Gaming-Village's Reviews
Astro Bot is a focused, idea-rich and carefully designed 3D Jump & Run that feels constantly fresh and energetic throughout the entire duration. With its clear emphasis on interaction and playfulness, Astro Bot sets a welcome accent to the majority of Sony's rather bombastic lineup, and according to my personal ideas of a video game, Astro Bot is not only a celebration of Sony's history [...]
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Axiom Verge 2 is an excellent Metroidvania that focuses heavily, gameplay-wise, on its clever exploration mechanics and strong level design. Although the idea of two parallel worlds certainly won't win an innovation prize, the implementation of the concept may indeed be understood as a unique selling point.
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Avatar was a rollercoaster of emotions. The lavish world, paired with the familiar shooter mechanics, is a good mix, but it’s not quite enough for a huge hit.
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Alan Wake 2 overall entertained me, even though some of the combat encounters and the limited save points occasionally caused more frustration than genuine tension. The game also crashed frequently for me, even after several updates. With plenty of exploration included, my playtime ended up being around 30 hours. I did enjoy the atmosphere, and the quieter sections did not bother me. Fans of the original and of other recent Remedy Entertainment titles will recognize quite a few familiar elements. The radio broadcasts return as well, although this time there is a running gag that I personally did not find particularly funny. Additionally, songs are no longer automatically played after them, though radio shows, music, and other content can still be replayed—just not ideally during dangerous situations. Visually, the game also looks solid on Xbox Series S, although some character models occasionally fall into the uncanny valley. I consider Alan Wake 2 a solid continuation. Anyone who enjoyed the predecessor will likely not go wrong with this one.
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It remains, despite everything, a game of which one has practically heard nothing, but when one plays it, one can hardly let go of it until one has finished it. Especially considering that this work was created by a single person, one can easily overlook critical points like the graphics and enjoy the great story and gameplay.
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Another World Mahjong Girl did not turn me into a Mahjong expert. Even by the end, I still hadn’t memorized all the possible winning hands. You also shouldn’t expect much of a story here, and the flavor text for the opponents is not particularly meaningful either. That said, I do find the character style quite appealing. In the gallery, you can view individual girls you have either recruited or defeated. You can also interact with them for reactions, although many of them are not particularly positive. After all, winning at Mahjong alone is not the same as winning someone’s heart—who would have thought?
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Assassin’s Creed Mirage is a very entertaining game that provided a lot of fun over approximately 20 hours. The return to old virtues was convincingly successful, although in my eyes Mirage places itself rather in the middle field of classic Assassin’s Creed games, rather than storming straight to the top.
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I find it really unfortunate. On its own, Ad Infinitum is not a bad game, but for me it simply falls short when it comes to its horror elements. On top of that, the gameplay can feel somewhat too shallow at times. In contrast, the story and its moral exploration of the horrors of war are genuinely well done. It is clear that the developers at Hekate put a lot of effort into this aspect. However, because of that, I can unfortunately only recommend the game to players who are specifically interested in experiencing its themes and narrative. If you are expecting a genuinely frightening and mechanically engaging horror experience, Ad Infinitum sadly leaves a lot to be desired.
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Overall, I enjoyed my roughly 20–25 hour journey into the year 2037. Of course, this can vary depending on how effectively one uses Hacking Trigger, or even deliberately plays toward a Game Over scenario—which I did not. The total playtime also differs depending on whether you advance text immediately after reading or wait for the voice acting to finish. This time, voice output is available not only in Japanese but also optionally in English. Personally, that was not particularly important to me, but others may certainly appreciate it. The story was engaging and entertaining, although some characters remain somewhat flat or are not given enough opportunities for deeper development. I found the musical accompaniment fitting and well-implemented. In general, I had little trouble identifying the right moments to use Hacking Trigger in order to avoid a Game Over. Near the end, there was one section I found a bit less clear, though that may simply be subjective. Even though there are some connections to other entries in the series, I feel that Anonymous;Code can also be recommended without prior knowledge of the franchise.
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Ashina: The Red Witch is a pixel adventure that stands out through a fairytale atmosphere with a strong connection to Japanese ghost stories. It has an almost Ghibli-esque charm with this focus on worldbuilding.
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Atlas Fallen can certainly entertain even if some sand may have gotten into the gearbox.
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Adore is one of those rare games where I find myself genuinely conflicted about whether I can or should recommend it. It does very little outright wrong, yet so much of what is there merely hints at the game’s underlying potential rather than fully realizing it. Fans of monster-collecting games may still want to take a closer look, but for everyone else, Adore will likely disappear into the overwhelming flood of indie releases. That's too bad for Cadabra Games.
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Aragami 2 was something I was curious about after hearing that it would feature a more developed combat system. For me personally, however, this did not turn out to be an improvement. I do appreciate the option to incapacitate enemies without killing them. Unfortunately, the voice acting is once again largely unintelligible apart from a few recognizable terms. The shift toward more open areas, and with it more aimless wandering, is something I enjoyed less. In addition, not only do you revisit the same areas too often, but there also feel to be simply too many missions overall, making the game come across as unnecessarily stretched out. Ultimately, my conclusion remains that different does not automatically mean better.
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Atelier Marie Remake: The Alchemist of Salburg entertained me, but at times I had difficulties filling the available time meaningfully. Presumably partly also because the fairies can take away so much work. Whoever is not put off by the mere existence [of this mechanic] can find a rather relaxed experience despite the time limit.
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Alchemic Cutie struggles with poor performance on the Nintendo Switch and repetitive gameplay. With the severe frame rate drops, I can currently only give it a red rating. Otherwise, it would be yellow. Even then, the core gameplay largely consists of constantly gathering resources or slimes with very little variety in the breeding process. The colors are often pretty, but there are far too many of them—at least in its current state. Just having information about which color I actually need would already be very helpful. As things stand, I have to guess and experiment too often to find the right color. Not to mention that I currently cannot save my progress at all. But even if I could, Alchemic Cutie would still feel too sluggish. Even for me, despite usually not having any issues with simply picking up random plants from the ground. At present, I can only advise against the Nintendo Switch version of this slime-breeding game. But even independently of that, Alchemic Cutie is really only suitable for players who can derive enjoyment from collecting repetitive resources.
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Another Fisherman’s Tale is a sequel to the much-praised 2019 title A Fisherman's Tale, and narratively it does have its heart in the right place. The game offers a number of pleasant ideas, although they only rarely develop into anything truly complex. Several moments and sections are also visually quite impressive, thanks to the imagination and surreal storytelling of Bob. However, there are also repeated moments that were physically very taxing for me. The frequent texture shifts in my field of view, as well as the often unreliable hand tracking, left me feeling quite exhausted. Another Fisherman's Tale did not provide me with a comfortable VR experience in this regard. This ultimately dulls an otherwise rather positive impression, and leaves me still waiting for a truly standout PSVR2 experience this year—at least beyond titles that were already available on PSVR.
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Atelier Ryza 3: Alchemist of the End & the Secret Key has given me much joy again, just like the predecessors. The story may not be as complex as in some other RPGs, but I gladly accompanied the group on their adventure.
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The Swiss team Naraven Games has created a satirical adventure full of meta-commentaries with Backfirewall, which amused me greatly but also made me nibble at some puzzles.
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Mojiken Studio manages the tightrope walk between slice of life and supernatural threat. Loka City appears plastic and vivid. At least, until the place is shaken up time and again, whereby the contrast becomes particularly clear.
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A Maiden Astrologer Divines the Future offers gentle, leisurely entertainment without great drama, as per my expectations. The problems that arise have virtually no real chance of escalating within the friendly and helpful circle of friends.
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