Niche Gamer
HomepageNiche Gamer's Reviews
Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl is an improvement on the DS originals, even if Platinum still has the edge overall. There are some promising signs that developers other than Game Freak, even when under what could be a similar budget, can address some of the concerns fans have. The “chillax” JRPG series is still doing its thing, but there’s a little more challenge on cart if you want it.
Operation Raccoon City has very standard third person gameplay. The subpar scenario and lack of personality end up making it less interesting than Umbrella Corps., which was so incredibly shoddy and absurd it became entertaining. The wolfpack take themselves too seriously, and the game really tries to make them seem like bad-asses. Instead they just become forgettable.
BloodRayne 2: ReVamped is a sloppy action game, but it’s a sloppy action game to be admired. The sleazy violence and high-school edginess are the kind of qualities that developers are too afraid to embrace now. Terminal Reality were unafraid to make a hero who was as sexy as she was brutal, and their artists made it very convincing.
The long wait for Shin Megami Tensei V has been worth it. This could have been another disaster like prior games with lengthy development cycles, but this is the one that actually delivers on all of its promises and then some.
Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition deserved better. Never mind the lack of parity across all the versions- each platform gets its own flaws to deal with. Sadly, Nintendo Switch is the console that gets the absolute worst way to play any of the games in this trilogy.
I wanted more for Battlefield 2042, and I wanted more for this new live service game. But with other glaring issues, I feel this might need to be somewhat avoided.
RPG fans who missed this on PlayStation 4 and already traded their console for a Nintendo Switch will likely get a lot of enjoyment from Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom Prince’s Edition. Young gamers especially will be enchanted by the whimsical setting and premise. The action style combat is also easy to pick up for eager kids who want to cut up some monsters.
Some could argue that wall running didn’t belong in previous entries, but they added verticality to gameplay, and made players look up instead of left and right. Vanguard lacks all originality, doesn’t improve in almost any areas, and goes down in quality.
Despite the server latency issues and the stupid censorship, this is still the Diablo II I’ve loved for most of my life. The Blizzard Entertainment that produced this timeless classic is sadly not around anymore, but at least the archaeologists that touched this up for 4K displays did a fantastic job. How can such a dark and twisted world feel so much like a nostalgic, fuzzy homecoming?
The 2D action was the best part of the original ActRaiser, and it’s still the best part in ActRaiser Renaissance. The other gameplay modules certainly have been greatly expanded and fleshed out to the point it changes the entire experience, and sometimes at the expense of the player’s enjoyment, due to the new systems requiring absurdly long and frequent tutorials. No matter what though, the music is pure fury.
From initial impressions, I admittedly didn’t have much faith in this game, and how the premise would grab me. However I did find that the more time I spent, and the more I explored it, was more than I thought. Blue Reflection: Second Light is rough around the edges in the graphics department, but makes up with everything else for a trade-off.
For its price, Crysis Remastered Trilogy is a bargain for first person shooter maniacs. The only issue is that the collection is incomplete, since the Warhead DLC is missing from the first game, and all multiplayer modes have been gutted. It’s understandable that the multiplayer modes may not have been possible to preserve, but to lose single player DLC seems wasteful.
Demon Turf is the kind of game that wears its flaws on its sleeve, but everything in it comes together, and works that it becomes hard to not get sucked into the gameplay. Platforming and making progress is engrossing when the gameplay facilitates a rhythm to the level design and gaps; and this title revels in it.
In conclusion, this is a cute visual novel about love, perfect for something around Valentine’s Day. The price for this game is $49.99 USD, which is a little much when dealing with a visual novel with this much content. On one hand, this is a much more serious topic with a niche crowd that will appreciate it, but will take some convincing.
With a story that is cheekily woven into the gameplay, rock solid action, air-tight controls to compliment an amazing gallery of enemies, level design, and weapons; Dusk has it all. The only problem with Dusk is the craven sensation felt when the game ends. There are few horror themed shooters that have the unbelievable rush that Dusk offers.
The shooting mechanics might not be as refined or satisfying as other FPS games on the market, but they get the job done. If you don’t mind the short length and minor technical issues, INDUSTRIA is a fairly enjoyable experience that you can complete in a single session.
Eidos-Montréal proved in their Deus Ex games that they are masters of environmental story telling, and in Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy, the developers go all out.
I enjoyed getting back in the saddle of playing a Senran Kagura game with a cast of Neptunia characters. The gameplay was simple enough to learn and it felt natural. Some other elements like the graphics and weird mouth flap choices were the biggest issues. The story not being too much else than traveling from place to place and defeating a boss at the end of a stage is fine for replayability.
Maybe in time, The Lightbringer will get an “illuminated edition” or some kind of redux, where the developer can give the game the extra bit of refinement it needs. If that never happens, for its price, The Lightbringer is still worth a play for its feel-good atmosphere, and engaging platforming.
So in closing, is Cruis’n Blast fun? Absolutely. Is it worth the price tag? For all the arcade fun without munching through quarters? Absolutely.