Eternights deserves some credit as it brings a lot of ideas to the table – perhaps too many. Players are tasked to manage party members, social relationships, a calendar, dungeon crawling, and more during the game’s short run time of less than a dozen hours. There’s a lot going on, most of it competently designed, but lacking that touch of finesse or technical flourish that oozes from the few series that serve as inspiration. The game wants to be a hot date, with some beautifully designed characters who are full of personality. Unfortunately, like those characters stuck on a train during the end of the world, Eternights is all dressed up with nowhere to go.

Star Ocean: The Last Hope's drawing power is really its battle system and little else. Despite a solid plot and strong item creation, the shoddy localization and terrible level design mar the experience beyond salvaging.

Pixel Noir is a wonderful concept that I felt so much excitement towards. What the game gets right, it does incredibly well, but what the game gets wrong falls flat on its face. The game is clearly a labour of love by SWDTech and that is apparent in all facets of the gameplay, story, and presentation. Unfortunately, the game is so riddled with game-breaking bugs that it can’t be recommended in its current state.

Ultimately, Digimon Story: Time Stranger is a mixed bag. An excellent Digimon raising and customization system is held back by a shaky combat core, and the game’s interesting yet linear plotline is severely hampered by awkward voice acting and dialogue. There’s parts of the game that are enjoyable, but its flaws hold it back from being truly memorable.

At present, Celestian Tales: Old North is a bit of an odd bag, feeling more like a prologue to something bigger than a full title standing on its own.

The Skull of Smakh-Daon undoubtedly delivers exactly what it promises. Amusing dialogue and situations aplenty will be found wrapped inside a laborious dungeon crawler that tosses invisible dice around to determine everything inside of battle.

Although X-Men Destiny is extremely short, wrapping up at six hours or less, the game's many customization options, including three power sets with multiple individual power options, three playable characters with different backgrounds, and two factions to join, give it a lot of replay value. Unfortunately, other elements of the game are not up to snuff, and it's difficult to recommend as a full-priced product.

I had high hopes for a lot of the new ideas being introduced, but sadly Atelier Firis breaks my heart in a lot of ways. As someone who loves to get lost in big open worlds, I struggled to enjoy this installment with the same intensity that I've had for the Atelier series over the years. Firis feels like a larger step backwards than Sophie did, and I can only hope that the third game in the Mysterious subseries will fix the blemishes, because there are some great ideas here that just needed smarter execution and more polish.

Strategy RPGs and visual novels seem like a suitable match given the history of great stories in this sub-genre. A fine union may still be possible, but Tears to Tiara II is certainly not it, and not because of a lackluster story.

Overall, League of Legends holds a lot of promise, but comes up short as a retail product.

For all the ways The Alliance Alive seems like a pleasant throwback RPG early on, it features too many frustrating design decisions and gameplay systems that have little impact until the endgame. It all adds up to a game experience that elicited very little satisfaction, ending with a variety of negative emotions and an unpleasant lasting taste.

Overall, Chantelise will tickle those who are gluttons for punishment, but with its unfriendly game design, it'll leave many newcomers starving for something more approachable.

While Phantom Brave: The Hermuda Triangle isn't a poor game, it fails to distinguish itself from the multitude of tactical RPGs already around.

Death end re;Quest 2 tells a decent story in and of itself, and does so with good overall production values, at least on the visual novel side of things. But whereas the first game clicked with me better and made me generally interested in what was to follow, I’m afraid that my anticipation for a third installment is at an all-time low now. The already-repetitive combat has been further stripped down, and is now something I actively dislike about the game, and while the story sort of works as a standalone project, the attempts at tying the two games together are puzzling and tenuous at best. The game is not entirely without merit, but the overall picture being painted is now one of a fractured franchise whose parts don’t mesh well with each other.

For what is supposed to be the next step forward for Pokémon, Pokémon: Let’s Go Pikachu! feels like it has taken a few steps back. While there are aspects of the game I do enjoy, there are also glaring issues that I cannot just ignore. Ultimately, Pokémon: Let’s Go, Pikachu! needlessly simplifies core mechanics in a series that does not require such streamlining.

Various Daylife is the kind of game that’s hard to universally recommend playing or avoiding. It’s structured like a game that’s intended to be played in short bursts, but the massive amount of content — a minimum of 30 hours to finish the main story, at least that much again to finish all the content the game has to provide. Anyone playing the title in 10 to 15-minute chunks would require nearly a year to finish fully. For the patient RPGamer, dive in — the story’s interesting and there’s a lot of great ideas to be found in Various Daylife. It’s unfortunate these unique ideas aren’t implemented or supported in better ways.

If you're desperate for a portable Little King's Story experience, New Little King's Story should sate your appetite, but be warned: little Corobo's all grown up, and he's lost his imagination.

Light Fairytale Episode 1 has some decent bones of a good JRPG, but there’s very little to speak of about the body of the game at this point. For the most part, the game looks and sounds nice, but battles are lackluster affairs that boil down to attack-attack-heal, with many systems not yet fully implemented. Plot is similarly thin, with no character growth or development yet. While this Episode 1 shows promise of something perhaps worthwhile in the future, at this point it’s nothing more than a paid prologue.

Although Maliki: Poison of the Past offers strong storytelling, great art direction, and a stellar soundtrack, it’s still a game, and games need to be fun to play. I want to stress that the strongest elements in Maliki are amazing, and I found myself absolutely loving the characters and their world, but the translation to being a video game wasn’t as smooth as it perhaps could have been. Maliki: Poison of the Past is an ambitious title that can’t overcome its gameplay issues, making it difficult to recommend, but if you’re interested in this series, there are thousands of comic strips to enjoy.

Nights of Azure 2 seems to follow a pattern with Gust in the past couple of years following its takeover from Koei Tecmo. Though the developer's output has certainly increased, it appears to have come at a cost. This is just the latest in a line of easily forgettable titles that bring some interesting ideas but have not been given enough to use them effectively.

If even just a few more features had been implemented into Legna Tactica, I would find myself singing a different song at the end of this review. It is by no means a poor effort, but the main element RPGamers will expect from a TRPG — the tactics promised in the actual title — just never feel very engaging. By the time the scope of battles offers an enjoyable challenge, the game is already nearing its end and fatigue is setting in; it's too little, too late. Narrative, graphics, and music all clock in somewhere around average, with some facets, like the soundtrack, having a slight edge over others. As budget titles go, players can do much worse. Legna Tactica may satisfy some bite-size appetites, but don't expect it to scratch any Final Fantasy Tactics-sized itches.

While Oninaki had its fair share of ideas that could have potentially made it a gem, it is ultimately undone by weak storytelling that doesn’t do its heavy subject matter justice and combat that is enjoyable at times yet held back by design flaws that hinder the experience. It never quite executes its best ideas in a wholly satisfactory way, resulting in a game that I tried my best to open my heart to, but the game refused to open its own.

Ultimately, Dark Alliance is a flawed game that provides a perfunctory single-player experience that fails to dazzle or delight. While there is some depth and enjoyment deep within the heart of the multiplayer experience, Dark Alliance fails to provide the engrossing gameplay experience that is required in order to sustain the sort of long-term community clearly desired by the game’s creators. The developers are already planning to implement changes based on player feedback, on top of a planned expansion and fifth playable character, but the question then becomes how many will still be waiting in Icewind Dale?

There is fun to be had in Divinity II, especially in terms of exploration and customization. Unfortunately, the game's poorly plotted story and uneven difficulty will challenge the patience of most players, even those who enjoy parts of the game.

The problems that The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance Tactics has don’t automatically make it a bad game, it just doesn’t have enough pros to let them be overlooked. While the combat has the potential to be great, it’s dragged down by foolish AI, artificial resource starvation, and a lack of interesting music tracks. There will be some fans who will find content here to enjoy, however, with the vast breadth and depth of the Nintendo Switch library, those looking for quality games can no doubt find better candidates elsewhere.

There were many times when I started to become invested in this game's world, and enjoyed what it had to offer. Then one of the issues unfortunately present in the Vita version would stop me in my tracks. After about the twentieth crash that forced me to restart the game and endure its beginning load times once more, all the mercy had left my system. Dex is an interesting title that ought to interest many — just not with the Vita version.

The list of things that I had yet to unlock after going through the campaign show that Absolver is intended to have some long legs. Unfortunately, during those first few hours it doesn't provide anywhere near enough reason to actually stick around. The single-player feels mostly meaningless and the few flashes of interesting aspects are quickly lost in the labyrinth that is Adal.

The 3rd Birthday is a difficult game to recommend. There are aspects of it that really shine and make it an enjoyable experience, but others features, particularly the game's tortuous story, will surely disappoint those who were expecting the game to be in the vein of the previous Parasite Eve titles.

There’s a lot of love in the story presentation of Warhammer 40,000 Rogue Trader. It is a blast to see how dark and depraved the world can get and how each of the companions build their journey. There’s just a ton to do, with an exhausting 100+ hour experience made longer with glitches and ridiculous loading times. These issues are constantly undercutting the core experience and making even the joyous parts feel like a chore. Maybe there’s a day where the chores are only a distant memory. That time isn’t now though.

Pandora's Reflection has some flashes of enjoyment, but these aren't strong enough to hold up the game without support, which is sadly lacking.

There’s a lot of little pieces that work in Blade Prince Academy, mostly on the combat side. Characters have snappy designs, but the fast-forward plot makes their personalities feel stilted. The game is ultimately a passable, but not fully realized, experience with the novel gameplay the only element that stands out. It is likely worth a look for those with whom the style resonates, just be prepared for fast thinking or copious use of the pause button.

Paranoia offers a unique premise with a ton of potential and under which many interesting scenarios can unfold. The balance between oppressiveness and humor is executed well, giving a very unique feel to this particular dystopian setting. Unfortunately, the developers are unsuccessful in using these to flesh out the world and narrative or to create characters that feel alive. While there are some cool ideas like termination booths, treason level, and cloning, they are executed a bit too close to the letter of the source material and don’t translate to a fun experience in a CRPG. The game is an interesting experience purely for its world and general atmosphere, but ultimately it fails to come together due to the lack of depth in its mechanics, character development, and world lore.

While the game has a lot of potential and is shiny on the surface, it lacks the depth and accessibility that prior puzzle-bending titles have offered and serves up a game that's ultimately a Bejeweled Twist variant done up pretty.

Azur Lane: Crosswave doesn’t harbour ambitions to be more than it really is and, though it may be a bit underwhelming, it at least doesn’t outstay its welcome. It’s perfectly happy to just provide some hours of mild entertainment without trying to reinvent the wheel and that may be enough for some, but certainly not all.

Overall, The Huntsman: Winter's Curse comes off as an interesting little title that fills a spot for those wanting something fairly short and easy to get into.

For a series that sparkles with personality, MegaTagmension Blanc + Neptune VS Zombies is a hard game to recommend when it feels like an inferior cut-and-paste job of Neptunia U.

At the end of the day, Super Neptunia RPG does quite a few things differently than other titles in the series; a few that improve the experience, a few that make it more frustrating. For those who have previously enjoyed the tales of Neptune and her crew, it’s possibly worth a try, but for those uninitiated, this won’t create any new Nep Nep fans. While I went into this game excited to try a different type of Neptunia, it hardly held my attention for more than a half-hour at a time, requiring a lot more stamina and time than it should to complete a game that clocks in well under twenty hours.

Agarest 2 is a definite step in the right direction for the series, but there's still plenty of room for improvement. Some time spent focusing on creating a more engaging world and story, as well as to streamline some of the game's unnecessarily complex systems should help in getting Agarest to rise up the rankings. The series is beginning to show promise, however, and its pre-existing fans will find much to like in this entry.

Despite a great localization and plenty of solid aspects, Akiba's Beat's strengths never manage to overshadow its glaring problems. Its copy-paste combat system, constant revisiting of dungeons, and other minor problems all add up to a bland and occasionally irritating experience.

While hardly the greatest dungeon crawler ever produced, exploring this labyrinth is worthwhile for a certain audience. Falcom has plenty of other series that have gone without new iterations for many years, though the length of time since Brandish was remade seems to indicate that it unfortunately didn't start a trend.

Vikings: Wolves of Midgard manages to provide some fun for those who know what they're getting into. Simple yet serviceable combat and a competent graphical presentation make for a game that is as easy to handle as it is to look at. Its multitude of extraneous features, however, fail to add much engaging and compelling to the mix; resource management and town-building, multiple skill trees, repeatable hunt maps, and a rage combat ability can all safely be ignored. Though it has a lengthy campaign and relatively low challenge, it never really manages to rise past the basic thrill of its combat, and will disappoint those looking for a deep, satisfying story or anything beyond the hack-and-slash loot-a-thon it is.

Despite the issues, River City Saga: Three Kingdoms Next will appeal to and satisfy the right people. Its chaotic take on The Romance of Three Kingdoms offers some good amusement as its larger-than-life cast threatens to push it off the rails, and there is some small satisfaction in being able to just blow away all comers at times. However, those looking for some more finely-tuned combat and challenge, or any real in-depth gameplay, will need to search elsewhere.

It was always going to be tough to follow-up Golf Story in an interesting manner, and one certainly can’t say there was a lack of ambition in what Sidebar Games was trying to achieve in Sports Story. However, fulfilling that ambition is another matter entirely, and ultimately the game leaves a sense of what could have been. Sports Story still has its moments and those who enjoyed Golf Story will be able to find some enjoyment at least. The game ultimately overshoots the green, but hopefully useful lessons will be learned in time for the next approach.

Black Sigil's unpleasant combat is truly a shame, because just about everything else in the game successfully emulates the feeling of playing a great lost Super Nintendo RPG.

ICLA had an opportunity to transform Pokémon Shining Pearl into a much more memorable experience. Having played the original, it’s disappointing to see that the Shining Pearl is the same game I played back in 2006, with nothing more than a pretty coat of paint. None of the balancing issues are fixed, the backtracking is still as much of a slog as ever, and the roaster of Pokémon is far from impressive. As much as I love Bidoof, even my favourite loaf of beaver bread couldn’t save the experience for me, and my hope is with the next remake is that it receives meaningful adjustments, instead of rehashing a mediocre Pokémon game that isn’t memorable in the slightest.

I am struggling to fully reconcile my feelings about Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties. I have nostalgia for the original game, even if it’s not rated highly within the series. However, while I enjoyed some of the changes made, such as the side content with the Morning Glory Orphans and the silly Okinawa Girl Gang, those rose coloured glasses come off when I realized that the story feels quite messy, content from the original has been removed for questionable reasons, and everything in the game feels bloated. Coupled with following some of the worst characters in the series, it’s hard for me to say with confidence that this is the definitive version of the game, because it’s honestly a substantial step backwards.

Those with a more retro mindset will find some enjoyment, but are also likely to discover that not everything trying to evoke the best of a former era does it successfully.

For a first foray into a new type of action game, Steelrising is an okay attempt. The skeleton of a good game is there, but all of its aspects need various levels of tweaking to get the recipe just right. Some things like combat just need a fine tune to be more reactive and smoother. Others like the level design need a firmer foundation to allow for more engaging and palatable exploration. It’s far from the worst game and won’t eat up too much time, but it’s not the most solid entry into the genre.

With the game’s narrative failing to cash in on its dramatic tension, I just wanted to finally be freed from having to keep playing.

In the end, No Place for Bravery lives or dies based on the strength of its combat system. Other aspects like its graphics, music, and storytelling are passable without being outright noteworthy, but an action RPG must nail its combat, and here the game falters. With multiple issues all undermining the core battle mechanics, the game’s overall lasting impression is easily soured. Just like its protagonist, No Place for Bravery attempts to swoop in for the kill but ends up getting routinely smacked in the face instead.

The constant gratification of loot and bite-size gameplay chunks of Book of Demons make it inherently easy and gratifying to pick up and play — a good first step for this ambitious undertaking. But the game, though having a clean and perfectly adequate presentation, doesn’t do very much to put its best foot forward to wow the player presentation-wise, and the finger-numbing clicky gameplay might be just a bit too underwhelming for some to ride this train all the way to its final stop.

Neverland Card Battles is indeed unique and the first game to accurately combine a CCG with a TRPG; however, although it is not bad, the execution has just enough holes in it to keep the game from being fun.

Criminal Girls quite ably eats up a good few hours early on, but simply fails to provide enough of a lasting experience to recommend. There are some interesting aspects, and it helps cater to a niche, but it's hard to find any area in the gameplay where things haven't been done considerably better elsewhere.

Overall, Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII is more trouble than it's worth. While there are a few things to enjoy about it, the game is all over the place, and the banal plot and ridiculously neat ending make it impossible to take seriously.

It looks, runs, and plays fine with the main downsides being the story and script and anything related to them. The problem is that everything Risen 3 does decently has already been done better. It's Assassin's Creed IV without the assassin mechanics or ship battles.

Ultimately, Skyhill is best played in short doses, well past bedtime. Its psychological strengths are enhanced, while its more soporific mechanics become less vexing.

Ultimately, Conception Plus feels like its skating by on the curiousness of its premise rather than using it to build a strong experience. The Star Children are easily the most interesting thing about the game, but it gets bogged down with gameplay that doesn’t provide any reason to stick around longer than necessary. The characters are given nothing useful to do in a predictable and irreverent main plot, and though the dating sim aspects are more interesting, it’s still hard to call them any better than ok. Conception Plus works best as something to do while having something else going on at the same time, but it’s simply not strong enough to warrant full attention for long stretches of time.

Morbid: The Seven Acolytes could have been a highly enjoyable foray into the 2D side of Souls-like action. It features a compelling world, presented through stylish pixel art and good sound design, and really nails the highly entertaining bits of lore sprinkled throughout the world to make it come alive. However, some rather important missteps with the combat make the experience far too toothless, annulling the sense of fast-paced action and dramatically lowering stakes upon defeat. Rather than rising to the level of its loft inspiration, it instead feels buried alive, flatlining into a state of rigor mortis due to its plodding combat.

Maglam Lord has enough that some will thoroughly enjoy their time with it, particularly those looking for an enjoyable story and cast. However, it’s brought down by uninspired missions and poorly realised combat. It’s certainly not a bad title, and thankfully the issues that are there are such that they don’t create an active barrier to progress, but the entertaining parts are steadily diluted enough that the experience as a whole misses out on being something to be fully celebrated.

Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon & the Blade of Light may have been a decent game from 30 years ago, but even with the added quality-of-life improvements and a good translation, it has aged more like mouldy bread rather than fine wine. It still has a good strategy system and is playable overall, but there are loads of better games, including just about every other Fire Emblem game in existence. This is definitely not a game for newcomers, but die-hard fans of the Fire Emblem series may find enjoyment, along with gaming historians who simply want to experience a time piece of how the whole tactical RPG franchise started.

Featuring a good story with the incorporation of interesting new characters and a mystery to solve, Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World- The Prophecy of the Throne has the components for an ejoyable game. However, the gaming elements are greatly lacking, and though some may be fine with just reading their way through it, those hoping for a more interactive experience will be sadly let down. Going through dialogues for hours without battling, solving mysteries, or having the freedom to explore just doesn’t live up to the billing as a tactical adventure. Fans of Re:ZERO and players who enjoy good stories and don’t mind having a passive role could give this game a chance, but shouldn’t get their hopes up too high.

Overall, Corruption 2029 will mainly appeal to the hardcore fans of Mutant Year Zero or those tactics fans desperate for a new game. This game feels like a watered-down Mutant Year Zero without the plot and charm. Depth is lacking as mission objectives, enemies, and maps are put on repeat, and the tactical stealth gameplay mechanic constantly acts to slow down completing mission objectives by slowly sneaking around and waiting to pick off enemies. There are some foundations of a good game here, but the characters could be better fleshed out, and the game could offer more incentive for the player to keep progressing in the form of a more compelling plot, more character growth, and more varied missions and mechanics.

What Tides of Numenera offers is a rich experience in learning lore and then making a final multiple guess at the ending, all the while never being fully satisfying in terms of presentation. There's more playability to this take on this game, but it might be better off being used for a title that has far less baggage.

Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered presents players with an enjoyably short yet not overtly memorable single player experience with enough restrictions and issues to multiplayer matchmaking that only the most dedicated of fans will want to overcome. In an attempt to bring the game to a wider audience with a less cumbersome barrier of entry, Square Enix has over-complicated the experience once again.

In short bursts or with a group of friends, there's certainly a lot of fun to be had, but it's the sort of mindless, arcade-style fun you'd find in Zombies Ate My Neighbours. Players looking for a complete package had best look elsewhere.

While Grand Bazaar can be considered a solid entry to the Harvest Moon DS titles, its problem is that it doesn't really do anything new other than the bazaar.

All of the problems listed here are clearly something to take into consideration when looking at Ragnarok Odyssey, but this game is not a typical start-to-finish RPG. It's best played in chunks with occasional bouts of co-op thrown in for good measure.

Despite its flaws Rainbow Moon is a decent option for fans of the SRPG genre at a very approachable initial price.

It tries to do a lot of things, and definitely has a distinct personality from anything else I remember playing. Layering everything with needless profanity is not the magic bullet to become amazing though, and using the game’s real bullets is often more complicated than it should be. If a sequel should come to pass, there’s plenty of room for improvement.

Elohim Eternal II: Son of Man has some good elements, but it is constantly at odds with itself. The combat tries to make the most of what it has and can be climactic, but is entirely optional. The story is too often telegraphed and cookie cutter, with any interesting uses of its setting and building connections to the first game coming far too late to be of any worth. Elohim Eternal II: Son of Man is unfortunately left bereft of any engaging sparks, and while perhaps future titles will provide some payoff, it is stuck in a dull routine that it never quite escapes.

With a dearth of decent western RPGs as of late, players desperate for something new might find that Mars War Logs scratches that itch, but don't expect anything amazing.

I played some of the original Final Fantasy Adventure but never completed it. Now that I've played Adventures of Mana, I don't think playing the original again will ever be necessary. Square Enix originally made this version for mobile phones, which perhaps explains why not much was changed. It's still a minimally-altered rendition of something I wasn't enthralled with in the first place. Many others have much more affection for the original than I do, and will doubtless be overjoyed that Square Enix allows them to play it on a modern platform without rendering any memories of how to progress inaccurate through alterations. Those hoping for something more akin to certain acclaimed later installments of the series, or a title that plays in a fashion better taking advantage of the Vita's capabilities, will be disappointed.

Ragnarok Odyssey ACE is a good game to play in bursts because it doesn't demand a lot of one's attention or time. It's even more enjoyable when you have a friend to share it with. Unfortunately, there's just not enough variety in terms of missions or gameplay to keep the game engaging.

Crymachina is continually plagued by its imbalance. The emotion can be impactful, especially with the relationships forged between the characters, but it is bogged down by a convoluted story. Combat is snappy and fast, but slowed down by an excessive upgrade system and grueling grind. Lighting and effects are gorgeous and colorful, while areas remain repetitive and bland. It takes too much work to get to the good of Crymachina and only those desperately itching for a sci-fi action RPG will enjoy completing it. It’s a shame because the concept it uses to explore humanity is an interesting one, but too many issues dampen its emotional punch.

It is a shame that more time and effort weren’t put into the monster variety and ensuring better performance at launch. With the ability to create traps and other constructs on the field of battle, Wild Hearts has created a new hunting experience that could certainly stand toe to toe with a more well-established series. Future patches and DLC could certainly iron some of these problems out, but as it stands upon release, Wild Hearts is difficult to recommend in its launch state to all but the most hard-core of hunters. With that said, the foundation laid out by this title is quite solid, and could certainly lead to greater things in the future.

Unfortunately, while the original game really had a fairly interesting story, this game fell a little short of it.

Making it to the big top is a mechanically sound journey with a lot of great characters to choose and varied enemies making each combat fun. Unfortunately, the journey to each combat is fraught with graphical gaffes, sound repetition, and story doled out in odd intervals. Good old Uncle Jack can’t save this from falling out of the spotlight making The Amazing American Circus worth a look only for those that enjoy circus acts or deeper than expected card battlers. Everyone else can pull away from this mediocre performance.

Those expecting an experience from Ragnarok Tactics on par with Final Fantasy Tactics or Tactics Ogre are likely to come away disappointed. While the game doesn't suffer from any major issues or grievances, there just seems to be a general lack of inspiration or anything to make the game stand out. However, Ragnarok Tactics is a decent time-killer that should at least be able to satisfy any tactical RPG itch, albeit one unlikely to make an impact on many favourites lists.

River City: Knights of Justice succeeds in many ways as a retro piece of nostalgia, but it fails at having enough variety to keep it engaging. It lacks the humour of the previous games in the series by instead amping up the cheesy factor, and while that's fine and dandy, I wish it hadn't been so straight-laced in its approach. While I am glad the game clocks in around six hours, I feel like the amount of repetition and padding is still a large issue in Knights of Justice. While it's fun to transplant a series into a new setting, it's hard not to expect that more be done with it. Knights of Justice is a simple, straight-forward title that is mostly unremarkable. There isn't enough here that makes it different from other River City Ransom titles and that really is the true shame in all of this.

Rising takes players to averagetown, population snoozefest and it doesn’t ever get exciting, even after its twenty-hour completion time. While it offers players a beautiful presentation and some ear candy tunes, these elements cannot help elevate Rising as being any more than a fetch-quest-heavy experience with little to no payoff. If I wanted to play Chores: The RPG, I’d just clean my house, because doing that offers considerably more tangible benefits than playing this game to completion did.

Despite its B-game charms, it is difficult to recommend Werewolf: The Apocalypse – Earthblood outright. Many of its elements feel somewhat incomplete or lacking. Even the competency of the combat only works on a surface level and is unlikely to keep people coming back for more. Still, there is some joy to be had here, even if some of it is unintentional. There may not be a gripping story or numerous engaging gameplay systems, but with the right state of mind there’s a decent, mindless weekend brawl to be had.

A better version of Othercide exists in another universe, one that doesn’t take the least interesting aspects of roguelikes and runs them into the ground. At its core is an interesting tactics game, but its constant need to repeat itself does it no favors. While not a long game, Othercide drags out what little there is to it and then does it all over again. The progression proceeds linearly, throwing few curve balls. The ones it does throw soon become routine, like everything else, as the same missions are repeated on the trip back to the boss. Like the Daughters themselves, players are forced to fight the same battles again and again in the hope that maybe, this time, things will be different.

It's a unique and breezy endeavor, but one with plenty of aggravation along the way.

While it seems a little contradictory with the criticism above and the scores below, I did really enjoy this game… for about eight hours. There is a lot of fun to be had with the class systems and the humor the game provides. Unfortunately the game lasted thrice the length I was willing to smile through and boredom set in for long stretches. I’d encourage anyone with a passing interest in this title to download the demo available on Nintendo’s eShop. It’s quite lengthy, and shows all the game offers. If that gameplay loop with almost zero deviation and zero challenge is something you’re willing to endure, it can be a relaxing break from serious RPGs.

Touken Ranbu Warriors doesn’t feel like a great showcase for either property. The characters are engaging enough, but it fails to make a case for diving deeper into the fight against a faceless HRA that seems to be causing havoc just because. Meanwhile, the simplified variation of Warriors gameplay doesn’t have enough depth or challenge to be at all compelling. The idea of getting the series together appeared to be a good one, but the execution simply cuts too much away.

Mario Golf: Super Rush provides some of the gaming experience expected from Nintendo, with a sleek presentation and tight gameplay. There is no disputing this is an enjoyable, albeit brief, single-player golf game that provides the framework for a compelling gameplay experience. The lack of content — number of courses, weak online play, blink-and-you’ll-miss-it Adventure mode — is the real problem here. Mario sports and golf fans alike will find something to like, however briefly. RPGamers looking for a proper golf-RPG hybrid are still stuck on their old courses.

When it isn't being a frustrating game, Disgaea 5 can be a lot of fun. Once things slow down to grind, however, the story may be the only thing that will keep players going.

Ultimately, Daemon X Machina: Titantic Scion is difficult to recommend. While the bones of combat and customization are well executed, the open world element feels tacked on to an abysmal main narrative, and technical issues hold the game back even further. While these things are forgivable on their own, the full launch price tag feels extremely steep for such an underbaked game that has paid DLC customization options on top of it. Those who enjoy the mech-fighting genre will certainly find something to enjoy here, but others will find a game that feels incredibly undercooked.

I was so excited for a Steven Universe RPG, but I wish the game had been delayed a bit longer so that many of the bugs could have been ironed out. There is potential for a great game that will make any player smile, it's just too bad the bugs overcame the final product in a way that sucked the fun out of it at times. This game has all the trappings of great humour and loveable characters, but it's hard to recommend at this time for fans and non-fans given the end result.

Crimson Alliance is a fairly competent, if completely forgettable game.

At the end of the day, Dead Island: Riptide has a lot of good ideas, especially in its latter half. The combat, while repetitive and often frustrating with the annoying inventory management, still manages to provide exciting encounters. It just seems as if the developer didn't trust players enough to fully immerse them with the survival horror title suggested by the mechanics.

Roguelike mechanics are not a turn-on for me in most instances, and after finishing this I fervently hope not to deal with trap-laden dungeons again for a very long time. It's some kind of testament to Etrian Mystery that I was able to finish it, but not without many irrational bursts of rage at its mechanics.

At first brush, Destiny Connect by all rights appears to be successful in what it seems to have been created for: provide a cute, fun, and polished throwback game for both modern audiences and those who remember the older console generations fondly. The issues with the game don’t become apparent immediately, but do rear their heads before too long, causing fatigue with the bland, aimless narrative and frustration with the repetitive and simple combat. Time travel is a tricky thing, and in Destiny Connect’s case, the only fond memories I’m left with are the good times I’ve had with the games that were its inspirations.

Loot River has a lot going for it with precise fluid combat and methodical progression. It has had some technically hiccups, many of which have been ironed out with quick fixes, though their presence in the original release is a disappointment. The progression feels stunted with only a slight variation to each map to keep players coming back for more. Loot River‘s mileage will vary, with refreshing timing-based combat it can feel like a fun distraction or a listless drift down the river.

The most painful aspect of Pocket RPG is the fact that the developers were clearly onto something with this game's design.

Etrange Overlord has a lot of qualities to enjoy. The narrative is fun if a bit nonsensical and predictable, the characters are a blast, and the musical numbers are a nice touch that distinguishes it from its contemporaries. Unfortunately, the lack of a great combat core combined with monotonous gameplay makes the game ultimately difficult to recommend.

I can’t think of any other games in which I deliberately shrank my protagonists so that they could each fit in a stack between two other creatures, so World of Final Fantasy Maxima definitely gets credit for exploiting an unseen niche. Actually playing it was also entertaining, though every time I progressed with the overall narrative frustration resulted. Square Enix’s track record in recent years has been a highly mixed bag of quality, and World of Final Fantasy Maxima fits right in.

Venetica is a tough game to recommend. On one hand, there's a luscious and unique world to explore that is vibrant and astonishing. On the other hand, the story is muddled with poor dialogue and voice acting, and overly-simplistic combat that might not appeal to some.