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It may not be the next great JRPG, but if you’ve been looking for a tactics style game that provides a decent challenge, I’m going to recommend picking Monark up when your budget allows.
It usually takes a while before we see a sequel to an RPG. Yet here we are with Voice of Cards: The Forsaken Maiden arriving four months after The Isle Dragon Roars. Which means, well, things are going to feel similar! Not in terms of the story. This is a unique tale filled with warrior maidens, monsters, and high seas exploration. But given the brief gap between the two games, it will mechanically feel like a second verse of the same song.
Variable Barricade is another Switch otome game with that sort of set up, but this time it manages to pair a confident, outspoken heroine, imperfect love interests with some interesting backstories, and an attempt to be a bit more interactive rather well.
Guerrilla Games’ Horizon: Forbidden West is the sort of game that is easy to anticipate. It’s big! It’s full of interesting stuff to do! Many were sold on the promise of the PlayStation 5 at launch by the prospect of sinking days and weeks into a new Horizon. Thankfully, Forbidden West delivers on that promise in many ways.
If your action-RPG library has felt a little lacking as of late,Maglam Lord might be what you’re looking for. This story of a long-slumbering Bladelord awakening to a new world order combines dungeon exploration with side-scrolling encounters and a splash of romance.
Egglia Rebirth is a surprisingly dense game. The more I played, the more things began to fall into place. What I initially felt was just a mobile title ported to the Nintendo Switch quickly became a more in-depth and interesting turn-based RPG.
Pokemon Legends: Arceus dares to be different and, while sometimes it can feel like a bit of work, is quite refreshing!
Despite those small things, Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection blew me away on the PS5. The breathtaking landscapes and fluid gameplay heighted by the addition of improved feedback from the DualSense controller took a fantastic experience to another level.
Three decades have passed since the original’s release! But hey, Windjammers 2 is here, and it manages to deliver on core points.
Fans of golf RPGs? We’ve had a tough time of it lately. Recent Mario Golf entries have failed to deliver the depth of the Game Boy gems. The sequel to indie hit Golf Story, Sports Story? It’s on the way, we hear, but not as quickly as fans would want. So if you like this particular combination, you may be seeking out a stopgap.
God of War is a lore heavy game with a seemingly endless supply of pickups, quests, and side dialogue centered around Norse mythology and the relationship between a father, Kratos, and his young son Atreus.
Ultimately, Final Fantasy XIV Endwalker marked the end of an era. Plot threads from A Realm Reborn onward come to a close. The story is rife with fanfare, paying homage to past expansions in ways that sometimes feel overmuch or hit in just the right way.
Without fondness for the original games, you might find Shining Pearl and Brilliant Diamond less than compelling. With it, though? You’ll be fine as long as your expectations are in check. They’re faithful remakes!
Oink Games’ line of analog titles is all about packing value into an attractive, portable package. It makes sense, then, that Let’s Play! Oink Games is similarly slick. The collection, out now, includes four of the studio’s most popular releases, packaged up for both local and online play.
Shovel Knight Pocket Dungeon ticks all sorts of boxes. It is absolutely a puzzle game. You need to deal with falling “blocks” in a timely fashion. It also feels like an action-RPG. You need to consider your health, your equipment, and the amount of damage you’ll take. Roguelike elements come up too, due to being kicked back to camp when you die and opportunities to unlock relics for future runs.
Fortunately for fans of the genre who might look to review potential new games for their libraries, Dairoku: Agents of Sakuratani is a game with exceptional characters. It’s handled well, with great interactions and lore. The result is a visual novel that’s is a blast to play.
That’s what makes Monster Rancher 1 & 2 DX so fascinating. You see, Monster Rancher makes more sense now than it did then.
But of all the ones I’ve played, and consider that includes every localized Otomate game so far, Cupid Parasite is the one that best embraces the absurdity of the situation. It gets absolutely bonkers, which makes it all the more amusing and appealing.
The downside is, while it can still be compelling, the way it’s handled can also make things tedious. In review, Danganronpa S pales in comparison to the minigames its based upon.
With new visuals, greater accessibility features, and a re-orchestrated original soundtrack, Final Fantasy V Pixel Remaster keeps modern sensibilities in mind while maintaining the feel of the original release.