity- is a story worth experiencing and has some great moments. Unfortunately, its structure makes experiencing all of its routes less than ideal, and it would have benefitted from a more comprehensive re-release. Still, I certainly enjoyed my first read quite a lot, and the new scenes in subsequent routes were ones I enjoyed.
Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii is a great game, if one that doesn’t live up to those that came before it. It’s the same as several of its predecessors in many ways and can be incredibly fun at times as a result, but it falls down on certain new or unique elements. If you enjoyed Yakuza: Like a Dragon and Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth for their gameplay or want to see what happens after the events of those stories, then you’ll likely enjoy this.
All The Words She Wrote is a short, slow, and sweet yuri romance, with a particularly fun dynamic between a cheerful fan and a misanthropic author. While it feels like it could've done a little more post-climax, the build-up to it was particularly good. It's worth the read.
Destiny Star Girlfriend 3 is my favorite of the three titles. It has plenty of comedic moments, but what makes it special is how it handles the plot, especially in how the characters grow closer and the events toward the end. Adding this to plenty of sweet romantic moments and shows of friendship made this quiet heroine’s story stand out even more than the over-the-top Yuuri from the first title, at least to me.
Warriors: Abyss was a pleasant surprise, particularly for its price point. There are perhaps some tweaks that could be made to the formula, but it nicely implements the roguelite gameplay with hack 'n' slash, creating a fun experience, if a touch repetitive as is common with Warriors games. It's one I enjoyed and a nice one to dip into for 30 minutes here and there. The only danger is it creates that 'one more turn' feeling, and 30 minutes soon turns into 3 hours.
MACROSS -Shooting Insight- has some great ideas and a nice mix of gameplay, but parts of it are very poorly implemented. It has tons of bonus content to unlock and more to do than many other shoot 'em ups, while simultaneously seeming to skimp in certain other areas. If you happen to be a Macross fan who is very good at the genre and doesn't mind some iffy mechanics, this might be for you. Otherwise, it's fun to play around with, see some of the unique ideas, and to experience the story, but that's it.
Angelic☆Chaos RE-BOOT! has some great heroines, plenty of fun interactions, and a pretty good plot to enjoy with some beautiful illustrations. It's a somewhat long read, but worth the time.
While Tales of Graces f Remastered won't win any awards for its typical plot about an ever-growing threat, its tale of friendship and the moments between characters just might. It's an excellent remaster of a JRPG with surprisingly engaging combat, and well worth playing.
Pirates VR: Jolly Roger gives a good first impression, but this pirate adventure quickly loses its luster. The gameplay has quite a few issues, leading it to be quite a disappointment. I wish I had more to say about this VR game, but there just isn’t really much worth talking about here. Perhaps there’s some charm here in the environment, but I found myself glad that it was such a short experience.
Hatsuyuki Sakura is a sometimes depressing story, but one well worth experiencing. It has a compelling plot and uses the visual novel format particularly well to build it.
Natsu no Sagashimono ~What We Found That Summer~ has fairly unengaging gameplay, but it does well at creating that feeling of summer in the countryside and getting to know the locals. The slice-of-life scenes are enjoyable and even if brief the more serious elements were welcome. It would've been nice to see improvements in some areas, but it feels fair considering the low price.
The stronger routes make Kakenuke★Forward to Our Sparking Youth! worth reading, and even the weaker ones still have good heroines. I did think certain aspects became too repetitive at times, but there was a lot to laugh at.