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Star Hunter DX is a fantastic middle-of-the-road Shmup. Curious omissions like no online leaderboards, score attack, or training modes aren't quite justified by the existence of an Achievement list. This is still a good time, but just a little minimalistic in more ways than the art style. Unfortunately, that makes it a tougher sell than it should be.
Fly Together is a fantastic little game with hodds of content in both single-player and multiplayer. It ties it all together nicely with solid production values and good, old-fashioned, ale-ridden tomfoolery. Puzzle fans should get a kick out of this, and anyone looking for a new conversation starter during a games night should totally give this a gander.
Sure, if I look closely I can find nits to pick over the course of The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles’ 50-hour adventure—Sholmes occasionally hogs the spotlight, the cases could do more to support divergent reasoning, I would have changed a few details of the ending—but I thoroughly enjoyed every moment of the journey. If you’re a series veteran, Great Ace Attorney builds on everything you know and love with exciting new mechanics and the most ambitious story and characters yet. If you’re new to Ace Attorney, or even adventure games altogether, this is as good a place to start as any. Great Ace Attorney is outstanding in every facet of its design and production, and deftly avoids the problems that can make adventure games inaccessible. The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles is an experience not to be missed, and if you plan to skip it, I can only say one thing: OBJECTION!
Overall, I enjoyed Samurai Warriors 5. I generally do enjoy the gameplay of this Warriors franchise and they’ve kept it fresh by including some small changes. The ultimate attacks were a particularly appreciated spin. While the story is never really the focus of the Warriors titles, it was an enjoyable telling of Nobunaga’s tale too. It doesn’t steal the crown of my favorite Warriors title from Dynasty Warriors 8, but it’s certainly a strong entry into the series.
While I liked Trigger Witch, I must say I was done with the game a while before its credits rolled. To be frank (and vulgar), it shot its load long before the crescendo which was a shame. It’s a fun and charming game with some ambition, containing quirky writing but hampered with wonky pacing and asset reuse.
Neptunia ReVerse is a bad game. What few redeeming qualities it has, are completely overshadowed by the sheer weight and magnitude of its negatives. This is a bland, repetitive, and sometimes disturbing jaunt through a world that is not worth experiencing. Neptunia can ReVerse out of my PS5 and find sanctuary in the nearest bin.
Unbound: Worlds Apart is a competent game that, despite its intriguing portal mechanic and charming looks, only occasionally rises to offer more. If you like metroidvanias and think the portals sound interesting, you’ll probably enjoy it. However, it doesn’t quite measure up to the admittedly high standards set by its alternatives.
BUSTAFELLOWS is a quality otome visual novel with amazing work done across various aspects from visuals to writing to audio. The story is engaging and moving, the romance is adorable and authentic, the characters are vibrant and unforgettable, and the writing leaves much food for thought even when it could have delved into several topics further for more sufficient coverage. The visuals are stunning and the VA nailed the different characters’ personalities while the music nailed the quickly shifting ambiance. The translation quality is good too, though it could still be more polished. The weakest aspect is its game system with a tedious save process and a “Skip” function that proceeds at a snail’s pace. Then topping that off with a PC port that runs only in fullscreen mode and uses unusual fixed key binds, we get great content wrapped inside a not-so-great container.
NEO: The World Ends With You is the sequel that no one saw coming. It does everything a sequel should do in offering an additional experience while following the themes and tones of what came before it. It's a visual buffet with gameplay in buckets to back it up and has a tale to tell that you'll never see coming. So what are you waiting for? It's time to play the game!
Blaster Master Zero 3 is a fitting end to a wonderful series of games. It’s not without its flaws, namely occasional bouts of brutal difficulty and controls that could have been tightened up a tad, but overall, it’s quite the romp. Fans of the series should absolutely check out the conclusion, and newcomers should totally give it a gander - although I’d still advise playing 1 and 2 first.
Cotton Reboot is a fantastic Shmup that is perfect for anyone new to the genre. It also has more than enough customization to make this a kickass title for genre veterans. A mixture of interesting mechanics, beautiful sprite work, tight controls, and bombastic, screen-filling chaos makes this game an absolute corker. It would have been nice to see an extra mode or two to add a bit of girth to the package, but there is plenty of high octane madness to go around in its current state.
Dariusburst: Another Chronicle EX+ is a pain in the arse. When it hits right, it sticks the landing with acrobatic precision. That juicy core, the multiplayer, and endless content - these all get the thumbs up from me. Its damn aspect ratio in conjunction with some lazy balancing and clunky menus do quite the number on an otherwise great title. This makes the game incredibly hard to recommend, especially to newcomers to the series or genre. Ultimately though, I did end up having quite the good time - flaws be damned.
While Chihiro Himukai Always Walks Away has the seeds of some intriguing ideas, it’s ultimately a straightforward iyashikei experience heavy on sexual content. Still, it stands out as uncommonly thoughtful and kind. If a warm, soothing experience with an emphasis on sexuality appeals to you, I think you will enjoy Chihiro Himukai Walks Away.
Mighty Goose is the most fun I've had all year. It’s loud, it’s explosive, and it’s 100% awesome. The game doesn’t take that long to ‘beat’, but comes with a fantastic NG+ mode that dials that 11 all the way to 12. What few niggling issues I have with the game pale in comparison with the fun that I had with it. It’s a blast on your tod, or with a mate, so there is no excuse not to get honking.
I really enjoyed AKIBA'S TRIP: Undead and Undressed which was released on Vita and PS4 before this. Sadly I cannot say the same for AKIBA'S TRIP: Hellbound & Debriefed, which despite being much "newer" is pretty much a bare-bones remaster of an older game that's aged like bread. While it's not the worst game to have Akiba in the title (see: Akiba's Beat), it's very hard to suggest anyone other than die-hard fans of the series even consider this one. It's dated and repetitive with a little bit of charm, but it's sadly outdone by the previous release. If you haven’t played that already, just go straight to it or watch the anime.
Sun Wukong vs Robot is a mess. It looks bad, sounds worse, and plays pretty poorly to boot. The only reason you would play this is if you were desperate for a Metroidvania and only had a fiver to spend. Even then, the game is not worth that price, especially when some of the best games in the genre can be bought for slightly more off sale, and less on sale. It’s the 10 pence mixup of the gaming world – disappointing, cheap, and it barely registers on the serotonin scale but might give you diabetes all the same. Hard pass.
CAVE are likely the most well-known craft masters of the genre and for good reason. Mushihimesama is not only accessible for newcomers but challenging for pros. It’s addictive, it’s visually unique with its bug theme, and has all the nuance and quirk any good Shmup needs to succeed. I couldn’t say if this is THE game that would convert the non-believers but in terms of pure Shmup action, it still shines brightly. I’d say it is one of the strongest additions to the Nintendo Switch library.
Jeanne at the Clocktower has an interesting premise and does some things well. The novel setting is highly detailed while the story is exciting and dramatic. However, the characters and themes lack depth, so the end result feels like an average fantasy anime. In addition, gratuitous and extreme sexual content further detracted from my experience. I would recommend Jeanne at the Clocktower if you like action-heavy fantasy and the type of sexual content it offers. For this demographic, a score of 7/10 would be appropriate. If like me, that’s not your preference, I’d say to wait for a sale before you consider giving it a look.
While there are some nuances left to be desired in view of the big themes it touches on, Sumire has nonetheless successfully told a thought-provoking, magical yet realistic growing-up story of a young girl living in a little Japanese village. The art is charming, its music is something to die for, and the game has enough compelling elements to make it worthy of more than one playthrough. But more importantly, it is a work that touches the heart.
I like Necromunda: Hired Gun but it is far from being anything other than distinctly average. It has a great Sci-Fi Fantasy atmosphere and some fantastic action within. Sadly it's marred with a lack of innovation, level design issues, glitches throughout, and inconsistent performance. It's worth a look at on sale, and if you enjoy Warhammer titles. Otherwise, there are better, less glitchy alternatives around.