The glitches with text and voice-acting are pretty minor, but if you’re like me and this is a pet peeve, it might take a toll on you eventually. If you don’t care, then you’ll have an even better time. Overall, the characters were not for me this time around, but I did enjoy getting to try out Bu$stafellows and look forward to more future releases from this studio.

I like The Alters. It sells its premise in a way I wish more science fiction games would. We need more of them. But the watering down of its gameplay elements makes it hard to recommend. If you’re willing to slog through tedium and gameplay filler there is a wonderfully fun story to experience.

It’s still very well crafted and definitely worth your time to play, in my opinion. But amongst the three major DLCs? This one is sadly probably the weakest. There isn’t even much reason to revisit the monastery later even though you can, unless you missed some hidden thing while you were there, so this DLC is pretty much one-and-done, while the Brushes with Death and Legacy of the Forge DLC updates both added new activities you can do, adding considerable value to the time you spend in Bohemia.

The story is engaging and filled with noir goodness, the gameplay added to the feeling I was a memory hacking detective, and the visuals felt straight out of one of my favorite 80s movies. But the absolutely relentless and aggressive lights and patterns that invade the game a few hours in made it a hard game to finish. Because of this I still recommend it, but with a large and bold asterisk.

A lot of people have really raved about Triangle Strategy and held it up as an excellent game. I don’t think it’s a bad game, but I do think that it’s ultimately just an alright one. It’s solid and functional, takes too long to get to its plot, has some awkwardness that prevents me from really falling in love with it, and has some fun parts that don’t eliminate those issues even as they make things a bit better. And if you’re like me and still looking out for more Final Fantasy Tactics… well, keep waiting. This ain’t it.

MIO: Memories in Orbit is very much a release where ambiance and exploration are top dogs of the experience. Whether you’re in a more lax state of exploring the map or trying to surmount a challenging sequence of whirling saws and pitfalls, moving around MIO’s map is a great time thoroughly enhanced by the game’s impressive rendering of its world and an immersive soundtrack. Unfortunately, these successes overshadow the title’s combat and progression mechanics. There will be a lot of familiar elements to those with prior metroidvania experience, and while they’re all implemented serviceably, they simply don’t do as much heavy lifting as the platforming, world building, and music.

If all you want is fluff and an easy but very long read, Celestia: Chain of Fate may be something worth looking at. Personally, I do not think a replay is in the cards for me. Once was more than enough.

Endling – Extinction is Forever is a bold, unique, slow burn of a game that excellently conveys its ecologically conscious message and paints a dire image of rampant industrialization on a personal, microcosmic level. Because of this success, the game manages to garner an amount of player investment that belies its short runtime, but that runtime is also one of the game’s biggest hurdles when contrasted with its relatively high price tag. Had more steps been taken to engage the player in the minute-by-minute gameplay or encourage replayability, the number below might have been a notch or two higher. As it stands, however, Endling is a game where the gameplay and mechanics are readily outclassed by its theming and presentation. It’s certainly an experience worth having, but not one that lives up to its full potential.

I’m in a weird spot with A Highland Song. On one hand, the game didn’t provide me with the kind of experience I was expecting from the trailer. On the other, what actually is here was an interesting and engaging experience. Exploring and finding the various ways forward constantly kept my interest, even through occasionally frustrating moments. The rhythm runs, while disappointingly uncommon, provided nice breaks from the core gameplay flow and some wonderful tunes to listen to alongside. While it wasn’t what I expected, it was a journey worth going on. The Scottish Highlands are calling, and it’s a call that you may just want to answer.

Everhood is nothing if not memorable. There’s flaws here and there, but they pale in comparison to the fun and unique time I had. It’s not a very long game, taking around six hours or so for the true ending, but there’s plenty of different choices to make and self-imposed challenges to try.

Simply put, Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma did not live up to my expectations. However, I don’t regret my playthrough. As tedious as it was, it was still nice to be back in the land of Woolys and Earthmates as everyone’s favorite amnesiac, even if just for the nostalgia.The truth of it is, you’ll probably have more to do in this game than you’ve had in any previous Rune Factory title. But that comes with the understanding that the journey may not be as fun, and the scripted moments not as emotional. For die-hard fans like me, that can come with disappointment. But for more casual enjoyers of the genre, you will find all your farming sim staples in this title. It truly gives you the opportunity to build the world as you see fit. In fact, you have 120 hours of content to get your villages just right. And because I want to end on an optimistic note, I do feel like with the right fine-tuning, some of the foundations laid out in this game could serve as a great jump point for expanding the future of Rune Factory in a very promising direction. I just hope that future doesn’t take as long as this game did to arrive.

Have A Nice Death is sure to please roguelite fans for its playability, but it’s a tad too easy to want a bit more from it.

With a more concerted effort to keep the experience exciting as the playthrough carries on, Young Souls could have easily been so much more. Instead, you have a game where you’ve seen the lion’s share of what it has to offer after three or so of the game’s ten hours.

Overall, despite all of my complaints, I did have a great time playing through Ys IX. Despite the boring setting and the frustrating continuation of tower defense segments, the core of the game is still Ys. Battles are fun and frantic, and the new exploration mechanics just feel amazing and satisfying to use. The problem is the game feels like a major step back from the previous entry in the series. The stilted storytelling, boring setting, and just decent soundtrack all feed into my feelings of disappointment. Lacrimosa of Dana was one of the best games I played in 2017, and the fact that Ys IX doesn’t reach that high is frustrating. If you’re in the mood for more Ys, Ys IX: Monstrum Nox is still worth a play. This isn’t a bad game in the slightest…just a disappointing one compared to the highs of recent series entries.

Returning Gunvolt fans will find plenty to love here, and I believe this game can act as a great entry point for newcomers as well. Whether you want to master the systems and chase high scores, or just feel like a god smiting every obstacle in front of them, there’s still plenty to enjoy.

At the end of the day, Fashion Police Squad is a cute, rather lightweight game with a strong sense of humor, telling a simple joke over and over… but it’s a joke that makes me smile, and isn’t that what really matters? I had fun with it and I enjoy its approach to things. Control issues might be there, but that’s really about choice of interface, and if you’re looking for a solid retro FPS on the Switch, it’s a strong candidate. One might even call it… vivacious.

As a big fan of the original and of Tetris in general, it really pains me to give Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 this score. I really want it to be higher, but the persistence of the sensitivity problem had me throwing down my controller and cursing in rage too much to not be a factor. If you aren’t a serious Tetris or Puyo Puyo veteran, this probably won’t matter to you and you absolutely can have a blast. But if you are, there’s a good chance you’ll experience some frustration alongside the fun. It’s still worth playing, but the issues are too significant to ignore.

I enjoyed my time with Shotgun Cop Man but, where I couldn’t stop replaying My Friend Pedro, I don’t see myself returning to this one. Shotgun Cop Man is frantic, fun, and funny. It is also repetitive, irritating, and doesn’t separate itself from the pack. What it does have is enough charm and sharp gameplay to make itself a worthy pickup. It also has a great title. Shotgun. Cop. Man.

The good news here is between its two re-releases, Stronghold: Crusader has only expanded, and while I can’t say with absolute certainty since I never got around to playing the original (even though it was on my radar at the time), it certainly seems worthy of the “Definitive Edition” designation. While I think the developers could have done more with the graphics, it offers all the same challenges plus new ones. Having said that, the challenge may actually be too much for some modern gamers thanks to the steep learning curve and somewhat hidden tutorial. If you are serious about the real-time strategy genre, the copious amount of content, the extreme depth, and have mastered other games, Stronghold Crusader – Definitive Edition may be just what you needed.

In some ways, Natsuki Chronicles is a slight thing. It’s certainly not going to be the game that makes people who never play shoot-em-ups reconsider that stance, nor is it the sort of thing that you’re likely to devote months of play to unless you have a burning desire for a new shooter and this is the extent of your options in that regard. However, there’s nothing wrong with it being slight in that regard. What the game seeks to do, it accomplishes well and with aplomb, missing some minor technical issues with its presentation. And it certainly has more than enough content to keep you engaged as you challenge higher difficulties, grinding your stage level up for a little more defense, trying to earn up the credits for a new primary weapon. So it’s a little thing, but it’s a fun little thing. That’s what it wants to be, and it deserves good marks for aiming at a simple target but hitting it with notable skill.

I’ll end this by saying that I didn’t entirely hate my experience with Coffee Talk Episode 2: Hibiscus & Butterfly and am glad I made it through because experiencing the characters really was a treat. There are a lot of heart-warming moments and lessons in this title and I am happy I got to learn a few. I just wish there was more to do, especially because the game is not that long to begin with.

Mega Mix will likely be a fun entry for those newer to the series, but for veterans, it really doesn’t have much to offer. Stick to Future Tone instead.

I don’t want to come off as overwhelmingly or unnecessarily negative about KarmaZoo. At its core, this is a weird game trying a weird new idea in a way that I can respect. The problem is just that I think most of its swings don’t actually work, and the net result is more mildly frustrating than innovative. It keeps unfolding new ideas, but each new idea strikes me as kind of mid-tier. It grows in depth, but none of those new depths ultimately work for me. I think that if you have a dedicated group to play the game with, you might get a fair bit more out of it. If you don’t have that, though? You can probably keep this one locked in its cage.

Unless you’re really into this game’s subject matter (Hey, if you like decorating housing in Final Fantasy XIV, you might just be one of these people), you’re probably going to pass on this. The game does try its best to give you the full experience without making it feel too much like real work, but for me at least, I spend enough time cleaning that I don’t really need to do it in a video game. Having said that though, I cannot deny that the experience is well-polished, and absolutely worth a buy if being a house flipper is your personal fantasy.

Ultimately, reading Aokana often feels like eating a variety pack of candy. Sure, there may be some flavors that don’t hit in ways that some do. But the ratio of good outweighs the bad here, and opening the box in the first place is a safe bet for a good read.

The effort put forth here is readily apparent and absolutely noticed, and that has to count for something. Get-A-Grip Chip is a fun and occasionally frustrating platformer that feels like the first step to greater things down the road. The addictive “let’s play another stage” aspect applies here, so don’t let that short runtime deter you. While it isn’t perfect, it’s worth a playthrough (or two) for the asking price they’re setting here. Here’s hoping for a sequel.

These presentation issues definitely temper my excitement for what is easily one of the more accessible fighting games I’ve had the opportunity to play. Then again, that feeling of accessibility likely comes from the fact that I’ve mostly focused on the single-player mode here – a mode that everyone, not just fighting gamers, can enjoy. Would I recommend picking the game up just for the RPG Mode alone? No, definitely not, but it does make Versus more tempting for gamers looking to start their journey into fighting games.

If you’re a fan of the AI series, picking this one up is a no-brainer. Even with a few issues, it’s still more AI, and that’s enough for me. This entry is not friendly for newcomers, though, so if what you’ve seen here intrigues you, go pick up the original game and play through that first.