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Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth somehow manages to spin multiple plates without smashing any of them. It’s over-the-top serious when it wants to be, and it’s utterly absurd in the next moment. Great Final Fantasy games have always managed to walk this line, and it’s a testament to how the brand has stayed relevant for decades on end.
There’s a lot here that feels great, but it’s the inconsistency that lets it down. All those great moments are padded by a framework that doesn’t do them enough justice. Too much emphasis on scrounging, an unfocused narrative, and a generally poor feeling of momentum and progression. I’m still certain that there are some who will be able to overlook the game’s flaws and latch onto its unique charm. However, I think just as many people are going to bounce right off it. Either way, it isn’t a comfortable ride.
Kill the Justice League is the epitome of, “it gets good X hours in.” It’ll suck at first, then it’ll show you it’s capable of at least some moments of awesomeness. Fans of the DC universe may find a little more value in it, especially if you value narrative over gameplay, but Rocksteady’s latest is simply okay – nothing more or less.
Arzette: The Jewel of Faramore is such an unjudgmental love letter to Link: The Faces of Evil and Zelda: The Wand of Gamelon. It’s a reminder that whether or not a game is good or bad isn’t the whole store. It’s more complex than that. The internet found legitimate entertainment in the CD-i Zelda games, and rather than write them off as ridiculous, Seedy Eye dug in and asked why. It found what was so compelling about those astounding failures and applied those lessons in a thoughtful and deliberate way. The result transcends its influences and takes on a life of its own.
I could see myself blasting through levels of Mario vs. Donkey Kong while waiting for a flight at the airport, or on the train to work, and that’s the best-case scenario for this package, brimming with bite-sized platforming challenges. It may not contain all the spectacle of others, but there’s enough precise jumping and quick calculations here to satisfy the more hardcore, goal-oriented, score-chasing Mario players around.
However, Cannibal Abduction is solid for what it is. It’s to the point where I might recommend it to any newcomers. If you want to introduce someone to slasher horror games, it’s a comfortable entry point that might not immediately scare them away. For any longtime fans of the indie scene, however, it might feel a bit too familiar. Nonetheless, it’s still an enjoyable morsel that, at the very least, justifies its price tag.
If you’re looking for a stealth VR game, Vampire: The Masquerade – Justice will certainly scratch that itch. The story is intriguing and thought out enough to make it worthwhile if you care about Vampire: The Masquerade. And it’s very evident that Fast Travel Games aimed to fit into the overall material setting. But the underwhelming RPG elements, primarily the Vampire Powers, as well as buggy controls and AI, make the experience fall a bit short of what I think this bloodsucking journey could have been.
It’s odd to say, but I felt sad playing Reload. Not for anything occurring within it. Rather, it reminded me that I had fallen out of love with Atlus. If anything, it’s fitting that Persona 3 Reload helped me realize that. Much of it is about learning to move on, and I’m going to do just that.
Impressive efforts with a few noticeable problems holding them back. Won't astound everyone, but is worth your time and cash.
Phantom Abyss isn’t a perfect endless temple speedrunner, but for a dozen or so hours, it has a great hook.
Granblue Fantasy: Relink features an incredibly satisfying gameplay loop on the back of an outstanding, fast-paced combat system. If you’re looking for a narrative-driven experience, this isn’t it. But if you’re looking for a fun grind that constantly feels satisfying and rewarding, that’s exactly what you have here.
So, to digress, The Adventures of Panzer: Legacy Collection features a pair of okay platformers that will probably have more value if you have an affection for the NES platform. They’re really nothing that you have to play, but for a relatively low price tag, you can get a glimpse of someone growing as a game designer. And that’s pretty cool in its own right.
Despite floundering a bit with meta-progression mechanics, Backpack Hero is still a thoroughly entertaining deckbuilding roguelike. Its use of item management as a central game mechanic is wildly inventive, and I consistently wanted to reenter the dungeon just to explore new item synergies. I do wish the town sections didn’t drag the pace of the main campaign as much as they did. But even if you strictly use the Quick Game mode, Backpack Hero is still a worthwhile venture.
Among the wealth of Like a Dragon games we’ve had over the last year or so, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is easily the stand-out for me.
It’s certainly a fun game while it lasts. The breeziness of the puzzles and charming but unremarkable soundtrack make it a comfortable experience. I really enjoyed playing Dead Tomb, I’m not sure I’m going to remember the game will stand in my memory quite as much as the history behind it. At least the price for the digital version makes that kind of experience absolutely worth the recommendation.
Turnip Boy Robs a Bank is a fast-paced steal ’em up that wears its purposefully repetitive hook on its sleeve. There’s a genuine sense of discovery in these steel-reinforced walls, and it’s nice to see Snoozy Kazoo improving upon the art of the first game to create a more unified pixel aesthetic that extends from the gameplay to the character art during dialogue exchanges. It’s also dumb as hell, which appeals to me in the most primitive way possible.
So, while Another Code: Recollection didn’t really do much for me, I hope that it finds an audience, whether it’s newcomers to the series or fans of the old.
But right now, Pocketpair has managed to both deliver on its surreal vision, and still create something that feels like more than just a novel “what-if” mash-up of ideas.
Rogue Trader is gargantuan and annoying on occasion, but haunting and wonderful through and through. It captures what makes Warhammer 40,000 so captivating and horrifying through its presentation, setting the mood in a way that keeps me enthralled through the worst of it. If Owlcat is anything, it’s a studio that creates RPG diamonds. It hasn’t made one without rough edges just yet, though I hope it eventually perfects its craft.
Never played the game before? Well, I don’t think it’s worth piling on any more praise, except to say this is about as good as it gets when it comes to Sony’s cinematic over-the-shoulder third-person action-adventure experience.