This is what I wait for with anime games, with so many spectacle fighters either going down the free-to-play or cheap arena fighter route. It's only once every year or two that we get something like this. I didn't set my expectations too high cause this project had every opportunity to come out half baked, but I was absolutely blown away. There were several times while playing this when my jaw dropped with just how epic and over the top these boss fights are. They did not need to go this hard but I'm so glad they did. I hope we get more anime games like this in the future.

I normally wouldn't be found in the same room as a horror game. I have no interest whatsoever in receiving spooks. However, a game that combines the insane plot of the first Alan Wake with the vibes of Remedy's previous game, Control, made me want to give this a try. I did not expect to find a 10/10 in the first week of January! If I had played this game a couple of weeks earlier, this would have been my 2023 game of the year!

The genius and insane story, the silly humor that presents itself in radio shows, adverts, and character interactions, the live-action elements that are so naturally integrated, the music (not looking at any song in particular… wink), the art direction, the dialogue, the setting, the sound design (the flashlight omg) and Remedy's history that is subtly celebrated—everything is absolutely top-tier. The only thing that falls short of the ridiculous standard set by every other aspect of the game is the gameplay because it's just good? Like, that's the only complaint—that something's good. But I was so invested in literally everything else this game does that it doesn't matter.

This is a game that is so proud to be itself that I get actual joy just thinking about it.