From a gameplay perspective, Amnesia Memories and Amnesia Later x Crowd have translated well to the new platform, with this being the first time Later x Crowd is available to fans outside Japan. Unfortunately, as a newcomer to the series, an incredible story about a girl's journey to recovering her memories and discovering the truth is grossly overshadowed by the love interest side of the story where she is often subjected to very poor and sometimes disturbing treatment.
From a gameplay perspective, Amnesia Memories and Amnesia Later x Crowd have translated well to the new platform, with this being the first time Later x Crowd is available to fans outside Japan. Unfortunately, as a newcomer to the series, an incredible story about a girl’s journey to recovering her memories and discovering the truth is grossly overshadowed by the love interest side of the story where she is often subjected to very poor and sometimes disturbing treatment.
Arenas is more geared towards those who like to challenge hunt and make completionist runs on games.
But, also, what does eating ramen have to do with music? The world may never know.
Charon’s Staircase is more a thriller than a horror with a very intriguing story that has some pretty cool twists. Some of the puzzles are a bit ambiguous and will leave you scratching your head, but in the end you’ll have experienced another treasure of storytelling from the minds of a talented and dedicated smaller studio.
Last Days of Lazarus is a fun indie (almost) horror game with a lot to puzzle over. The game is well designed, taking much inspiration from the developer's Romanian roots. The voice acting does leave much to be desired but the gameplay and exploration were a good offset.
Destroy All Humans 2 Reprobed is a beautifully done remake of a cult classic that fans are sure to enjoy. There are some bugs and glitches that still need to be ironed out and the boss battles are more exhausting than truly challenging. But, praise be to Arkvoodle.
Dolmen provides fans of SciFi and Souls games with another daunting adventure full of defeat and satisfaction. The game isn’t without faults, having a few bugs as well as some inconsistencies with some combat mechanics, but the team at Massive Work Studio have laid a solid foundation. The game provides just enough reward to make the challenge worth it.
Once you’ve had your fill of the story mode, you can jump over to versus mode to test your demon slaying skills against other players in PVP. Those Kimetsu Points you picked up throughout the game can be redeemed in the Rewards menu for different voice lines for each character, different costumes, profile customizations, and, of course, different fighters to unlock. Go head to head with other players in battles both online and locally with characters not only from the anime, but the series’ official spinoff as well.
Batora: Lost Haven is a perfect fit for Nintendo Switch, sitting well alongside games like Immortals Fenyx Rising. The unique duality system makes for some interesting gameplay. There is a decent amount of replayability with the different endings, though you'll still be through with it fairly quickly.
If there’s anything that Mortal Shell has done for me, it’s that I am now slightly more interested in trying Souls-like games again. While much of the experience has been the type of frustration you would expect from a player new(er) to the genre, I’ve become kind of addicted to the vicious cycle of getting stomped for a couple hours, finally emerging victorious, and then getting stomped again. Games like this require patience and one of the biggest tips I’ve heard from Souls fans is that learning attack patterns is key.
Monster Energy Supercross 5 is what you would expect of another entry in the Monster Energy Supercross series. With a lot of the series mainstays as well as some newer features, players have a plethora of options to choose from. I just wish it was more welcoming for newer players.
Ikai is a wonderful entry into the psychological horror genre. The story is intriguing and beautiful in its own way. The spooky music kept me feeling on edge, giving away no hint of any looming dangers, adding that much more to my sense of unease. I just wish there had been more of it.
This game is downright adorable, and while I do wish there was more depth to it, there’s still plenty here to enjoy. Each world is randomly generated, so there’s tons of replayability, and you can play on different difficulties. I had a lot of fun running around and exploring, finding the map’s secrets and hanging with the locals. You’re able to team up with friends on any platform to help fight the piglins, or you can go head-to-head in PVP to test out each other’s defenses.
Like A Dragon: Ishin! is a great game, but doesn't do much to stand out against other games in the series. The story and setting are novel and interesting, however, the combat lacks any sort of balance. Even so, the excellent melodrama is worth seeing through to the end.
The next generation edition of Biomutant may not have been necessary, but it doesn't hurt anything either. Overall, the game is very smooth, never dropping a frame no matter how crowded it may become, and the world is as beautiful and colorful as ever. My biggest gripe with the game is pretty universally mentioned: there was a lot more going on in the game than could be given proper attention, such as the upgrade and crafting systems, but it makes up for it in my opinion with a story and a world that is fun to explore.
Godfall is a godlike load of fun to play. I am a firm believer in giving games a second chance and this one is no exception. Gameplay is smooth and uncomplicated, as is really the rest of it, making it easier to get into, and it's oh-so-satisfying.
The Indie gamer's dream, Revita is sure to be a hit with many people. Never knowing what each run will hold makes it easy to keep going back, especially for the completionist who wants to find all of the secrets and unlock all of the things!
To sum it all up, Elex II is a blast, both literally and figuratively. What Piranha Bytes was able to achieve in Elex I they were able to build upon, expanding on a world that lives and breathes independently and because of your character. Aside from those little technical issues, the game is sound. I feel like you could also easily get into playing Elex II without having played the first game. However, if you want to understand all of the references, maybe at least watch a recap video first. Either way, this game holds a lot of promise, especially when you consider all the different routes you can take on your playthrough. Who knows where you'll end up?
The wait was definitely worth it for this one! Overall, Ghostwire: Tokyo impresses me with fun and satisfying gameplay, an intriguing story, and beautiful visuals. I never had any issues with performance or pop-in, everything ran as smooth as a hot sake. The new mode, The Spider’s Thread, presents a fun challenge for those craving more Thread Weaving action that doesn’t get stale, even after multiple rounds (or deaths).