James Galizio's Reviews
Xenoblade Chronicles 2 does a lot of things right, but suffers under its own weight and poor design decisions. Despite everything it's the first exclusive jRPG worth owning for the Switch, and with a little more polish it could be one of the best jRPGs of the last few years.
Fire Emblem Warriors feels just as fresh as Hyrule Warriors did in some ways, though it never quite reaches the same highs. That doesn't mean it's not a great game, as the title is still a great addition to any Switch owner's library.
Ys Seven holds up in the conversion from PSP to PC, and stands out as the new best way to play an already great game.
Guilty Gear Xrd REV2 isn't enough of a change from its original release for any of the points that I made back then to have become obsolete. In the end it's just an expansion to an already great fighting game. No more, no less.
The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel II stumbles with its pacing in places where the first game doesn't, but it's still an RPG worth playing.
Project DIVA X might be a very different beast from its predecessors, but it ends up feeling like a step down in quality. It's still a great rhythm game worth playing, but newcomers to the series might want to play Project DIVA F 2nd instead for that game's more substantial content and feature set.
Overall, Ultra Despair Girls manages to be both a worthy distraction between the two mainline Danganronpa titles, while also giving a new coat of paint to the series' formula.
Much like the previous remakes; it separates itself from the rest of the games in the series, and has allowed the developers to truly experiment. It's not perfect - it's not even my favorite remake - but it is one of the distinguished Pokemon games that I have played in years.
Rounding it all out, Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR- adds enough new content to appeal to both hardcore and casual fighting game fans alike. Although the game isn't as much an evolution of the franchise as Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN- was at its release, it's still more than easy enough to recommend.
If you can get past Nitroplus Blasterz' somewhat steep learning curve, and obvious budget, you'll find a lot to love. It's hard to say just how active the game will stay in the long run, but for fighting game veterans it's definitely a title worth playing.
Overall, regardless of whether this is your latest Ys adventure, or even your first one, you could certainly do worse than picking up Ys VI. For fans, it'll probably seem a little less polished than later titles, but for both newcomers and veterans alike, there's a lot to love here. As a starting point for getting into the series, Ys VI makes sense, and for a returning player it's a no-brainer.
Nintendo and Arc System Works remake of the Nintendo DS and Wii cult classics successfully recreates Another Code for a new generation.
Lunacid succeeds at making the Great Well a world worth exploring, with secrets abound and more.
While it succeeds in its own right, Wo Long doesn't quite reach the same heights as Team Ninja's Nioh 1 and 2.
Cygames' roguelite action romp offers a compelling take on the genre, that's perfect for beginners to grit their teeth on.
Monster Hunter Stories 2 manages to improve upon nearly every aspect of the original game, though some lingering issues continue to hold the series back from true greatness.
Frustrations aside, Famicom Detective Club still manages to captivate all the same. It’s a miracle that these two Nintendo classics were ever localized, let alone as a global simultaneous release with these remakes. It was a blast to join the Detective Club after so many years, and I can only hope one day we can see a similar remake for the series’ 3rd game, sales permitting. If you’re at all a fan of either the Visual Novel or Japanese Adventure game genres, you owe it to yourself to experience this vital part of their history.
Monster Hunter Rise proves that Monster Hunter World's success wasn't merely a fluke, but the circumstances surrounding its development are clear.
Although it may come at an additional cost, Pokemon Sword & Shield's Expansion Pass has salvaged the games for this fan.
Tanegashima offers a more relaxed adventure in the Science Adventure universe and is more than worth your time reading.