A fun layton game, but it feels like a step down from the previous entries. While everything is still good here, most elements just feel lesser. The stakes are smaller, the environment and plot are less interesting, the character interaction isn't as fun, puzzles aren't as consistently great as before. However, everything here is still pretty fun. It looks good, music is great, everything you would want in a puzzle game visual novel like this is accounted for. I was a bit mixed on newcomer Emmy. I like what she adds to the group dynamic, but it felt like she was missing something to flesh out her character more. One of the things I really like about the series is the dynamic between Luke and Layton, and since this is a prequel, the dynamic isn't really there since Luke acts pretty different this time around. It doesn't make it bad or anything, just less strong than previous. I would probably rate it higher if it wasn't released after the best Layton game.

It's aight. It's pretty tense a lot of the time, and it does a good job at cultivating stress. However, it has the same issue the first game has where you really only need to use one of the cameras. The worst part is how luck is factored in. It's not a huge issue in the main 5 nights, but I did get screwed over randomly while playing a few times. However, Night 6 was pretty annoying because it felt like every time I'd need to tend to one issue but it wouldn't be possible because of something else and I'd die despite playing well. Still fun overall, but a bit less fun than the first. It feels a bit overly complex in ways that don't strictly add to the experience.

A pretty solid fast paced action platformer. It has a good blend of speed, platforming and exploration, all helped by pretty solid controls. Each level has unique gimmicks to keep things fresh, and it goes at a pretty good pace. Bosses are all decently fun too, except a couple near the end that get annoying. Some endgame stages also drag a bit, with overly spammy enemy placement. But overall fun to play.

The story, on the other hand, is not great. It starts out pretty bad with a ton of new characters, places, and ideas being thrown at you too quickly. It gets a bit better as it goes along, but takes an odd tonal shift that feels out of place. The story probably would have benefitted from being smaller scale instead of covering a global power struggle with aliens and stuff. There is an option to turn story off, so not a huge deal.

A solid metroidvania, hindered by a lack of challenging platforming and is overall just too easy. You get access to some fun movement tools but you really don't need to use them since platforming is more about fighting and dodging enemies than getting around obstacles. This results in having cool movement that feels underutilized. And enemies are not an issue since you can stock up on a TON of cheap healing items. This makes pretty much anything a cakewalk. Exploring is at least fun, and the game will mark the next objective on your map, so you won't get lost if you're just trying to get to the end. There's a weirdly high amount of focus placed on the story given how mediocre it is. It's all skippable, so not a huge problem. Music is good, but not as strong as the music from the past 2 games. Works well visually too, although the transformation animation feels a bit flat. A good game, but not quite worth $30. There's not enough content and that content isn't high enough quality to be worth a ton. Wait for a sale.

This was a replay, and my opinion is pretty much the same as it was when I played it the first time. It's the weakest of the game's four campaigns, but it's still pretty fun. The controls are pretty interesting and fun to use, but they don't get fully used a lot of the time since most of the level design is just copypasted from shovel knight's campaign. Plague of Shadows is at it's best when it's doing it's own thing. Like the story, for instance. Seeing what's happening on the other side of Shovel Knight's campaign is really fun, and Plague Knight and Mona's relationship is great and really helps carry the story. The original music and visuals are spot on, and feel just as great as the original campaigns. Overall? A pretty great time, and a worthy game to be in the treasure trove lineup.

This game is an interesting case. The gameplay is pretty fun, with a variety of obstacles that get iterated on well. The problem comes in with the game's lack of originality. The mechanics, music, story, and visuals are all fairly standard. Nothing is particularly offensive (except for some cringe dialogue and very bland UI), but nothing stands out particularly well either. I think the game could have been really great if it was more original and creative in all regards. But even with that as an issue, the game is still pretty fun.