Chalgyr's Game Room
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Overall, I quite enjoyed my experience with Atelier Firis: The Alchemist and the Mysterious Journey. I can't really say I liked any more or less than Atelier Sophie, but that isn't a bad thing. There were some good changes, and some changes that frustrated me. I liked the more open world concept, but the skimpy container and the looming time limit put a bit of a damper on things. If you enjoyed Sophie, I can basically assure you you'll enjoy Atelier Firis with its sprawling landscapes and more in-depth alchemy process. So get the cauldron stir stick back out, cuz it's time to do some magic.
So overall, while the graphic upgrades to Days Gone on the PC (as long as the PC can handle it) are amazing especially compared to either a Sony PlayStation 4 or PlayStation 4 Pro, Days Gone is still the same title and that’s not a bad thing. Between the non-linear storyline that lets you explore at your own pace and the solid gameplay design that is just as easy to handle twenty, thirty, or forty hours down the line as it is in the beginning, there’s plenty to do, love and explore in a world that’s seen better days.
Overall Resident Evil Village is a fantastic entry into the realm of Resident Evil. It continues the storyline, it causes more questions than it answers, it allows for future entries to pick up from both the pre and post credits, and it was fun. Do I wish that Ethan Winters had more personality like our once again returning Chris Redfield? Yes. Was it enough to take me away from the gorgeous mountain views and the terrifying creepy haunted mansion on a hill? No, it sadly wasn’t and I really never want to see that house again!
R-Type Final 2 wears its classic shoot-‘em-up trappings on its sleeve. This was a game funded by fans of the series, and they should be happy with what’s here as R-Type Final 2 absolutely feels like a part of the venerable series. It may not be the most approachable game though, for those who don’t have nostalgic love for the series or sometimes find the genre inaccessible. There are different difficulty settings, but on any level – you will die a lot as it really does boil down to your persistence and your willingness to memorize the stages.
Overall, Atelier Sophie: The Alchemist and the Mysterious Book DX was a lot of fun. The combat had an interesting take to it, the alchemy was really well done, if not incredibly daunting for the first half of the game, and I really liked the trait conferral and effect creation aspect. While there is a really low character level, it is supported by a stat increase system, although limited, to supplement you if you can't create the equipment you want or need. While late game alchemy may start feeling like a bit of a slog, the ease of which you can gather materials by that point makes it more reasonable than would first seem. The characters may be a little bland in personality for the most part, but are varied enough to at least be entertaining. No time limits allow you to craft freely, but does result in a sense of little to no urgency to actually carry on the plot. While I wouldn't be able to recommend the DX version to somebody who has already completed Atelier Sophie previously, especially not someone who has purchased the DLC, it definitely won't feel particularly lacking in the lineup of Atelier titles I have on my shelf.
Star Wars Pinball VR provides a pretty good bang for its buck, given that there are eight total tables and two of them are brand new. Some table layouts and thematic choices will resonate with people differently, but as a whole the package is quite enjoyable. The presentation is fantastic, both of the new tables are well-made and Star Wars Pinball VR gives me hope we will see even more virtual reality pinball from the wizards at Zen Studios in the future.
Overall while short, Effie is a cute little throwback adventure that’s easy enough to pass through in an afternoon. With some fun puzzles, easy combat and interesting boss fights, I just hope that the Switch version is patched to offer the same smooth experience that was showcased in the opening trailers.
So overall, while Golden Force does have some shiny moments, a lot of the adventure falls flat which is unfortunate as it has multiple elements that could have made for a stellar retro inspired adventure.
So overall, I would have a hard time recommending The Skylia Prophecy to anyone who's not seriously up for a major and almost hardcore challenge. The core mechanics are stiff, certain ways forward can take you to your grave in literally one shot if you're not lucky when doing what you need to, and the ways forward are often blocked off due to a lack of mana giving you no other option than reloading and doing it over again as there's no way back. It's really unfortunate because I had high hopes for this retro Castlevania inspired title.
Ultimately, Kingdom of Arcadia feels more like something you'd find on a random internet website as opposed to a console title. It isn't bad, but it definitely doesn't do anything to really put itself out there as particularly outstanding or interesting. While the gameplay is rather smooth, levels begin to feel tedious after a while, and I found myself quickly losing the drive to really explore the locales. You don't really feel fulfilled walking away from Kingdom of Arcadia. If you want to introduce your kid to platforming games or something in those lines, sure why not, but don't go expecting this to fulfill any craving or empty hole you may be feeling.
All in all, I have to say that Super Meat Boy Forever felt like a step back from its predecessor. It felt clunkier, there were some collision detection issues, and it felt a lot less refined. That being said, it's by no means bad, although it is a drastic difference from the original style. While I wasn't fond of the gameplay changeup, that is entirely personal preference and should be taken with a grain of salt. While you should come in to Super Meat Boy Forever expecting a vaguely similar feeling to the previous title, it is still by and far a different experience. A few collision detection patches and maybe some time requirement adjustments for those a little too casual to make the cutoff for the dark world stages, but who are better with the platforming, could really go a long way.
Overall, I have to say I had a lot of fun with Godstrike. It scratched that itch I didn't really know I had. While some of the hitboxes are wonky at best and table-flipping awful at worst, that's only for a select few bosses really. The gameplay was smooth, and it was fun to make different skill compositions. Godstrike definitely isn't for everyone, and it still has a few kinks to work out, but still promises to be a lot of fun.
ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos is a fun adventure and a really interesting use of virtual reality. That being said, the visual novel genre and its notoriously slow pacing is not going to be for everyone. For better or for worse, the genre has a bit of a stigma with gamers for not necessarily being much of an actual game and ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos won’t do anything to change that perspective. Thankfully though, the branching paths and generally interesting narrative add plenty of reason for fans of the genre to give this science fiction adventure a go and experience it with the twist that the PSVR provides.
Overall, I had quite a lot of fun with Poison Control. The ARPG aspect was pretty fun, the characters were interesting, and the poison cleansing was actually fun to balance against attacking enemies. While Poison Control does get a little repetitive after awhile, but thanks to the smaller instance size for cleansing the souls, it is fairly easy to pick up for a mission or two, and then put down for a bit. The writing was well done, and the localization team did a really good job translating, which is also nice to see. Poison Control definitely won't be for everybody, but that doesn't mean it's specifically niche in its gameplay either. If you're okay with the anime stylized art style and an abundance of female characters, I'd say take a look at Poison Control to see if it interests you.
Overall the game is well made and the seventeen years fans have been waiting has been well worth it. This game is worth your time if you enjoyed the original or if you are into these kinds of games!
Overall, Monster Hunter Rise is a stellar addition to the franchise, introducing quality of life improvements, some really great new monsters, doggos, and a really well functioning online mode. The new Rampage Quests are pretty neat, and are really fun as a group, but can get a little frustrating depending on how many and what type of monsters are introduced at the same time. While Rise definitely feels “short” in comparison to other titles, there is a lot to love about the direction Rise has taken. As a veteran player, there are some mechanics that have been simplified or removed, like hot and cold drinks, that I feel bitter about seeing gone or “oversimplified”, but looking back on it, it's pretty much all stuff I would constantly complain about anyway. The takeaway is that Monster Hunter Rise is a great title in the franchise, hands down.
While it is a short game, Lost Words: Beyond the Page deserves a lot of credit for making the most of narrative during that relatively brief runtime. So many games are forgotten almost as soon as I put down the controller – but that is not going to be the case here. While the platforming / puzzling gameplay itself is fairly shallow, the rest of the package is undeniably charming and an experience I enjoyed far more often than not.
Lust From Beyond is definitely not for the faint of heart or for the weak stomached but it is an interesting dive into the realms of the occult and insanity that can appear especially when dealing with the likes of H.P. Lovecraft, H.R. Giger and Zdzisław Beksiński. Interesting puzzles, crazier environments and even more psychotic cultists and monsters trying to hunt you down, there’s a hell of an adventure to be had if you’ve got the stomach, and the age, for it.
Spacebase Startopia is a fairly standard strategy/simulation game at its core, with the balancing of resources, happiness and a bit of light RTS combat mixed in. Some technical concerns around the camera, balky control scheme and less-than-stellar AI diminish the overall experience, however. There is plenty of micromanaging fun to be had here for fans of the genre, but Spacebase Startopia is not among the best in the genre either.
Overall, Touhou Gensou Skydrift is an absolutely great racing game. While combining the feel of both a Mario Kart title with closer to F-Zero style gameplay, challenging yet fun courses, and an amazing soundtrack, Skydrift will definitely meet your racing needs. No prior Touhou world knowledge is needed either, and with a large cast of characters to choose from, it's really fun to figure out what tag-team combo you like the best. Although the number of courses may be on the smaller side, they're all really fun, especially once you've had some time to practice on them. If you're looking for a tide-over between Mario Kart titles, or just want something a little different from them? Touhou Gensou Skydrift is definitely for you.