I got to play the sequel and it improved on the mechanics and is a far more polished game. But I don’t think it’s much better due to the grind and challenge. The game assumes you’re going to die and expects this from you since you’re still getting money and experience. I don’t like when games do this to offer ‘value’. I still think it’s worth playing because the gameplay is unique. It’s impressive how the dev changed the entire flow of the game (more tactical, less button mash) and offer more gameplay options (traps and passive skills). I’ve completed the game on normal and continued with hard with the normal save. I completed 5 out of 7 chapters with hard mode.

Potata is a cute puzzle platformer that is pleasant to play. I liked the variety of platforming and solving actual puzzles, though I'm aware there will be others who don't like having puzzles in their games. The soundtrack is lovely and the characters can be quite charming.

It has a few flaws I can think of:
1. There are some typo or grammar mistakes with the English version
2. The transition/loading screens to the next areas are left in Russian except for the village one
3. The background story/lore is kind of thrown throughout the game through notes randomly
4. The ending or last levels felt slightly rushed

The typo and English ones happen sometimes but not too often. What's said is often clear. The transition screens are only black screens with the names of the areas. You're not missing any other info. The third flaw felt a bit weird. No matter where you went, you saw notes scattered everywhere about the villagers. How did the notes end up in such dangerous areas? I did enjoy reading them for the most part. The fourth flaw is a bit personal perhaps. The ending felt sudden. It felt like there could have been more levels or a better way to end the game?

All of the flaws mentioned are picky for the most part. I had a good time playing this. It wasn't challenging but it wasn't too easy either. If you like those kind of games, then it's worth trying. Especially when it's on sale. That's when I got it.

I had a great time playing this for 15 hours. I went out of my way to unlock everything in every mode and get all the collectibles (in game achievements). Even though you can clear the main mode quickly, it kept me interested enough to keep playing a little bit every day. I haven’t played the other monkey ball games yet though, so I come from a fresh perspective.

The 3D is good, I like the soundtrack, the variety in modes and the challenge that gradually goes up. The kart racing mode especially surprised me because it felt very challenging. The controls felt bad at the beginning, but mastering it felt very satisfying.

I’ve downloaded the player version to play people’s levels instead of making my own. The quality obviously depends on the creators and I’ve experienced both a good and bad example. I’ve found the best games and downloaded them. It’s a great value considering the player is completely free with no strings attached. The only reason I marked it as complete is because I’ve seen what the player has to offer, having completed a great game (Infernal Darkness part 1) within 10 hours. I’m going to focus on other games before continuing with this again. It’s definitely worth it.

The puzzles felt clever without frustrating the player. I often felt surprised how the game kept introducing new ideas all the way through. I also kept having 'one more time' moments and couldn't put the game down. On top of the gameplay being good, the graphics are also charming, there is a simple story that is entertaining to follow, the dialogue is witty and there is even voice acting. I honestly don't know how the developer put so many things in the game while asking around €3. I paid €1 when there was a sale, but I would have definitely paid its normal asking price have I known how good it is. I can only conclude that this game is a labour of love and the price reflects that.

In terms of flaws, I can think of the following:
1. The UI is on the screen. It would have been better to hide it. The dev did mention a patch would cover this.
2. Only one puzzle felt cheap. Even this, the dev mentioned he's looking into making it better. There's also an in-game hint if you don't mind using it.

If you like puzzle games with retro graphics, then definitely give this one a try. This one is a hidden gem!

It’s probably one of the best and most generous gacha games. I haven’t played many of them but I did play this religiously. It’s great seeing your favourite characters interact with each other, but honestly, it’s this element that keeps you playing. I’ve decided to move on, hopefully definitively. It was taking too much time playing it, watching videos and reading about it. Not to mention, most of the time is spent on grinding to get to the most difficult content. That content is often designed in a way to incentivise you to use certain characters. It becomes too much to keep up with the meta, afraid of missing out on rewards and the feeling that you need to pay for the basic moogle pass to avoid excessive grinding.

I’m giving it 4 stars to show that it’s the best when it comes to this type of game. If you feel the need to try gacha games, then it’s best to try this one. But ideally, it’s better to not play them at all. I came to the conclusion that I can use all this time to play more quality games that don’t have any predatory elements.

The gameplay loop can be very addictive but it’s very grindy. If you really want to see the credits, it feels impossible to reach that point reasonably without paying for micro transactions. I spent €18, got to the credits, collected all the Pokémon and did all the king’s requests except for the last one. Because the last one requires you to grind in an unhealthy way, by grinding for Pokémon with special traits and specific moves. The reason why I’m giving the game this score, is to make you aware that you will hit a wall where you are going to have to pay. Are you okay with that? Also the random nature of selecting a stage unless you use gems is super annoying. The game received a patch where you can use a balloon (every 20 hours) to bring you to Pokémon that still need to be captured. This is a blessing. I can’t imagine dealing with the game without this balloon. All of this lasted 96 hours which is not bad for the price I paid, even though I wasn’t planning on paying this much.

A fantastic and varied platformer with infinite content if you let it take hold of you. The single player content is already excellent with a lengthy main mode and extra levels from Origins on top of it. The other portion of the game is the online challenges where you compete in random generated content for the top ranking. On the vita, the competition is fierce and it can be difficult to get a platinum if you try to get it legit. The vita version is a great port btw. Either way, don’t miss out on this if you enjoy the genre.

An interesting start to a spin off with flaws. I was especially annoyed with the early parts mainly because of the way the levels were designed. Lots of backtracking with frequent random encounters. The kind of backtracking where if you fail, you have to walk the same distance to get back where you were again. This does get better with the second half. Other flaws include the levels looking similar, especially the internet levels. That’s a different reason why you might backtrack too much. It’s also not possible to escape from battles properly. You can use an escape card, but what’s the chance of getting this card when you need it? Not much. What the game does right though is the battle system being novel and interesting for its time. The soundtrack kicks ass. The characters are distinct when it comes to design and I enjoy interacting with them even though there are no surprises. I do like the twist right before the last fight though. Overall, I’m glad to have given the game a chance to start with this spin off series and continue with the sequels but I’m not hooked enough to do the post game content or try to collect all the cards/upgrades. I’ll leave that for the sequels if they turn out better.

A far better game than CQ EX. It has more depth, interesting risk/reward system and the grind is not as ridiculous. You have more tools to decide how to grind and you don’t need to max all your stats to have a chance. That’s where risk/reward comes into place. Do you want better units to win fights? Then you’ll get less money when you win. How do you use morale? More at the start but less gradually or start low but with more defence? In this game, morale does influence the outcome of battles. I’ve completed the game in less than 7 hours (EX more than 8 hours and 30 minutes) and I had a far better experience. I’m looking forward to CQ Against now.