There’s a lot of compelling arguments, tons of bad endings to run into facefirst (almost gleefully) and a fairly decent hero/villain dynamic. And others may not be as pissed by the twist as I am, so that might even work out for you. I’ll keep going to find all the bad endings, as several do take some real work to uncover. But, once I’ve got everything set, I’m certain that my final logout from Archetype Arcadia will be permanent.
I sincerely appreciate what went into bringing this to modern consoles, and I feel that Empty Clip Studios did a fantastic job with Gargoyles Remastered. It looks and sounds magnificent, and the quality of life additions make the game actually playable, though with the feeling of a Prince of Persia throughline as a result. However, the barebones game, the lack of any voicework and the emptiness of accomplishment at the end creates a hollow feeling. This really does feel like eating cotton candy: sweet and visually pleasing, but it just will not fill you up.
A Boy and his Blob Retro Collection strikes me as on the same level as a parking lot carnival. When you’re young, it’s exciting and fun because your parents aren’t taking you anywhere else and there’s sugar involved. When you get older, you see the seams and the shortcomings and honestly wonder if it’s worth your time. The answer lies in how important nostalgia is for your gaming excitement.
Still, this is a grand step forward in the series, and I’m pleased to see Forever Entertainment continue bringing the Front Mission games to modern consoles. They’re expertly crafted for battles and sequencing, and captivate the SRPG fan who isn’t into overly anime presentations. The fighting is great, the characters are decent and the soundtrack has a delicious 90s vibe that has been updated but not overhauled. If you’re looking for a game with an easy 30-50 hour play ahead, then suit up: the Alordesh are ready for you.
This could have been handled well. Love Kuesuto, though clearly antiquated in concept, could have been given a little bit of a fun tone – play as a woman, have more open ended questions, involve literally any gameplay – but it’s just rough and painful. It takes far too long to play while also taking no time at all. It isn’t fun, it isn’t clever, and it soapboxes so hard to no one about nothing. You could watch an Andrew Tate video fed through a Donald Duck voice filter and get the same amount of humor and good information.
Honestly, I would much rather pick up Diorama Dungeoncrawl and wallop my way through a fistful of screens than stare at the average puzzle game on my smartphone, and these fun, engaging experiences require buttons and joysticks to fully appreciate. It’s a quaint little bit of brutality, and I would absolutely recommend it to someone who’s looking for a bit of an afternoon romp. Hammy, violent and detailed, this diorama gets first prize.
It just gets to be too much. From Madness With Love makes no attempt to balance the oddities with actual connection, and it lost me as a result. I’m sure there’s some genuine feelings in there somewhere, but I couldn’t find them amidst the noise. I was ultimately quite put off by the overall tone, and it didn’t incentivize me to continue going any longer than I felt I had to. This clearly will be a big hit with streamers and offbeat VN fans, but it simply couldn’t find a place in my heart. I’m not keeping this catch, it’s going back in the ocean.
In the end, people have to decide what they want to do the most. While there’s inherent value in seeking out the first installment to fully understand, the subsequent story is more coherent, more entertaining and fills in the gaps when necessary to bring you up to speed. The action is stronger, but the character development also gives more compassion and connection with which to identify. It’s certain to be a lasting creation, and, even decades later, it stands as the seminole work when it comes to dark future predictions, deadpan acting, successful child stars and iconic lines.
Mon-Yu is exceedingly well-coded, runs well, and is just exceptionally boring. The story is cookie cutter, there’s zero stakes ever, and the exhaustively long name just proves that there was the intent to distract from the very beginning. This can be fun if you’re a real dungeon junkie and just want to make a team of different catgirls to wreck house over and over again. Don’t expect anything more than surface level and you’ll be fine.
I would absolutely recommend it to gaming historians who want to see examples of solid pixel art and design during the coin-operated heyday. It’s punishing at times, so hardcore gamers can go off on a lark to try and accomplish it without turning on the cheats. But as an individual set piece, I can’t say I’d want to play it again. Such an obtuse title not being part of my regular rotation should hardly come as a shock, man.
If you enjoyed Mugen Souls, you’ll want to play Mugen Souls Z. It’s just more, but better, and the power leveling, the insane equipment hunts and the endless parade of grinding opportunities never relents. If you didn’t like the first one, you might still want to consider Z because it is better, both technically and dynamically.
I might be the outlier here, but I just don’t enjoy 30XX in the way that I liked 20XX. The first game had charm, excitement and felt like a real love letter not just to Mega Man X, but to the entire genre unto itself. Much like A Robot Named Fight, it brought something unique to the table that also was clearly rooted in inspiration. 30XX feels like a side step, where things change but don’t necessarily improve.
While this isn’t going to become a regular rotation for me, I sincerely admire and appreciate what Taito Milestones 2 is doing. Taito has such a wonderful history of creations and I don’t have access to most of them, nor do a majority of the world. The ability to look at these games and see them on modern hardware with a genuinely focused attempt at porting them brings a smile to my face.
In the end, the fantastic story gives the perfect gift to players: curiosity about the world we live in and questions about what it means to be alive. If a visual novel can cause you to question existence, it’s doing something right.
I personally wouldn’t return to this game in the future, even if they do manage to bring over the Japanese audio so it doesn’t sound like a 70s martial arts dub. The amount of detail is intense, the campaigns are especially long, and the exceptional animated sequences are few and far between from simply staring at a small map and even smaller menus to do a multitude of tasks. This game is definitely for someone, and, if you’re even remotely interested in Japanese history, this is an incredible feat of a title. But it’s too big of an ask for too little of a reward.
Get a few folks together, harass the horse host as a group, and then fight in some really good natured, simple ways. This is that lower tier of gaming that many of us didn’t expect out of Nintendo, but they delivered it with the genuine polish they add to everything. It’s glossy, appealing, accessible and inoffensive. It’s got a better entry barrier than some and a much better retention power than others.
I sincerely hope that Sky Caravan attracts plenty of attention and even acclaim, as it’s both engaging and unique without being purposely obtuse. It’s incredibly approachable, the art style is endearing and the story, while nothing groundbreaking, is a fun romp for any time of day. Players looking for a read-along with flair and panache should absolutely consider a rewarding career in being a part of the Sky Caravan.
If I could, I would develop my own 4K, dual screen handheld to cram this game onto, but I have no money and no talent, so here I am. Instead, I am imploring fans from all walks – the visual novel crowd, the detective crew, the Pomeranian fanatics – to come and take this ride. It’s charming, it’s complex, it’s lovingly crafted and it honestly surprises me that Capcom gave so much care to a game that seemed to slip under so many radars. It’s only till the sun rises, though, so make haste to take your time. You may only have one chance to find out the truth.
Still, it’s cute, it’s really chill compared to many games of this ilk, and it’s properly housed. Children won’t be spending extra money on it, and they can put it down at any time with no consequences that aren’t positive. Pretty Princess Magical Garden Island isn’t the game for me, but, if it’s down to this or Tom Nook breathing down my neck over bells, I’m putting on my ball gown and going fishing.
Players looking for an epic, sweeping romance or a bevy of boys just dying to be your arm candy should invest their time and efforts elsewhere. Instead, if you’re interested in watching a young woman pursue her dreams against all odds and actually being lifted up and encouraged in the process, then may I invite you to the curtain call of Jack Jeanne. It really is something to behold.