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The occasionally enjoyable combat cannot make up for the unreliable farming controls, repetitive music, poor performance, ugly visuals, and lifeless world. One or two of these shortcomings could have been forgiven if Rigbarth was a world worth soaking in, but it's simply not. The mountain of issues amounts to Rune Factory 5 being lesser than the sum of its faults and one of the year's biggest disappointments so far.
That said, I found it a nice palette cleanser between longer and more involved games given its approachable design and simple puzzles, so if that's what your in the mood for, Kraken Academy might be worth a campus visit. A free demo on the eShop is also available for anyone on the fence. Ultimately, it's nowhere near a failing grade, but the only A I'd give is for effort.
I've come across a bug where I couldn't move a unit during a turn multiple times, and loading times between chapters lasted much longer than expected for a game of this scope. Music lacks oomph during battles and the level up sound is more of a whimper than a fanfare. This severe lack of polish does not eclipse the brilliance peaking through but it does dim it.
Matt: Meanwhile as a fan of both Persona and fighting games, I can say pretty surely I am the target audience, and Ultimax is just as good now as it was a decade ago. This is the game that solidified my faith in Arc System Works as a developer, and they've only proven themselves more and more in the years since. Admittedly part of me would've preferred a sequel that also included the cast of Persona 5, but I'm not complaining about getting a chance to revisit one of the finest fighting games I've ever played.
But that's a relatively minor complaint since each stage is so short. I'm also willing to forgive because 13AM Games has built a charming kaiju brawler that, while paying homage to the giants (ha!) of the genre, feels wholly unique. There's a lot of game here, and there are a lot of places they can take this franchise. DOTM is a fun time, and one I've greatly enjoyed.
But even still, there's still not much. It's slow-paced, laggy, and the environment just isn't friendly to you. The curbs will just stop you in your tracks, and the other vehicles will just keep going as if you don't exist. Everything is against you in Bus Driver Simulator Countryside, and in turn, I am against Bus Driver Simulator Countryside.
I could only think of a couple of times where you can make a choice in the game and the only thing it would affect is a handful of dialogue responses. As far as I know there aren't any alternate endings, so there isn't much of a reason to play through it again. It did leave me interested in the other games from the publisher already available on the eShop. If you are looking for a chill, short, impactful game with a great story, Land of Screens comes highly recommended.
" It does a phenomenal job as a strategy game by making you live through the hardships of the winemaking process. The game provides you with all the tools you need to create a great wine, but also teaches you how hard this actually is, and how little control you do have over it. This gameplay loop of figuring out how to improve your wines, and fighting against the overwhelming odds makes Hundred Days an absolutely unique experience on the Switch. I do hope that the game will be updated with additional controller options over time, because I can see myself playing Hundred Days for far longer than that title suggests.
These foul-mouthed twins had me cracking up on multiple occasions, but the software closing unexpectedly had me cursing just as often. There's definitely potential with this one, but it's probably worth exploring other platform options if you have them. Even though you can see the heart and charm that goes along with these two souls, a bit more polish would have gone a long way.
While The Cruel King and the Great Hero is a beautiful game and aesthetically unique compared to other RPGs, it's the core gameplay and super slow pacing that stops this from being something I'd recommend over more standard RPGs that do almost everything else better. I'm sorry, Yuu, you're probably one of the most adorable protagonists I've ever played as, but that just isn't enough!
Maybe it's the fact that I've now reviewed eleven games from the same developer in the last two years, but I'd really like to see them take some more risks with the endings in these romance games. Variable Barricade seemed like it would be the time, but the ending did leave me feeling a bit baited. But I accept that I'm part of a very small minority compared to the rest of the audience, and if you're looking for romantic hijinx with a side of gritted teeth then climb over the barricade.
Even then, I struggled to put Aztech Forgotten Gods down once I started playing it. As I said at the outset, Aztech Forgotten Gods is perfect imperfection. While I can't ignore its faults, I found myself significantly more enamored with its successes.
I desperately want Undying Moon to be a linear, level-based adventure where I can see all the levels and fight all the bosses without enduring the tedious rigmarole that roguelites require. Keep the randomized level layouts! Keep the randomized paths and boss encounters if you have to, but just let me play your beautiful game without all these roadblocks. Eventually, I just got sick of Undying Moon. It was more frustrating than compelling, in part because it does so much right, but its wings are clipped right out the gate by its grind-heavy, roguelite trappings. There are better roguelites out there (Binding of Isaac and Dead Cells, for example), but I'm sorry to say none of them look nearly as amazing as Undying Moon.
However you choose to play it, the ability to alter the challenge at will makes Will You Snail eminently approachable. You'll probably grow to hate Squid pretty early on, but that just makes it all the more satisfying to shut it down. I've Snailed and lived to tell the tale, and it's absolutely worth playing through, just not at a snail's pace.
Rayne as a character is a cardboard cut-out of female action stars of the time, and the story would be laughably bad if it weren't there already. As well, the action has aged poorly with its unrefined hack and slash nature, even if you can wring a few drops of fun out of it. It's hard to recommend Bloodrayne to anyone other than people who've played it and have a fond nostalgia for it.
I am going to continue to explore to my own heart's content, and I look forward to finding every last treasure, missing cat, deep lore page, and mysterious secret. I wish there had been a little more care put into how the difficulty was handled, but even so, this was a really pleasant time. Hopefully this isn't the last we see of Wake and Kirby, as I expect that there is a lot of room for them to continue to grow into young adults, and there is room to perfect what is otherwise an enjoyable experience.
The developer knew to keep the focus on the fundamentals - multiple game modes to keep things fresh, a way to play with friends, leaderboards, and a clean look. If you're not a fan of brick breakers, then this won't convert you. But if the last one you played was Arkanoid, then you're in for a fun revisit.
Chocobo GP is a totally fine kart racer, featuring a good deal to unlock and more than 20 characters. This isn’t the new gold standard for the genre, but it’s still a fun ride, especially with the syrupy sweet story and good deal of Final Fantasy references. The true potential is in the potential of the titular Chocobo GP mode, which is also the stand-out feature for the entire game. The fact it’s accessible with the Lite mode might give it a longer tail. Some of the season pass content rubs me the wrong way, but the base game is satisfying enough that it’s a good time even if you don’t shell out real-world money to race as Cloud.
The grid-style, turn-based combat lives up to the best of its predecessors, and while it may lack the customizability of a job system, the cavalcade of recruitable party members is a worthy replacement. Whether you're in it for the story, the gameplay, or the aesthetics, the total package is one for the ages, and from any angle the strategy is clear: add Triangle Strategy to your Switch library. Maybe tell friends and family to end their turn; you're going to be busy for a while.
Glee-Cheese Studio's motto is to develop innovative games with a strong artistic identity. With A Musical Story, they have done exactly this. It plays and looks like no other rhythm game out there and, to me, is close to faultless. I am very excited to see what they will produce next. Here's hoping for an album release of the soundtrack on streaming services… Please!