Limayde
This game absolutely rules. It's such a cute, charming experience the whole way through with some twists and turns here and there. The story is a bit lacking, and isn't overall satisfying, but it's hard to care when I'm enjoying myself so much. It kinda feels like Zelda 2... but if it was really well-done. So, if you like Zelda 2, definitely pick it up. If you wanted to like Zelda 2 but it didn't quite click with you, maybe give this a try? It may be more what you're looking for.
For the uninitiated, Phoenotopia Awakening (pronounced "fee-no-toe-pia", like phoenix and utopia) is a reimagining of a 2014 flash game simply called Phoenotopia. It takes elements of that game, expands upon it, and then adds a whole buncha new stuff on top of that. The game is comprised of three major points, combat, puzzles, and exploration, much like a Zelda or Metroid game. Zeltroid?
The combat, while a bit clunky at first, is loads of fun. Dodging in an out of enemy attacks and finding just the right moment to strike. A whole arsenal of weapons and items at your disposal, it's just a solid, satisfactory package I can't recommend enough. The game runs on a stamina meter you need to manage, especially during combat. Everything is tied to stamina, running, rolling, attacking. Jumping is the only thing exempt from this. Combining your knowledge of stamina management and combat prowess makes for a very thrilling and challenging experience. If you're not into difficult games, there are some accessibility options you can toggle on or off. I personally played without the bat taking any stamina, and I think that made me enjoy it more than I would have otherwise.
The puzzles are pretty well-made and thought provoking. They kinda remind me of Fez in a way, where some are pretty cryptic but feel great when you finally figure it out. Phoenotopia takes cues from Zelda and adds a flute into the game, but takes it so much further than any Zelda ever did. It's not just "play X song here" and you solve the puzzle, no no no no no, there are environmental cues everywhere. Symbols on the wall, a series of different colored flowers, or even something akin to that Pipe Maze mini game from Mario Party. You really gotta keep your eyes peeled and ascend to a higher level of thinking to solve some of the trickier puzzles.
Exploring in this game is an absolute joy. There's tons of secrets both on the world map as well as in towns, caves, and just about everything else. Generally when you come across a secret, you'll be rewarded with a Heart Ruby, which increases your HP, an Energy Gem, which increases your stamina, or a Moonstone, which have various uses tied to them. Upon beating the game I went back and got all the collectibles because I didn't want it to be over... I don't think I can recommend getting all the Moonstones, there's too many and I eventually had to resort to scouring the internet for answers since there isn't a guide. (I'm in the midst of fixing that.) There were a couple Heart Rubies and Energy Gems that were also pretty annoying to get, but I personally still think it's worth it for... a secret thing you can do at the very end of the game.
Collecting every Heart Ruby, Energy Gem, Moonstone, and the doing the secret awesome bonus thing is required if you want to 100% the game. There's also some achievements you can do. You will not get them all on your first playthrough. It requires things like beating the game without any health or stamina upgrades, or getting to the final save point in a certain amount of time. Unfortunately, if you didn't fill those requirements beforehand, you're locked out of them permanently... so you'll need to start up a new save. It's a bit annoying, but thankfully there's no tangible reward for that, aside from some concept art.
Also the music is an ABSOLUTE jam. Thomas' Lab is all bouncy and fun, Katash's Theme gets me pumped, and then you have the serene melody of Sanctuary that envelops you in a warm, gentle hug.
And... I think that wraps up my review. So, if I convinced you... please play this game. I really wish more people knew about Phoenotopia because it is a marvelous experience. It deserves to sit up there with the titans of the indie world, along with the likes of Hollow Knight, Hades, and Celeste.
For the uninitiated, Phoenotopia Awakening (pronounced "fee-no-toe-pia", like phoenix and utopia) is a reimagining of a 2014 flash game simply called Phoenotopia. It takes elements of that game, expands upon it, and then adds a whole buncha new stuff on top of that. The game is comprised of three major points, combat, puzzles, and exploration, much like a Zelda or Metroid game. Zeltroid?
The combat, while a bit clunky at first, is loads of fun. Dodging in an out of enemy attacks and finding just the right moment to strike. A whole arsenal of weapons and items at your disposal, it's just a solid, satisfactory package I can't recommend enough. The game runs on a stamina meter you need to manage, especially during combat. Everything is tied to stamina, running, rolling, attacking. Jumping is the only thing exempt from this. Combining your knowledge of stamina management and combat prowess makes for a very thrilling and challenging experience. If you're not into difficult games, there are some accessibility options you can toggle on or off. I personally played without the bat taking any stamina, and I think that made me enjoy it more than I would have otherwise.
The puzzles are pretty well-made and thought provoking. They kinda remind me of Fez in a way, where some are pretty cryptic but feel great when you finally figure it out. Phoenotopia takes cues from Zelda and adds a flute into the game, but takes it so much further than any Zelda ever did. It's not just "play X song here" and you solve the puzzle, no no no no no, there are environmental cues everywhere. Symbols on the wall, a series of different colored flowers, or even something akin to that Pipe Maze mini game from Mario Party. You really gotta keep your eyes peeled and ascend to a higher level of thinking to solve some of the trickier puzzles.
Exploring in this game is an absolute joy. There's tons of secrets both on the world map as well as in towns, caves, and just about everything else. Generally when you come across a secret, you'll be rewarded with a Heart Ruby, which increases your HP, an Energy Gem, which increases your stamina, or a Moonstone, which have various uses tied to them. Upon beating the game I went back and got all the collectibles because I didn't want it to be over... I don't think I can recommend getting all the Moonstones, there's too many and I eventually had to resort to scouring the internet for answers since there isn't a guide. (I'm in the midst of fixing that.) There were a couple Heart Rubies and Energy Gems that were also pretty annoying to get, but I personally still think it's worth it for... a secret thing you can do at the very end of the game.
Collecting every Heart Ruby, Energy Gem, Moonstone, and the doing the secret awesome bonus thing is required if you want to 100% the game. There's also some achievements you can do. You will not get them all on your first playthrough. It requires things like beating the game without any health or stamina upgrades, or getting to the final save point in a certain amount of time. Unfortunately, if you didn't fill those requirements beforehand, you're locked out of them permanently... so you'll need to start up a new save. It's a bit annoying, but thankfully there's no tangible reward for that, aside from some concept art.
Also the music is an ABSOLUTE jam. Thomas' Lab is all bouncy and fun, Katash's Theme gets me pumped, and then you have the serene melody of Sanctuary that envelops you in a warm, gentle hug.
And... I think that wraps up my review. So, if I convinced you... please play this game. I really wish more people knew about Phoenotopia because it is a marvelous experience. It deserves to sit up there with the titans of the indie world, along with the likes of Hollow Knight, Hades, and Celeste.
2017
It is far from my favorite, but believe me when I tell you that this is the best game ever made.
I got Thwacked at 0%
2019
This game takes almost all the best parts of both the original and Dark Moon and squeezes them together into a very enjoyable experience. The new mechanics and returning ones blend very well together, creating a diverse set of puzzles and boss fights.
The actual ghost catching I don't think is the main appeal of this entry. I was definitely more enthralled with the puzzles scattered throughout every inch of the hotel. Seriously, they are literally everywhere. It's honestly impressive how many secrets they managed to cram into every floor. It had me searching every room top to bottom looking cor collectables and money, as unimportant as they are.
Like in the first game, money has basically no value in the actual gameplay segments, only serving to give you a letter rank at the end of the game. You can buy items from E. Gadd in his lab, but these are inconsequential. Extra lives, Boo seekers (which I don't think I ever actually unlocked for some reason?), and gem seekers are literally all you get. I would've much preferred if they went the route they did in Dark Moon and granted you upgrades to your kit, such as a stronger vacuum, or maybe extra health.
Another knock I'd give it is the lack of ghost variety. Contrary to the first game and Dark Moon, there are only four regular ghosts, two mini variants, and one that can only be described as an equivalent to those eye doors in Metroid. As you might've guessed, these ghosts don't really present much of a challenge, but I think that's fine as the puzzle aspect of the game is top-notch.
You have a whole host of options at your disposal when it comes to solving puzzles.The Dark Light is my favorite returning addition. Having objects be invisible and intangible until scanning is a great concept and is very well executed. Having a mirror reflect an object that is supposed to be there but isn't is still fun to point out and go "aha". Another plus to the Dark Light is it not being the main focus of the game, this means the solution isn't always just "use the Dark Light" like in Dark Moon.
However, I think the best feature is Gooigi. Your friendly translucent, squishy companion. Along with him just being silly, he also provides couch co-op, which is something I sorely miss in modern games. Even when alone, Gooigi being able to slip past fence gates and into crevasses not normally accessible is such a fun idea that my brain was just not used to. It actually took me a fair bit to come to grips with "oh, this fence doesn't actually prevent my from progressing" which was kind of a cool feeling as it turned my knowledge of in-game mechanics on its head.
Overall, Luigi's Mansion 3 is a fantastic puzzle game that really gets you thinking, especially if you want all those collectibles. However, if you want more of a combat-oriented challenge, I suggest finding a copy of Dark Moon instead.
(Also why is it called Luigi's Mansion 3 and not something else like Dark Moon was? This bothers me way more than it should.)
The actual ghost catching I don't think is the main appeal of this entry. I was definitely more enthralled with the puzzles scattered throughout every inch of the hotel. Seriously, they are literally everywhere. It's honestly impressive how many secrets they managed to cram into every floor. It had me searching every room top to bottom looking cor collectables and money, as unimportant as they are.
Like in the first game, money has basically no value in the actual gameplay segments, only serving to give you a letter rank at the end of the game. You can buy items from E. Gadd in his lab, but these are inconsequential. Extra lives, Boo seekers (which I don't think I ever actually unlocked for some reason?), and gem seekers are literally all you get. I would've much preferred if they went the route they did in Dark Moon and granted you upgrades to your kit, such as a stronger vacuum, or maybe extra health.
Another knock I'd give it is the lack of ghost variety. Contrary to the first game and Dark Moon, there are only four regular ghosts, two mini variants, and one that can only be described as an equivalent to those eye doors in Metroid. As you might've guessed, these ghosts don't really present much of a challenge, but I think that's fine as the puzzle aspect of the game is top-notch.
You have a whole host of options at your disposal when it comes to solving puzzles.The Dark Light is my favorite returning addition. Having objects be invisible and intangible until scanning is a great concept and is very well executed. Having a mirror reflect an object that is supposed to be there but isn't is still fun to point out and go "aha". Another plus to the Dark Light is it not being the main focus of the game, this means the solution isn't always just "use the Dark Light" like in Dark Moon.
However, I think the best feature is Gooigi. Your friendly translucent, squishy companion. Along with him just being silly, he also provides couch co-op, which is something I sorely miss in modern games. Even when alone, Gooigi being able to slip past fence gates and into crevasses not normally accessible is such a fun idea that my brain was just not used to. It actually took me a fair bit to come to grips with "oh, this fence doesn't actually prevent my from progressing" which was kind of a cool feeling as it turned my knowledge of in-game mechanics on its head.
Overall, Luigi's Mansion 3 is a fantastic puzzle game that really gets you thinking, especially if you want all those collectibles. However, if you want more of a combat-oriented challenge, I suggest finding a copy of Dark Moon instead.
(Also why is it called Luigi's Mansion 3 and not something else like Dark Moon was? This bothers me way more than it should.)
While fun, the game is plagued with technical issues. Most of them you could ignore because they were just silly graphical things, but there were others that weren't so easy brush off. For one, the water spell you get at the beginning just stopped functioning correctly at one point, making it a lot harder to play through the first area. The game also froze multiple times during my playthrough. I'm not sure if it was specifically an issue with the Switch version, but it was bad.
Another thing I think the game suffers for is too much customization. There are loads of abilities, weapons, items, food, all of which are craftable via one of the NPCs. My inventory ended up being cluttered with loads of items and I didn't even know what purpose of any of them served. The Shard system is cool, but it also suffers from this. You get too many of them too quickly, and I eventually just settled on three or four I used for the whole game. Toning down the number of customizable options would drastically improve my enjoyment of the game.
Not to say I didn't have fun, I did enjoy myself up until the near end. The game has an EXP system to reward and encourage you to fight enemies as they come, but this resulted in the bosses eventually just becoming HP sponges, meaning I either needed to grind, or just tough it out and fight them for half an hour. I chose the latter.
There is potential here. Things need to be ironed out, the fat trimmed, and properly balanced, but despite my complaints, it's just fun. If you like Castlevania, you'll probably enjoy it. I can't say for certain though because I've never played Castlevania lmao.
Another thing I think the game suffers for is too much customization. There are loads of abilities, weapons, items, food, all of which are craftable via one of the NPCs. My inventory ended up being cluttered with loads of items and I didn't even know what purpose of any of them served. The Shard system is cool, but it also suffers from this. You get too many of them too quickly, and I eventually just settled on three or four I used for the whole game. Toning down the number of customizable options would drastically improve my enjoyment of the game.
Not to say I didn't have fun, I did enjoy myself up until the near end. The game has an EXP system to reward and encourage you to fight enemies as they come, but this resulted in the bosses eventually just becoming HP sponges, meaning I either needed to grind, or just tough it out and fight them for half an hour. I chose the latter.
There is potential here. Things need to be ironed out, the fat trimmed, and properly balanced, but despite my complaints, it's just fun. If you like Castlevania, you'll probably enjoy it. I can't say for certain though because I've never played Castlevania lmao.
2021
Just about everything aside from the core gameplay was enjoyable. The characters are all fun, voice acting is surprisingly good for an indie game, the art style is gorgeous, the soundtrack... could've used a few more themes, but overall it was good. And the story... was... fine? It didn't blow me out of the water, but it wasn't like awful. The characters absolutely carry the story, they're almost all likable.
However... the core gameplay is... not great. Firstly, it's RIDDLED with bugs. Every time you round a corner, there's a missing texture, or the game softlocks, or a character that's not supposed to be with you is now suddenly back. It's one of the least-polished modern games I've ever played. The game also has serious balancing issues, everything is either WAY too easy, or ludicrously hard, but in both scenarios the same strategy is almost always the best course of action. Just use the strongest attack you have and hope your numbers are bigger that theirs. Which is a darn shame, because the game gives you a wide variety of spells that all sound like they'd be really fun to use strategically, but in every fight where you'd want to use them, you can't because they're immune to it. It frustrates me so much, because I want to have fun, but it won't let me. (Also I think there's supposed to be a New Game +, but that is also bugged, and the option only appears for half a second, meaning it's inaccessible.)
The game packs some pretty decent sidequests, they aren't just your standard "go here and kill X monster" they're pretty well thought out and fun. The problem is, there are no sidequests past the halfway point in the game, and the ones in the beginning are all missable. Now, the game does tell you WHEN you won't be able to do any more in any given area, but that's also a big fat lie, because there are SOME that you just cannot complete unless you did them way earlier, or talked to specific people in a specific order before that point. I really want to give them the benefit of the doubt and believe this was oversight, but it almost feels deliberate. And if you don't complete every sidequest in the game, you cannot get the true ending, meaning I was locked out of it since the second area.
It all just... sucks. I've been patiently waiting for this game for so long, and it just... isn't what I wanted it to be. Despite taking so long to come out, it still needed another year or two before this was something they could truly be proud of. They put way too much of their focus into the art, and the voice acting, and the animation, and didn't stop to consider if that was what they should've been using their time with.
However... the core gameplay is... not great. Firstly, it's RIDDLED with bugs. Every time you round a corner, there's a missing texture, or the game softlocks, or a character that's not supposed to be with you is now suddenly back. It's one of the least-polished modern games I've ever played. The game also has serious balancing issues, everything is either WAY too easy, or ludicrously hard, but in both scenarios the same strategy is almost always the best course of action. Just use the strongest attack you have and hope your numbers are bigger that theirs. Which is a darn shame, because the game gives you a wide variety of spells that all sound like they'd be really fun to use strategically, but in every fight where you'd want to use them, you can't because they're immune to it. It frustrates me so much, because I want to have fun, but it won't let me. (Also I think there's supposed to be a New Game +, but that is also bugged, and the option only appears for half a second, meaning it's inaccessible.)
The game packs some pretty decent sidequests, they aren't just your standard "go here and kill X monster" they're pretty well thought out and fun. The problem is, there are no sidequests past the halfway point in the game, and the ones in the beginning are all missable. Now, the game does tell you WHEN you won't be able to do any more in any given area, but that's also a big fat lie, because there are SOME that you just cannot complete unless you did them way earlier, or talked to specific people in a specific order before that point. I really want to give them the benefit of the doubt and believe this was oversight, but it almost feels deliberate. And if you don't complete every sidequest in the game, you cannot get the true ending, meaning I was locked out of it since the second area.
It all just... sucks. I've been patiently waiting for this game for so long, and it just... isn't what I wanted it to be. Despite taking so long to come out, it still needed another year or two before this was something they could truly be proud of. They put way too much of their focus into the art, and the voice acting, and the animation, and didn't stop to consider if that was what they should've been using their time with.
2018
I think a lot of people exaggerate how bad the story is. All eight are very fun to run through, and are compressed into bite-sized pieces that you can tackle in any order you want. Out of the bunch, I feel Tressa's is the only one that's lacking due to the smaller scale and how her final boss just comes outta nowhere. Despite this, I still find it enjoyable on repeat playthroughs, not every story needs to have world-ending stakes, sometimes you just want a cozy, good-feel story, y'know?
People are quick to bring up the "but the party doesn't interact with each other" which is just blatantly false, as there are quite a few interactions with all the characters in the tavern. However, I will say that likely isn't enough for some people. You don't get to see the travelers overcome obstacles together, or pick each other up when they're down, or get into arguments. It is... lacking. Obviously I think the game would be better for it if characters did all that, but Octopath still has a lot to offer in terms of story.
The individual stories could each be a game by themselves and I'd be satisfied but HOO BOY, don't even get me started on the finale. Forget that boss fight, that level curve is not okay, but MAN, all those revelations you get right before completely changes how you view all the stories.
You don't need me to tell you how great everything else is, because it probably has the best combat, art direction, and music in any RPG I've ever played, it just seems to be the story everyone disagrees on. And I will admit, there are definitely better ones out there, but it is by no means bad. Anyway, Octopath is very good, please play it.
People are quick to bring up the "but the party doesn't interact with each other" which is just blatantly false, as there are quite a few interactions with all the characters in the tavern. However, I will say that likely isn't enough for some people. You don't get to see the travelers overcome obstacles together, or pick each other up when they're down, or get into arguments. It is... lacking. Obviously I think the game would be better for it if characters did all that, but Octopath still has a lot to offer in terms of story.
The individual stories could each be a game by themselves and I'd be satisfied but HOO BOY, don't even get me started on the finale. Forget that boss fight, that level curve is not okay, but MAN, all those revelations you get right before completely changes how you view all the stories.
You don't need me to tell you how great everything else is, because it probably has the best combat, art direction, and music in any RPG I've ever played, it just seems to be the story everyone disagrees on. And I will admit, there are definitely better ones out there, but it is by no means bad. Anyway, Octopath is very good, please play it.
PLAY THIS GAME. IT'S TWENTY DOLLARS. THE DLC IS TEN. JESUS CHRIST. WHY HASN'T EVERYONE AND THEIR GRANDMA PLAYED THIS ALREADY????
Answers the age old question of "what if Dialga and Palkia were lesbians?"
2020
It's been seven years since I last cried. This finally broke me. It hit extra hard with the character May and I sharing a name.
2021
This review contains spoilers
First bit of this will be spoiler-free. I'll label the spoilers when I get to them.
There is a lot to like about this game. There are also quite a few things to take issue with. I'm not sure how to feel on the overall experience.
Let's start with the good. First of all, the pixel art is PHENOMENAL. Hands down the best looking pixel art game I've ever played. Each character, even the unimportant NPCs all have their own unique animations. I can't imagine how fucking long that took. It adds so much to the characters.
Speaking of which, nearly every character you come across on your journey is great, actually introduced some new favs of mine, like Isabel and Alva. Isabel especially, she has a great arc. And then sam is just adorable, stealing the show for most of the adventure. She's great in every scene she shows up in. Her childlike wonder is infectious, and surprisingly doesn't come with the annoyances that usually accompany kids. She's all the good parts without any of the bad. Best character in the game. Not my favorite, but the best.
Sam is also the cornerstone of the whole plot. There's this entire mystery that surrounds her which keeps the story moving. It's clear she's not a normal kid... but then what is she? Very intriguing... although I'm not sure it was realized to its fullest potential. I'll cover that in the spoiler section.
The actual gameplay is pretty good too. I like swapping between John and Sam to solve puzzles or defeat enemies. Sam's ability to stun things is pretty fun to work with, albeit it does make most encounters ludicrously simple. Stun, smack with pan 6-7 times, dead. Boom, easy. Clearly, not the strong point of the game.
To help with combat, there's upgrades and cooking. Upgrades can be gotten after finding enough Gear Parts, which are scattered about the world. Adds an extra layer of exploration that I quite enjoyed. The upgrades themselves aren't terribly interesting, merely just "more damage" or "more storage" so that's something I felt could've been worked on. You may also find heart... orbs. I forget what they're called. Basically Heart Pieces, find four, get an extra heart. Easy peasy.
Food is also obtained as minor rewards, which in turn is used for cooking. Cooking's fine, it takes a little too long, and there isn't a whole lot of variety to it. Hell, I didn't even know you could add spices to it until I was an hour away from beating the game. I assume you're supposed to buy them, but I got through just fine with just energy drinks and whatever I found in chests.
(SPOILERS)
Alright. It's time for the bad. Let's start with the elephant in the room. John. From a gameplay perspective, John makes a lot of sense. He's your brawn, the other half of your puzzle solving duo, the... chef. (You can only cook with John in front, which is a little strange.) However, from a story perspective, John makes no godDAMN sense.
John is a silent protagonist, meaning he never talks. But the thing is, he doesn't even talk in-game. Characters literally point out how John never actually speaks. It's funny the first time, but after a while you're just like "please just talk". They don't even do a thing where they make the ending impactful by having him speak then. No, he doesn't say a single word the entire game. He doesn't even express EMOTION. He's just a solid brick wall you play as for some reason. Why do I play as him? I would MUCH rather play as Sam the entire time, she's clearly the main character. Let me play as her???
I get John's supposed to be Sam's parental figure throughout the story, but there's no fucking emotion there. There are two other characters who could've done that much better. William and Alva. William is just a nice, friendly dude who maybe isn't perfect, but he's still a nice guy. And Alva just jives with Sam so well. Alva gave her SHOES. Did John ever do that? NO. Fuck John.
At the end of the game, you're shown flashbacks of John's time with Sam. It's supposed to be really moving, but I felt nothing simply because John felt nothing.
Now, I don't hate silent protagonists. They can be done really well, a la Lea CrossCode, she actually emotes and has feelings. But generally, silent protagonists are simply inferior to ones that actually speak. John encompasses everything wrong with a silent protagonist.
There was a point early on in the story where I really thought John was going to die. That would've been really interesting. Advertise the whole game as making you think he's the main character, give him a whole bunch of slots for upgrades, then BAM. JK, he's dead. Here's Sam, go nuts with her bubble magic. Would've been a great way to progress the story. Give Sam some motivation instead of just kicking her out of the village. That's when you could've met William or Alva on the surface, and they could serve as your second character. But alas...
There's one small issue I have with the game around the midpoint. Right after the climax of the previous chapter, Sam, John, William, and Daniel head east towards Ester City. Before you get there however, there's this... weird fuckin' part where you get on this train called "Monkollywood". Basically an accurate portrayal of modern day Hollywood, filled with, you guessed it, monkeys.
It is by far the silliest portion of the game, and it does not need to be there. They KINDA justify it at the end, but it's really just filler. It's made worse by the fact that you go from the highest high of the game thus far, to... whatever the fuck this is. I'unno, it was a weird decision. I think I get why some people have gripes with Mother 3 now.
Now... those're really the only issues I have with Eastward. Granted, John is a BIG fuckin' issue, but y'know. However, there is one other thing I'd like to touch upon. There are three fake-out deaths in this game, and one real death, (at least in terms of important characters). John, who gets injured at the very beginning of the game. Daniel, who gets blown apart just before the final chapter. And Sam who… “sacrifices” herself at the very very end of the game. Now, I hate fake-out deaths, but there’s a bigger issue at play here. The only character who dies in this game is Alva, who, if you don’t know, is an explicitly gay character, (or at least wlw, I’unno, she could be bi or pan or something). Obviously that’s kind of an issue if you know how common that trope is. But that’s not all, the way she dies is in poor taste too, she gets inured off-screen, spends like half the game in a coma, and then dies off-screen as well. What makes it worse, is that Isabel doesn't even get a proper sendoff to her arc and character. It literally just fades to black and you never see her again.
It fucking SUCKS because Alva is legitimately one of my favorite characters in the whole game. As a queer character, and even just a character in general, she is handled very well for the time she gets. Her interactions with Isabel are adorable and heart-warming, and she even acts like a mother figure for Sam (Which I guess makes it even more painful when she dies, and it works, but like… c’mon, you let JOHN live and not Alva?). You see the two conflicting forces at play here? To me, it sounds like there was some conflict during development with two very opposing viewpoints, and this is what they settled on. This whole scenario has me very mixed, if other characters had died and STAYED dead, I might not be as bothered by this. If we were actually shown how she dies, I might not be as bothered by this. And if she lived… well this wouldn’t even be an issue.
If I were to rewrite this whole shebackle, I would’ve gone about it in one of two ways.
1. Solomon, one of the (kinda) prominent villains in the game is shown injuring Alva before you fight him. (In the actual game, Solomon isn’t involved in the slightest, but you still fight him for some reason.) Then, towards the end of the game, after you’ve had your duel with Isabel, you’re shown a flashback of Alva’s final moments with her. Very touching, very heart-rending. Maybe you see Isabel kill herself after you leave, just so she can be with her. Or like, the implication of such so it doesn’t get too gruesome.
2. Starts the same as the first scenario, as I really enjoy the arc Isabel goes through, but instead at the end of the game, Alva is healed through whatever bullshit goes on with Charon. Maybe in exchange for Alva’s safety, she offers to be controlled by Mother so you still get your duel with her. Then at the end Alva could come in and bring her back to her senses… or something like that, I’unno. The Charon/Lab/Mother stuff is all super vague and I barely understand it. Point is, because it’s so vague, a scenario could’ve panned out like that and it still would’ve been believable.
Anyway that was just a long-winded way to say I don’t think Alva should’ve died, but if she were going to, there were ways to go about it that didn’t feel so empty and heartless. Who knows? Maybe iF JOHN WASN’T AROUND, THINGS WOULD’VE PANNED OUT DIFFERENTLY.
(SPOILERS END)
I think that pretty much wraps up my thoughts on Eastward. An otherwise great game marred by John. Definitely worth it if you can stand John though.
There is a lot to like about this game. There are also quite a few things to take issue with. I'm not sure how to feel on the overall experience.
Let's start with the good. First of all, the pixel art is PHENOMENAL. Hands down the best looking pixel art game I've ever played. Each character, even the unimportant NPCs all have their own unique animations. I can't imagine how fucking long that took. It adds so much to the characters.
Speaking of which, nearly every character you come across on your journey is great, actually introduced some new favs of mine, like Isabel and Alva. Isabel especially, she has a great arc. And then sam is just adorable, stealing the show for most of the adventure. She's great in every scene she shows up in. Her childlike wonder is infectious, and surprisingly doesn't come with the annoyances that usually accompany kids. She's all the good parts without any of the bad. Best character in the game. Not my favorite, but the best.
Sam is also the cornerstone of the whole plot. There's this entire mystery that surrounds her which keeps the story moving. It's clear she's not a normal kid... but then what is she? Very intriguing... although I'm not sure it was realized to its fullest potential. I'll cover that in the spoiler section.
The actual gameplay is pretty good too. I like swapping between John and Sam to solve puzzles or defeat enemies. Sam's ability to stun things is pretty fun to work with, albeit it does make most encounters ludicrously simple. Stun, smack with pan 6-7 times, dead. Boom, easy. Clearly, not the strong point of the game.
To help with combat, there's upgrades and cooking. Upgrades can be gotten after finding enough Gear Parts, which are scattered about the world. Adds an extra layer of exploration that I quite enjoyed. The upgrades themselves aren't terribly interesting, merely just "more damage" or "more storage" so that's something I felt could've been worked on. You may also find heart... orbs. I forget what they're called. Basically Heart Pieces, find four, get an extra heart. Easy peasy.
Food is also obtained as minor rewards, which in turn is used for cooking. Cooking's fine, it takes a little too long, and there isn't a whole lot of variety to it. Hell, I didn't even know you could add spices to it until I was an hour away from beating the game. I assume you're supposed to buy them, but I got through just fine with just energy drinks and whatever I found in chests.
(SPOILERS)
Alright. It's time for the bad. Let's start with the elephant in the room. John. From a gameplay perspective, John makes a lot of sense. He's your brawn, the other half of your puzzle solving duo, the... chef. (You can only cook with John in front, which is a little strange.) However, from a story perspective, John makes no godDAMN sense.
John is a silent protagonist, meaning he never talks. But the thing is, he doesn't even talk in-game. Characters literally point out how John never actually speaks. It's funny the first time, but after a while you're just like "please just talk". They don't even do a thing where they make the ending impactful by having him speak then. No, he doesn't say a single word the entire game. He doesn't even express EMOTION. He's just a solid brick wall you play as for some reason. Why do I play as him? I would MUCH rather play as Sam the entire time, she's clearly the main character. Let me play as her???
I get John's supposed to be Sam's parental figure throughout the story, but there's no fucking emotion there. There are two other characters who could've done that much better. William and Alva. William is just a nice, friendly dude who maybe isn't perfect, but he's still a nice guy. And Alva just jives with Sam so well. Alva gave her SHOES. Did John ever do that? NO. Fuck John.
At the end of the game, you're shown flashbacks of John's time with Sam. It's supposed to be really moving, but I felt nothing simply because John felt nothing.
Now, I don't hate silent protagonists. They can be done really well, a la Lea CrossCode, she actually emotes and has feelings. But generally, silent protagonists are simply inferior to ones that actually speak. John encompasses everything wrong with a silent protagonist.
There was a point early on in the story where I really thought John was going to die. That would've been really interesting. Advertise the whole game as making you think he's the main character, give him a whole bunch of slots for upgrades, then BAM. JK, he's dead. Here's Sam, go nuts with her bubble magic. Would've been a great way to progress the story. Give Sam some motivation instead of just kicking her out of the village. That's when you could've met William or Alva on the surface, and they could serve as your second character. But alas...
There's one small issue I have with the game around the midpoint. Right after the climax of the previous chapter, Sam, John, William, and Daniel head east towards Ester City. Before you get there however, there's this... weird fuckin' part where you get on this train called "Monkollywood". Basically an accurate portrayal of modern day Hollywood, filled with, you guessed it, monkeys.
It is by far the silliest portion of the game, and it does not need to be there. They KINDA justify it at the end, but it's really just filler. It's made worse by the fact that you go from the highest high of the game thus far, to... whatever the fuck this is. I'unno, it was a weird decision. I think I get why some people have gripes with Mother 3 now.
Now... those're really the only issues I have with Eastward. Granted, John is a BIG fuckin' issue, but y'know. However, there is one other thing I'd like to touch upon. There are three fake-out deaths in this game, and one real death, (at least in terms of important characters). John, who gets injured at the very beginning of the game. Daniel, who gets blown apart just before the final chapter. And Sam who… “sacrifices” herself at the very very end of the game. Now, I hate fake-out deaths, but there’s a bigger issue at play here. The only character who dies in this game is Alva, who, if you don’t know, is an explicitly gay character, (or at least wlw, I’unno, she could be bi or pan or something). Obviously that’s kind of an issue if you know how common that trope is. But that’s not all, the way she dies is in poor taste too, she gets inured off-screen, spends like half the game in a coma, and then dies off-screen as well. What makes it worse, is that Isabel doesn't even get a proper sendoff to her arc and character. It literally just fades to black and you never see her again.
It fucking SUCKS because Alva is legitimately one of my favorite characters in the whole game. As a queer character, and even just a character in general, she is handled very well for the time she gets. Her interactions with Isabel are adorable and heart-warming, and she even acts like a mother figure for Sam (Which I guess makes it even more painful when she dies, and it works, but like… c’mon, you let JOHN live and not Alva?). You see the two conflicting forces at play here? To me, it sounds like there was some conflict during development with two very opposing viewpoints, and this is what they settled on. This whole scenario has me very mixed, if other characters had died and STAYED dead, I might not be as bothered by this. If we were actually shown how she dies, I might not be as bothered by this. And if she lived… well this wouldn’t even be an issue.
If I were to rewrite this whole shebackle, I would’ve gone about it in one of two ways.
1. Solomon, one of the (kinda) prominent villains in the game is shown injuring Alva before you fight him. (In the actual game, Solomon isn’t involved in the slightest, but you still fight him for some reason.) Then, towards the end of the game, after you’ve had your duel with Isabel, you’re shown a flashback of Alva’s final moments with her. Very touching, very heart-rending. Maybe you see Isabel kill herself after you leave, just so she can be with her. Or like, the implication of such so it doesn’t get too gruesome.
2. Starts the same as the first scenario, as I really enjoy the arc Isabel goes through, but instead at the end of the game, Alva is healed through whatever bullshit goes on with Charon. Maybe in exchange for Alva’s safety, she offers to be controlled by Mother so you still get your duel with her. Then at the end Alva could come in and bring her back to her senses… or something like that, I’unno. The Charon/Lab/Mother stuff is all super vague and I barely understand it. Point is, because it’s so vague, a scenario could’ve panned out like that and it still would’ve been believable.
Anyway that was just a long-winded way to say I don’t think Alva should’ve died, but if she were going to, there were ways to go about it that didn’t feel so empty and heartless. Who knows? Maybe iF JOHN WASN’T AROUND, THINGS WOULD’VE PANNED OUT DIFFERENTLY.
(SPOILERS END)
I think that pretty much wraps up my thoughts on Eastward. An otherwise great game marred by John. Definitely worth it if you can stand John though.
2021
If you are an avid Metroid fan, go into this game as blind as possible. It is so worth it.
The core gameplay is so slick and smooth, you feel like a badass the whole time... when you're not getting your ass kicked haha. Overall it's not the hardest Metroid game I've played, that'd be Fusion, but it still provides a decent challenge. The new upgrades they added in Dread are some of my favorites. Especially one of the Aeion things and the last missile upgrade, you know which ones i'm talking about.
While you most certainly play Metroid for the gameplay, Dread isn't lacking in story content, but it's not like Other M's godawful cutscenes and dialogue, no no no no no, they actually thought about it for longer than two seconds. Most cutscenes don't have any dialogue, which is totally cool with me, Metroid is way better at environmental storytelling anyway. There are a few cutscenes that do have spoken dialogue, but it's generally a fictional language. Either that or it's Adam talking to you, but he essentially acts as your tutorial and GPS, so you can ignore him if you want.
Also real quick, whoever designed the map in Dread is a goddamn saint. EVERYTHING is labeled in detail. Speed Booster blocks you have and haven't destroyed, terminals, missile tanks you have and haven't collected, doors you can't open yet. It's so unbelievably helpful and I don't see enough people praising it.
I realistically only have one complaint about Dread. The animations for saving, refilling HP and ammo, getting an elevator, they all take way too long. It gets kinda annoying late game, especially if you're going for 100%. Oh, and I wasn't a huge fan of the music. It wasn't like, awful or anything, just not very memorable. But who cares when everything else is so damn good? Speedruns of this game are fuckin' insane, dude. Clippin' through walls and going into the Z axis is just... chef's kiss.
My conclusion: the 19 year wait was worth it, Dread had just about everything I could've hoped for from a followup to Fusion.
The core gameplay is so slick and smooth, you feel like a badass the whole time... when you're not getting your ass kicked haha. Overall it's not the hardest Metroid game I've played, that'd be Fusion, but it still provides a decent challenge. The new upgrades they added in Dread are some of my favorites. Especially one of the Aeion things and the last missile upgrade, you know which ones i'm talking about.
While you most certainly play Metroid for the gameplay, Dread isn't lacking in story content, but it's not like Other M's godawful cutscenes and dialogue, no no no no no, they actually thought about it for longer than two seconds. Most cutscenes don't have any dialogue, which is totally cool with me, Metroid is way better at environmental storytelling anyway. There are a few cutscenes that do have spoken dialogue, but it's generally a fictional language. Either that or it's Adam talking to you, but he essentially acts as your tutorial and GPS, so you can ignore him if you want.
Also real quick, whoever designed the map in Dread is a goddamn saint. EVERYTHING is labeled in detail. Speed Booster blocks you have and haven't destroyed, terminals, missile tanks you have and haven't collected, doors you can't open yet. It's so unbelievably helpful and I don't see enough people praising it.
I realistically only have one complaint about Dread. The animations for saving, refilling HP and ammo, getting an elevator, they all take way too long. It gets kinda annoying late game, especially if you're going for 100%. Oh, and I wasn't a huge fan of the music. It wasn't like, awful or anything, just not very memorable. But who cares when everything else is so damn good? Speedruns of this game are fuckin' insane, dude. Clippin' through walls and going into the Z axis is just... chef's kiss.
My conclusion: the 19 year wait was worth it, Dread had just about everything I could've hoped for from a followup to Fusion.
2021
I don’t have a whole lot to say on Unsighted, but I just want everyone to know that if you want the true ending, there are two missable objectives: one is atop the cathedral in the first city area. Make sure to select the character you’re talking to, AND NO ONE ELSE, otherwise you’re locked out. Secondly is an item in the fifth dungeon that you can be completely locked out of if you beat the boss before you get it. It should be a pair of "hands".
I absolutely hate missable things, especially if you're not warned about it first, and I want as few people as possible to know the pain of having to replay the entire game just because you missed one thing.
I absolutely hate missable things, especially if you're not warned about it first, and I want as few people as possible to know the pain of having to replay the entire game just because you missed one thing.
2021
It's been a long time since I last played an RPG Maker horror game, so this was super nostalgic. Honestly I felt kinda... comforted playing Evil Tonight, as bizarre as that sounds. But after the novelty wore off I did feel a sense of dread while walking through the halls of San Paolo De Rosa.
A lot of the enemies are tough as shit, even moreso if you were playing day 1. Thankfully they did ease up and made enemies a bit easier to kill in a later patch, so if you're worried about difficulty, it's not tough as nails like it used to be, even in casual mode.
The main combat of the game is a little strange at first. You hold ZR to switch into "combat mode" and let go to enter exploration mode. Instead of getting the ability to manually aim, you always face towards the nearest enemy when pressing the button, but only in the four cardinal directions. That makes aiming pretty weird, but thankfully you have a knife always tied to B, so if an enemy comes at you from an unfavorable angle, you can swipe at 'em and reposition yourself. I didn't have an issue with the combat most of the time, but there were a few instances where it didn't work the way I wanted it to and I got screwed over. This wasn't a common thing, but definitely something worth mentioning.
There's a few challenges the hardcore fans can do to really extend the time spent playing, and boy lemme tell you, I am NOT doing those. "Beat the adventure without saving." NO. THANKS. Anyone who can do this though, hats off to you, shit sounds ludicrously difficult.
Exploring in Evil Tonight is kinda slow. You don't run particularly fast, and your walk speed is atrociously slow, so there's almost no reason to always hold the run button unless you get paranoid (like I did) and walk around with ZR held the whole time until you were absolutely sure there weren't any enemies to surprise you. Usually for completing a room, you find some sort of special object, like a key or an orb that lets you progress, but it doesn't tell you where you're supposed to use it, you just gotta remember or figure it out. I thankfully only got really stuck once, but was able to find out what I needed to do by combing through everywhere I had been before. Turns out I just needed to push a bookshelf in a room I had been in before. Oh yeah, there's also no map, which sounds really bad, but since the academy is relatively small and all the areas are visually distinct, I didn't have a huge issue remembering where all the rooms were off the top of my head, which I think is just good level design.
Speaking of the visuals, Evil Tonight feels like a particularly impressive GBA game to me. The pixel art is fantastic and all the areas are filled to the brim with life and detail... okay maybe not actual life, everything's pretty dead, but it certainly is active! Also the OST kicks ass, I was not expecting it to be this good, but it really is. ESPECIALLY the boss themes, my head was boppin' every time I entered a new fight.
The bosses you fight are all important to the story, which I was surprisingly invested in. It's certainly nothing groundbreaking, but I quite enjoyed it. I don't wanna get into spoilers, but the ending was very sweet. A complaint I can probably see people bring in up is the main character, Silvia. She starts the game pretty standoffish, self-centered, and is really only doing this for the money and the fame. However, she does learn her lesson (a little late by that point if you ask me) and becomes a better person for it. She's still full of herself by the end, but in kind of an endearing way. Also she likes mint chocolate ice cream, so she's cool in my book. The main draw isn't really Silvia though, I was way more intrigued by the mystery surrounding this academy, obviously I can't go into much detail without spoiling, but I think it pays off nicely.
Overall, Evil Tonight is a fun survival horror game that keeps you at the edge of your seat with every enemy you encounter... and every enemy you don't encounter.
A lot of the enemies are tough as shit, even moreso if you were playing day 1. Thankfully they did ease up and made enemies a bit easier to kill in a later patch, so if you're worried about difficulty, it's not tough as nails like it used to be, even in casual mode.
The main combat of the game is a little strange at first. You hold ZR to switch into "combat mode" and let go to enter exploration mode. Instead of getting the ability to manually aim, you always face towards the nearest enemy when pressing the button, but only in the four cardinal directions. That makes aiming pretty weird, but thankfully you have a knife always tied to B, so if an enemy comes at you from an unfavorable angle, you can swipe at 'em and reposition yourself. I didn't have an issue with the combat most of the time, but there were a few instances where it didn't work the way I wanted it to and I got screwed over. This wasn't a common thing, but definitely something worth mentioning.
There's a few challenges the hardcore fans can do to really extend the time spent playing, and boy lemme tell you, I am NOT doing those. "Beat the adventure without saving." NO. THANKS. Anyone who can do this though, hats off to you, shit sounds ludicrously difficult.
Exploring in Evil Tonight is kinda slow. You don't run particularly fast, and your walk speed is atrociously slow, so there's almost no reason to always hold the run button unless you get paranoid (like I did) and walk around with ZR held the whole time until you were absolutely sure there weren't any enemies to surprise you. Usually for completing a room, you find some sort of special object, like a key or an orb that lets you progress, but it doesn't tell you where you're supposed to use it, you just gotta remember or figure it out. I thankfully only got really stuck once, but was able to find out what I needed to do by combing through everywhere I had been before. Turns out I just needed to push a bookshelf in a room I had been in before. Oh yeah, there's also no map, which sounds really bad, but since the academy is relatively small and all the areas are visually distinct, I didn't have a huge issue remembering where all the rooms were off the top of my head, which I think is just good level design.
Speaking of the visuals, Evil Tonight feels like a particularly impressive GBA game to me. The pixel art is fantastic and all the areas are filled to the brim with life and detail... okay maybe not actual life, everything's pretty dead, but it certainly is active! Also the OST kicks ass, I was not expecting it to be this good, but it really is. ESPECIALLY the boss themes, my head was boppin' every time I entered a new fight.
The bosses you fight are all important to the story, which I was surprisingly invested in. It's certainly nothing groundbreaking, but I quite enjoyed it. I don't wanna get into spoilers, but the ending was very sweet. A complaint I can probably see people bring in up is the main character, Silvia. She starts the game pretty standoffish, self-centered, and is really only doing this for the money and the fame. However, she does learn her lesson (a little late by that point if you ask me) and becomes a better person for it. She's still full of herself by the end, but in kind of an endearing way. Also she likes mint chocolate ice cream, so she's cool in my book. The main draw isn't really Silvia though, I was way more intrigued by the mystery surrounding this academy, obviously I can't go into much detail without spoiling, but I think it pays off nicely.
Overall, Evil Tonight is a fun survival horror game that keeps you at the edge of your seat with every enemy you encounter... and every enemy you don't encounter.
Not quite my favorite in the AA series, but pretty damn close, just a few unfortunate things that irk me.
Let's get the bad out of the way. Cases 1 and 5 drudged on for way longer than they should've, which is super lame because they have GREAT starts—just needed to trim the fat a little. What makes it worse is that the English voice acting is pretty subpar and gets especially grating during those parts, especially Ryunosuke, sadly. Case 5 at least has a satisfying conclusion, 1 and 2 have a lackluster finale. Lastly, there were a few points during gameplay where the game contradicted itself, such as needing to recheck an object before I could present it, or other annoying bits like that. Thankfully, this isn't a huge deal, and is just something the series as a whole struggles with. If anything, TGAAA is way better about this than any other game in the series.
Alright, now that that's done, let's dive into the good, and oh boy is there a lot of good. For example, the characters. The characters are VERY good. I adore this cast, they're all so colorful, charming... fruity. They're very fruity. You cannot convince me Ryunosuke and Kazuma don't have a thing going on, it's all there in the subtext. Ahem, anyway, I love this cast with all my heart.
Herlock Sholmes is undeniably the best version of Sherlock Holmes I have ever seen. He's just a big, dumb himbo that writes about his own exploits. Yes, the novels exist simultaneously with the character in this universe, it's great. Pun intended. The prosecutor, Barok van Zieks, is one of my all time favorites, just behind Blackquill. He is... a little racist, but he's so fucking funny. I would not be surprised if he turned out to be a literal vampire in TGAAR. Also, Susato? Best assistant. Not even a contest. She's actually helpful, and doesn't argue with Nick about a ladder 27 times, and is just a lovable, charming, girl. Such a breath of fresh air.
Even the minor characters are fantastic. They've all got their silly quirks, and honestly, I don't think any of them overstay their welcome. The victim in case 5 comes close, but since he's the victim, he doesn't stick around long lmao.
Another thing I wanna praise is that none of the cases in this game are standard by any means. They all do something unique and I love it. Like, one of them is just an investigation, there's literally no court. Then in another, the victim isn't murdered, they're just assaulted... I know that sounds crazy but that's really big for Ace Attorney. And then in case 3... actually, I'm not gonna say anything about case 3, it's way too good to spoil.
But yeah, considering this is a VN, there's not really a whole lot more to say. Solid story, pretty fun detective work, yeah, I can't recommend this enough if you're a fan of the series. Hell, I know people who don't like AA that liked this game. It's great, give it a shot.
Let's get the bad out of the way. Cases 1 and 5 drudged on for way longer than they should've, which is super lame because they have GREAT starts—just needed to trim the fat a little. What makes it worse is that the English voice acting is pretty subpar and gets especially grating during those parts, especially Ryunosuke, sadly. Case 5 at least has a satisfying conclusion, 1 and 2 have a lackluster finale. Lastly, there were a few points during gameplay where the game contradicted itself, such as needing to recheck an object before I could present it, or other annoying bits like that. Thankfully, this isn't a huge deal, and is just something the series as a whole struggles with. If anything, TGAAA is way better about this than any other game in the series.
Alright, now that that's done, let's dive into the good, and oh boy is there a lot of good. For example, the characters. The characters are VERY good. I adore this cast, they're all so colorful, charming... fruity. They're very fruity. You cannot convince me Ryunosuke and Kazuma don't have a thing going on, it's all there in the subtext. Ahem, anyway, I love this cast with all my heart.
Herlock Sholmes is undeniably the best version of Sherlock Holmes I have ever seen. He's just a big, dumb himbo that writes about his own exploits. Yes, the novels exist simultaneously with the character in this universe, it's great. Pun intended. The prosecutor, Barok van Zieks, is one of my all time favorites, just behind Blackquill. He is... a little racist, but he's so fucking funny. I would not be surprised if he turned out to be a literal vampire in TGAAR. Also, Susato? Best assistant. Not even a contest. She's actually helpful, and doesn't argue with Nick about a ladder 27 times, and is just a lovable, charming, girl. Such a breath of fresh air.
Even the minor characters are fantastic. They've all got their silly quirks, and honestly, I don't think any of them overstay their welcome. The victim in case 5 comes close, but since he's the victim, he doesn't stick around long lmao.
Another thing I wanna praise is that none of the cases in this game are standard by any means. They all do something unique and I love it. Like, one of them is just an investigation, there's literally no court. Then in another, the victim isn't murdered, they're just assaulted... I know that sounds crazy but that's really big for Ace Attorney. And then in case 3... actually, I'm not gonna say anything about case 3, it's way too good to spoil.
But yeah, considering this is a VN, there's not really a whole lot more to say. Solid story, pretty fun detective work, yeah, I can't recommend this enough if you're a fan of the series. Hell, I know people who don't like AA that liked this game. It's great, give it a shot.