"There are no grades given for goals and wishes. No matter how small they may seem to others, as long as I keep moving forward they will eventually come to fruition.
As it is the desire for that wish to become reality that will keep you going until the end."








This is gonna be the single most biased review in all of history so buckle up.

Type Moon's magnum opus, the first and best game of Kazuya Niino's PSP trilogy.

I love Fate/EXTRA to death, it is the most masterfully crafted and methodically put together piece of media I've ever had the pleasure to experience.

This is the story of Hakuno Kishinami searching for themselves amidst a dire scenario where they have to face mankind at its purest state to fully understand the meaning of being human, the thing that drives us to go out there and want to make a difference, stand by our values and enjoy life even at its harshest moments.

Every foe they face carries a theme and none of them are wasted. It builds this incredibly flawless character study of humanity itself through people who embody the aspects that define us as people.

Shinji's friendship and greed, Dan's pride and code of honor, Alice's vulnerability and need for support, Gatou's religious clinging, Ronnie's downfall to the carnal desire, Julius' search for love, Rani's understanding of humanity and Rin's rebellion against stagnation (Cleverly both defining aspects of Hakuno, who they get to interact with the most), Leo's strive towards perfection and Twice's nihilistic and bitter but ultimately thoughtful view on the process of human evolution.

It wastes no beats and packs so much density in such a perfectly tied narrative.

The recontextualization of the Holy Grail War into a death game that dissects humanity is a sight to behold.

The servant trinity is an absolute highlight. Nero, Nameless and Tamamo are fantastic. They provide an amazing replay value to the game since each one has their own distinct chemistry with Hakuno and they're all so fucking cool man I love them so much.

There's an infinity of nuance and depth to explore after multiple playthroughs and way too many shower thought sessions.

Hakuno Kishinami is my favorite character of all time. Don't see that ever changing either. There's something truly special with Hakuno that gets me in a way no other character ever could and I honestly cannot point out what it is specifically. Is it their beautiful story of self recognition? Is it their awe inspiring unbreakable resolve and strive towards betterment of the body and mind? Is it their bittersweet and often times heart wrenching purity that leads them to still find a worth to this life they were given even amidst this hellish scenario? I honestly can't tell and I could waste 90% of this review just gushing about every single character defining line they hit you with like a hammer when you least expect, however I do want to keep this spoiler free so I don't want to delve into the specifics and revelations about their character. They're just the best man, I love my Hakuno Kishinami so much.

Even without spoilers I will say tho the ending is the most beautiful and heartfelt conclusion possible to this story accompanied by an ending quote that instantly became my favorite bit of writing ever.

I don't think exploring the writing any further is needed since there's just WAY too much to talk about so yeah it's the coolest fucking shit ever written. #ThankYouNiino

Outside of the writing, it's a game that aged like wine visually. The look of Niino's games are always artistically driven to the bone and EXTRA is no different. The dungeons are extremely striking and creative, Tsukihimihara is such a cool place to live in, Wada's art is awesome, the enemies look so wacky and fun...

I DON'T EVEN NEED TO SAY ANYTHING ABOUT THE OST BRUH THAT SHIT IS NUCLEAR BANGER ITS BEEN KNOWN SHINJI HOSOE TE AMO JAZZ FOR THE SOUUUULLL

The gameplay is infamously the divisive factor but I personally am a fan. I respect the hustle Niino has for never going for the traditional no matter what with the combat in his games (I will get to Black Rock Shooter's bizarre third person turn based jrpg combat) and the RPS combat has layers beyond its initial RNG factor. Boss fights in particular are immensely fun with this system, at the cost of a repetitive but decent usage against average mobs.

In summary, it's a game that drips heart through every single one of its pores, has so much to say while at the same time being so simple and sincere at its core. A masterpiece in every sense of the word. A game I will forever hold dear and cherish, truly a lifechanging experience that has been shaking up how I perceive myself and life as a whole immensely during these early stages of adulthood.





Also Hakuno is so fucking hot please have sex with me I am begging you

The second and weakest game in the Fate/EXTRA trilogy.

It kinda starts off feeling like a diet Fate/EXTRA (similar themes and even story beats) but by the end it pulls through as its own beast with a very bitterweet story about identity.

In contrast to the anime interpretation of BRS, we follow Miss Black Rock Shooter herself as the MC, known as Stella in this continuity.

A very interesting thing to do with BRS as a franchise is to analyze how each new interpretation of the character uses the original song for its narrative. Through this world's lenses, it's probably sang by the last remaining humans, pledging for Stella to save them from the aliens.

On the topic of Stella, she's a great MC. Maaya Sakamoto does a fantastic job characterizing her cold yet soulful nature. Her character arc sees her going through a global odyssey in search for the meaning of her existence in true Kazuya Niino MC fashion. One of my favorite aspects was her relationship with Nana, a classic tale of familial acknowledgement (or supposed lack thereof in Nana's case) that culminates in a beautiful conclusion.

Nana is a fantastic deuteragonist, acting as an insanely charming foil to Stella's personality (especially during the extra missions, a must see) while delivering the heart of the story during its true ending.

The soldiers are great, extremely charismatic and insanely charming, they work really well considering the limited screen time they receive (Rothcal my beloved).

The aliens are extremely stylish and unique antagonists. What they lack in pure writing they more than make up for with charisma and distinct personalities. WRS receives minimal screen time and still manages to solidify her presence as iconic.

The combat functions as third person shooter that plays like a turn based jrpg.
I need more directors like Niino in my life, pushing for a mentally deranged new take on the old rpg formula for no fucking reason other than his distaste for the generic and formulaic. Thank you Niino.

It's very similar to EXTRA's in the sense that it gets WAY better as the game progresses, it's an extremely odd but kinda fun combat which again much like its older brother, also is at its best during boss fights. I wish the bike sections were in it more cus they're very fun.

The OST is fucking amazing. The level themes set such a thick atmosphere, it's hard to not get sucked into the scenario by them. The battle themes are varied and insanely funky. Niino's unparalleled mastery of the PSP hardware shows itself once again with the visual direction being as good as always, from the dystopic streets of NY to the gorgeous and relaxing Fuji Forest.

Criticisms? Well, this game introduced the True Ending formula that carried to CCC (which I explore more in depth on that game's review) which I don't particularly like, even if in this game it's a lesser evil since you don't have to replay the whole game again due to the mission based structure. However, it still robs the initial playthrough of one of the nicest parts of the story for no reason so that's definitely its biggest con.

Overall, it's a Kazuya Niino game, you know what you're gettin into. A fantastic title that ages like wine in my mind the more time passes.