VGChartz's Reviews
Between wonderfully-addictive combat, encouraged comradery, & consistent tongue-in-cheek humor, Helldivers II is a fantastic way to spread liberty & prosperity through patriotic destruction.
The moment-to-moment action is terrific, level designs and boss battles are mostly great, character and weapon diversity provide high replay value, and customization options allow for an adventure as dangerous or approachable as you like. With a more interesting story, a less tedious progression model, and nicer artistic assets, it would enter that next tier of greatness.
Despite a few infractions in its paperwork, Border Bots VR deserves a stamp of approval for its inventive & well-paced puzzle design.
Penny’s Big Breakaway achieves what it sets out to do in many areas, creating a stylish game with a fun, rich moveset that incentivizes and rewards masterful play, but is hampered by a few design flaws and a steep difficulty spike early on.
As a commentary on artificial intelligence, and as a science-fiction mystery tale, Return to Grace is a thought-provoking experiment. The questions it asks are compelling, the virtual characters it introduces are endearing, and the retro-futuristic world it proposes is rich in potential. As a first-person adventure game, however, it's less successful, due to perfunctory puzzles, undemanding gameplay, and a short running time.
Between an insanely tedious gameplay loop, inferior writing, avaricious scheming, and more, Suicide Squad ranks among the most villainous & disreputable live-service games.
Cricket Through the Ages benefits from a wacky premise, ironic presentation, and a subversive sense of humor. Regrettably, due to its simple controls, unreliable physics, and flailing gameplay, it's not all that enjoyable as a video game.
There is a lot to like, and even love about Persona 3, but it’s all buried underneath an incredible amount of tediousness.
Tequila Works' latest skates by with just enough nuance & personality to keep engagement from freezing over, but its derivative qualities could tempt some into giving it the cold shoulder.
Nonograms and farm life don't necessarily belong together, but developer Score Studios has made it work, more or less. With cleaner visuals and greater gameplay depth and diversity — including mechanics borrowed from the farming sim genre — it could be even better.
A fantastic 3D fighting game that freshens up the look and feel of the series while at the same time not alienating its veteran community.
The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island is a triumphant return to the Shiren series, roughly 14 years after the last mainline entry. It benefits from an ever-expanding story, a cast of colorful characters, a revamped asynchronous multiplayer mode, and, most essentially, the same challenging tactical gameplay and extraordinary replay value that has defined the franchise for generations.
While Immortality can't consistently maintain its tempo, Sam Barlow & Co.'s avant-garde approach to FMV game design & storytelling remains a genuine achievement.
The core of Rising Lords shows huge potential. With a better campaign, fewer technical hitches, and deeper combat options, it could be something special.
For purists, the original code remains intact, with all the sharp edges and meticulous controls you remember. For those who've played the trilogy a dozen times before and want a fresh experience, modern visuals and controls change things up considerably — often for the better, sometimes for the worse. Throw in all the expansions and the novelty of photo mode, and you've got a wonderful celebration of the origins of the Tomb Raider franchise.
Infinite Wealth takes and reuses a lot of ideas from Yakuza: Like a Dragon (and other titles), and they’re still fun to see and use, but they don’t quite capture the same feeling of never knowing what's around the next corner, which is what made Yakuza: Like a Dragon so exceptional.
There's no world to explore, battles are as hard as they are dull, the narrative barely progresses, and the game as a whole is far too time-consuming for its format.
Turnip Boy Robs a Bank is noticeably better than its predecessor, thanks to an addictive roguelite gameplay loop and a rewarding sense of progression. Unfortunately, its short running time, mediocre boss battles, and late-game difficulty spike keep it from hitting that next level.
It's not quite a definitive version, but it is an easy way to play an underappreciated fourth-generation shoot-'em-up on the go.
Overall, Apollo Justice Trilogy stands as the best way to experience three games with a somewhat controversial legacy within the series.