YourCousinRoman
The original release was probably my most played 3DS game due to Raid mode. It still mostly holds up, though the awkward dodge and tedious final boss remain unchanged in the port. I'll probably do a few more raid runs for old time's sake. And you don't actually need graphics in a game to be significantly better than here, you know?
I really liked the new characters they brought in and have subsequently done nothing with. Another casualty of RE6 being received so poorly, I suppose.
I really liked the new characters they brought in and have subsequently done nothing with. Another casualty of RE6 being received so poorly, I suppose.
There aren't enough songs. That's what sticks out once you clear the story and move onto Free Dance. Some of the choreography is weird but I'm not a dancing guy and your eyes are drawn away from it by the UI.
Story is bad, you can see why the later dancing games dropped the idea like a stone.
Story is bad, you can see why the later dancing games dropped the idea like a stone.
2021
Felt I needed a playthrough before starting Strangers in Paradise. Pixel remaster is good stuff - excellent art and music, some smart quality of life changes. But it is of its time, and that meets some elements are as bare bones as can be imagined. I ended up overlevelled hunting Warmech to complete the bestiary.
2022
Love the aesthetic, I think they've basically nailed it. It's a fun - if very short - little visual novel.
The solitaire mini game kinda sucks, though.
The solitaire mini game kinda sucks, though.
2022
Attempted to resume a half-complete playthrough and it refused to meet me halfway by being at least mid. I don't know how you drop the ball this bad. Ringo can't carry a game on her own, not with this hollow a supporting cast, not through these cheap dungeons and the worst attempt to iterate on Press Turn of any Atlus game. The Sabbath mechanic truly ruins it: even trash enemies have just that bit too much health so that you have to build stacks to clear encounters efficiently. But since the advantage from hitting weaknesses isn't shared by enemies, they can't be a real threat - they don't get their own Sabbath or bonus turns, so they can't be as threatening as encounters in other games. Only the risky mobs are genuinely dangerous, and that's by dint of a level hike and some health/damage sliders being moved. Bosses are also bad.
Dropped the game with the Mothmen ambush, it just got too stupid. And whoever thought the vent sections were a good idea needs demoted immediately - I couldn't believe how aggressively they were wasting my time.
The whole game is such a disappointment. OG Soul Hackers is the only reason I didn't wholesale write off 5th gen Atlus, and this wasn't a worthy follow up in any way.
Dropped the game with the Mothmen ambush, it just got too stupid. And whoever thought the vent sections were a good idea needs demoted immediately - I couldn't believe how aggressively they were wasting my time.
The whole game is such a disappointment. OG Soul Hackers is the only reason I didn't wholesale write off 5th gen Atlus, and this wasn't a worthy follow up in any way.
The first killer was obvious, the second strained credulity a bit. Felt like padding. Some real dipshit writing in places. They really don't leverage the setting effectively for backgrounds, it's solely a contrivance for the story, and I think if they'd thought about it and used it (for transition screens, even!) it'd be worth another point.
I wasn't as annoyed by Ranko as some, but Astrid really carried it.
I wasn't as annoyed by Ranko as some, but Astrid really carried it.
2012
Replay, trying out the PS5 version because the dualsense could theoretically make the game even better. It was a benefit but not in the way it would be if the game was made with it in mind at the start. Still, Hotline Miami remains fantastic.
2023
I think Strikers set the bar for Persona spin-offs, and Tactica falls a little short. It's good, but there's more that could be done here. If they iterate on the design (P6T maybe?) I think they could be onto a winner. It also runs longer than it should - we didn't need a separate kingdom for the final boss, it should've followed immediately on from the emotional climax of the story. Also needs to have a number of playable characters immediately available (not locked behind DLC) so you can rotate complete squads. I don't think everyone did from what I've seen, but with shared EXP it's good for variety. No one felt useless. If you enjoy puzzles the "clear in one turn" challenges are good ones, you could make a whole game of those (probably). I enjoyed my time with it.
Doesn't work quite as well as it should, mechanically or narratively. Lots of clumsiness in the platforming, some puzzles are a bit obtuse. Only unlocking the texts from other characters when you hit Mr Donut was a clear mistake.
Replay. As good as ever.