[Review] Atelier Marie Remake: The Alchemist of Salburg
Posted on 1 year ago by Dennis Gagliardotto(@LyonHart_) in Reviews, Switch, Switch eShop | 0 comments
System: Switch
Release Date: July 13, 2023
Developer: Gust
Publisher: Koei Tecmo
Atelier has been around for over twenty five years, and even though it’s only felt like it’s really started to take off in the last five or so, it’s had a rich history with its slice-of-life RPG experience that is as cozy as it is adventurous and riveting. With the success of recent titles like Atelier Ryza and Atelier Sophie 2, the series has grown exponentially in both detail and scope. However, it’s the humble beginnings that really define how and why the franchise is so unique and special. Atelier Marie Remake: The Alchemist of Salburg now brings the series’ debut title to the modern day in a gorgeous fashion, and does so in such a grandiose way that it’s a contender for being the best Atelier game in some time and on Switch.
[Review] Oxenfree II: Lost Signals
Posted on 1 year ago by Nicholas Serpa in Reviews, Switch eShop | 0 comments
System: Switch
Release date: July 12, 2023
Developer: Night School Studio
Publisher: Netflix
When Oxenfree released in 2016, I was enamored with it. I was younger then and found comfort in its high school drama and socially awkward characters, who were relatable and felt real. The supernatural yarn it weaved was surprisingly dark, yet grounded in events that felt possible in its strange world of ghosts and timeloops. But players who made it the end were likely left with at least a few unresolved questions, and Oxenfree II: Lost Signals tantalizes with promises of answers, or at least a deeper glimpse into the strange phenomena that occurred on Edwards Island all those years ago. While Oxenfree II delivers in that regard, its narrative and new exploration mechanics felt disappointingly safe for most of its runtime, failing to surprise and hook me in the way its predecessor did (outside of a few key moments); still, fans of the original owe it to themselves to see this story through to its conclusion.
[Review] Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope – The Last Spark Hunter
Posted on 1 year ago by Nicholas Serpa in Reviews, Switch | 0 comments
System: Switch
Release Date: June 21, 2023 (new DLC)
Developer: Ubisoft
Publisher: Ubisoft
2022’s Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope was an excellent evolution of its predecessor’s fast-paced, freeform strategy gameplay, and I’ve been eager to check out its DLC to have an excuse to play more of it. The Last Spark Hunter is significantly larger in scope than the run-based Tower of Dooom DLC from earlier this year, this time offering up a whole new planet to explore, a new antagonist, and even some new mechanics to shake up gameplay. But for players who have likely already sank dozens of hours into the base game, is the overall quality high enough to justify revisiting the world of Sparks of Hope?
More: DLC, highlight, Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope, top, Ubisoft
[Review] The Legend of Heroes: Trails into Reverie
Posted on 1 year ago by Elias in Reviews, Switch | 0 comments
System: Switch
Release Date: July 7, 2023
Developer: Falcom
Publisher: NIS America
Following the steady drip of titles from Falcom’s Legend of Heroes series, Trails into Reverie is the latest installment coming to western players. As before with Trails to Azure, our latest game is also interwoven into a storied timeline. This time, we’ll be following up after the events of Trails to Azure and the Great Twilight events of Trails of Cold Steel IV. With these stories being so connected, there are no ways to absolutely avoid spoilers for the previous games, but we’ll do the best we can in case this is your first introduction to the series. With this particular entry first launching in Japan, the Switch port will see the world of Zero/Azure in HD for the first time, and follow up almost immediately after the events of Trails of Cold Steel IV – the interwoven timeline for both lines of games finally converges, and both protagonist groups of Lloyd and Rean are joined by a third protagonist – the black-clad and mysteriously masked “C.”
[Review] We Love Katamari Reroll + Royal Reverie
Posted on 1 year ago by Edan(@@Virtualboi92) in Reviews, Switch | 0 comments
System: Switch
Release date: June 2, 2023
Developer: Bandai Namco / Monkey Craft
Publisher: Bandai Namco
Sometimes, the biggest challenge we face as reviewers is in describing simple concepts – take Katamari, for instance. You play as a tiny green man called the Prince, and you’re tasked with rolling around a comically large and sticky ball. You navigate contained levels with the aim of rolling stuff up into that ball, and growing larger as a result. It sounds closer to a cheese-dream than a compelling gameplay loop, doesn’t it? Despite the outlandish premise, Bandai Namco’s Katamari series has garnered a sizable fanbase over the last two decades. While us super-fans collectively pine for a brand new entry in the series, a re-release of the franchise’s phenomenal second outing We Love Katamari has found its way into our lives courtesy of developer Monkey Craft. Out of all of the base expectations you can have for a remake or a remaster, matching or exceeding the original title in every metric is paramount. When it comes to We Love Katamari Reroll + Royal Reverie, we get a couple of hits, and a whole bunch of misses.
[Review] Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life
Posted on 1 year ago by Dennis Gagliardotto(@LyonHart_) in Reviews, Switch, Switch eShop | 0 comments
System: Switch
Release date: June 27, 2023
Developer: Marvelous
Publisher: XSEED / Marvelous
Story of Seasons has had a series of ups and downs as the franchise has tried to find its footing in a genre it once had a monopoly on. It’s true that each new title has offered an exciting prospect of things to come within the series itself. It’s also always seemed to go against the idea of being a market leader once more in favor of keeping things traditional, but much that stubborn thinking may be to its detriment. This rears its head in the series’ new remake, Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life.
[Review] Loop8: Summer of Gods
Posted on 1 year ago by Dennis Gagliardotto(@LyonHart_) in Reviews, Switch | 0 comments
System: Switch
Release date: June 6, 2023
Developer: Marvelous
Publisher: Marvelous / XSEED
I’ve said in prior publications that the concept of time travel is a fascinating yet very sensitive one, as the topic tends to lend itself to narratives that ultimately have no idea how to go about ending a topic that can take myriad of forms and paths, leaving a story open-ended and potentially with too many plot holes because of a traditionally endless structure. Even with limitless routes comes limitations, however, Loop8: Summer of Gods, despite all its positives, is yet another victim of a time loop sci-fi snafu that has its heart in the right place, but any potential excellence in a different timeline.
More: highlight, marvelous, top, XSEED Games
[Review] Sunshine Shuffle
Posted on 1 year ago by Nicholas Serpa in Reviews, Switch eShop | 0 comments
System: Switch
Release Date: May 31, 2023
Developer: Strange Scaffold
Publisher: Strange Scaffold
There’s a series of famous paintings from the late 1800’s and early 1900’s featuring dogs playing poker in various settings; there’s a good chance you’ve seen at least one of them represented in a TV show or movie over the years. Sunshine Shuffle, the latest game from eclectic indie developer Strange Scaffold, asks the question: what if these cute animals were actually retired criminals, and what if you got to play poker with them on a boat in the middle of the ocean?
More: Strange Scaffold, Sunshine Shuffle
[Review] Trinity Trigger
Posted on 1 year ago by Elias in Reviews, Switch | 0 comments
System: Switch
Release date: April 25, 2023
Developer: FuRyu
Publisher: Marvelous / XSEED
Trinity Trigger is set in a world caught in an ongoing war between Order and Chaos, each with a chosen champion fated to fight one another to the death to choose a victor. Generally, one of the chosen ones is assassinated before the duel can begin, resulting in zero changes for the world as a whole, but a pretty grim fate for our protagonist who just so happens to be the Champion of Chaos. Opening up, the plotline of the game seems to thrust a very heavy burden on the player, but will it deliver on its hefty narrative, or will Trinity Trigger be just another hack-and-slash action RPG that falls to the wayside?
More: FuRyu, highlight, top, Trinity Trigger, XSEED Games
[Review] Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon
Posted on 1 year ago by Dennis Gagliardotto(@LyonHart_) in Reviews, Switch, Switch eShop | 0 comments
System: Switch
Release Date: March 22, 2023
Developer: PlatinumGames
Publisher: Nintendo
With Bayonetta 3 having just released last October, it was unexpected, to say the least, when a new game in the form of Cereza and the Lost Demon was revealed so soon after. However, it was clear from the get-go that this wouldn’t be the typical experience fans have grown to know and love, and would instead delve into a more relaxed but still engaging tale of the character’s upbringing. Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon is a game that is surprising in more ways than one but is a pleasant gift to longtime fans of the franchise that gives Bayonetta a different, charming perspective with a gorgeous art direction and not once overstays its welcome. In some cases, despite being a spinoff, it could arguably be the best title the series has seen to date, and it’s a perfect place to jump into for those that have been hesitant to get acquainted with the Umbran Witch.
