Nepiki
2017
Full review over at my website: https://www.nepikigaming.com/reviews/magicat/
''Playing MagiCat feels like opening a Christmas calendar every day of the month; for each one that you open, there’s a new level with unique gimmicks- and puzzles. This completely negates the effect of the game feeling repetitive over time, though unfortunately, it doesn’t do enough to prevent the levels from becoming formulaic–even if they are well designed. In a way, they are all structured the same with three screens and a boss, with the gimmicks differentiating them from others. The enemies also barely change over the course of the game and are not fun to fight against as a result, with the mini-bosses being slightly better due to them using the stage gimmicks in their fight. That said, the ”formulaic” level structure also makes speedrunning a joy, which is encouraged with each level having a time trial and the flexible overworld allowing the player to skip levels. The controls being satisfying further helps in making this game a fun one to speedrun. Finally, MagiCat does a good job at allowing the user to select their difficulty without a difficulty mode being involved, encouraging them not to use the dash but not restricting or punishing them in any way for doing so. While I probably won’t revisit this game quickly for completion again, I am definitely not objected to speedrunning this adventure in the future.''
''Playing MagiCat feels like opening a Christmas calendar every day of the month; for each one that you open, there’s a new level with unique gimmicks- and puzzles. This completely negates the effect of the game feeling repetitive over time, though unfortunately, it doesn’t do enough to prevent the levels from becoming formulaic–even if they are well designed. In a way, they are all structured the same with three screens and a boss, with the gimmicks differentiating them from others. The enemies also barely change over the course of the game and are not fun to fight against as a result, with the mini-bosses being slightly better due to them using the stage gimmicks in their fight. That said, the ”formulaic” level structure also makes speedrunning a joy, which is encouraged with each level having a time trial and the flexible overworld allowing the player to skip levels. The controls being satisfying further helps in making this game a fun one to speedrun. Finally, MagiCat does a good job at allowing the user to select their difficulty without a difficulty mode being involved, encouraging them not to use the dash but not restricting or punishing them in any way for doing so. While I probably won’t revisit this game quickly for completion again, I am definitely not objected to speedrunning this adventure in the future.''
Full review over at my website: https://www.nepikigaming.com/reviews/avencast-rise-of-the-mage/
''The area where Avencast suffers the most is an inconsistent pace–the story goes by like a bullet train, but the gameplay feels like a slow chore. Personally, I think a slower pace to give more attention to world-building and the characters would definitely help in that regard, but that would only solve one problem. Areas are massive, but not in a good way. They are often empty, with rewards for exploration often feeling disappointing due to gear never feeling like that much of an improvement–if they are an improvement to begin with. What also doesn’t help is that some enemies can feel like genuine damage sponges, with a combat system that can potentially be uninteresting as I never had to worry about dying when casting spells from a distance as that was the magic school I specialized in. Changing skilltrees is possible for sure, but points spent are in no way able to be refunded so experimentation comes with a risk. That said, I definitely don’t think Avencast is a bad game at its core. While areas are massive, they did often have fun puzzles to offer for the invested gamers checking every nook and cranny. And while it wasn’t a story that deserves an oscar, it was one I could laugh at due to how cliché it is.''
''The area where Avencast suffers the most is an inconsistent pace–the story goes by like a bullet train, but the gameplay feels like a slow chore. Personally, I think a slower pace to give more attention to world-building and the characters would definitely help in that regard, but that would only solve one problem. Areas are massive, but not in a good way. They are often empty, with rewards for exploration often feeling disappointing due to gear never feeling like that much of an improvement–if they are an improvement to begin with. What also doesn’t help is that some enemies can feel like genuine damage sponges, with a combat system that can potentially be uninteresting as I never had to worry about dying when casting spells from a distance as that was the magic school I specialized in. Changing skilltrees is possible for sure, but points spent are in no way able to be refunded so experimentation comes with a risk. That said, I definitely don’t think Avencast is a bad game at its core. While areas are massive, they did often have fun puzzles to offer for the invested gamers checking every nook and cranny. And while it wasn’t a story that deserves an oscar, it was one I could laugh at due to how cliché it is.''
Spyro 1 full review: https://www.nepikigaming.com/reviews/spyro-the-dragon/
''The start of this legendary platformer franchise was definitely a strong one, already making Spyro one of the most satisfying protagonists to control with more to come in future instalments. Gliding around feels good, and the fire breath will take care of most adversaries with ease. This control scheme makes obtaining all collectables a non-issue as well, even if there is little reason given to do so aside from the minimum required amount due to them serving no purpose until the very end with an admittedly satisfying reward waiting for the player. I can’t stress enough how much fun I had trying to find all the collectables though, since I feel that’s what makes 3D Platformers special. Spyro the Dragon does lose a few points in level design due to a formulaic setup however, with almost none standing out from the other due to the objectives being the same for every stage: get the collectables and get out. Even if the themes and enemies are unique to each stage, they are hard to remember due to simplicity. The boss stages have it even worse with them being pathetic in an already easy game, which is saying something because the low difficulty has not come at the cost of enjoyment throughout the entire game for me. The free-roaming flight stages do balance out the bosses fortunately, and are definitely some of the most fun levels I’ve experienced in this game.''
Spyro 2: Ripto's Rage full review: https://www.nepikigaming.com/reviews/spyro-2-riptos-rage/
''While I tried my best to give Spyro 2: Ripto’s Rage its independent review without comparisons towards the first game, most of the arguments I’ve made directly show how much the developers have taken critique into account. Some elements feel like a natural evolution such as Spyro’s improved mobility and the much-improved boss battles, but most of my praises go to the original ideas made to further distinguish each level from each other. Not only have they gotten more personality by having unique enemies- and NPCs for each as well as starting- and ending cutscenes, but they are more memorable due to the multiple objectives each stage has. You could be playing ice hockey in one while shooting down UFOs in the other, with all of the objectives complimenting Spyro’s standard gameplay. Collectables now also have more purpose, as gems are more commonly used to unlock parts of a level or even new abilities, though the latter also leads me to what can be considered my sole negative: stages resetting upon entrance. While this doesn’t matter in some stages, a linear path has to be followed in others which results in unnecessary padding–especially if an ability is needed that you didn’t have beforehand. All in all though, even this nitpick was not able to harm my overall enjoyment of the game.''
Spyro: Year of the Dragon full review: https://www.nepikigaming.com/reviews/spyro-year-of-the-dragon/
''Spyro: Year of the Dragon definitely took some risk with the introduction of a lot of different gameplay styles, but with the exception of a few, the results were definitely favourable. Unfortunately with most negatives, they are remembered more often when reminiscing about the game, and I am not looking forward to playing as Bentley again or going through the several skateboarding sections. This is arguably the biggest issue with this game as several of the unique gameplay styles just don’t compliment Spyro’s moveset, but the majority of these different objectives at least control nicely so it merely depends on personal preference. I genuinely enjoyed playing as Agent Nine who takes on all variations of the Shooter genre, but I also understand other people will not. Fortunately for them and arguably for me, Spyro himself remains the main character and everything about him and the stage design remains consistent throughout the entire game. There is a slight loss in personality as the bosses don’t really feel memorable and there are no cutscenes before- and after stages anymore but that’s just a slight nitpick, as everything else about the game lives up to the quality we’ve seen thus far from our favourite purple dragon.''
''The start of this legendary platformer franchise was definitely a strong one, already making Spyro one of the most satisfying protagonists to control with more to come in future instalments. Gliding around feels good, and the fire breath will take care of most adversaries with ease. This control scheme makes obtaining all collectables a non-issue as well, even if there is little reason given to do so aside from the minimum required amount due to them serving no purpose until the very end with an admittedly satisfying reward waiting for the player. I can’t stress enough how much fun I had trying to find all the collectables though, since I feel that’s what makes 3D Platformers special. Spyro the Dragon does lose a few points in level design due to a formulaic setup however, with almost none standing out from the other due to the objectives being the same for every stage: get the collectables and get out. Even if the themes and enemies are unique to each stage, they are hard to remember due to simplicity. The boss stages have it even worse with them being pathetic in an already easy game, which is saying something because the low difficulty has not come at the cost of enjoyment throughout the entire game for me. The free-roaming flight stages do balance out the bosses fortunately, and are definitely some of the most fun levels I’ve experienced in this game.''
Spyro 2: Ripto's Rage full review: https://www.nepikigaming.com/reviews/spyro-2-riptos-rage/
''While I tried my best to give Spyro 2: Ripto’s Rage its independent review without comparisons towards the first game, most of the arguments I’ve made directly show how much the developers have taken critique into account. Some elements feel like a natural evolution such as Spyro’s improved mobility and the much-improved boss battles, but most of my praises go to the original ideas made to further distinguish each level from each other. Not only have they gotten more personality by having unique enemies- and NPCs for each as well as starting- and ending cutscenes, but they are more memorable due to the multiple objectives each stage has. You could be playing ice hockey in one while shooting down UFOs in the other, with all of the objectives complimenting Spyro’s standard gameplay. Collectables now also have more purpose, as gems are more commonly used to unlock parts of a level or even new abilities, though the latter also leads me to what can be considered my sole negative: stages resetting upon entrance. While this doesn’t matter in some stages, a linear path has to be followed in others which results in unnecessary padding–especially if an ability is needed that you didn’t have beforehand. All in all though, even this nitpick was not able to harm my overall enjoyment of the game.''
Spyro: Year of the Dragon full review: https://www.nepikigaming.com/reviews/spyro-year-of-the-dragon/
''Spyro: Year of the Dragon definitely took some risk with the introduction of a lot of different gameplay styles, but with the exception of a few, the results were definitely favourable. Unfortunately with most negatives, they are remembered more often when reminiscing about the game, and I am not looking forward to playing as Bentley again or going through the several skateboarding sections. This is arguably the biggest issue with this game as several of the unique gameplay styles just don’t compliment Spyro’s moveset, but the majority of these different objectives at least control nicely so it merely depends on personal preference. I genuinely enjoyed playing as Agent Nine who takes on all variations of the Shooter genre, but I also understand other people will not. Fortunately for them and arguably for me, Spyro himself remains the main character and everything about him and the stage design remains consistent throughout the entire game. There is a slight loss in personality as the bosses don’t really feel memorable and there are no cutscenes before- and after stages anymore but that’s just a slight nitpick, as everything else about the game lives up to the quality we’ve seen thus far from our favourite purple dragon.''
Full review over at my website: https://www.nepikigaming.com/reviews/pokemon-lets-go-pikachu-and-eevee/
''Pokémon Let’s Go’s biggest asset- and flaw is that it’s catered towards a specific audience, which makes it a tough game to recommend to multiple people despite its unique take on the franchise. For a series veteran, it was great to see the game that started it all in 3D with an art style that I consider to fit the games the most. The overall presentation of the story was pleasant to see as well with multiple characters getting a bigger spotlight, and even though I hate the friendly rival myself, I don’t think the target audience would have an issue with him. Especially the relationship you build with your main companion Pokémon has been handled better than ever before, but that’s also where I have to end most of my compliments unfortunately. I do think the new catching mechanic is not as bad as many people make it out to be (even if it really sucks when Pokémon start moving around like crazy), but it makes the whole game pathetically easy due to how easy it is to get experience from it that’s shared across the entire team. There is actual challenge to be found in the post-game, but it’s now more clear than ever that the Pokémon franchise needs to start introducing difficulty modes because this is even too easy for the target audience. And while I do genuinely enjoy (shiny) hunting specific Pokémon in the post-game, limiting online features does more harm to the game than what was probably intended. I do still consider the games to be good, but I’ll probably stick with the originals or the GBA remakes.''
''Pokémon Let’s Go’s biggest asset- and flaw is that it’s catered towards a specific audience, which makes it a tough game to recommend to multiple people despite its unique take on the franchise. For a series veteran, it was great to see the game that started it all in 3D with an art style that I consider to fit the games the most. The overall presentation of the story was pleasant to see as well with multiple characters getting a bigger spotlight, and even though I hate the friendly rival myself, I don’t think the target audience would have an issue with him. Especially the relationship you build with your main companion Pokémon has been handled better than ever before, but that’s also where I have to end most of my compliments unfortunately. I do think the new catching mechanic is not as bad as many people make it out to be (even if it really sucks when Pokémon start moving around like crazy), but it makes the whole game pathetically easy due to how easy it is to get experience from it that’s shared across the entire team. There is actual challenge to be found in the post-game, but it’s now more clear than ever that the Pokémon franchise needs to start introducing difficulty modes because this is even too easy for the target audience. And while I do genuinely enjoy (shiny) hunting specific Pokémon in the post-game, limiting online features does more harm to the game than what was probably intended. I do still consider the games to be good, but I’ll probably stick with the originals or the GBA remakes.''
2017
Full review over at my website: https://www.nepikigaming.com/reviews/cosmic-star-heroine/
''Cosmic Star Heroine is a fresh sci-fi JRPG with an especially good battle system that kept me engaged throughout the entire game, constantly desiring to try out different team builds from the wide array of characters. All of them feel very different from each other with their own abilities and specialities that often compliment other characters as well. Not only that, but the battle system tests your strategic mind as well due to monsters getting stronger the longer a battle goes on, and your main form of attack going on cooldown after a single use. If this sounds overwhelming, you have nothing to fear as the title is very approachable with difficulties that can be changed at any point, grinding being obsolete and other quality-of-life improvements. But the amount of characters are also the game’s biggest flaw, as they usually have a single characteristic that does not get developed over the course of the game. Most characters aren’t even directly important to the plot and just happened to join the party by chance, which results in them having a lot less screentime as they usually don’t have a relation to any of the other characters in the party. The story is not really noteworthy either but granted, most of the issues surrounding the characters and the story are softened by the overall charm the game has, with Zeboyd Games’ trademark humour shining in the writing as always.''
''Cosmic Star Heroine is a fresh sci-fi JRPG with an especially good battle system that kept me engaged throughout the entire game, constantly desiring to try out different team builds from the wide array of characters. All of them feel very different from each other with their own abilities and specialities that often compliment other characters as well. Not only that, but the battle system tests your strategic mind as well due to monsters getting stronger the longer a battle goes on, and your main form of attack going on cooldown after a single use. If this sounds overwhelming, you have nothing to fear as the title is very approachable with difficulties that can be changed at any point, grinding being obsolete and other quality-of-life improvements. But the amount of characters are also the game’s biggest flaw, as they usually have a single characteristic that does not get developed over the course of the game. Most characters aren’t even directly important to the plot and just happened to join the party by chance, which results in them having a lot less screentime as they usually don’t have a relation to any of the other characters in the party. The story is not really noteworthy either but granted, most of the issues surrounding the characters and the story are softened by the overall charm the game has, with Zeboyd Games’ trademark humour shining in the writing as always.''
Full review over at my website: https://www.nepikigaming.com/reviews/yokus-island-express/
''While combining two completely different genres into one sounds like a hefty task, development studio Villa Gorilla have done an excellent job at bringing this beautiful project to life. And let me put an emphasis on beautiful here because boy, do I love how much charm this game has when it comes to graphics and the soundtrack to make it truly feel like I’m on a mysterious island. The island was very fun to explore as well, giving the player freedom to go wherever they want to with only the optional side-content requiring specific upgrades. That said, I must also admit that there isn’t much motivation to go exploring besides your own desire, which was high for me due to how easy it was for me to travel everywhere but I can also understand that people looking for character improvement will be slightly disappointed. The pinball gameplay was very enjoyable for me and integrated well into the world. The only real loss here is that there is almost no difficulty attached to the pinball gameplay because you don’t lose anything upon failure aside from a few fruits that are very easy to collect, but the different amount of objectives and layouts of the ”pinball tables” compensate for it very well.''
''While combining two completely different genres into one sounds like a hefty task, development studio Villa Gorilla have done an excellent job at bringing this beautiful project to life. And let me put an emphasis on beautiful here because boy, do I love how much charm this game has when it comes to graphics and the soundtrack to make it truly feel like I’m on a mysterious island. The island was very fun to explore as well, giving the player freedom to go wherever they want to with only the optional side-content requiring specific upgrades. That said, I must also admit that there isn’t much motivation to go exploring besides your own desire, which was high for me due to how easy it was for me to travel everywhere but I can also understand that people looking for character improvement will be slightly disappointed. The pinball gameplay was very enjoyable for me and integrated well into the world. The only real loss here is that there is almost no difficulty attached to the pinball gameplay because you don’t lose anything upon failure aside from a few fruits that are very easy to collect, but the different amount of objectives and layouts of the ”pinball tables” compensate for it very well.''
2020
Full review over at my website: https://www.nepikigaming.com/reviews/paperball/
''It’s fascinating to not just see indie developers having an inspiration for their game, but also perfectly understanding what makes the inspiration so good and adapting it into their own game. Paperball is a very good example of this, taking elements from multiple Super Monkey Ball games to create an experience the fans can indulge into. And not just the fans either, because this is arguably one of the more accessible ball-rolling games that does not sacrifice its difficult nature to appeal to newcomers. There are a lot of different modes, and all of them apply to the same- or different gamers. Rush mode makes you race against a time limit for example, while Rush mode gives the ability to jump without a life system to worry about. The gameplay is spot-on with weight and physics, introducing the player slowly to what they can expect with the first levels before all of the unique stages with fun gimmicks show up. If the worst I can say about the game is that the inspiration being almost too obvious (which I don’t personally see as a problem), then you know we have a good game on our hands.''
''It’s fascinating to not just see indie developers having an inspiration for their game, but also perfectly understanding what makes the inspiration so good and adapting it into their own game. Paperball is a very good example of this, taking elements from multiple Super Monkey Ball games to create an experience the fans can indulge into. And not just the fans either, because this is arguably one of the more accessible ball-rolling games that does not sacrifice its difficult nature to appeal to newcomers. There are a lot of different modes, and all of them apply to the same- or different gamers. Rush mode makes you race against a time limit for example, while Rush mode gives the ability to jump without a life system to worry about. The gameplay is spot-on with weight and physics, introducing the player slowly to what they can expect with the first levels before all of the unique stages with fun gimmicks show up. If the worst I can say about the game is that the inspiration being almost too obvious (which I don’t personally see as a problem), then you know we have a good game on our hands.''
2020
Full showcase over at my website: https://www.nepikigaming.com/rom-hacking-fangames/rayman-redemption/
''This is not a product experienced developers could have made. This is a product only a true fan of the Rayman series could have made, and Ryemanni has absolutely nailed it. Rayman Redemption has easily become the most accessible version of the original game, with an actual fair difficulty and a ton of added content. Honestly… I don’t think I can ever return to the original Rayman now that this fangame exists. Many people have dubbed this as the ”Sonic Mania of the Rayman series” and I completely agree. This deserves to go out there as an example of what amazing things fans can come up with.''
''This is not a product experienced developers could have made. This is a product only a true fan of the Rayman series could have made, and Ryemanni has absolutely nailed it. Rayman Redemption has easily become the most accessible version of the original game, with an actual fair difficulty and a ton of added content. Honestly… I don’t think I can ever return to the original Rayman now that this fangame exists. Many people have dubbed this as the ”Sonic Mania of the Rayman series” and I completely agree. This deserves to go out there as an example of what amazing things fans can come up with.''
1999
Full review over at my website: https://www.nepikigaming.com/reviews/bomberman-quest/
''This game is right up my alley. I absolutely love exploring everything on the map, capturing all monsters and using the items they drop to explore even more of the map. There are a ton of secrets, and an especially large arsenal of items that both function for exploration and combat itself. Combat feels good overall, though it does get a slightly rough start due to the arenas being open and enemies having mostly free movement. My compliments are also definitely reserved for the amount of charm the game has, with every monster having unique dialogue and attacks. However, Bomberman Quest has one fatal problem: technical limitations. Due to the big arsenal Bomberman has, you’ll be spending quite a lot of time in the menu to switch items, just to switch it again on the next screen. No upgrade aside from the bombs is ever permanent, so this will keep being a problem throughout the entire game. And though I personally didn’t mind it, there are little to no hints when you’re stuck. Neither of these issues makes the core game worse, but they’re definitely annoyances that probably could have been dealt with better.''
''This game is right up my alley. I absolutely love exploring everything on the map, capturing all monsters and using the items they drop to explore even more of the map. There are a ton of secrets, and an especially large arsenal of items that both function for exploration and combat itself. Combat feels good overall, though it does get a slightly rough start due to the arenas being open and enemies having mostly free movement. My compliments are also definitely reserved for the amount of charm the game has, with every monster having unique dialogue and attacks. However, Bomberman Quest has one fatal problem: technical limitations. Due to the big arsenal Bomberman has, you’ll be spending quite a lot of time in the menu to switch items, just to switch it again on the next screen. No upgrade aside from the bombs is ever permanent, so this will keep being a problem throughout the entire game. And though I personally didn’t mind it, there are little to no hints when you’re stuck. Neither of these issues makes the core game worse, but they’re definitely annoyances that probably could have been dealt with better.''
1997
Full review over at my website: https://www.nepikigaming.com/reviews/pocket-bomberman/
''There unfortunately isn’t a lot to say about Pocket Bomberman. If you are familiar with the mechanics from the normal Bomberman games, you just have to convert it into a 2D Platformer and there is your game. Good ol’ Bomberman can still drop bombs with a short radius that can be upgraded to more bombs with a bigger radius, or special variants such as the Remote Bomb. The formula works surprisingly well in a 2D Platformer, with the only seldom frustrations being screen crunch. I can’t say the same about bosses unfortunately, which are big, have attacks that cover most of the screen and since Bomberman is a feeble man, he dies within one hit. At the same time, they’re pathetic when you have the Remote Bomb, so there isn’t a good balance to be found with the bosses. Other than that, it’s a fine but very short platformer with an additional mode that is also very short.''
''There unfortunately isn’t a lot to say about Pocket Bomberman. If you are familiar with the mechanics from the normal Bomberman games, you just have to convert it into a 2D Platformer and there is your game. Good ol’ Bomberman can still drop bombs with a short radius that can be upgraded to more bombs with a bigger radius, or special variants such as the Remote Bomb. The formula works surprisingly well in a 2D Platformer, with the only seldom frustrations being screen crunch. I can’t say the same about bosses unfortunately, which are big, have attacks that cover most of the screen and since Bomberman is a feeble man, he dies within one hit. At the same time, they’re pathetic when you have the Remote Bomb, so there isn’t a good balance to be found with the bosses. Other than that, it’s a fine but very short platformer with an additional mode that is also very short.''
Full review on my website: https://www.nepikigaming.com/reviews/the-legend-of-zelda-a-link-to-the-past/
''I’m pretty sure the review has already made it clear enough but it’s no secret: A Link to the Past is one of my favourite games ever. I can’t stress enough how much I love exploring this world after you leave the sanctuary for the first time, and how much more becomes available for the player the more they progress through the game–especially in the second half. Combat has seen a good upgrade, especially with the great variety of items the game has. These shine even brighter in the dungeons they’re found in, which often have enemies- or mechanics designed specifically for these items. The dungeons themselves all feel really fun to go through, with the cherry on top being the bosses of each dungeon. Some are admittedly worse than others, but the good part is that they all have multiple ways to be killed without being limited to the item found inside the dungeon. All in all, I don’t think this will come as a surprise but I could only give the highest recommendation for this game.''
''I’m pretty sure the review has already made it clear enough but it’s no secret: A Link to the Past is one of my favourite games ever. I can’t stress enough how much I love exploring this world after you leave the sanctuary for the first time, and how much more becomes available for the player the more they progress through the game–especially in the second half. Combat has seen a good upgrade, especially with the great variety of items the game has. These shine even brighter in the dungeons they’re found in, which often have enemies- or mechanics designed specifically for these items. The dungeons themselves all feel really fun to go through, with the cherry on top being the bosses of each dungeon. Some are admittedly worse than others, but the good part is that they all have multiple ways to be killed without being limited to the item found inside the dungeon. All in all, I don’t think this will come as a surprise but I could only give the highest recommendation for this game.''
2005
Full review on my website: https://www.nepikigaming.com/reviews/xanadu-next/
''Nihon Falcom shows us yet again how they are able to create an intriguing adventure through their expertise in world-building. The constant motivation to explore these unknown lands and learn more about the places you visit through optional conversations and lore lives up to my expectations, though people who don’t care about world-building won’t be left in the dust either. And since the world-building goes hand-in-hand with the exploration, that part of the game is also very fun to execute. There’s a lot of secrets to be found in this interconnected world, and new areas unlock occasionally after finding a new tool to help you progress just like how Metroidvanias handle them. The combat is perhaps the weakest point of the game though, limiting you in playstyle due to how armour- and weapons require a specific stat spread, and also having only swords and two-handed swords as weapons to choose from. I personally have no issue with combat whatsoever, but it is something to keep in mind.''
''Nihon Falcom shows us yet again how they are able to create an intriguing adventure through their expertise in world-building. The constant motivation to explore these unknown lands and learn more about the places you visit through optional conversations and lore lives up to my expectations, though people who don’t care about world-building won’t be left in the dust either. And since the world-building goes hand-in-hand with the exploration, that part of the game is also very fun to execute. There’s a lot of secrets to be found in this interconnected world, and new areas unlock occasionally after finding a new tool to help you progress just like how Metroidvanias handle them. The combat is perhaps the weakest point of the game though, limiting you in playstyle due to how armour- and weapons require a specific stat spread, and also having only swords and two-handed swords as weapons to choose from. I personally have no issue with combat whatsoever, but it is something to keep in mind.''
Full review over at my website: https://www.nepikigaming.com/reviews/oceanhorn-monster-of-uncharted-seas/
''It’s hard to believe that Oceanhorn is a port of a standalone mobile game, given its impressive soundtrack and fun gameplay. Unfortunately though, I am reviewing the ported variants of this game which leaves me with a few annoyances that were more understandable for the original release due to limitations. I’ve mentioned it through this review a lot, but there are a lot of gameplay mechanics that I’ve mostly called “harmless but not spectacular”. Sailing doesn’t have a lot going for it due to its simplicity, but also doesn’t do much wrong. Combat isn’t my favourite and puzzles are okay at best, but they work. Vertical traversing is the bane of my existence, but the game is built around this limitation. But despite my annoyances, I can’t understate how much fun I had with exploring the game and all the islands that popped up, including the dungeons and the many challenges that came with them for a levelling system. The mechanics may not stand out, but they did still work in providing me with a fun journey.''
''It’s hard to believe that Oceanhorn is a port of a standalone mobile game, given its impressive soundtrack and fun gameplay. Unfortunately though, I am reviewing the ported variants of this game which leaves me with a few annoyances that were more understandable for the original release due to limitations. I’ve mentioned it through this review a lot, but there are a lot of gameplay mechanics that I’ve mostly called “harmless but not spectacular”. Sailing doesn’t have a lot going for it due to its simplicity, but also doesn’t do much wrong. Combat isn’t my favourite and puzzles are okay at best, but they work. Vertical traversing is the bane of my existence, but the game is built around this limitation. But despite my annoyances, I can’t understate how much fun I had with exploring the game and all the islands that popped up, including the dungeons and the many challenges that came with them for a levelling system. The mechanics may not stand out, but they did still work in providing me with a fun journey.''
Full review on my website: https://www.nepikigaming.com/reviews/phantom-breaker-battle-grounds/
''Phantom Breaker: Battle Grounds had the great idea to combine Fighting game mechanics with the Beat ’em up genre and it worked very well. Combos feel satisfying to execute, and it looks flashy all around with a good amount of different characters to play as. However, it does suck that half of the in-depth combat is something you most likely won’t experience during a single playthrough due to two separate skill trees that desire a long investment (and also having levels above 50 locked behind DLC which is stupid). This would have been fine, but the game doesn’t have much content to offer beyond the campaign and harder difficulties. I definitely enjoyed going through these colourful stages with a wide variety of different enemies the first time, but I could not be bothered to do it more than once simply because nothing changes… ever. And since this is a review specifically of the Steam version, I’m also very disappointed that the developers have not bothered to update the game with features from the new releases.''
''Phantom Breaker: Battle Grounds had the great idea to combine Fighting game mechanics with the Beat ’em up genre and it worked very well. Combos feel satisfying to execute, and it looks flashy all around with a good amount of different characters to play as. However, it does suck that half of the in-depth combat is something you most likely won’t experience during a single playthrough due to two separate skill trees that desire a long investment (and also having levels above 50 locked behind DLC which is stupid). This would have been fine, but the game doesn’t have much content to offer beyond the campaign and harder difficulties. I definitely enjoyed going through these colourful stages with a wide variety of different enemies the first time, but I could not be bothered to do it more than once simply because nothing changes… ever. And since this is a review specifically of the Steam version, I’m also very disappointed that the developers have not bothered to update the game with features from the new releases.''
2017
Full review on my website: https://www.nepikigaming.com/reviews/road-redemption/
''Road Redemption is a game that I had a lot of fun with. The combat felt fun and satisfying with a good variety in weapons and even guns, and it kept you on your toes at all times when there were multiple enemies. This was further amplified by the broad amount of different racers, each having their own fun perks and even unique playstyles. The same can’t be said about the bikes unfortunately, and that also brings me to the main question of this review: are you looking for a deep racing game, or a combat game? Because if it’s the former, you won’t find it here. Racing mechanics are very simplistic, and the tracks themselves don’t stand out either. The main issue with the game is that it’s a roguelike which fails at replayability because of these tracks not changing at all. It definitely tries to encourage you to play the game multiple times but honestly, you’ve seen pretty much everything the game has to offer after a playthrough or two. Then again, if you’re here just for a few playthroughs? That’s when the game does shine.''
''Road Redemption is a game that I had a lot of fun with. The combat felt fun and satisfying with a good variety in weapons and even guns, and it kept you on your toes at all times when there were multiple enemies. This was further amplified by the broad amount of different racers, each having their own fun perks and even unique playstyles. The same can’t be said about the bikes unfortunately, and that also brings me to the main question of this review: are you looking for a deep racing game, or a combat game? Because if it’s the former, you won’t find it here. Racing mechanics are very simplistic, and the tracks themselves don’t stand out either. The main issue with the game is that it’s a roguelike which fails at replayability because of these tracks not changing at all. It definitely tries to encourage you to play the game multiple times but honestly, you’ve seen pretty much everything the game has to offer after a playthrough or two. Then again, if you’re here just for a few playthroughs? That’s when the game does shine.''