Gio
2015
Imma be honest I played this for the sex but I feel like the people who need the lessons about consent are not the people who will be inclined to play an otome game.
If you asked an alien to write a soap opera, this would be it.
2016
Good, but I suggest you play on Easy if you plan to play it only once. The backtracking and character switching mechanics will grind on you less, so you're free to enjoy blasting zombies and exploring lush surroundings. Seriously, the prerenders in this game are gorgeous.
2014
My favorite Metroidvania.
2005
Marks the first time it really hit me that Japan might as a society have lingering issues surrounding the monarchy. Abyss is problematic in many other ways (Asch), but you can tell the game definitely has a weird nostalgia for royal customs and duties and birthright shit.
I want to be clear though. Looking past all of that, this game rocks. I needed a decent mid-00s fantasy anime plot and I'd say Abyss even over-delivered slightly. I don't imagine this will remain my chosen favorite in the series when I eventually conclude my Tales series playthrough, but I appreciate the effort.
P.S. This game can be hilarious. See like 80% of lines spoken by a certain bespectacled guy with blonde hair.
I want to be clear though. Looking past all of that, this game rocks. I needed a decent mid-00s fantasy anime plot and I'd say Abyss even over-delivered slightly. I don't imagine this will remain my chosen favorite in the series when I eventually conclude my Tales series playthrough, but I appreciate the effort.
P.S. This game can be hilarious. See like 80% of lines spoken by a certain bespectacled guy with blonde hair.
If you grew up in an East/SE Asian country you probably absorbed a lot of creepy stories about the school you went to. Like dead bodies buried under the gym, or a white lady in the bathroom mirror if you spin around 5 times while chanting a prayer. This is that, and if it sounds appealing to you then try this out. It's very good.
An impressive achievement considering the sheer scope of modern Yu-Gi-Oh!. This is one of the last franchises that Konami still gives a damn about so maybe they should throw a little more money at development for these games.
Strained my forearms more than anything. Just a middling hack-and-slasher not helped by an of-its-time localization effort.
2011
I got to shoot balls at John Cena and Chomsky. Maybe low-key racist though?
2002
Builds such a compelling setup that, if you've finished both its predecessors, you might trust would lead to an exciting payoff. Unfortunately at the end this game falls a little short, though not for lack of trying (methinks it was mostly time and/or budget constraints, and perhaps complications following Murayama's departure).
The good news is that if you like the Suikoden games for their detailed world-building and their poignant stories about the best and worst of humanity, well that's what III is good at. Still the classiest RPGs around.
The good news is that if you like the Suikoden games for their detailed world-building and their poignant stories about the best and worst of humanity, well that's what III is good at. Still the classiest RPGs around.
2002
Retro understood Metroid down to its very essence and was therefore able to recreate it perfectly, for better or worse.
Worse in the sense that I got the same headaches here that I got in Super from having to backtrack endlessly inside the Planet Zebes maze. Not quite to the same degree, so let's call it an improvement. On the other hand, it's better in that you can see Samus' face on the HUD sometimes (she looks scared as shit), and it's so telling. It's such a cool touch.
Worse in the sense that I got the same headaches here that I got in Super from having to backtrack endlessly inside the Planet Zebes maze. Not quite to the same degree, so let's call it an improvement. On the other hand, it's better in that you can see Samus' face on the HUD sometimes (she looks scared as shit), and it's so telling. It's such a cool touch.
Classic that holds up thanks to a winning combination of deep systems and rapid-fire combat, set against a thick 90s sci-fi atmosphere. The game does run out of steam by the end but I just couldn't put my 3DS down for most of it. I'm also new to SMT (Persona notwithstanding) and to me this game served as a "safe" path getting nto the main series. Adjustable difficulty and QOL features like full affinity information make for headache-free play. Then again, certain fusion mechanics probably could've been much less inscrutable.
Brilliant game about reconciling our want for individuality with our innate need to be part of a collective, aka the best game about the power of friendship I've ever played.
The combat system is genius too even though it can get a little too frantic for my tastes. And the game could be a lot better at helping the player learn how everything works, because reading pages and pages of tutorials ain't it.
The combat system is genius too even though it can get a little too frantic for my tastes. And the game could be a lot better at helping the player learn how everything works, because reading pages and pages of tutorials ain't it.
Charming brawler that feels like the missing link between Kunio-kun and Yakuza. They give you like 5 real life hours per playthrough (it's timed ala Majora's Mask) and literally every thing you can do (mostly beat the shit out of other kids) is fun.
1994
I don't know, moving around and between maps just felt like more of a hassle than it was worth most of the time.