2022
It was not too obvious what to do once I finished the last story and I hit another thousand clicks before thinking maybe I should check the trophies to make sure this has a ten-thousand-tap trophy like the others (aww crap, it doesn’t). Had to back out of the final scene and re-enter it to trigger the shroom-hike, which I thought was amazing - how were people not enjoying all the cool games? Were they just not imbibing in the off-trail mushrooms?
I gotta re-download the other games now. I watched the credits for the first time and got really invested, and discovered the credits for the other games were the same likeness.
This is now one of the only franchises of which I’ve played every game.
I gotta re-download the other games now. I watched the credits for the first time and got really invested, and discovered the credits for the other games were the same likeness.
This is now one of the only franchises of which I’ve played every game.
2017
Really not into how slow-moving and dull this game is in spite of the gorgeously drawn environments. There are no hints if I get stuck on a puzzle, so I have to slowly mosey on through the terrain to try to find something I missed. The puzzles aren't really hard, but they're not easy either, so without hints, I imagine a kid would have an absolute conniption if they got stuck. The voices are annoying. I dislike the quirks of the characters, like the rhyming mayor and singing. Not into that.
Not to mention - can you imagine being a kid playing this and hearing the first boss talk about vaccines containing autism? I understand that it's a villain trying to fearmonger with misinformation about vaccines, but that's not spelled out enough for young/impressionable folks in my opinion. WTF.
I had to shelve this game. Maybe I'll pick it up again someday when I have the patience or they update it with a little more speed and a little less clunk.
Not to mention - can you imagine being a kid playing this and hearing the first boss talk about vaccines containing autism? I understand that it's a villain trying to fearmonger with misinformation about vaccines, but that's not spelled out enough for young/impressionable folks in my opinion. WTF.
I had to shelve this game. Maybe I'll pick it up again someday when I have the patience or they update it with a little more speed and a little less clunk.
2021
I'm the kind of person who, with the right kind of crescendo in instrumental music, will openly weep at its beauty for no comprehensible reason. And I absolutely love space-opera music. Combine that with my own struggles to find my own place in my art, trying to reshape the box everyone expects me to fit into... plus that time of the month fast approaching, and I'm a crying mess ready to join the cult of Simon Says Run & Gun.
I'd have liked it a little more if it weren't so linear (so many stellar environments and no Z-axis ability whatsoever), had a little more room to jam with the open notes (as opposed to holding the one button 90% of the time, with 9% Simon Says, and only 1% open jam), and extended JUST beyond where it ended to talk with people about the last performance. And the drug-trip slingshot from the Cosmic Lung to other areas got a little tedious. Woulda been fun to change it up, even a little, each stage.
But I loved the music, the star-studded cast, the eventual customization of my character, and messages. I know it's not something that's gonna ring with everyone, but this just hit me at the right time.
I'd have liked it a little more if it weren't so linear (so many stellar environments and no Z-axis ability whatsoever), had a little more room to jam with the open notes (as opposed to holding the one button 90% of the time, with 9% Simon Says, and only 1% open jam), and extended JUST beyond where it ended to talk with people about the last performance. And the drug-trip slingshot from the Cosmic Lung to other areas got a little tedious. Woulda been fun to change it up, even a little, each stage.
But I loved the music, the star-studded cast, the eventual customization of my character, and messages. I know it's not something that's gonna ring with everyone, but this just hit me at the right time.
This review contains spoilers
Of course I loved this game! But I cannot deny, this really follows a trilogy formula I hate, and that's "the middle episode is 80% filler."
There were SO many mini games (I loved a couple of them - I loved Queen's Blood). And at one point, I turned on one of Chadley's towers while that lazy little android was STANDING THERE in the background. That kid can set up shop in every town before I even get there, and he can't turn on his own towers once in a while?? Ridiculous.
Anyway, I definitely cried in a couple places. More than a couple places, really. Jessie and the gang, Cait Sith (who I hated in the OG, but absolutely adored in this one) and his moogle, and of course, Aeris. Maybe Zack...?
The ending we all knew was coming didn't come nearly as soon as I thought it would, which built tension like crazy. And the two-timelines interjection at that point was like a surprise gut punch where I genuinely thought they'd decided to change the original storyline. The end-end... the "see you off" end was a mixed bag - like a comforting shoulder to cry on, but less tearjerky than other scenes - kinda made it not so sad, but I'm still tearing up writing this, so I dunno.
As for the play - all pretty good. I didn't like being interrupted with "hit square to attack with this character" tutorials every time I played a character for the first time, as if the square button isn't the attack button for ALL of them. Some mini games, especially the polygon games, were really clunky and I had no clue how to play them (one of the many reasons I didn't pursue Chadley's damn proto-relics, and why I probably won't bother trophy-hunting this one). I got really tired of the mini games about halfway through the world and skipped a lot of little things that I'll probably go back to eventually (some of them, anyway). And I didn't want to do to many more side quests because the girls' involvement in cutscenes were HYPER Shojo anime girlie-girls, far more than in the first one. I hope they'll lose that in the third.
And Tifa's a better actress than Aeris. But Cait Sith is the best. I said it ;)
There were SO many mini games (I loved a couple of them - I loved Queen's Blood). And at one point, I turned on one of Chadley's towers while that lazy little android was STANDING THERE in the background. That kid can set up shop in every town before I even get there, and he can't turn on his own towers once in a while?? Ridiculous.
Anyway, I definitely cried in a couple places. More than a couple places, really. Jessie and the gang, Cait Sith (who I hated in the OG, but absolutely adored in this one) and his moogle, and of course, Aeris. Maybe Zack...?
The ending we all knew was coming didn't come nearly as soon as I thought it would, which built tension like crazy. And the two-timelines interjection at that point was like a surprise gut punch where I genuinely thought they'd decided to change the original storyline. The end-end... the "see you off" end was a mixed bag - like a comforting shoulder to cry on, but less tearjerky than other scenes - kinda made it not so sad, but I'm still tearing up writing this, so I dunno.
As for the play - all pretty good. I didn't like being interrupted with "hit square to attack with this character" tutorials every time I played a character for the first time, as if the square button isn't the attack button for ALL of them. Some mini games, especially the polygon games, were really clunky and I had no clue how to play them (one of the many reasons I didn't pursue Chadley's damn proto-relics, and why I probably won't bother trophy-hunting this one). I got really tired of the mini games about halfway through the world and skipped a lot of little things that I'll probably go back to eventually (some of them, anyway). And I didn't want to do to many more side quests because the girls' involvement in cutscenes were HYPER Shojo anime girlie-girls, far more than in the first one. I hope they'll lose that in the third.
And Tifa's a better actress than Aeris. But Cait Sith is the best. I said it ;)
2019
If you don't read any other part of this review, just read this part: Instead of this game, play Seasons After Fall. I remember it much more fondly and less frustrating (it's a side-scroller, but it's not so clunky and lifeless, and it's based on the same folklore).
This game wanted to be great, I can tell. A lot of work went into the environment, but at the cost of filling those environments, setting a story, and basic mechanics. So many ruins with rooms, entrances, and crevices, and nothing inside them.
Right off the cuff, I'm trotting through a long, boring path of just snow and a few rock piles to indicate human activity. It took far too long, but eventually, I reach a place where I can actually do a thing, and that's pick up a fancy staff and bring it to a skeleton dressed as some kind of monk, prompting a spirit to release and a path to be cleared. Finally, something to do. So I spend a ridiculous amount of time looking around for more things to do instead of following the fox spirit who just showed up. After a while of finding nothing else, I figure I should just follow the path for now. This is another long and boring trudge through snow and ice, and what's worse is the snow dusts up right in the camera's view, obscuring my ability to look where I'm going (it's not smooth either, so it's just strobing a headache into me). Thankfully, the snow is not part of the game for long. I found a couple more staffs to give to dead monks, and none cleared any paths like the first one did (and none would again until the end).
If this wasn't long enough of an opener, the first big thing to do results in a cave-in and an extremely long trail to follow whilst very slowly limping through it. I mean LONG and SLOW. I found another monk, but no staff, and at that point, I couldn't be fucked to go on a hunt because I moved way too slowly. I reached a fox statue with a pool of serene water in front of it and I thought surely this will be magical and heal me and I can speed up so I can find that monk's staff. Nope. Pretty much a halfway mark of no importance. Eventually, I was healed and imbued with the fox spirit so I can perform a task (I assume, since there's no dialogue, narration, or direction on what to do or why I should even do it). But that task was not backtracking to find that one monk's staff, because I'm now blocked from backtracking that particular path. But hey, at least I have this brightly glowing sprite following me around and flying directly in the camera while I'm trying to look around for something.
Jumping was impressive, with great strides, until I needed to jump over a tiny rock or jump over a stream (or jump a short distance). No jumping or running in any depth of water, and sorry, you're too close to that pebble, you gotta back up and try jumping it again, but you can somehow speed-swim right through black sludge. You could walk/run up stairs, but god forbid you run into a ledge taller than an inch. The fox shakes off after getting out of the water at random, and it's annoying to have to wait for it to do that before you can move again. The structures and rocks you can/can't climb are very inconsistent through each segment of puzzles. It's like different people worked on each section and didn't bother to make sure they were consistent in their mechanics when putting it all together.
Getting spirit power from flowers was a pain, as they couldn't be collected, but only harvest one at a time (represented by the glowing marks in your fur). Whether you were able to harvest another yet or not, the annoying glowing sprite would bring your attention to the glaringly obvious flowers in the area, and you'd be prompted to hit the harvest button whenever you got near them. The controller buzzed every time you were near anything interactable and sometimes randomly where there was nothing - just a wall or a floor where developers forgot to remove that component (understandable if there's something on the other side or something, but it was never the case).
(ending spoilers here)
When I finally reached a place I thought was the end, I was so relieved, and then there was more. How the hell long is this game?? That happened twice. The second time, the little sprite turned red and I wasn't able to harvest any more flowers, so I had to recycle the powers I used (this was actually clever, puzzle-wise). But then I got to a point where I was lured into this area where this corrupt entity was weighing me down. Okay, I've dealt with this a few times at this point and it didn't seem too different. But then I just... died?? In (what I assume was) the middle of the damn game? Went into spirit mode to chase the sprite into the void, barked at it a few times, and then was transported to this spirit forest to wander aimlessly for who knows how long with no direction or any inkling of what the fuck to do at this point. This is the only almost-totally open world area to explore, but there is no way to know that if you get lost, you can just find one of the few fox statues to bark at and they'll northern-lights a path for you. I ran around for about 20 minutes before I got intensely bored and pissed that the fox's life just ENDED for no reason and now I'm stuck in this spirit forest. Apparently, you're supposed to find and greet all the monks you released, but fuck if I'm doing that. I'd wager I saved about half the monks, and I ran into exactly TWO of them (one 3 times while I ran around evidently in circles).
I assume I technically did finish the game, but at that point, I was fucking done and just turned it off and deleted it. This was supposed to be one of those relaxing wind-down games, but it frustrated me relentlessly since it began.
This game wanted to be great, I can tell. A lot of work went into the environment, but at the cost of filling those environments, setting a story, and basic mechanics. So many ruins with rooms, entrances, and crevices, and nothing inside them.
Right off the cuff, I'm trotting through a long, boring path of just snow and a few rock piles to indicate human activity. It took far too long, but eventually, I reach a place where I can actually do a thing, and that's pick up a fancy staff and bring it to a skeleton dressed as some kind of monk, prompting a spirit to release and a path to be cleared. Finally, something to do. So I spend a ridiculous amount of time looking around for more things to do instead of following the fox spirit who just showed up. After a while of finding nothing else, I figure I should just follow the path for now. This is another long and boring trudge through snow and ice, and what's worse is the snow dusts up right in the camera's view, obscuring my ability to look where I'm going (it's not smooth either, so it's just strobing a headache into me). Thankfully, the snow is not part of the game for long. I found a couple more staffs to give to dead monks, and none cleared any paths like the first one did (and none would again until the end).
If this wasn't long enough of an opener, the first big thing to do results in a cave-in and an extremely long trail to follow whilst very slowly limping through it. I mean LONG and SLOW. I found another monk, but no staff, and at that point, I couldn't be fucked to go on a hunt because I moved way too slowly. I reached a fox statue with a pool of serene water in front of it and I thought surely this will be magical and heal me and I can speed up so I can find that monk's staff. Nope. Pretty much a halfway mark of no importance. Eventually, I was healed and imbued with the fox spirit so I can perform a task (I assume, since there's no dialogue, narration, or direction on what to do or why I should even do it). But that task was not backtracking to find that one monk's staff, because I'm now blocked from backtracking that particular path. But hey, at least I have this brightly glowing sprite following me around and flying directly in the camera while I'm trying to look around for something.
Jumping was impressive, with great strides, until I needed to jump over a tiny rock or jump over a stream (or jump a short distance). No jumping or running in any depth of water, and sorry, you're too close to that pebble, you gotta back up and try jumping it again, but you can somehow speed-swim right through black sludge. You could walk/run up stairs, but god forbid you run into a ledge taller than an inch. The fox shakes off after getting out of the water at random, and it's annoying to have to wait for it to do that before you can move again. The structures and rocks you can/can't climb are very inconsistent through each segment of puzzles. It's like different people worked on each section and didn't bother to make sure they were consistent in their mechanics when putting it all together.
Getting spirit power from flowers was a pain, as they couldn't be collected, but only harvest one at a time (represented by the glowing marks in your fur). Whether you were able to harvest another yet or not, the annoying glowing sprite would bring your attention to the glaringly obvious flowers in the area, and you'd be prompted to hit the harvest button whenever you got near them. The controller buzzed every time you were near anything interactable and sometimes randomly where there was nothing - just a wall or a floor where developers forgot to remove that component (understandable if there's something on the other side or something, but it was never the case).
(ending spoilers here)
When I finally reached a place I thought was the end, I was so relieved, and then there was more. How the hell long is this game?? That happened twice. The second time, the little sprite turned red and I wasn't able to harvest any more flowers, so I had to recycle the powers I used (this was actually clever, puzzle-wise). But then I got to a point where I was lured into this area where this corrupt entity was weighing me down. Okay, I've dealt with this a few times at this point and it didn't seem too different. But then I just... died?? In (what I assume was) the middle of the damn game? Went into spirit mode to chase the sprite into the void, barked at it a few times, and then was transported to this spirit forest to wander aimlessly for who knows how long with no direction or any inkling of what the fuck to do at this point. This is the only almost-totally open world area to explore, but there is no way to know that if you get lost, you can just find one of the few fox statues to bark at and they'll northern-lights a path for you. I ran around for about 20 minutes before I got intensely bored and pissed that the fox's life just ENDED for no reason and now I'm stuck in this spirit forest. Apparently, you're supposed to find and greet all the monks you released, but fuck if I'm doing that. I'd wager I saved about half the monks, and I ran into exactly TWO of them (one 3 times while I ran around evidently in circles).
I assume I technically did finish the game, but at that point, I was fucking done and just turned it off and deleted it. This was supposed to be one of those relaxing wind-down games, but it frustrated me relentlessly since it began.
2021
The coziest. And I liked the simple yet complete storyline.
2020
Cthu-lite. A cozy Lovecraftian mystery with only slightly unsettling vibes lurking in the backdrop (I know 'cozy' and 'Lovecraft' aren't exactly compatible words, but it really was quite relaxing). If you like solving puzzles and Lovecraft’s Innsmouth & Dagon (with other references peppered throughout) but none of the insanity & terror afflicting your character, then this is a nice chill game.
Finished this in a day, took another day to tie up loose trophies. With a chapter select, there are technically no missable achievements, but you will have to look up a few (mostly cute easter egg nods to the game company, and one literally named “you looked that up in a guide!”).
The puzzles are not difficult, but there were one or two challenging ones. But they’re not overly easy either - they’re involved, but clever tween level of difficulty. Seriously, this is just an all-around chill and cozy game with a decent story to piece together. After the month I’ve had, it was a welcome realization that this was not going to be a chase or survival or high-tension game, but still totally Lovecraft.
Finished this in a day, took another day to tie up loose trophies. With a chapter select, there are technically no missable achievements, but you will have to look up a few (mostly cute easter egg nods to the game company, and one literally named “you looked that up in a guide!”).
The puzzles are not difficult, but there were one or two challenging ones. But they’re not overly easy either - they’re involved, but clever tween level of difficulty. Seriously, this is just an all-around chill and cozy game with a decent story to piece together. After the month I’ve had, it was a welcome realization that this was not going to be a chase or survival or high-tension game, but still totally Lovecraft.
Just finished my first playthrough of the main game (saving the DLCs for a rainy day, or a free weekend).
This game made a Guinness World Record for "Most Full Motion Video footage in a videogame", clocking in at 42 hours, 57 minutes, and 52 seconds, and I will eventually play through however many times it takes to see it all. The actors are fantastic! The characters of Jeremy and Jenny are funny and heartwarming (lots of the actors are, but these are my favourites). And the fact that they made SO MUCH footage that will never get seen in just one playthrough is amazing! Having the ability to see the rush tapes (all the stuff that did not make that night's broadcast) after each night's play is a huge bonus because I can see all the bits that I couldn't pay attention to while recording the show.
As for the gameplay, the broadcast room element is pretty wild, but could be a bit dodgy at times. I played it in standard mode, which was still forgiving, considering how often I forgot how to fix the channel interference. Each day's broadcast posed different challenges from faulty wiring, damaged equipment, infestation (no spoilers), and of course, content deemed not for broadcast (swears, nudity, hijacked signals, etc), all whilst keeping engagement ratings up by switching cameras and cutting to commercials on time. I quickly started to take pride in my own work and always watched back the broadcasts (noting to my partner the few occasions I had to reshoot the segments, and lamenting that the first cut I did was so much better - the game crashed only twice, but I did have about 3 rating failures to replay). I tried one challenge several times and failed almost immediately each time. It seems that it has to be done perfectly or you fail. Not forgiving at all. I don't think I'll be able to play the challenges.
Between broadcasts, your character has a home life, and most of it is generally narrative, but you do make a few game-altering decisions. I thought it was a bit droll at first, but got really into it as the game progressed and I realized what's happening.
I couldn't have found this game at a better time, with the strife of an election looming in the future. I strived for the best ending because I just didn't want to face reality of our dark future. There are 4 main endings with 2 variations on them EACH. And there are FOURTEEN epilogue endings!
But now that I've gotten the best, I think I can face the rest.
This game made a Guinness World Record for "Most Full Motion Video footage in a videogame", clocking in at 42 hours, 57 minutes, and 52 seconds, and I will eventually play through however many times it takes to see it all. The actors are fantastic! The characters of Jeremy and Jenny are funny and heartwarming (lots of the actors are, but these are my favourites). And the fact that they made SO MUCH footage that will never get seen in just one playthrough is amazing! Having the ability to see the rush tapes (all the stuff that did not make that night's broadcast) after each night's play is a huge bonus because I can see all the bits that I couldn't pay attention to while recording the show.
As for the gameplay, the broadcast room element is pretty wild, but could be a bit dodgy at times. I played it in standard mode, which was still forgiving, considering how often I forgot how to fix the channel interference. Each day's broadcast posed different challenges from faulty wiring, damaged equipment, infestation (no spoilers), and of course, content deemed not for broadcast (swears, nudity, hijacked signals, etc), all whilst keeping engagement ratings up by switching cameras and cutting to commercials on time. I quickly started to take pride in my own work and always watched back the broadcasts (noting to my partner the few occasions I had to reshoot the segments, and lamenting that the first cut I did was so much better - the game crashed only twice, but I did have about 3 rating failures to replay). I tried one challenge several times and failed almost immediately each time. It seems that it has to be done perfectly or you fail. Not forgiving at all. I don't think I'll be able to play the challenges.
Between broadcasts, your character has a home life, and most of it is generally narrative, but you do make a few game-altering decisions. I thought it was a bit droll at first, but got really into it as the game progressed and I realized what's happening.
I couldn't have found this game at a better time, with the strife of an election looming in the future. I strived for the best ending because I just didn't want to face reality of our dark future. There are 4 main endings with 2 variations on them EACH. And there are FOURTEEN epilogue endings!
But now that I've gotten the best, I think I can face the rest.
What a beautiful masterpiece! Hand-drawn and rendered by acclaimed animator Nacho Rodriguez, with photographic elements and a supreme vintage style.
It was a little difficult to figure out how to solve a couple of the puzzles, but overall, it was a stellar experience with beautiful composites.
A very short game, but certainly worth checking out. I'm very eager to catch more from Nacho Rodriguez.
It was a little difficult to figure out how to solve a couple of the puzzles, but overall, it was a stellar experience with beautiful composites.
A very short game, but certainly worth checking out. I'm very eager to catch more from Nacho Rodriguez.
I saw some hype about the psychologically disturbing nature of this game, but none of the official content even hinted at it (I didn't want to dig because I didn't want spoilers... because look at that cover - no way I wanted to ruin any surprises). When it went on sale on PS, I bought it (and only afterwards did I find that it's apparently free to play on their site, but I am a console gamer).
The base game was boring, but I'm not into average dating sims. The psychologically disturbing bits were indeed as they promised (not disturbing to me - avid horror fan here, but certainly jarring given the bright and cheery backdrop).
Having to play such long periods of mostly boring dialogue had me on auto-pilot with the progression button to the point where any decisions I COULD make were made without me, because of the whole autopilot thing. There wasn't enough interesting or interactive content to keep me motivated to read along, and the creepy bits occasionally snuck right by me.
Still, I enjoyed the apex and the BtS stuff I could do to fiddle with the game. I might give it a few more runs, so long as I don't have to sit with Yuri for a whole weekend again!!
The base game was boring, but I'm not into average dating sims. The psychologically disturbing bits were indeed as they promised (not disturbing to me - avid horror fan here, but certainly jarring given the bright and cheery backdrop).
Having to play such long periods of mostly boring dialogue had me on auto-pilot with the progression button to the point where any decisions I COULD make were made without me, because of the whole autopilot thing. There wasn't enough interesting or interactive content to keep me motivated to read along, and the creepy bits occasionally snuck right by me.
Still, I enjoyed the apex and the BtS stuff I could do to fiddle with the game. I might give it a few more runs, so long as I don't have to sit with Yuri for a whole weekend again!!
Love this game! Love the character designs, the environment designs, and the first words spoken to my character: "A visitor? Where are your pants?"
It was 90% fun, and only 5% challenges I couldn't complete (5% wiggle room for NG+, which I haven't gone through yet).
That's it.
It was 90% fun, and only 5% challenges I couldn't complete (5% wiggle room for NG+, which I haven't gone through yet).
That's it.