"Oh nooooo the New series is so repetitive! It's all the same! So boring!"... Good thing I'm a Mega Man fan, this doesn't mean shit to me :D

Overall a fun game that doesn't do anything crazy but is very competent, as are all the games in the New series. And of course, this one has extra value for the multiplayer (which is how I played all of it).

The world map is pretty cool too!

An impressive sequel, much more ambitious in scope, that takes a lot from the first game while changing a lot due to the genre-shift. It's an interesting mix of familiarity and novelty at the same time. Overall, the game feels great to play, leads to very fun moments with friends, and is oozing with charm from its setting. Lots of loadouts to unlock and try, and lots of unique and crazy enemies to kill with them.

In the end, what I like the most is how it's different enough from the first game, meaning you can still play the first one (and you should!), and both are very fun in their own ways! In fact, I've also recently gone back to playing 1 again, and it's awesome to hop back and forth between the two of them. I love democracy.

30+ minutes of staring at the screen in profound puzzlement
...and then...
1 minute of executing the wackiest setup to solve the stage with a wicked smile on your face

this is probably one of the hardest puzzle games I've played, but damn is it both rewarding and rich in design. i would say a must for puzzle game enjoyers.

An absolutely great follow-up to the first game. The stakes are higher, the emotional connections are formed, and the drive to see this story through is set.

The magic system is a huge improvement. Instead of unlocking slots one by one, you already have them all unlocked by default, and you can upgrade them to use more powerful quartz. You also get much more powerful ones which allow you to play around even more with the possibilities.

The story feels a bit formulaic, but it's still fun, because firstly, it's not all about the main story, but the many side contents you can find all around. And secondly, despite the predictability of many plot points, the execution is well-made enough to still leave you satisfied. (I cried to a scene at the end even though I knew very well what would happen!)

The villains can feel very cartoon-ish, but they still have unique personalities and designs, and connections to the main cast that saves them from being too cardboardy. Overall, much of the writing feels very tropey, yet they managed to make it good to the point it doesn't bother too much.

The music is peak. What the fuck I love leitmotifs now. It's even better than the first game!! "Feeling Danger Nearby" is supposedly a danger/pinch track, but it's so groovy it feels like you don't care about the fact your party is dying. "Visions" is just beautiful, a sublime and soothing atmospheric dungeon track. And "Looking Up at the Sky" is such a nice upbeat field track that will instantly put you in the mood to explore Liberl all over again.

Overall, it was a lot of fun to see this story unfold, and it's amazing how Falcom was able to reuse so much from the first game in a way that feels fresh enough and justified. I won't lie that I would like even more new things, specially considering the length of the game, but all things considered, I think this game is a very worthwhile experience, and I'm definitely sold by now on this world. Yep, I already started the next game as soon as I finished this!

It gets a score this high from me being a huge Gunvolt person. I love the music tracks from all over the franchise, so of course a rhythm game is very welcome! Though it's obvious this game will have thousands of DLCs, which works for this kind of game I guess... though I can't help but feel awkward about this. If it released with a few more tracks it would be okay.

Anyways, it doesn't seem to innovate much in the genre, but from someone who hasn't played many rhythm games nowadays, it feels fresh enough with the analog flick and drag mechanics. At first I thought the control scheme seemed too simple, but overall it really is good enough to create fun and challenging tracks by layering the different note types on top of each other.

The game looks and sounds very pretty. The UI is clean and stylish, the sound effects are straight up from the GV series, and the music videos in the background are a feast for the eyes. The shots from the games in the series are a treat for fans, and the ones with the 3D models look great and exciting as well. Though, I gotta say it's very hard to play while Lola's ass flashes on the screen every now and then...