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I am glad Metal Wolf Chaos has a modern release. I just wish it didn’t have the problems it does. I’d also argue that it’s perhaps best remembered from a distance. While the cutscenes and dialogue have a wonderful charm about them, the gameplay itself is not nearly as remarkable. The game is currently $25, and it’ll last you at least 10 hours, or more if you like it enough to try to get high scores. With the visual aspect of this game just not being up to par with the original, if you have the means to play the original, or own it already, I can’t see this remaster being a compelling purchase. For anyone that’s just curious, or wants to experience more of From Software’s library, I’d at least recommend trying to pick it up when it’s on sale and going in with tempered expectations.
After around 10 hours, ROGUE CORPS ultimately feels like it was made by a rushed studio with limited resources, not a lot of production weight behind it and, quite frankly, not a lot of time. For $40, I’d say if you’re very VERY thirsty for more CONTRA after the $20 CONTRA Anniversary Collection earlier this year, you could look at this and find some things acceptable, after a price drop, of course. As stated at the beginning, this is indeed my first foray into this franchise. It is possible that I’m viewing this game through a lens it wasn’t intended to be looked through, and a lens that possibly a longtime CONTRA fan could view very differently. There were times that I found myself kinda zoning out while playing it, just shooting and killing hundreds and hundreds of mutants as time goes by. So if nothing else, it’s a great time waster. However, there’s a season pass available for it, so there is a very small light at the end of the tunnel, and hopefully it can get better with a multitude of potential update patches. My heart goes out to developer Toylogic, as their work is more than likely far from done.
In the end, BurgerTime Party! can be a fun experience, but doesn’t have a long lasting appeal. I only spent 3 to 4 hours playing. But thanks to it being on the Switch, the game does have the virtue of being a decent portable experience where you play five stages and then can be on your way. Unfortunately, I can’t give an opinion on the multi-player aspect, having played only single-player. Priced at $19.99, you will get your money’s worth just by content alone, especially if you’re a fan of more arcade-like games. If you are more uncertain, I reckon waiting for a price drop before taking a bite.
Vandals was a bit of a mixed experience for me. I enjoyed parts of it, and found others held it back. I also really wish the game had more lore or something to ground things in. I don’t need a story to enjoy a game, but the fabric of the world it inhabits is still important. And while the art is simple and focused, they do tend to reuse environments and assets a bit too much. Though thankfully the main musical theme is pretty catchy. Then again, at $3.99, this is the most affordable version of the game, and I got at least 8-10 hours out of it. If you like quirky indie games on Switch, I’d say to give this one a shot. But if you want something incredibly meaningful and lasting, this might not be for you.
Overall, Ghost Parade reminds me a lot of games I played on the SNES and PS2. As a kid, I would’ve loved this game, having great nostalgia in adulthood. Yet here I am as an adult, unable to look past the very flaws I could’ve overlooked as a kid. As such, the game feels like it was made with love, but pulled down by inexperience. Having played this game for five hours, it feels the game falls just short for the $39.99 price tag. Instead, I would say wait for a sale to come along. I hope the developers who made this game makes another title. Experience is experience after all, and I am sure if they can overcome their flaws,they can craft a fantastic game in the future.
Altogether, Whipseey and the Lost Atlas isn’t a bad game. For a first effort, it has its share of charm and challenge. It just doesn’t really succeed in being anything more than an average game. That said, for $5.99 you probably get your money’s worth. I hope that Daniel Ramirez and Blowfish Studios collaborate again on an upgraded sequel, since I feel the good outweighs the bad here. If you want a simple platformer, then look no further. But hardcore platformer enthusiasts won’t find a lot to keep them busy.
My biggest complaint with EarthNight is that the game was constantly tripping over its own ideas, even the good ones. For $14.99, it’s not an expensive game, but I still find it hard to recommend. If you like rogue and don’t mind a very grindy, often confusing experience, you might wanna pick it up. For everybody else, at least wait til some patches have smoothed out the rough edges in the Switch version. Despite all that, I was impressed by Cleaversoft’s creativity in EarthNight, and hope it is put to better use in their next adventure.
Even as I’m writing this, taking the game in its entirety, am I struggling with my feelings for Forgotten Trace – Thanatos in Nostalgia. It has its moments of pure brilliance, but they are buried under such striking flaws. I also cannot ignore Almaz’s development of this series, as this Chapter was originally completed and released back in 2015 in Japan, meaning it has taken five years to reach this point for Western audiences on top of the fact that little progress has been seen from Almaz since. And so I find it incredibly difficult to recommend this game, both as a stand-alone visual novel, as well as the series prologue it’s meant to be. This first Chapter will leave players with a sense of ambiguity due to the lack of closure and there has been little news coming from Almaz, leading me to believe that the continuation, let alone an eventual conclusion, to this series will not happen in a reasonable amount of time. I don’t fault Fruitbat Factory for bringing this visual novel to Western audiences, but given the fluctuating quality of the original product and the assumed length of time before we may see any continuation, this might be a hard pass for many. It’s truly unfortunate, as I, myself, am enticed enough, desiring to see the Forgotten Trace series to its next installment.
Overall, the Rose & Camellia Collection isn’t a terrible experience, it’s just not a great one. While the controls sound good on paper, they are inconsistent in execution. Throw in some crazy difficulty spikes on top of this and things can get frustrating very quickly. I had a blast with over the top stories and the campy but fitting voice acting, but I think this package might be a bit overpriced at $20 for around 3 hours of gameplay. That said, if you catch this one on sale, and want a fun story with some unique controls, this might just fit the bill.
Custom Mech Wars isn’t really a bad game, but it gets wrong the one thing that makes it really shine by not letting players have access to the parts fast enough. It’s really fun to create some crazy mech and just go out there and blast all your foes to bits during the missions, but when you have to use the same ones for most of the game because you don’t have enough parts to make what you really want, it gets a little frustrating. I’d have a hard time recommending this one at the full $49.99 price tag, but if you catch it on sale, there is some fun to be had here. It took me around 13 hours to beat all of the missions on normal mode, and you could put a ton more in if you wanted to grind out all the parts to make the really cool mechs. Hopefully, they continue to patch the game a bit more and allow players access to more fun stuff to build their crazy creations with faster.
Ultimately, in the game’s current state, Fashion Dreamer wasn’t bad. I had a ton of fun dressing up my character and collecting different clothing. But, it also didn’t have much of a long gameplay life, I simply wasn’t extremely into it for more than a week. Although, you should know that this isn’t the game’s final complete release. By that I mean, various upcoming free updates have been announced. These are simply my thoughts on the game as is, before any updates have come out. I had fun with Fashion Dreamer for what it is, but it could’ve been a lot better. I don’t think I would pay the full $49.99 price for this. As it is now, I definitely would recommend waiting for a sale if it sounds like something you would enjoy. I might possibly write a follow-up in the future, should the game be substantially different or receive a lot more substance after all of the updates are out.
I have a love-hate relationship with Rune Factory 5. I love the relaxing atmosphere and simple daily life activities, straightforward combat, and the Rigbarth citizens. My experience was unfortunately muddied by questionable enemy design, an absurd difficulty spike, and numerous issues and bugs that found their way into the final product. I think if you’re a longtime Rune Factory fan you might find something to like. However, if you’re a newcomer, I cannot recommend buying the game at its $59.99 retail price until they fix some of the issues I mentioned earlier. If the game is on sale, and the game is updated, I say knock yourself out. The best way to play the game is on PC, and I guarantee you’ll at least love the characters and simple farming life.
Trinity Trigger isn’t a bad game, but it isn’t the best game either. Its strong points are its simple combat, loveable main cast, and charming graphics. However, it could use some work in the story and sound departments. I do hope the game’s development staff continues to stick with this world they created, as there are some interesting concepts, they just need to be expanded upon. I think newcomers and veteran action RPG players can find something to like about this game, just don’t come in with super high expectations. Due to the short playtime, I can’t recommend purchasing this game at the price of $49.99 (digitally). I suggest waiting for a sale before picking this one up, if you’re interested.
Overall, Cions of Vega is an average Walking Sim. The game only lasts a couple hours and even though I feel like the story is lacking a bit, it did keep my interest. The music is very good the few times it plays and while this isn’t a great looking title, it’s not a terrible one either. At the $6.99 price tag, fans of the genre will probably like this one, or XBOX users looking for a quick 1000 points to their Gamerscore might wanna jump on this as well.
Overall, Absolute Tactics: Daughters Of Mercy is a good SRPG that is dragged down by its subpar story. The gameplay here is good and fans of the this genre will find a lot to love here. The story being the way it is really hurts this, since most of these games you are driven to complete the story maps to see how it progresses. The bad writing here makes you not really care halfway through, so it begins to feel tedious. I spent right around 17 hours with this one on normal difficulty, but this will vary depending on the level of difficulty you choose to play on. It’s hard for me to fully recommend this one at the $24.99 price tag, unless you are just a hardcore Strategy RPG fan. That being said, if you snag this one up on sale down the line you will probably find things you enjoy about it.
There are three difficulties where there are, at base, four in every preceding Shadow Warrior game. Despite it being a single player game that is linear but still has upgrades, there are no additional modes like a horde mode or even new game+. The only content in the game are literally the levels. How long did it take me to beat the game? Five hours. Five hours for a $49.99 game with little to no replay value. This is almost insulting. You can’t even level select with any of your previous upgrades just to play through a single level if you want, nor is there a results screen. It should be noted that the game itself, on its own, is okay. It doesn’t do anything particularly crude or ill-thought out. Most of my criticisms were more or less along the lines on how the title feels weaker compared to other games in the franchise. It’s strange since I know Flying Wild Hog can do better. Unfortunately, with how the game ended, this is more than likely going to be the last Shadow Warrior game. That is the true disappointment considering my criticisms.
I have mixed feelings about The Dead Tree of Ranchiuna. I like the environments and sound design, but I feel like a game in this genre should really have a gripping story. The game just didn’t deliver for me in this area, but I can’t say I wouldn’t try out another walking simulator if I thought the story might fit my tastes better.
Justice Chronicles, like many others in the KEMCO library, possesses the pieces to be something remarkable, however, with the common missteps that I see time and again, the overall experience once again ends up a satisfactory, though unextraordinary one. Compared with other titles I’ve reviewed, this game is on par with Asdivine Hearts, though I would sooner recommend Revenant Saga or Antiquia Lost, which remain my standards for the publisher. Although it’s advertised as a 40+ hour game, I think an assessment of 25-30 is more accurate, and the $14.99 USD price on Steam is fair. It has its missteps, yet with a curious story, appreciable characters, and new game mechanics for the publisher, Justice Chronicles sustains my hope for an extraordinary production in the future.
At the end of the day, Queeny Army is a decent retro style shooter held back by a few design choices. The game is still a decent value at just $4.99 on the Switch, and if you can overlook some of the frustrating design choices here, there is some fun to be had. Each of the ladies having their own story adds quite a bit of replay value, so if this is your type of game, there is plenty of bang for your buck here. I just feel like the frustration level outweighs the fun for me, but to each their own. I’m sure some of you out there will quite enjoy this.
Overall, I found Kitaria Fables to be an okay game. It’s a cute indie game full of adorable animal characters and an interesting enough story. But the endless fighting of the same enemies over, and over, for bettering my equipment to survive the next area of monsters, really burned me out and distracted from the charm. If you love games where you’re constantly fighting monsters for materials and equipment, and you don’t mind every now and then taking a break to chill and farm, you’ll definitely have a good time with this one. Sadly, if you’re looking for a new farming sim to relax with, I would look elsewhere. The farming in Kitaria is only there to provide the crops and/or income required for your adventuring, nothing more.