VGChartz's Reviews
No matter how you experience Capcom Fighting Collection 2 — online or offline, in single-player bouts against CPU opponents, or in versus mode against human rivals — you're likely to have a good time.
All the things that made the game special in 2015 — extraordinary world-building, impossibly deep role-playing systems, an obscene amount of content, and a unique gameplay loop that at times straddles the line between RPG and MMO — are present here, along with new story elements, mechanics, and quality-of-life updates.
It doesn't compare favorably to the better run-and-gun and shoot-'em-up titles from the fourth generation. That said, it's an absolute work of art from a technological and artistic point of view. If you're interested in the history of game design, especially in SNES assembly coding and pre-rendered 3D graphics, and you love tough-as-nails 90s-era shooters, this new release has a lot to offer.
Some of the warts from the originals remain, but they don't detract significantly from the overall experience. If you're even the slightest bit serious about 90s-era role-playing games, you need to add this package to your collection.
If you're looking for a mysterious visual novel with shocking twists and provocative ideas about science, technology, and what it means to be human, you can't go wrong with Ever 17.
While this version isn't perfect — it carries over the original's limited interactivity and introduces some new localization issues — it remains required playing for visual novel aficionados, due to its mysterious storyline, heady science-fiction ideas, lovable characters, huge replay value, extraordinary voiceover work, and evocative music. Even those lukewarm on the genre should give it a try.
Players now have the golden opportunity to try one of the better games on GBA without taking out a second mortgage to do so. Before they do, though, they should understand that this is essentially an enhanced port, not a remaster or remake. If they reconcile themselves with that reality, and prepare for the game's short running time and old-school level of difficulty, they'll be in for a very good time.
As a preservation effort, the Early Days Collection deserves a big round of applause... judged on its software and features, however, it's less impressive. Ultimately, the compilation is best suited for collectors, historians, and older Yu-Gi-Oh! fans interested in reliving fond memories of their own early days.
In the end, Tomb Raider IV-VI Remastered is less essential than last year's Tomb Raider collection, entirely because the games are inferior. While The Last Revelation remains one of the franchise's better entries, Chronicles is merely decent, and The Angel of Darkness is subpar. Still, thanks to control and graphics options, paired with the 60 fps boost, this newest compilation represents the superior way to experience these titles.
Although it's not the celebration DK deserves, it represents the finest version of the game.
Even if, as a remaster, Ys Memoire doesn't move the needle much, the base game is absolutely worth playing, both for admirers of action-RPGs and for newer Ys fans who want to experience Adol's earlier adventures.
Due to rarities like Dead Connection and Warrior Blade, and a couple of classics in Bubble Bobble and Rastan Saga, Taito Milestones 3 is a fairly good investment for arcade enthusiasts and retro game collectors. Its biggest problem, outside of a handful of middling titles, is the same flaw that has affected all three compilations: a lack of special features and connective tissue binding the games together.
Despite some faults, including simple puzzles, a clunky control scheme, and tedious exploration, Hifumi Kono's seminal survival-horror game is worth playing, at least once.
Once again, the Gold Master Series proves to be the gold standard in game preservation, documentation, and celebration.
The games here are arguably better overall than those in Volume 1, mostly due to the greatness of GunForce II, but they've received fewer upgrades. Hopefully future installments will include more refinements, more bonus content, and more ways to appreciate and celebrate each game.
Featuring every arcade Marvel game that Capcom has produced, Arcade Classics boasts high-speed action that stands the test of time, and a wide variety of characters from both companies' catalogs.
Thanks to three must-play DS games, innovative porting work, a slew of special features and quality-of-life upgrades, and a surprisingly strong remake of a former franchise dud, it's among the best collections released under the Konami banner in the last five years.
Parasol Stars is a hidden gem in both the Bubble Bobble franchise and the PC Engine library. It boasts lovely graphics, high replay value, and a surprisingly deep scoring system. Its only drawbacks: a short running time, two-player multiplayer that can feel clumsy at times, and a nasty bug unique to this modern port. Once the patch is live, definitely consider picking this one up.
Despite a handful of unsightly assets, an underwhelming story, and a few difficulty spikes, the remaster of Monster Hunter Stories makes for an easy recommendation, for Monster Hunter fans or simply for anyone interested in approachable turn-based role-playing games who missed the original on 3DS.
Despite the lack of 2010's Rocket Knight, the Re-Sparked collection is a video game anthology worthy of the hero Sparkster. It pulls together three noteworthy fourth-gen action-platformers — one of them, Rocket Knight Adventures, among the best of its kind — makes them more accessible than ever before thanks to save states and rewind, and surrounds them with bonus features.