Touch Detective 2 (and yes, this is the 2nd game despite the odd choice of name) takes everything great about the first game and expands upon it. More characters, funner mysteries, new places. And- even a new, recurring villain?! What a shock!

The addition of the villain adds a sense of a goal to the game that wasn't there before. Sure, the goal is to solve your cases. But you're mostly just... living and getting by. Doing your job because- what else is there to do? To have a culprit you want to see bought to justice- to learn more about- (hey, doesn't he sound a little familiar? haven't we seen him before?)- it gives more drive to your actions. Oh, shit, there's- like- a serialized story here! It's not just bad guy of the week anymore? Whoa!

It's just great.

But it's not perfect.

The ending feels incomplete. It's like they thought they were going to get a sequel. And they did. It just wasn't localized in the west.

This series deserves more than what it's been handed. I only think it would've kept improving and getting better.

I hope to see it get the love it deserves.

This game is still a great, fun time. Even if I feel like I'm watching a show that was cancelled in the middle of its season. I don't consider it a waste to play. At the end of the day- this is a lighthearted game with a lighthearted story. Think- The Office getting cancelled, versus something like Breaking Bad. It's sad- but also- you'll live. And you had fun the entire way anyway, didn't you?

I wish this series was as popular in the west as it is in the east. Hell- I wish it was even more popular- as popular as Layton- or even Ace Attorney. I think it deserves it. I think it has the potential.

This is a silly game though. Not meant to be taken seriously. There are no high stakes. No crazy diabolical evils afoot. You're just a little girl solving odd mysteries around her little town with her quirky neighbors. It's just pure, unbridled fun.

The characters are a joy to interact with. You can't help but love each and every one. Even the annoying ones. There's just something so funny and joyful about getting to know just who you're dealing with here- especially in a detective setting. The mysteries are absurd- and yet in the absurdity- you learn to make sense of it. You understand the logic here as if it just makes perfect sense to you.

There's something that sets Touch Detective apart from other detective games. At the very least- they don't go as in depth as they do in this game. And that's experiencing Mackenzie's thoughts the entire step of the way. Where most detective games point out what they're thinking in a solve-the-case sense- this game- while still doing that- also takes it in an almost leisurely sort of way. You are playing a little girl, after all. Is it really so surprising that she's getting distracted by cute animals or interesting knicknacks? It just adds a layer of slice of life to the game that already was kind of there. This actually feels more like a slice of life than a hardboiled detective game. Yet it works so well.

You come to love the world and only want to live more in it. Thankfully- that's what its sequel is for! And it's even better than the first.

Of all the changes to Mario's moveset, those regarding the long jump are perhaps the most immediately striking. It's utility has been altered to the point of seeming like an explicit downgrade compared to it's predecessors, sporting much shorter distance and lowered height. So low in fact that you may notice it's altitude throughout the duration is conspicuously aligned with the top of standard sized enemies, allowing for cathartically consistent 3D head bouncing. This is a very welcome addition in isolation but the real kicker is the way you can carry momentum from the long jump after the bounce. This was present in 64 and the Galaxy games as well but there was scarcely any reason to do so. Aside from the awkward high altituide, the long jump was just extremely powerful by itself and the level design didn't really incentivise it. The straight ahead, linear level design of 3D Land has allowed the designers to place enemies in such spaces that abusing them with the long jump allows you to skip past certain sections or just generally enjoy a much faster paced experience. This delightful action feels much like a classic 2D Mario maneuver although I'd say at their best, the multifaceted nature of the 3D environments allow this particular aspect to shine much more than the limited 2D planes did. Additionally, the Tanooki suit's flutter can also carry the long jump's momentum, letting you smugly ignore certain massive chunks of meticulously designed level geometry in a manner reminiscent of it's original SMB3 incarnation.

I believe this fundamental change to the way the long jump works is just one of many in favour of truly holistic game design. The long jump's original value to cross vast spans of distance still exists, it's just now dependant on other game factors. The enemies and power ups have been made quite valuable as a result, something 3D Mario had been struggling to accomplish-if not outright ignoring- for 15 years.

Perhaps the most apparent addition to Mario's new 3D control scheme is the dash which functions much like it did in Super Mario World as opposed to a more analogue momentum focused system. There is a short period where Mario goes into an initial dash state and will then transition into a distinct full speed state. What differentiates 3D Land's dash from World's is that the extra dimension allows this full speed state to be maintained as long as you have some flat ground as opposed to being forced out of it whenever you need to press left. Much like the long jump example, maintaining said speed for as long as possible across this Willy Wonka's Platform Factory of gimmicks is a pleasure that is most delightfully & texturally reminiscent of a momentum focused side scrolling Mario. That delicious taste of self authored risk that one can ebb and flow between to differing degrees depending on the context of the situation is just the right kind of dynamic and intrinsic magic that made the original so great.

The real genius of the dash's implementation, however, is how it solves the general movement problems of past 3D Mario's. In the Galaxy games, the lack of momentum helps in aiding precision but isn't as intrinsically enjoyable as 64's mobility. The problem with 64's movement is that when the game asks you to be precise, the slippery controls end up feeling like a hinderance. In 3D Land, you are defaulted to a precise and rigid movement system à la Galaxy and may opt in to a more slippery, risky, and enjoyable movement style whenever you please. This allows the level designers to create situations that are made with precision in mind but still let you to approach them with caution thrown to wind if you so wish. 3D Land takes the concept of World's dash, manages to conjure an appeal similar to it's momentum focused ancestors with it as a result of it's context and solves the issues with general movement from past 3D games all in one fell swoop.

When I concieved my hypothosis about 3D Land's holistic design goals, I believed I'd caught the game slip with it's big/small Mario system which seemed haphazardly thrown in for tradition's sake. I was pleasantly surprised to realise that the concept of breaking blocks from underneath has simply been replaced by rolling into discreet ground level blocks holding secrets in walls instead. This isn't as nuanced or dynamic as the more generally applicable blocks of old but handing out more concrete rewards for not getting hit is a decent compromise, especially considering the comparatively low difficulty.

From the innate joy of maintaining speed, jumping on enemies for big air and creating a wholly holistic dish
of mechanics, 3D Land is much more than just "3D Mario but now there's a goal pole at the end". This is a meticulous, virtuosically contructed true translation of Super Mario's very soul.

In the Iwata Asks: 3D land interview, director Hayashida commented that he wanted the game to be like a hamburger. Something you could "just gobble down".
Gobble it down I did, but I'd argue that the game is actually much more like homemade soup.
It's familiar in all the right ways. All the aspects that you remember being good are just as good as they always were.
It's comfortingly simple and easy to to digest, but you can taste the nuance and love underneath.
Yeah, maybe it could use a couple fewer dashes of auto/quasi-auto scrollers.
Yeah, maybe you aren't quite sure why those slices of side jumps are in there, but you're thankful for em anyway.
Gobble it down I did, indeed Hayashida. Needless to say that I'll be coming back for seconds.

Better than I remember. The game is just charming as you would expect for Kirby. It's still not anything too crazy. Not a huge fan of the heart star sidequest. A lot of them feel either tedious or way too hard to figure out. Luckily it's optionable and I would reccomend not doing it unless you have to get the good ending and true final boss. The animal buddies are fun, but the KDL2 buddies might as well have not been included (other than maybe Kine) as they have been pretty much entirely outclassed by the new ones. But regardless, they're fun to experiment with the different abilities as each buddy changes your ability. Plus, Nago the Cat holding Kirby like a yarn ball is just the cutest thing ever lol. Some of the level design feels a bit mindless but its pretty good for the most part. Overall a decent Kirby game, but nothing amazing.

[Emulated on PCSX2]

Devil Summoner: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. The Soulless Army is quite a fascinating game with a lot to digest. First, I’d like to focus on its setting which is the Taisho era of Japan (which ended in our world in 1926 but has been extended to 1931 in this game).

To give some background, in 1853 Japan was forced to end its 200 year isolation and open up trade to the west. This caused a massive change in Japan with rapid advancement in industrialization with the new Western technology, reorganization of government from feudalism to a more centralized government, and a focus on growing the military to become a world power.

So why is all this important to Raidou? By the Taisho era, the effects of westernization could still be felt strongly and is one of the central focuses of the game. From the invading demons that represent Japan’s old world, the clever use of prerendered backgrounds mixing Western and outdated Edo period architecture, beautifully crafted soundtrack incorporating Jazz which was spreading throughout the world at the time, Atlus does an incredible job at capturing this era.

Every character is feeling the effects of modernization from Denpachi who's rickshaw business has come to a standstill due to the introduction of automobiles, Tae embracing the new freedoms of women in this era, and Munakata who desires imperialism using new technology. Other themes can also be seen in the story such as recognizing and cherishing our bonds with others along with passion to do our best in life despite dark times.

The story itself takes a lot of inspiration from detective dramas, with each part of the story fitting into an episode. The light hearted and witty approach to the story telling is very pleasant and the game does not hold back with how ridiculous the story gets. Every episode has something crazy from fighting yakuza in a bathhouse while being naked with nothing but your hat on to time travel and Russian cyborgs. Episodes are also very well paced, never dwelling too long on a plot point to avoid the player getting bored.

Gameplay wise Raidou does something unprecedented for a Megami Tensei title, swapping the standard turn-based combat system with action rpg gameplay. While theres definitely a lot that can be criticized such as the poor implementation of MAG that feels more of a leftover from previous games rather than serving any purpose, loyalty requiring grinding to fuse demons, random encounters in towns, to the clunky movement and lack of melee abilities outside of basic attacks, I still enjoyed the combat a lot and appreciate what it sets out to do.

Rather than feeling like a hack and slash, Raidou finds a way to bridge the gap between action and turn-based by having a focus on managing menus from switching demons, choosing their attacks, circulating through elemental bullets, to picking items to use. I found this approach to be quite unique and appreciated the experience it brought compared to other games in the genre.

Another aspect I loved was how Atlus incorporated the adventure genre into this game to fit the theme of being a detective game. Every demon has certain skills to help Raidou on his cases such as mind reading, fitting into small areas to reach something, using lightning to sense for clues, freezing water to walk on, and many more. Rather than this just being a skill you active from a menu you actually get to control the demons and move around as them which is really really cool.

While not a perfect game, the charming characters and story along with the unique gameplay made me fall in love with this game and I highly recommend it to anyone interested in this title, regardless if you’re a Megami Tensei fan or not.