I still have the little pamphlet from GameStop telling you how to get Manaphy in Pokemon Ranger so you could transfer it over to Diamond and Pearl. I was so excited.

And I remember the Sunday getting home, playing it, and the excitement fading all at once. Literal BWOMP kinda moment. This game's not good and childhood whimsy couldn't change that.

the underground stuff was fun to play on band trips though

The most fucking disappointing game of my entire life.
Absolute waste of potential fueled by greed and relaxed almost creepy moderation.
Thank you for abandoning this Aggie, I understand why you did.
We never got the game we were promised and I am still bitter.
2 Stars because customization is kind of fun.

The microgames here are either far too easy, or require you to frantically search for which of the many things on screen are interactable. The latter leads to some very cheap feeling fails.
The blowing on the microphone bit is cool in concept but all of the microgames suck or else it would be too difficult.
The bullet hell boss stage is a ridiculous difficulty spike compared to the rest.

The Wii entry is way more fun.

its a great platform in terms of potential but i hate how it preys upon both children who play and the creators (some still children also) who make the content for it. most of the games pushed by them are slop riddled with robux microtransactions and unfair dopamine dripfeed game structures to keep kids and others alike addicted to the platform and spending money, often times even gambling in the form of loot boxes.

there are genuinely good games that give you a lot for free and some of the ones ive played would include stuff like Doors, Become Fumo, or one of the many other passion projects like Fnaf Co-op where the gameplay is incredibly polished and looks really pretty.
Shame the good ones are buried under the pile of predatory slop.

Absolutely enraptured me when I had it on Nintendo DSi. A great little arcade with perfect pixel aesthetics and some of the best game feel I've ever gotten off of something like this. Is just as much about twitchy movements as it is about long strides and it just is so satisfying to reach out for a Bean and get 1000 points off of it.

I actually wouldn't get that this is kind of a WarioWare thing, despite being a huge fan of the franchise even back when I first played this, until last year when our little friend Pyoro would make an appearance in WarioWare: Get It Together! It would be the first new title in the series that I would buy in years and when Pyoro made an appearance in that game I went "Wait, what the fuck, that's the Bird & Beans guy!" Then, this past year in trying to 100% WarioWare Twisted!, I would unlock a mini-game called "Pyoro R," the 'R' standing for "Rotate," I imagine. I've had 'Twisted' for ages, and I can't imagine how cool it would've been to, somewhere along the line, unlock that game closer to when I started playing this.

Bird & Beans is the fucking bomb, and a modern release on iOS/Android with online leaderboards would steal time from me like crazy. Or, dare I say...

...Pyoro 99, when???

[played via steam deck, as there is no steam deck platform option]

this game is cute, dont get me wrong, but its really nothing special. im not sure if im just old and jaded now, but the humor and writing of this really... well, it makes me realize how much of an issue i have with the VN formula. it's impossible to write a character that fits every single player possible, especially when you're writing a romance and need the love interest to bounce off of the dialogue each player chooses. you just can't capture all the nuance that comes with an individual person unless you decide to code thousands of edge-cases that tailor each route and interaction to the player, but that is so unfeasible its never been done (to my knowledge, at least) and definitely not without sacrificing the story they want to share.

grim is a real sweetie, but from day one you can see what archetype they are going for and if it doesnt work immediately to captivate you, the game... doesn't do much to try and fix that. despite trying to pretend he is anything but, grim is a very shallow character. its to be expected, i guess, from such a short window of "dating" in universe and only two-ish hours in real life, but i really struggled to put myself in this guys shoes. right off the bat you get the option to call him "babygirl", they bring up homestuck, mention things like kaomojis and slang like "rizz." it's clear who they are pandering for and the type of humor meant to attract them, which is okay! just not really for me. i cant really critique the story. not because it doesnt have flaws (i think its pretty poor overall), but because i just dont have the language for it. im sure with more time thinking about it, i can summarize it in a concise way, but this is backloggd so... sorry! if you're familiar with butterfly soup, this game is the newest version of that, just limited to one character. its uniquely charming and i think if i was 16 again, this would have hit a lot harder than it does for me now!

that said, there are a few things i like. the art is really fucking good. while some of the character creation things are a bit goofy, it's overall really great and i like the tiny bits of flavor it added to the game, even if its really not used for anything. the pet thing is cute and the neighbors story existing alongside your own is also a fun add, but the game has a lot of nothing outside of the text chains and calls. if this could have been fleshed out with maybe another week of in game bonding time, i think the game would have increased in quality dramatically.

solid dating sim. if you like it, you will probably really like it. if you dislike it, you will know right away. its free, so pick it up and give it a go if you feel so inclined. grim is a cute generic anime boy and i still would be his friend :-)

Over 3 years ago, I saw a new game being played on Twitch. It was advertised as "Open-World Gacha," and once I learned it was Free-to-Play, I took the bait. Having been a big fan of gacha games in the past, and immediately thinking, "This looks just like Breath of the Wild!" I figured I'd give it a try and leave if I got bored. 3+ years later, and it's become one of my favorite games.

Let's touch on the negatives right away: it's a gacha game. That means if you want the newest, fanciest characters, you have to roll the dice. Like most gacha, these are acquired through various currencies that can be acquired through in-game events, exploration, achievements, or swiping your credit card. I do not recommend the latter, and frankly, you never need to. There's plenty of ways to get the resources you need for newer characters, and freebies are given out all the time.

Genshin hosts a rotating set of two banners that continuously make "Event" characters available, whether those are re-runs or new, and a single "Standard" banner that houses classic characters that are easier to acquire (not not guaranteed). There is a reasonable Pity system so you're never waiting too long to get the character you want, but if you don't spend money, you're never getting everyone. That's the simple gacha facts.

Now for the positives: Genshin's open world is, in a word, beautiful. From the fields of Mondstadt to the rainforests of Sumeru, all the way to the underwater chasms of Fontaine, every area of Genshin is lovingly crafted and filled to the brim with puzzles, quests, and rewards.

The VA work in Genshin is great. It's a little slow at first, but over the past 3 years the characters, and their performances, have greatly improved, as has the story and gameplay. New players may be overwhelmed at the options in front of them, but Genshin does a good job at not filling your UI with unnecessary junk. You can play at your own pace without feeling like you're missing out if you don't speedrun 36 months of content.

Powercreep is, surprisingly, non-existent, a fresh feeling for a very popular gacha. You can use 3-year-old freebie units and clear the hardest content in the game, or you can use the latest characters and clear it 20 seconds faster. Or, you can swipe your credit card and clear it before the enemies even spawn in. It's up to you.

Genshin does a good job of focusing on non-combat events and gameplay options while still allowing you to showcase your shiny new characters. There is an entire town-building section, a fully fleshed-out TCG (complete with the occasional in-game event) and a host of fun multiplayer events, games, and opportunities akin to games like Fall Guys or Prop Hunt.

Multiplayer is fantastic. It's easy to pop in and out of other players' worlds on the fly, having your friends join you for Weekly Boss Battles, Domain runs for character equipment or materials, or the latest event, if it supports multiplayer action. keep in mind, you'll need to play the game a bit to play with your friends (Adventure Rank 16, easily achievable after a play session or two).

There is no direct PVP beyond the TCG, so no feeling forced to increase your DPS by 0.1% to avoid missing out on rewards. "Abyss," the end-game combat challenge, resets every two weeks and provides rewards based on how far you progress, so even if you can't finish it, you'll still gain currencies to acquire new characters and weapons.

Genshin "versions" update every 6 weeks, and each one brings new characters, story, and events. Despite the quick updates, the game continues to deliver consistently high-quality content and VA work, with vast explorable areas being added to the game all the time. Treasure-hunting is plentiful and fun, with some treasure being hidden behind combat challenges and others behind puzzles or quests of varying length, from minutes to hours.

Overall, Genshin is a quality game that is only hindered by its desire to make disgusting amounts of money off its gacha system. And it does, indeed, make disgusting amounts of money. But it takes itself seriously and re-invests those profits into good graphics, gameplay, and content, with plenty of freebies for newbies and veterans alike.

If you're a fan of gacha games, this is arguably the best. Try it, and you'll be hooked. If you're new to the genre, this is a great place to start. Just keep your credit card in your wallet!