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While not a complete triumph, falling down in the same places as many other survival horror titles, and a rather iffy last act to boot, there is still so much to fall in love with in Alone in the Dark (2024). It is a must-play for horror fans and would also make an excellent pool to dip your toe into if you're new to the genre, with the fantastic options on offer to make the game as accessible or as masochistic as you need it to be Alone in the Dark (2024) is exactly what this dormant series needed after the deathblow that was Alone in the Dark: Illumination. It sticks to what made the series famous with classic horror clichés, hammy acting, a great atmosphere, and an engrossing mystery. It's not only a fantastic stand-alone title, but is in the upper echelons of reimaginings, leaning on the original title where it counts, but not enough to make it a crutch. It adds its unique ideas to further the experience and gives gamers a true dark-fantasy horror that would please any avid fans of Lovecraft.
I think The Lament of a Lifeless Star has some interesting ideas about what it might mean to live past the end of the world. Unfortunately, the execution is uneven and most of The Lament of a Lifeless Star’s runtime is squandered on tropes and trivialities. The final act is better, but it’s too little too late to redeem the overall experience.
Tomb Raider I-III Remastered Starring Lara Croft is one of the best remastering jobs I have seen. It's obvious from the second you boot the title up there has been a lot of love and care put into this one. The modern controls could do with some tweaking and the games themselves could be initially daunting for people who didn't grow up with Lara but there is a lot to love in this classic adventure package if you're willing to accept Lara Croft and her quirks. For those who have played the originals to death, there are enough additions and quality-of-life improvements to make this the essential way to now play these titles.
Splatoon 3: Side Order adds that cherry on top of an already sweet package. While I would not say that this is an essential purchase, it will do its job in satisfying those who crave a bit more from Splatoon 3. The roguelike elements of Side Order are somewhat undercooked and didn’t hold my interest as long as I would have liked. However, elements like the new boss battles, the writing, and the music made it worthwhile for at least the one playthrough. Splatoon addicts will also likely be satisfied with a mode that can be engaged with for as long as they feel like. Overall, this is a nice side dish, even if it falls short of being a great entree.
Berserk Boy is a generally fun little retro-style indie action-platformer. The game is especially rewarding to play quickly due to how well-made its lightning power is. Alas, it peaks somewhat early and has its cracks. Several ideas after the first few sets of levels don’t build much upon the game’s solid foundation, which felt more like a missed opportunity. The game is presented well but doesn’t do a lot to truly stand out among its retro-style indie action-platformer peers in either novelty or consistency. Still, the fun mechanics it does have coupled with its solid soundtrack and visuals enabled me to get past some of its weaker aspects and enjoy my playthrough plenty enough.
Criminal Border 2nd Offence paid off on the excitement I had coming in from the first episode and built even more excitement ahead of the third entry. The story does a great job of delving deeper into the core themes of Criminal Border. Kotoko serves as an interesting heroine, with the unfortunate caveat that her relationship with Itsuki stumbles and doesn’t live up to its potential. I can’t wait for Criminal Border 3rd Offence. I feel more confident in my recommendation for the series now that there are two solid releases available. If you don’t mind hopping into an episodic narrative before it’s fully released or you’re reading this when it is, then Criminal Border is a great choice for your next visual novel.
Gunvolt Records: Cychronicle is a rhythmic walk across memory lane. Because of the generally low amounts of content on offer, I would say that this game is best enjoyed by Gunvolt fans rather than general rhythm game players. With gratifying and intense rhythm gameplay coupled with a loving look into the series’ history up to this point, it can satisfy the cravings of diehard fans quite easily. At its best, it serves as a good reminder of why I liked the series to begin with. Meanwhile, at its worst, it's still a perfectly decent rhythm game that falls short on things to see and do. Inti Creates’ first foray into the rhythm game genre gets a thumbs up from me.
Granblue Fantasy: Relink was a bit of a surprise for me. I was expecting a good time to be sure, but I am shocked by how deeply engaged I’ve become with the game. The story might disappoint some who were expecting a long, in-depth JRPG, but if you know what you’re getting into that shouldn’t be a problem. The combat is phenomenal. The character variety provides an endless supply of fun, with tons of opportunity to experiment and optimize your play. I’m going to be playing Granblue Fantasy: Relink for a long time, even after finishing this review there are a wealth of characters I want to dive deeper into and master, and I want to continue playing with those I’ve already spent hours upon hours with. I hope we see more games like this from Cygames going forward. They have a killer foundation to build on here.
Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney Trilogy is a worthy successor to a beloved original that proudly and successfully carries the Ace Attorney torch. Plus, this new release is a great package, jammed full of content, extras, and quality of life features that make it the best way to experience the Apollo Justice trilogy. While I think Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney Trilogy could have been even better with a stronger commitment to developing its characters and ideas, it’s still great fun and something I can’t imagine an Ace Attorney fan or fan of mystery games in general wouldn’t enjoy.
With beautiful artwork, great sound direction, and a cast of voice actors that give life to the nightmare, I’m happy that I gave Nie no Hakoniwa a try despite my unfamiliarity with the genre. While definitely not for the faint of heart, if you’re brave enough to make that jump and try it out, I assure you that there’s an interesting story waiting for you when you open the box.
Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island is a brutal, uncompromising game. It carries out all of its unconventional and punishing rules with conviction and smart consideration, making for an unsuspecting RPG that’s one of the most consistently thrilling I’ve played in years. Couple this with dramatically improved presentation compared to past entries, and you have an excellent example of how to modernize an old series without sanding off the edges. It says a lot that after finally completing my first playthrough, I was ready to jump back in again for another round. If you’re feeling brave, enter the dungeon and take a roll of the dice with this excellent iteration on the Mystery Dungeon genre.
Nukitashi 2 doesn’t have the strongest plot, but it makes up for it with humor and high production values. Perhaps it won’t be a hit with everyone as comedy is subjective, but I certainly enjoyed the experience. That said, as a direct sequel I did feel that the change in direction had it fall short of the original.
After finishing Irotoridori no Sekai, particularly having finished Shinku’s route, I am confident in recommending it. Going in, my interest mostly stemmed from some of the beautiful artwork I’d seen, and whilst it certainly delivered on that, it also delivered a compelling, emotional narrative that I’m happy to have experienced for myself. There are some issues of course, a couple of less interesting routes and a bit of unnecessary complexity at times. But I think that messiness is often an unavoidable side effect of earnestness. And that’s my favorite part of Irotoridori no Sekai, you can tell it is bursting with a desire to communicate its story, its characters, and its world to you.
I want it on the record that I love UNDER NIGHT IN-BIRTH II Sys: Celes. That said, I think to try and recommend picking it up at full price to anyone but hardcore fans is too much of a hard ask. Yes, if you pick the game up now you get access to Season 1 with three new DLC characters incoming, but it just doesn’t have the weight of a game released this side of titles like Street Fighter 6, Tekken 8, and Mortal Kombat 1 where they had a lot of worth to their offline portions. The gameplay is solid and the visual style is somewhat love or hate, but there is a lot here to love. It doesn’t feel like a major sequel so I would suggest that you either pick this one up on sale or pick an earlier one up first to see if you're new to the series and not convinced. If you’re a fan of the series this feels like a half sequel, but the rollback netcode and extra characters alone should be enough to entice you in.
I had a lot of fun with Dungeon Travelers: To Heart 2 in Another World. The story, frivolous though it may be, is appropriately lighthearted and funny. Its characters grew on me over time, and I loved the variety in their designs. The gameplay holds everything together here. Despite some issues with inflexibility, RNG, and some frustrating dungeon design, the high level of player freedom, the wealth of customization options, and the tight balance of combat make Dungeon Travelers one of the most engaging DRPGs I’ve played.
Persona 3 Reload is a top-tier JRPG with gameplay to match. Whilst the story and characters may not match up to subsequent entries in the series, they're good in their own right, becoming far stronger as it gets closer to the end. In terms of gameplay and presentation, it goes beyond most other JRPGs would ever dream of. It successfully brings the original Persona 3 story into the modern era, making it feel like this was always how it was meant to be.
The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel III is difficult to recommend for Trails newcomers, though there are in-game resources to help bridge that gap. If you liked Cold Steel I and II, then there’s a very solid chance you’ll enjoy III, though plenty of scenes or lines probably still go over your head if that’s all you’ve seen. With that said, Cold Steel III is incomplete by itself. Despite its excesses, its narrative builds slowly into something that isn’t fully resolved until the next game, and it has shortcomings of its own. I still find Cold Steel III to be the best game of the four narratively overall, but it’s also held back by significant pitfalls in combat. Nonetheless, I still got a decent amount of enjoyment out of the game thanks to the better aspects of the story and the core fundamentals of the Trails battle system. It’s a high-maintenance game to get the most out of, with rough edges, but I still found it enjoyable more often than not.
If the main continuous story is the primary reason you want to play The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel IV, then I’m afraid it doesn’t live up to its own hype. I get the sense Falcom bit off more than they could chew with this arc, dragging far too many plot threads into this already big game and not finishing many of them in a fulfilling way. Much of the story’s tension is manufactured by one incredibly frustrating plot device that did substantially more harm than good to the narrative. Despite this, I enjoyed this game a surprising amount for everything else it has to offer. Plenty of great scenes and character moments can be found outside of the main story. A lot of the bonding events and optional events in this game are genuinely, surprisingly good. While not my favorite game in the entire Trails series in terms of systems, it is still the Cold Steel title I most enjoyed in terms of gameplay sections. Several combat aspects were tweaked enough from III for me to feel like I was genuinely engaging with its systems. This game is noticeably imperfect and unlikely to be enjoyed by someone who isn’t already a fan of the series, but there’s enough to enjoy if you’re willing to spend the time to do so. The lows are among the lowest in the series, but the highs are high enough to salvage a decently enjoyable JRPG for me.
In the end, I feel like KONOSUBA - God's Blessing on this Wonderful World! Love For These Clothes Of Desire! will be enjoyed by anyone who liked the anime. Whilst it's not exactly a great main plot and the gameplay doesn't stand out, it's a lot of fun moments spent with a cast of characters with a brilliant dynamic and plenty of fanservice.
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is an excellent game where you can easily spend a hundred hours if you get sidetracked. While it doesn't quite live up to Ichiban's last adventure, it comes close. I imagine long-time fans especially will appreciate Kiryu's closing chapter, while it might spark an interest in newer fans to go back and visit the older titles.