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.
Players will have a blast with this fully formed deckbuilder, both in terms of replay and strategy, not to mention incredible load times. Here’s to hoping that makaroll adds some Steam overlay and achievements in the future, because it’s too grand a game not to flex when you truly get into the haunting and compelling storyline.
The core of what made this game such a legend still exists and thrills me to no end. I wish it was a bit better handled with some extra flair, but I can’t complain that it feels exactly how I want it to be.
While I can’t recommend stopping and starting this game, it’s best to approach it as you would any NES game. Get fully immersed in the darkness and the frustration and just enjoy that momentum that comes from singularly reliving a time where gaming was simpler. Just rock out to the violence and know that not every game has to be a sixty hour long campaign. For just a handful of hours, be Vengeance, and then go back to your spreadsheets. It’s worth it.
There’s nothing wrong with having a fun time for the sake of itself, and Cricket Through the Ages is classic and proud in this position. Go ahead and learn things wrong. Build quantum computers with a hammer. Drink beer better than your fellow football hooligan. Knock down a wicket with a bow and arrow. Deliver a killer bowl as a T-Rex. It’s all possible here, and it’s as fun to watch as it is to play. Don’t ask for a deeper meaning or an unlockable secret ending: just go play cricket, or whatever the hell this is.
Plumbers Don’t Wear Ties: Definitive Edition is a brave, admirable release, and I implore Limited Run Games to continue to do the diligence of not simplifying video game history. Some are good, some are bad, and some are ugly. This one just happens to be as bad as they come, and that’s amazing. Don’t pretend to like it, it won’t win you any awards. But you can appreciate it and the mission to keep it known, and that, in and of itself, is worth investing in.
Of the Red, The Light and the Ayakashi Tsuzuri isn’t a well known visual novel, but it’s a unique one, and something that really captivated both my attention and my imagination. Full of disembodied moments of curiosity and philosophy, you'll find yourself sleepwalking along with Yue along his journey.
While not a game that I can play for an exceptionally long time, Freedom Planet 2 has a charm and appeal that cannot be denied, and makes for a fantastic sequel to an ambitious original. Excessive exposition moments drag down the momentum, but you can jump right back in with surprising vigor.
It was sweet, good-natured, and the directionality allowed me to just enjoy the interactions without worrying about saying the wrong thing and getting a bad ending. The score is lovely, the character design is bright and engaging, and the settings change enough to have plenty of variety.
If you must only play one Shockman title, I have to say Shockman 2 is still the pinnacle of the series. But, if you find yourself enjoying the first couple, then absolutely jump into Cyber Citizen Shockman 3. It’s short, it’s sweet, and it’s the perfect end to a trilogy of titles that I fell in love with. I hope there’s a chance we may see a fourth to help revive the series, but, if not, this is the ideal spot to end the adventures; with Tasuke and Kyapiko on the beach, outrunning insane aliens.
It’s quite expansive and filled with things to do, the plot twists are intriguing and engaging, and Naomi does smooth her edges down the further along you get, though she never totally hits for me. If you need a good dose of high strangeness coupled with a lot of things to do, there’s no better time to move to Rainy Woods and get a peek into The Good Life.
Once everything is clean and clear, you’ll stun yourself to find that you can go from start to finish in about 30 minutes or so, and that’s all there is to it. For a game with such a grandiose title, The Immortal has a shockingly short life, but it’s a colorful one. If you missed this as a child or simply want to see why your father grew up to hate video games, you’ve come to the right place.
It’s well designed, it’s approachable, it’s clearly explained both in plot and gameplay and it’s quite open while still being directed in where the game is going. To be honest, I might pick this up on the Switch at some point in the future. I don’t think sitting down and playing Archvale for long stretches of time is the best way to enjoy all of the havoc the game brings, but having bursts of dungeon action in between other activities and then focusing when you’re in the overworld for longer, more relaxing explorations is the key recipe to success.
I’m trash at bullet hell games, but I love to try and I love to fail. Castle of Shikigami II makes me feel like a glorious disaster, and it’s so much fun in the process. It’s got the heart and excitement of something visually-novel adjacent, and it’s got the chaos and erratic heartbeat moments of a proper danmaku. Take some time and dive in, but be warned: it’s hell, and a controller is not going to be your friend. Get ready to ride the keyboard, cowboy, we gotta save Tokyo.
This may not win the hearts and minds of hardcore gamers everywhere, but it’s a wonderful bridge between casual and serious, between indie and mainstream. It certainly isn’t Mary Skelter, but it isn’t Quest 64 either. It’s a pleasant blend, and it really could be a nice reset in the middle of a world that’s honestly too hardcore for me as it is.
Will hook you and keep you for a couple hours, but then you gradually lose steam without some variation to the approach. It becomes a once-a-day game.
I had a good time with this particular adventure. It reminded me that the enormity of imagination is a feat and a power that is universal, and it helped make what could have been a very short visual novel or a very sad adventure game be neither. Instead, it was fun, it was bouncy, it kept me going and it was divided into good sized chapters to keep from being bloated. Replay is a possibility for more unlocks, and players will want to go back and recheck for things they missed.
To say this title surprised me is an understatement. I was so torn in continuing to watch and wanting to look away that this was my entire evening, and then a rather restless night of sleep. It’s something to behold, but I would only want to behold it for a short period of time and then not behold it again for a long, long while. If you’re into a narrative that tracks in no direction and a visual novel that’s breaking the fourth wall constantly, then you’ll find something here.
Though it’s not necessarily my favorite otome to date, The Crimson Flower that Divides: Lunar Coupling is an excellent piece of work in terms of appreciation and dedication to the story and the player. The sheer amount of choices and nuanced results can lead to hours upon hours of replay, and the locked endings force a player who wants to find out more to actually walk the path before arriving at the destination.
Return to Dream Land Deluxe has a lot baked in, but I would have rather that Magolor’s quest launch as a separate game, and then had Dream Land Deluxe be a forty dollar standalone with the option to DLC Magolor in if it meant that much to people. We’ve seen what Kirby can be, and yes, the next “new” Kirby game probably will be. But this is what we’ve gotten this year, and I have to call it like it is. It’s cute, it’s fun, and it makes my family happy. It’s just slightly overvaluing its own worth to make it a solid purchase at the time, and that, like Kirby, sucks.