God, it feels great to be able to give my P3P review a sequel. It can certainly be debated whether this is the "definitive" Persona 3. The Answer is all but confirmed to be on its way as DLC in the near future, but FeMC will sadly only find her place in the modding community. I think this is the best we're going to get, but frankly I'm more than happy with it. My concerns, from the lack of P3P/FES content to the entire main voice cast being replaced, were quickly overwritten by the direction this game ended up taking.

The new English voice cast is stellar, and it's not all goodbyes; many of the original talent can be heard in supporting roles. Not to mention Azumi Takahashi, who superbly fills Yumi Kawamura's spot as the main vocalist on the soundtrack (even if Mass Destruction has a bit less sauce to it).

The new cinematics and character models are such a leap above Persona 5, let alone the original Persona 3, that I found myself gawking at the screen with every shift and theurgy animation. Performance might take a hit for it, but man is it mind-blowing seeing these PS2-era characters and environments get this much of a makeover.

Day-to-day gameplay and even the story see similar improvements. The condition mechanic is gone, and you get far more time to dedicate to improving your skills and spending time with your social links. Non-romanceable members of SEES still don't have social links, but they get a really awesome compromise - dedicated hangouts which both build their characters and provide strategic benefits in battle. I honestly hope this makes it in to Persona 6; it gives you time to hang out with your party members while leaving room for more social links beyond them. You even get a few opportunities to hang out with Takaya and flesh out Strega a bit more.

As I touched on in my P3P review, I've always thought Persona 3 had the strongest story and characters of the "modern 3" Persona games. 4 is a close second (and I wouldn't be against that game getting a similar treatment), but 3 services its themes so well and has a world that feels the least like it revolves around its protagonist. Is this the ultimate, definitive Persona 3 experience? Objectively speaking, maybe not. But what Reload offers is a polished, accessible, and streamlined package, solidifying Persona 3 as the best of its franchise and giving future installments some towering shoes to fill.

2024 Ranked

To get the bad out of the way: Alan's segments drop from scary to frustrating pretty quick. It's so not worth fighting the shade enemies, to the extent I started to question why Alan even had any guns on him. Doesn't help that pressing any button in this game has maybe a 70% chance of actually doing anything (especially the touchpad on PS5), making the high-intensity combat segments feel more like a game of luck.

As for everything else... what a game! This is such a gripping survival horror experience with an amazing story and atmosphere made whole by the genius that is Sam Lake and the team at Remedy.

Saga Anderson is a great new protagonist and her segments balance so well with Alan's. Alan himself feels more fleshed out. You can see how being in the Dark Place for 13 years has totally changed him. I also love how the Old Gods of Asgard have become major characters in this story. As usual, Poets of the Fall brings their A-game with nothing but bangers that go straight into my Spotify playlist the second I hear them. "We Sing" is probably one of my favorite video game levels ever.

Generally this game paid off fantastically well for someone who decided to play AW1, American Nightmare, and Control beforehand. Getting to see Ahti, the FBC, and a new take on Mr. Scratch was more than worth saving this for last. I can't wait to see where Remedy takes this universe in the future; Control 2 and successive Alan Wake titles have so much potential if this is anything to go by.

In a lot of ways it's the best non-Smash platform fighter; I'd even go as far as saying the single player is better here than in Ultimate. Full voice-acting and heaps of content at launch really show how well the first game would've done with a little more confidence.

It does need a bit more polish, especially as the latest update at the time of writing has seemingly removed the ability for CPUs to get up from ledge hangs, but for the most part it works quite well. Just don't play on the Switch.

The star of the show here is the campaign, a roguelite story mode with a surprising amount of dialogue. Character-specific conversations are abundant and bring a ton of charm, especially if you're nostalgic for any of these toons. The roguelite elements do lack depth and the boss fights can be very anticlimactic, but I really enjoyed my time with it more than I expected.

Pick up NASB2 if you're a Nick fan or you're just looking for a good platform fighter after years of Nintendo spoiling you, it's a great time when the bugs are ironed out.

Cassette Beasts is a Pokémon game that treats you like an adult, both in its relatively mature themes and its gameplay. It respects your time - dialogue and menus are a breeze to cycle through, you can reference a type chart at any time, and the world map is intimate and easy to navigate with a great fast travel system.

This philosophy even carries over to the battle system, which features a replenishing per-battle SP mechanic that eliminates the migraine-inducing "run back to town just so I can use this one move again" loop. Grinding is also practically non-existent as levels are tied much more strongly to your base characters than the titular beasts, putting you in a great spot to take on the final boss as soon as the option is there.

Also, refreshingly, the playable characters are all grown adults who you can romance no matter your gender identity, and they all have interesting backstories you can unravel by spending time with them. This is backed by some great, though admittedly sparse, voice acting, a feature The Pokémon Company seems to write off as a mortal sin.

I'll admit the creature designs leave quite a bit to be desired, and that's really where Pokémon still reigns supreme. You're probably not going to be drawing any of these beasts in your notebook while you're bored in class or a meeting, but I'd overall describe most of them as "pretty cool."

And it's difficult to get completely invested in this world where every inhabitant seems really uncomfortable with the idea of Cassette Beasts existing in the first place; a far cry from the majority of Pokémon's population falling in love with - and often dedicating their entire lives to - a wide cast of cuddly companions.

If you're an adult who's felt disenfranchised by Pokémon's inefficient hand holding and laser focus on the younger market, definitely give Cassette Beasts a try. You'll get a short and sweet RPG monster-collecting experience that gives you a firm handshake and buys you a drink. Just don't expect a juggernaut universe that becomes your next personality like its grandfather before it may have done for you back when "2nd recess" was a regular part of the daily itinerary.

2023 Ranked

A welcome surprise after years of less than subpar Spongebob games. As a Battle for Bikini Bottom fan, I appreciate what this game was going for, especially with all the callbacks to what is still, in my opinion, the best game in the franchise by a huge margin.

But it does feel really... cheap? Unfinished even? More time in the oven would've really helped to polish what's here. Animations are pretty janky, combat isn't anywhere near as satisfying as BFBB, it's ridiculously short, and everything just looks kind of plain. I'm sure the devs weren't afforded all the time and money they would've liked, so I respect the shoes they were trying to fill here regardless.

Cosmic Shake is a really good Spongebob game that doesn't quite reach the shoulders of the two giants that are BFBB and the Movie game, but it's a step in the right direction I hope to see turn into more of a leap by the time we get another entry.

2023 Ranked