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his re-release offers genre fans a chance to rediscover a cult classic with a fresh coat of polish and some excellent quality of life features. If you’re up for a challenge, Rage of the Dragons NEO is more than worth the fight. The casual fighting gamer may be better of with other newly released fighters like Pocket Bravery or seek out ways to play more mainstream NEO GEO genre highlights like Garou: Mark of the Wolves or one of King of the Fighters games.
With Spirit Mancer's colorful world and lighthearted humor, the stage is set for an entertaining platforming adventure. However, the game falters under the weight of its own complexities and its ambition to mix mechanics. What could have been a promising platformer is hindered by static enemies designed to be caught rather than defeated, introducing pacing issues and stale gameplay through most of your playtime. Despite this, the game's charm and character as well as range of fun Spirit cards may just be enough to pull you through to the end.
In terms of structure, this may be a mixed bag for many players. Fans of Metal Slug who loved the high-octane, gun-blazing action may feel out of place here, aside from the immensely pleasing and nostalgic pixel art. Turn-based tactics enthusiasts might struggle with the roguelike, rinse-and-repeat progression. That said, the turn-based tactical gameplay is extremely fun and well-executed. Players who are open to something different and have the patience to let the somewhat overwhelming mechanics grow on them will undoubtedly find plenty of enjoyment in it.
AWAKEN - Astral Blade offers beautiful environments and engaging combat but lacks the polish to compete with genre leaders. For metroidvania enthusiasts seeking a new adventure, it provides satisfactory exploration and combat, despite its narrative and technical shortcomings.
Tetris Forever is a remarkable tribute to one of the most iconic games in video game history. With its impressive collection of fifteen games spanning over four decades, the set perfectly captures the evolution of Tetris across various platforms. The museum-style presentation, along with hours of additional content, offers an immersive experience that both fans and previous bystanders will appreciate. While minor UI and quality-of-life issues persist, they don't detract from the overall excellence of the compilation. With its careful curation and the sheer love put into the project, Tetris Forever is a must-have for any Retro-sensitive gamer.
Broken Sword Shadows of the Templars Reforged is an excellent game that can hold its own against modern games with ease. Fully voiced and gameplay with crisp new graphics complete the experience. Bonus points for adding both the upscaled version as the original one. If you fancy point-n-click games there is but one option. Click that 'Buy'-button. You won’t regret it.
#DRIVE Rally is for those who love to set best times on online leaderboards. The game offers a solid racing experience with a good sense of speed. Outside of time trails, there’s little else in the way of goals and there’s limited customization. The talkative navigators, while an interesting idea, I feel will find themselves muted fast by most players. And those looking for a proper rally experience, be it arcade or otherwise, best look elsewhere.
Roguelike diehards will feel right at home in the cyberpunk world of Elsie. Gamers seeking a straightforward platforming experience might find the roguelike mechanics convoluted and confusing with its messy UI. When you have the right upgrades at your disposal and the action is firing on all cylinders, Elsie is hard to put down. However, it feels like a chore to reach that point within every new run.
I personally appreciate being introduced to games I’ve never experienced and found a deeper appreciation for the rich history of SUNSOFT. I’ve really grown fond to Ripple Island in particular. For enjoyment however, it can’t compete with the company’s first cartridge on Evercade.
Difficulty spikes and sluggish controls detract from the experience in an otherwise enjoyable game. However, the gameplay fundamentals are solid and the game looks and sounds amazing.
It offers quite a bit of content with fun and engaging puzzles that pushes you to do more than look for patterns. It actively supports you to try, fail, and eventually solve it's 30 levels. SokoMage adds a lot to the core Sokoban gameplay which revitalizes the concept considerably.
Super Woden GP 2 feels like a toy box overloaded with content, featuring 180 different cars and dozens of tracks. Arcade racing enthusiasts are in for some good old-fashioned fun. Unfortunately, you have to grind your way through the game to unlock and enjoy all it has to offer.
SCHiM is an endearing, highly stylized experience that misses the beat on one or two critical elements in its design. It's visuals and controls motivate you to play through to the end, but actually having something to care about would evolve this game into the upper echelons of indie game development.
What Riven did, and still does, is connecting all its puzzle pieces into a coherent world to explore and learn about. Not through someone telling you, but by stumbling about and being forced to learn its frame of reference. And in that regard, Riven is perhaps not the most taxing puzzle game out there, but it is still an amazing experience that will demand your attention to fully comprehend it.
Musashi vs. Cthulhu is a challenging and fun action game. The controls are very responsive, and the game provides leaderboards to showcase your skills. If played in short bursts, it can offer a few enjoyable hours, but keep in mind that it doesn't have much depth.
Crow Country is a well written story survival-horror adventure that keeps you dig through the abandoned theme park for clues and missing objects while unravelling the story of Mr. Crow. It feels like a labor of love for old school genre classics and horror tropes. The PS1-era graphics add a lot of flavor to the mix as well.
If you’re in for challenging and engaging combat, daring dungeon dives, devious traps and clever puzzles, you’d best look elsewhere. However, if you’re in for a fairly casual exploration of strange lands and get drawn into some interesting lore, Dread Delusion can still deliver a fun experience worth your time!
Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord is without a doubt legendary game and this remake kept that original flair and gameplay loop in tact while adding nice visuals and solid UI to it. The additional retrospective features makes this a solid title for both gameplay and historical interest perspectives.
The reward mechanics in "Double Dragon Gaiden: Rise of the Dragon" might seem a bit convoluted, but its highly addictive Super KO and Crowd Control mechanics make it a thoroughly enjoyable experience. It is able to authentically tap into the nostalgia, while creating a completely original gameplay experience. With a sizable and distinctly diverse playable cast, attractive presentation, and intricate fighting mechanics, this game is one that genre fans can fully engage with while still being very accessible for casual gamers.