Really fun return to form for the series after how tech demo-like 6 felt.

Presentation wise the game does genuinely look and sound great. The 3D sprites had a lot more going on and the old Japanese aesthetic felt refreshing and appealed to me quite a bit.

Story wise if you've played a disgaea game you kinda know what to expect but it's a large step up from 5 and I'd easily put it at 1/4's level if only because Fuji and Pirilika are very entertaining as a duo - The other party members weren't half bad either.

Gameplay wise I can't comment too much on because the real systems come into play at postgame but it felt solid to play throughout the story at least. With features like Jumbification and hell mode you do gotta think tactically about when to use them or the enemy could do the same and destroy your party which kept things interesting.

I also appreciate QoL like the juice bar being kept and even though I didn't play around with it too much D.I seems to be balanced better than 6 and encourages more active play.

Uhhh yeah tl;dr game is good and even if NIS has some... let's say wildly inconsistent output (comparing D6 and Monster Menu to Galleria and D7) it's nice that they can put the effort in where it counts and I'm more than looking forward to digging into the postgame.

Honestly, the nostalgia is strong with this one. When I was a teenager, I watched so many people play this on Youtube. Used to have a real soft spot for it, too.

I wouldn't say I enjoyed playing it myself for the first time. Sometimes, the game really doesn't do a great job of telling you what you're meant to be doing and it's frustratingly easy to get a bad ending.

The writing is mostly fine but not the plot not particularly scary or well constructed. This very much has that edgy, gory vibe that was essential to older pixel horror games. Younger me loved Corpse Party for that just but now, as an adult, I can't really bring myself to care much about it anymore.

Killer Frequency's concept is unique and honestly, a lot of fun. Dialogue and choices make up most of the game play and offer a pretty intriguing narrative. I loved the campiness of it all - it truly reminded me of 80s slasher movies, an aesthetic that I enjoy a lot.

Yet, the game kinda overstays its welcome. It's clear that the devs were going for more of a comedic tone , silly and comical. After a while, the writing gets a bit annoying, especially because it accepts glaring plot holes in favour of mediocre jokes. People like to call this a horror game, however, there's not a lot of horror in it. Every "scary" moment seems inconsequential and none of the characters have enough charisma to make up for the lack of lack of tension.

Also, the ending was atrocious. It manages to make zero sense, while being highly predictable at the same time. This is the kind of game that's fun for a few hours and then promptly forgotten about.

I could say a lot about this game. You play as the world's drunkest driver, saddest detective, most pathetic human being. The people around you are mostly broken beyond repair, there's little hope left for anyone or anything. The writing is nice, perhaps even experimental, poetic in the most profound, primitive sense.

I could go on but I think I could never say enough so here's that: I will never forget about my experience with the game. At its core, I believe Disco Elysium is a game about the avatar of a crumbling city, about hope in weird places and, most of all, about the human spirit. About connections between us, some gentle, kind, in spite of a decaying society, others more visceral.

This RPG is a piece of art in motion and it confronted me with some of the darkest parts of myself.

It's pretty impressive for the small team that made this weird, dark and filthy world that has some pretty decent surprises along the way.

I do gotta admit that the first impression weren't that strong. You might even call it kinda drab looking at the first couple areas and I was kinda worried. Thankfully it starts to get more interesting visually and gameplay wise the further you get. The gameplay progression I found to be pretty nice as the longer it goes it is less about the souls-like combat and more about platforming which works for me as I always enjoy some challenging platforming.

It is also challenging on the combat front but nothing too hard. But it can get kinda annoying at times to learn the boss patterns as if you're not careful they can one-shot you and then you have to do your walk of shame before you can try it again.

All atmosphere, not much else.
The environment is planned out so well, lots of details and little things that kept me on my toes constantly. Being down in the bunker honestly felt pretty eerie to me, the sound design and strategically placed lights adding to the oppressing ambience of the game.

Unfortunately, the story was often predictable, sometimes lacklustre, never that engaging.
The game is quite short which was a blessing in disguise - the repetitive gameplay boarders on overstaying its welcome at any given point. Explore that area. Pick up item. Use item. Explore that area. Pick up item. You get the idea.

Now, I'm sure people don't play games like this for the story but rather for the horror factor. The Bunker excels in that regard so if you're looking for a quick fright, this one is for you.