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Bravely Default II is a classic RPG for fans of old school turn-based games. These types of games are a treat these days, as most modern RPGs have gone to a more active-based combat system. Old guys like me love to play games in the style we grew up with but with a modern spin, and this game does just that. Some folks will think this one is grindy, but if you use the bait that allows for multiple battles at once that give big EXP and JP bonuses, you can build up your party really quickly. I put about 75 hours into this one and achieved the true ending with all jobs mastered. This is a wonderful return to form for this franchise and worth every penny of the $59.99 price tag. If you are fan of classic RPGs or love a good story, don’t sleep on this one, snag it up as soon as possible. You’ll be glad you did.
I have to say, Blue Reflection: Second Light not only meets my expectations, but exceeds them. I spent right around 40 hours with this one and fell in love with all the characters. The stories told here are not only very emotional, but relatable to all of us on a certain level, and that’s something I find very rare in gaming. The graphics and sound design just really drove home how emotional and wonderful this story is. I had a great time with the crafting system, obtaining new items and building facilities to unlock more events with the girls. Gust should really look hard at the combat system they used here. It takes everything I loved about Ryza’s combat and makes it better. Anyone that loved the anime or the previous game should snag this up as soon as possible at the $59.99 price tag. There is a lot here you’re gonna love. If you have never played or experienced anything from this amazing franchise, there is no better time to start than right now. There is nothing else quite like it.
Despite any issues I had with the game, though, Endwalker was an experience I cherish, not only as a longtime Final Fantasy XIV player, but as someone who loves the power stories have to explore difficult subjects, but still affirm the beauty of humanity. Endwalker made me angry, sad, joyful and everything in between throughout its runtime. It’s been absolutely brilliant, and I am forever thankful for the chance to experience this story and this world.
Without a doubt, Atelier Sophie 2: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Dream is one of my favorite releases of this year. The graphics are top notch, gameplay is great, and the soundtrack is simply amazing. The story here is what I love the most. This is a positive story that is pure JRPG comfort food, and damn if we all don’t need some comfort right now. I was a little worried when this was announced and about how a follow up to Sophie would work, and I can safely say, I was worried for nothing. The game retails for $59.99, and I spent around 56 hours with this one. This a fantastic release in the franchise and a must own for fans. This title is very welcoming to newcomers as well, so if you never picked up one of these great JRPGs, now is a good time to jump in.
Overall I had a fantastic time with Yurukill: The Calumniation Games. I loved the story, characters, art style, music and the gameplay is some of the best I’ve experienced in a long time. I feel like fans of either of these genres would have a ton a fun with this game. The shmup sections are pretty challenging but there is an easy setting for folks like me that suck at them greatly. You can adjust this to your liking and take them on in higher settings in the challenge mode that features online leaderboards. It took me about 13 hours to complete the story here, but I feel like there is a bit of replay value here just taking on various shooting in the unlocked mode. This one is easy to recommend at that $39.99 price tag and will likely be one of the best and most unique titles released this year.
At the end of the day, Atelier Ryza 3: Alchemist of the End & The Secret Key is everything I could’ve hoped for. It’s a fantastic end to this amazing series, the gameplay is fantastic and I love this cast almost as much as the Arland crew, which is quite a lot. I would love to see them revisit Ryza someday as she takes an apprentice just to see how things changed down the line. This game is worth every penny of the $59.99 price tag and I would highly suggest everyone check out all of Ryza’s titles. They are all amazing in their own ways, topped off by this truly amazing final chapter.
Even with these issues, though, Stray is undoubtedly one of my favorite gaming experiences of the year. The freedom of exploration offered by the novel protagonist, the dense world-building, and the atmospheric sound design all coalesced to provide an emotionally-moving and poignant game that I still can’t stop thinking about. I have a couple trophies left to get, but even if I didn’t, I’d still boot up the game just to walk around the city, drink in the sights and sounds, and find a comfortable place to catnap so I could listen to the stray purr contentedly. Despite its short length and some technical issues, Stray is definitely going into my list of impactful games and I’m really happy I had the chance to play it.
Overall, Panzer Paladin was actually better than I thought it might be. It wasn’t quite perfect, but it came really damned close. If they had done things like make Remixed a bit more different than Classic, or ironed out the glitches I experienced in Tournament mode, I would have given this a perfect score. It’s a tremendous value for only $19.99, with multiple endings, tons of different modes and an adventure I won’t soon forget. I spent about 10 hours beating the game the first time, but since then have spent several more hours just enjoying the game. I always knew Tribute was capable of greatness, and I’m so glad they achieved it in Panzer Paladin. Now I just hope they have a sequel in the works, cause I want to see more from this amazing world.
Curse of the Moon 2 is great however you slice it. It’s not quite perfect, but it’s so damn close that it barely matters. For $14.99, it’s a bit pricier than the original, but still a great bargain. I enjoyed all the time I spent with the game, especially since there’s more to unlock. I have two mystery modes I’m working to open up, but even then there’s a lot of replay value here. You have multiple endings, as well as plenty of ways to progress through the game, and if a friend is close by, you can also enjoy the co-op mode, which looks really fun. You’ll even unlock cool features like the ability to play as Ultimate Zangetsu, who is even more of a badass than usual. While I would have appreciated a feature like an art gallery or bestiary showing all the enemy names, there’s very little to complain about here. If you like classic platformers and love Castlevania flavor, you absolutely need to own this game. Now I’m just hoping to get an announcement of a Curse of the Moon 3, cause frankly I enjoy these side stories more than Ritual of the Night.
Treachery In Beatdown City well surpassed my expectations. I was skeptical of the combat system and how long it could hold my interest, but after nearly six hours I find myself wanting the second episode to drop the moment I finish typing this review. It scales up nicely in difficulty and sprinkles in new moves, new enemies and new tactics at just the right rate to keep things interesting the whole way through. I’m usually the “wait for a sale” type and not keen on episodic games, particularly ones that cost $20 on the Nintendo eShop, but even if the second episode somehow bombed I’d still be happy with what the first delivered. Here’s hoping that wherever the game goes from here, it involves even more fighting and a healthy helping of Farooq’s halal.
It’s always hard improving on something like Persona 4 Golden. And while you can debate if this port succeeds, it’s still a joy to play Persona 4 Golden on Steam. Especially if you’ve always been interested but didn’t want to buy a Vita to play it. You can own the game for only $19.99 for the standard edition, or $24.99 for the deluxe with digital artbook and soundtrack, either of which is a bargain for 50+ hours of content. Put simply, the must own title for Vita owners is now a must own title for PC gamers. It’s a treat to cover this release, and I hold out hope there’s more on the way soon from the fine folks at Atlus and SEGA.
Honestly the biggest negative for me is that Ara Fell: Enhanced Edition ends at all. I really got lost in this wonderful RPG world, and was sad to see it end. I know I love a game when I even enjoy the puzzles in it. Thankfully there’s an epilogue after the credits roll, which does a decent job of tying up plot threads while still leaving room for a potential sequel. Suffice to say, I really hope Stegosoft Games has a sequel in the works, cause I desperately want to return to this fascinating world. If you love classic RPGs and want something you can get lost in for only $14.99, look no further. It’s easily one of my favorite RPGs of 2020 thus far.
Altogether, the Contra Anniversary Collection is still a hell of a bargain. As a gamer that grew up playing many of these games, it’s nice having a bunch of them together in one place. I probably spent 12 hours or so playing through the entire thing. I’m a bit dissatisfied that some of my other favorite games in the series aren’t here, such as Shattered Soldier and Contra 4. But even without those, this Collection is a great deal for only $19.99. If you love over the top mayhem, giant bosses and lots of challenge, look no further.
Yumeutsutsu Re:Master is the most insane yuri visual novel I’ve read. More than Nurse Love Syndrome. Kogado and Degica continue to prove themselves as the dynamic duo that deliver emotionally heavy scripts in the unlikeliest of settings. The exceptional voice work and character art makes this a feast for the eyes and ears. I was personally on the hook from beginning to end and I long for more. Thankfully, we have Yumeutsutsu Re:After to look forward to. However, there’s an elephant in the room that we need to address: the price. It’s hard for me to convince you to spend $64.99 on this visual novel. I’ll never forget the 25 hours I’ve spent reading this. The problem is that it was only 25 hours. Should the game’s price ever dip to the same as its Nurse counterpart, I’ll wholeheartedly recommend it. Until then, wait for a sale.
All in all, I’m still very much a fan of Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE after beating Encore. It’s basically the same game, just with a bit of extra content thrown in and some minor quality of life improvements such as the Quick Session option and faster load times. While I was ultimately unimpressed with the EX Story, I still appreciate being able to play one of my favorite Wii U exclusives on my Switch portably. If you’re a fan of Japanese culture and love crazy RPGs full of heart, you owe it to yourself to play Encore. Now I just have to cross my fingers and pray we get a true sequel that improves on this already fantastic experience.
It’s true that The Legend of Bum-Bo isn’t for everyone. It’s demented, crude, immature and hard as hell. And yet, it’s crazy addictive, fun and very compelling. If you don’t mind losing a lot and like a game with good strategy, I think you’ll enjoy it. I know I loved my time with it, and found it an incredible bargain for only $14.99. I wasn’t sure what to expect from this prequel to The Binding of Isaac, but should have known I’d end up appreciating it. Especially the super clever ending you’ll get once you beat the Basement for the first time. If you’re a fan of rogue or Edmund McMillen’s work, you’ll find a lot to enjoy in the darkness with Bum-Bo.
Ultimately, as a fan of platformers, I really enjoyed New Super Lucky’s Tale. But since I enjoyed the game so much, I was also hoping for more longevity and more challenge. That said, this is a game that’s easy to recommend for pretty much everyone, even if they don’t think they’re good at platformers. For $39.99, there’s a very enjoyable experience here, albeit a brief one, taking me about 6-7 hours. I think New Super Lucky’s Tale is worth every penny, though if you want more content for your money, you might want to wait for a small sale. That said, I still am very glad I got to play this love letter to the platformer genre, and hope to see more in the future from Playful.
All in all, Animal Crossing: New Horizons is a fantastic game and wonderful new entry to the series. For the most part, it does everything right and I highly recommend it to anyone who’s interested. If you’ve never played Animal Crossing before, keep your expectations in check, it’s not at all a fast paced game. It is extremely casual and even based on real time. So long as you keep your expectations in check, or you’re specifically looking for a casual game, then I most definitely recommend New Horizons. While I have already received my 3 star rating and gotten K.K. Slider to hold a concert, there’s plenty more I haven’t done yet. Fortunately, my more significant complaints weren’t enough to completely sour the experience and I look forward to playing for many more hours. With all that’s been going on in the world lately, it’s obvious that Animal Crossing New Horizons being delayed until March 2020 was the best thing that could’ve happened to it. It was well worth the wait and I’d almost believe it was destined to release when it did.
I highly recommend this game to any card game fan. The story is hefty, and may have some very bad pacing at the start, but the game is fun and well worth the price that it usually retails for.
Still, I do think the DLC is well worth it if you like Dead Cells. It’s more of a good game, and I’d argue that it’s some of the better content, at least as far as the early game goes. The weapons are all really fun too. It’s $5, and even though you can technically see all of the content within 20 minutes, this is a rogue-like. You’re gonna be replaying it quite a lot, and on a larger timescale, which adds quite a lot of variety. The base game is $25, and while that might seem somewhat steep for what the game is, I’ve put over a hundred hours into the game, so it’s well worth it.