14 reviews liked by Rosco


so gas. you're actually a brainlet if you hate this game. travis is awesome. his girlfriend (forgot her name because i was too busy staring at her big breasts) is so hot lol. shinobu is the ultimate waifu because she loves nihongo almost as much as me. this game is so cool. travis is cool. cute girls, big boobs, suda51 FOR LIFE.

A bumbling pile of mediocrity. I'm not going to lie, the story of the original Yakuza is not the greatest. It's a B-movie story with some very weak plot points
But that game had a lot of charm and character, it tried to make up for it's fault by placing a bigger emphasis on atmosphere, music, substories, and tried to make itself be memorable despite it's forgettable story. I think it succeeded, the original Yakuza is something I respect heavily but I still realize it's flaws

Kiwami 1 completely guts all of that, gone is the dark gritty atmosphere of Kamurocho, instead it's replaced by green lighting which hardly distinguishes itself from 0, especially during daytime. It's odd that Yakuza 3 and Yakuza 4's Kamurochos look and feel completely different stylistically, yet Kiwami couldn't manage that

The music has been replaced by tracks which are remakes of the original ones, and all of them are just worse besides Virtical Point. I like For Who's Sake, but the original music is better to the point where it's kinda baffling why it got replaced

The substories of the original had their own memorable cutscenes but they're all completely replaced by generic textboxes which gut the emotion

Not to mention Majima everywhere, which completely sells the wrong image of him to the point where people get to Yakuza 3 and go "wait why isn't Majima so goofy anymore???" It actually sucks, the Majima you meet in the original Yakuza felt like a menace and you never knew him. Here he's made into a joke

This game is just a Yakuza 0 reskin through and through, but it has none of the charm what made 0 better than it. It's got a worse story than 0, more fluff than 0, worse atmosphere than 0, worse side content than 0. Only thing it actually does better is the combat, which is only a slight improvement.

Do yourself a favour and play the original Yakuza 1 with the Yakuza Restored patch.

This review contains spoilers

Danganronpa sucks, this is a sentiment most of my friends hold towards the series and despite my enjoyment of the second game, it’s an opinion I’ve shared on the series too. The last game that I ever thought would also hold this sentiment was Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony itself.

At its core V3 attempts, and succeeds, to make a meta-statement on the over-saturation and milking of series’, consumer entitlement and what happens when the same thing is demanded over and over again, all of this being done while the game parodies itself and Danganronpa as a whole.

What V3 shows us is what happens when new danganronpa games, animes, mangas, spin-offs, adaptations are demanded, we get left with a cruel cycle of a cruel game that lacks any sort of originality or creativity. The V3 in the games title actually standing for 53, is an incredibly blunt jab at the milking of the series by the point of this games release, while the repetition of certain aspects in the murders of the game, as they parallel murders from the previous games, is a great point about the lack of creativity that comes from something being milked. Towards the ending, Tsumigi/Junko 53 constantly refers to herself and her plan as a perfect copy, this being another point about the lack of originality in such a worn out series, you could even read her cosplays of previous characters during this point of the game as commentary on the fanservice usually expected towards the end of a Danganronpa game. The game refers to Junko showing up and the hope and despair themes as an expected constant of the franchise, something that cannot change because what people want more then anything is the same thing over and over, and that line of thinking is something the game heavily discourages.

On a textual level, the main theme of V3 is Lies and Truths but towards the end of the game it almost awkwardly shifts to returning to the series’ staple themes of hope and despair, this shift is a great drilling in of those points the game is making about creativity and such, Danganronpa must be about hope and despair so the game goes back to being about hope despair before the protagonists reject Danganronpa and it’s main themes to forge their own path away from killing games.

One of the main messages of the game is that fiction can change the world, and it’s the main theme which I think is what lends the ending an optimistic tone rather than the cynicism you’d expect from the a game that appears to have a lot of self loathing towards itself and the series as a whole. This message is quite pertinent and strong, a reminder that even if the game was just a fiction in its own universe it can still hold weight but constantly demanding more of the same thing, the same killing games over and over is bad and that Danganronpa is something oversaturated that needs to end.

While I do enjoy the majority of the cast, along with most of the chapters and trials, it is one of the main ways that the game satirises the series. Something that I think ties into this idea, while also tying into the themes of Danganronpa as a piece of fiction, is how one note some of the characters feel. Tsumigi believes fictional characters to be unimportant nothingness so her character, as someone vapid and unimportant until the final few minutes, reflects this. Kaede after receiving her ultimate talent has about 70% of her character become piano references. This like of thinking could be applied to most characters, and while most of them (Miu, Maki and Kokichi being the ones that spoke to me the most) have pretty good arcs and inner conflicts, I think they are unequivocally ‘Danganronpa’ in a way to satirise the series’ reliance on tropes and to be an introspective mocking of its own writing.

The overall murders and mysteries in V3 I found pretty compelling but with the way they repeat aspects from previous games while also paralleling them, it again relates to that idea of unoriginality in an oversaturated series while also poking fun at that other games in the series for relying so heavy on a formulaic structure.

My biggest criticism with V3 is that I feel it doesn’t go far enough with its satirising of Danganronpa. I definitely think it parodies the series in a lot of ways but I’m still left feeling like it could’ve been more extreme with mocking the worst tropes of the series, this definitely would’ve helped the twist land with a much better execution too.

The one undeniably great thing about V3 is it’s soundtrack. Just like it’s predecessors, Masafumi Takada created a masterpiece of a video game ost with a variety of amazing tracks all perfectly suiting the scenes they accompany, it also flawlessly reuses tracks from previous games. The highlight of Danganronpa gameplay are the trials and they wouldn’t be nearly as amazing without the brilliant songs that are used throughout the sequences, the same could be said for how much songs like Beautiful Lie bring to the atmosphere while exploring the setting. Killing Game Completion Ceremony is the soundtracks greatest song, it carries a sense of somber melancholy littered with slight hope which perfectly captures the essence of the ending, it is the perfect musical accompaniment for the end of Danganronpa.

What V3 provides is the perfect ending for a series as flawed and ridiculed as Danganronpa, a stark and bold comment on over saturation of art and the perversion of a series’ original purpose, while also providing some good characters who tie back into the theme of fiction. It is certainly not perfect, and it isn’t the best execution of such a shocking twist but for what it says about itself, it’s franchise and fiction as a whole, it’s something I can’t help but love. It’s a simple game but even then I feel like I haven’t touched on many of the aspects I adore from it, simply a flawed but brilliant work of fiction.

𝗙𝘂𝗰𝗸 𝘆𝗼𝘂.

Around three years ago, I played Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc for the first time. I really enjoyed it for what it is, it's not good, don't get me wrong, but it's a damn fun game if you're able to turn your mind off. The same holds true for Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair, which I played around the same timeframe as well. I loved it, the writing isn't really good, but it was fun to play that game despite its flaws. Then, of course, I got to Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony. A game I've been utterly confused by for so long now. Then around 2 years later, I met someone so insistent on Danganronpa V3 being some high kino, and I thought maybe I let it fly over my head, so I decided on a replay some time in the future.

Danganronpa V3 is admittedly a step up in every department from the first two games. The UI is much better, the music is genuinely amazing, I enjoyed the cast, and the writing of some of the later cases are genuinely good. Then there's Case 6. I keep running through it in my head as it moves about in there back and forth. The twist is genuinely something I'd normally adore, as the game forces me to confront the state of Danganronpa and what it's become. But I wish I could love it.

The problem with V3's twist is how much it wants to convince you about how it recognizes the faults of Danganronpa when it just doesn't. The impact of this twist nullifies when you consider that this game is written no different from any other Danganronpa game for the first 5 cases. Why do I have to give it praise for a message that I'm fond of and agree with when I know for a fact that it's handled so poorly that you're left with a sour taste in your mouth as you play through the final case? What am I praising? The existence of the message? I like the message but if it's not executed well I can't help but feel as though this game has huge missed potential.

Maybe I'm being hypocritical, maybe I'm being too harsh, but I can't agree with the lens that this game is supposed to be a parody of Danganronpa when it reuses the same tropes and plot points from the first two games but without the satirization. A parody that doesn't parody isn't a parody. It's a copy. Thing is, I'd probably forgive this game for playing into the Danganronpa formula if Danganronpa 2 didn't exist, but when that game already copied a lot of plot threads from the first game, I have to ask. Is this a parody, or is this just how the game was genuinely written? I think the direction of what the message of this game actually is was decided quite late into development, which is why it doesn't quite stick the landing. What really creates a huge dent in the twist is the fact that the game is written like a normal Danganronpa game for 90% of its playtime, which really doesn't mesh well with the message. It's hard for me at certain points to even say that if it was on purpose or a product of poor writing.

There's an emptiness that was felt in my heart when a major scene happened in Case 6. This isn't a game about Hope vs Despair. I thought it was about truth at first, but no. It's about Faith. V3 is a rejection of Danganronpa, and I absolutely love that concept; I just don't love V3. But I don't hate it either, there's a genuine heartfelt message that was put into this game and it's wrong for me to deny that, it's wrong for you to deny that.

The "fuck you" at the beginning of this review wasn't towards the game itself but to V3's loudest critics. I've seen many people call V3 an unsalvagable dumpster fire and rank it as one of their least favorite pieces of fiction. It leaves me utterly confused because 9 times out of 10, these people never even enjoyed the first 2 games to begin with. So what the fuck are you getting mad at? That the game series you've always hated has another bad entry? That your suspicions were confirmed? Danganronpa bad, LOL? The V3 hate doesn't bother me when it's by someone who enjoyed the first two games, or by someone who critiques V3 on its own merits. It's really the people who've never enjoyed Danganronpa in the first place calling this an "embarrassment" that confuses me because this game LITERALLY admits to Danganronpa being bad, but somehow that's not enough. Where does this sheer hatred even come from if you're not a fan of the first two entries? Most of these people deny the message's existence in the first place, which I'll never agree with. I may not like Kodaka's writing all that much, but he agrees with you, and that's still not enough for you, so what else do you want? If somehow a Danganronpa game is utterly loathed by you, then I'm genuinely baffled because at worst these games are nothing worse than a schlocky murder mystery with corny themes.

Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony aims high, and I'm sorry to say it kinda misses the mark, but I'll never deny the message Kodaka was trying to say. I apologize to my friend who wanted me to replay V3 to like it as much as him, while I can't say this is a 10/10, I do completely see why you like this game so much. I was reminded a lot of my memories of playing Danganronpa three years ago. Starting Trigger Happy Havoc at 5 am, not knowing what it is, spending 14 hours on Goodbye Despair at one play session, and being left confused at the end of Killing Harmony. I love this series, it's bad, but I had so much fun. So I don't care. I'm glad Kodaka was able to end it on his own terms, and I really hope Rain Code can knock it out of the park.

Concerning the ending, yeah, this "fiction" did touch me. I'll miss it, and I wanna go back to the time when I was able to turn my brain off and have fun with these games. But, in classic series fashion, I'm told to move on, so I will. But alas, I will miss you.

Goodbye, Danganronpa.

could you put the budget up i cant use my ballista class

Worse than alone / Exiled.

The second game in the Persona series sets out to build and improve upon everything found in the first game. Admittedly the game was very hyped up as being the best the franchise offers, and I can certainly see why. The game is dripping with symbolism trenched deep into a plot involving some of the craziest scenarios in the series, but one that ultimately has a heart at the center of it all.

For starters, I think the gameplay is an improvement of Persona 1's in every aspect....but that still doesn't mean it's the best either. Dungeons are the worst example; they're largely monotonous and too long for their own good at later points in the game. Combat is certainly unique and challenging, but I can't help but feel like it's not all that engaging. A new mechanic that I actually really like is the Rumor System; it has more depth than I was expecting, and I love how it's an extension of the main narrative itself. While you're going around town, spreading rumors, or buying items, the game's excellent soundtrack is also there to keep you company, and I love the instrumental variety featured in the OST.

Worse than exiled / Dead.

Ultimately, I think the strongest part of Innocent Sin lies in its narrative. The storytelling method is quite different from the first game, and I think it works for the story they're going for here. An ever-longing pain emanates from each of the main cast from your first encounter with them, and their struggles were very explored very well. I do think there are some hiccups though, as I can't help but feel the last party member that joins is never given enough interaction with the rest of the cast for me to get a proper handle on what kind of person he is. His struggles were laid out well, but I think the game could've benefited from having a few more scenes with him.

Besides that, I think almost everyone is well-written, and I love the moments where we get to know each character. Whether it be Maya's messy room, Eikichi's dreams of becoming a rock star, or Lisa's habit of blurting out Cantonese phrases, I loved getting to know these characters and exploring the town of Sumaru City. This game reminded me why I fell in love with Persona and Megami Tensei years ago.

Worse than dead / Forgotten.

everything you’d want from a multiplayer co-op game

arcsys KILLED it but unfortunately they don’t know how to balance this game!!! we will be peeping dbfz 3 or perhaps booting it back up when they get roll back on here

[campaign only] the one singular FPS game I will defend with my life. cool unique guns + giant robot * satisfying movement tech = perfection... also steam sells it for $5 every sale :)