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Dragon Quest Builders is an excellent example of a game that can take after something more popular but retain its own personality. There's no mistaking the Minecraft lineage, but there's just as much Dragon Quest in Dragon Quest Builder's DNA as there is Minecraft. It's charming, it's funny, it's accessible, it's easy to play, and it has enough of its own strengths to be worth playing even for die-hard Minecraft fans. Only some nagging flaws and annoying camera issues drag it down slightly, but it's still worth playing. For Dragon Quest fans, it's a great introduction to the genre, and even for those who aren't, it offers a structure and sheer playability that many Minecraft clones don't.
If anything, Gears of War 4 shows that The Coalition can handle the series going forward. From the single-player to the co-op and multiplayer, every aspect of the game sings with quality as they successfully blend old traditions with new mechanics. There's already a ton of content in the game, which is great at giving you many possible ways to access it all. While the PC is the preferred platform to play the game, the Xbox One version is no slouch, as it still comes up with a solid experience. Overall, action fans will have a blast with this title.
At the end of the day, Pac-Man Championship Edition 2 is a solid sequel that suffers from trying to add too much to a formula that was almost perfect. It's still plenty of fun to play but feels too excessively bloated compared to the excellent original. If you're a fan of Championship Edition,then you'll find a lot to like in the sequel, and newcomers should find it an accessible place to start. It's an interesting evolution of the Pac-Man gameplay and makes for a solid pick-up-and-play title for players of any age. It is, after all, still Pac-Man at heart.
All in all XCOM 2 is a solid sequel. In many ways, it's more of the same with some new enemies, mechanics, skills and weapons to make it feel like a true sequel rather than a mere expansion. It doesn't make any big changes to the formula but improves upon the original. Fans of the first should find a lot to like here, but newcomers may want to start with the original XCOM. At the end of the day, it's a solid, fun, and incredibly unforgiving strategy game that will test your wits and your patience. Don't get too discouraged when your favorite soldier is disintegrated by a lucky crit from a laser beam. That's just the XCOM experience.
In the end, God Eater 2: Rage Burst is a good adventure game that remains accessible for genre newcomers, and the wide variety of weapons and power-ups ensures that you'll find your favorite style rather quickly. The fights aren't overly strategic, but you are rewarded if you know the weaknesses of monsters you're facing; there are tons of these fights, and each is rather short unless you pump up the difficulty. The story could be better, and it would have been nice if the online community were more active. Those coming fresh off of God Eater: Resurrection won't find much of a difference. God Eater 2 is solid enough that it comes as an easy recommendation for PC players looking for that Monster Hunter fix yet weren't quite sold on Toukiden: Kiwami.
The premise for Ian's Eyes has potential. If done correctly, a horror game that revolves around a glorified escort mission can be a tense and entertaining experience. However, there's nothing here that can be considered well done, as the game simply strives to emulate all of the bad parts of the old survival-horror games without the good parts with that came with it. Even if you're a die-hard survival-horror fan, there's very little that's worth checking out in Ian's Eyes.
The answer to whether or not the Unto the Evil DLC is worth it depends on what you're looking for. If you're in it for the new maps, then you're better off waiting for the private match option since it can take a long time to see them under normal circumstances. If you want it for the customization, then the DLC has lots of satisfying options. If you want the weapons, then you'll be fine since both the Kinetic Mine and Harvester are great additions, while the pistol is only there if you want things to be tougher. At $15, the DLC is pretty expensive by itself, but if you want to add to the multiplayer experience, this isn't a bad pack.
Hue may be a short experience, but it is a very fun one. The color-changing mechanic is handled quite nicely and adds a little something to the basic block-and-switch puzzle the game uses most of the time. The puzzles don't get complicated until you're much closer to the end of the game, but they never feel frustrating enough that you'll be forced to quit. The story is fine, but it is the presentation that players will find quite charming. For puzzle platforming fans who want something that's fun but not too involved, Hue is worth checking out.
Attack on Titan: Wings of Freedom deserves a lot of praise for accurately capturing the feel of the anime and translating it to video game form. Unfortunately, once you get past the accurate representation, there isn't much to the game. You'll kill the same Titans in the same environments with the same tactics over and over, and there's little to no deviation. There's enough interesting content to last you through the story mode, but it wears out its welcome long before you finish the epilogues. Fans of the anime should get a good amount of gameplay out of this, but only the most hardcore will keep going after they're finished.
Your enjoyment of Hatsune Miku: Project Diva X depends on a few things. If you're looking for a great rhythm game for the PS4, this is it. It has been a while since we've seen a rhythm game that doesn't need peripherals, and this title is loads of fun, especially if you're into the music. If you're a Miku fan, this is still fine if you can live with the absence of modes from prior games. For those players, they might want to look into importing Future Tone instead if they can't wait any longer to see whether Sega releases that one stateside.
Your decision to pick up NHL 17 will depend on your experience with the previous two titles. If you haven't picked up a NHL title this season or you stopped at NHL 15, you absolutely must purchase NHL 17. The game has been refined with loads of changes for both pros and novices, and the number of modes present, along with their depth, will ensure that this stays in rotation until the hockey season starts. If you already have NHL 16, then there isn't much of an impetus to grab the NHL 17 version. The extra modes are indeed nice, but you already have access to just about everything, so those additions might not feel that impressive. Either way, NHL 17 remains a solid game, and one hopes that the momentum continues into next year's title.
Uno makes for a good alternative to the type of fare typically seen on a console. Despite its simple rules, it remains fun thanks to the decent AI and the good-sized online community. It may not be as cheap as the Xbox 360 release was, but if you're looking for a fun card game on the PS4, you can't go wrong with Uno.
There are other odd issues to be found where ReCore keeps tripping over itself despite earnest efforts to aid the player, like a targeting reticle that appears below Joule whenever she takes big jumps — except the camera always prevents you from truly seeing it, so you end up witnessing Joule fall into chemicals or into a pit of death. I could go on, but I'll stop. Perhaps one day, I'll have Joule raid an easy dungeon with Mack just to see how they move and interact. That way, I won't die and have more than enough time to think about how disappointed I was.
Inside shows that Playdead has a knack for the short but powerful puzzle-platformer. The puzzles are logical and challenging, while the story is told well without a reliance on the usual things like dialogue and cut scenes. The balance between both creates a game that has a ton of memorable moments, and the flow is smooth enough that you're compelled to keep playing until you reach the thought-provoking ending. With a presentation that adds greatly to the narrative, Inside is well worth your time.
In the end, Hunter's Legacy could use some improvements. Combat could certainly be tightened up, and the rewards for exploration could've been much more enticing. It also could've done better in the presentation department, since it doesn't stand out in this area, either. The title has the basics down well enough that it can remain enjoyable, and those who aren't too picky can have a good time with this, especially when you take into account the relatively low price of $6.99 on Steam.
All in all, Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Spirit of Justice is a solid addition to the franchise. At times, it feels like it's more of the same and just spinning its wheels, but even at that point, it's charming and fun to play. The cases are strong, the characters are funny, and the visuals are delightful. It doesn't reinvent the wheel or drastically change up the series, but it doesn't need to. The title provides enough satisfying payoff for long-term subplots that it carries itself through the weaker moments. Fans should have a lot of fun, but newcomers may want to play Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy and Dual Destinies first.
Odin Sphere: Leifthrasir takes a good game and makes it incrementally better. The tweaks to the overall title, including better inventory management and more emphasis on combat, opens it up to those who weren't enamored with the original. The option is there for those who want to play it as it was originally intended. It provides lots of gameplay time, which is something of a rarity in console titles nowadays, though there will be a few who take offense to the fact that a good chunk of content is recycled a few times. It does all this with a presentation that still manages to impress after all these years. No matter which of the three platforms you own, you owe it to yourself to add Leifthrasir to your library.
The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel 2 is a solid and enjoyable sequel. The tone has changed, but the characterization and combat are back in full force. There are a few nagging complaints here and there but nothing that should sour the experience for people who enjoyed the first game. At worst, it feels too familiar in both strengths and weaknesses. Almost every complaint and praise about the first game can be leveled at the second. ToCS2 is not a game for newcomers at all and is only for fans of the first. Likewise, be prepared for a game that leaves as many questions as it answers. It's a more satisfying ending than the first game, but there's still a lot more going on in Erebonia.
As some may have expected, One Piece: Burning Blood is a game for the fans. There's not much here to get newcomers interested in the franchise, and the very limited scope of the campaign doesn't make the different perspectives any better to deal with. While flawed in places, the fighting system is still fun to mess around with, since it seems to have better control over its chaos, and the other modes give the title more substance. Since the presentation matches the source material quite well, One Piece fans will be pleased enough with this game as they continue with one of the longest manga stories ever told.
Shadwen is the kind of game that has the recipe to succeed. The use of time manipulation in a stealth game may make this a title that's intended for those just coming into the genre, but the approach is interesting enough to warrant a look. Bland level design and presentation along with a poor AI system for the guards makes the experience too rudimentary, and the lack of enemy variety can make things feel repetitive rather quickly. Ultimately, Shadwen has potential — but not in this incarnation.