lostleader
2021
Ultimately, Maquette is a one trick pony of a puzzle game that often involves somewhat devious out of the box solving that leads to more frustration then making you feel clever. The story is rather one note, the visuals are really pretty, but overall everything about this game feels kinda hollow.
I don't really want to seem so harsh on this game, but it certainly feels like it's trying to say something with it's story, but neither side really connects. Puzzles led to scenes of areas that the characters have been too, but really they just feel more like dolls playing house rather than exploring someone's life. Honestly, it feels like this could have been an entirely different story involving different people with similar beats and no one would be the wiser. Nothing substantial happens with the gameplay, and nothing narrative wise effects it. It's a lot like giving Flower (From Thatgamecompany) a story when that clearly wasn't the point of it. Flower is meant to look pretty, be visually appealing, and be a mellowed out experience. If you give Flower a story outside of it, like a father and daughter bonding, then suddenly it starts to losing a lot of it's magic. That's what Maquette did, it had this really neat visual puzzle game and slapped a story where it shouldn't go. This, of course, isn't getting into the quality of the story either, but I think it's better said that it's plots been done better in lesser time by lesser budgeted games.
Majority of puzzles feel like they can be thought out with guess work, but a number of them feel far too out there for a player to just get. It's not even to a different mechanic either, nearly every single puzzle uses it's ability of size manipulation and movement to get anything done. It's just the way that the game will often require you to use that movement in a way that isn't even introduced to you. It really is an oddity of "was I just not paying attention" , and the way the game teaches you what to pay attention to. It's fairly consistent about using items to unlock a path to get between points A, B, and C so you can acquire mcguffin D. Later on however you are consistently asked to start thinking outside the box in order to solve puzzles or pay attention to certain features you usually wouldn't. This by all means doesn't mean all the puzzles are bad, but I did feel often ripped off compared to just saying that was a clever way of doing something. Still for doing exactly one thing for nearly 5 hours, I have to say that the games puzzles start strong and end strong. It may be a consistent trick, but this pony at least exhausted everything it could from it.
This puzzler is certainly a pain in terms of where it really sets in how much I like it, but I have always been a real big fan of small miniature things to began with. The story is serviceable, but the puzzles at least have some proper substance to them. So it's really hard to just say Maquette is a bad game. Fairly, I think what rubs people the wrong way with Maquette is it's story rather than it's mechanics. The story just feels detached, and when you are rewarded from solving a hard puzzle you rather enjoy something good over two hipsters whining about not getting a home.
I don't really want to seem so harsh on this game, but it certainly feels like it's trying to say something with it's story, but neither side really connects. Puzzles led to scenes of areas that the characters have been too, but really they just feel more like dolls playing house rather than exploring someone's life. Honestly, it feels like this could have been an entirely different story involving different people with similar beats and no one would be the wiser. Nothing substantial happens with the gameplay, and nothing narrative wise effects it. It's a lot like giving Flower (From Thatgamecompany) a story when that clearly wasn't the point of it. Flower is meant to look pretty, be visually appealing, and be a mellowed out experience. If you give Flower a story outside of it, like a father and daughter bonding, then suddenly it starts to losing a lot of it's magic. That's what Maquette did, it had this really neat visual puzzle game and slapped a story where it shouldn't go. This, of course, isn't getting into the quality of the story either, but I think it's better said that it's plots been done better in lesser time by lesser budgeted games.
Majority of puzzles feel like they can be thought out with guess work, but a number of them feel far too out there for a player to just get. It's not even to a different mechanic either, nearly every single puzzle uses it's ability of size manipulation and movement to get anything done. It's just the way that the game will often require you to use that movement in a way that isn't even introduced to you. It really is an oddity of "was I just not paying attention" , and the way the game teaches you what to pay attention to. It's fairly consistent about using items to unlock a path to get between points A, B, and C so you can acquire mcguffin D. Later on however you are consistently asked to start thinking outside the box in order to solve puzzles or pay attention to certain features you usually wouldn't. This by all means doesn't mean all the puzzles are bad, but I did feel often ripped off compared to just saying that was a clever way of doing something. Still for doing exactly one thing for nearly 5 hours, I have to say that the games puzzles start strong and end strong. It may be a consistent trick, but this pony at least exhausted everything it could from it.
This puzzler is certainly a pain in terms of where it really sets in how much I like it, but I have always been a real big fan of small miniature things to began with. The story is serviceable, but the puzzles at least have some proper substance to them. So it's really hard to just say Maquette is a bad game. Fairly, I think what rubs people the wrong way with Maquette is it's story rather than it's mechanics. The story just feels detached, and when you are rewarded from solving a hard puzzle you rather enjoy something good over two hipsters whining about not getting a home.
2017
I am in complete shock at a mobile game using a good control scheme ON TOP of a rather interesting story to boot! Here we are though, Data Wing is easily one of the biggest surprises I have experienced on my phone, and everything about it just works. It has variety in it's gameplay, neat mechanics that keep challenging you, and a soundtrack that is a boop.
Really Data Wing understood the assignment of how to make a good mobile game by being accessible, easy to understand, and made in bite size chunks that give an easy pick up and play attitude. You play as a neat little triangle, named Data Wing, that needs to navigate through a bunch of mazes, and pending on the objective, either go real fast or find a way out. You take orders from two different little AI buddies that are both charming and a bit insulting to you. They each have some fun little dialogue while also telling you a bit of their goals and what they want to do. There is also another story in the background being told as you collect various little user logs that help flesh out the overall narrative, but this is completely optional.
Data Wing isn't particularly long, but it absolutely has legs to become more of a series. Intuitive controls, interesting story, and challenging gameplay just make this free game even more of a winning combination. If you have a phone capable of running it, download for a good time!
Really Data Wing understood the assignment of how to make a good mobile game by being accessible, easy to understand, and made in bite size chunks that give an easy pick up and play attitude. You play as a neat little triangle, named Data Wing, that needs to navigate through a bunch of mazes, and pending on the objective, either go real fast or find a way out. You take orders from two different little AI buddies that are both charming and a bit insulting to you. They each have some fun little dialogue while also telling you a bit of their goals and what they want to do. There is also another story in the background being told as you collect various little user logs that help flesh out the overall narrative, but this is completely optional.
Data Wing isn't particularly long, but it absolutely has legs to become more of a series. Intuitive controls, interesting story, and challenging gameplay just make this free game even more of a winning combination. If you have a phone capable of running it, download for a good time!
2023
It's effectively one neat and interesting Christmas level with an unlock system that is a bit hair splitting to get to some actual goodies. Each time you beat the level you get to unlock one of nine presents from Toree. They can range from sound tests to different characters to whole new games. None of the presents themselves are particularly bad, but it is annoying that extra content is unlocked by constantly repeating the level over and over again.
Still, it's a pretty inoffensive game with a good level, extra games to unlock, and everything is free to boot. Toree really is the chick that keeps on giving us platforming goodness, as well as as some other neat ideas that are showcased here.
Still, it's a pretty inoffensive game with a good level, extra games to unlock, and everything is free to boot. Toree really is the chick that keeps on giving us platforming goodness, as well as as some other neat ideas that are showcased here.
No one really thought they make another game starting Kiryu, and frankly I don't see this game really justifying it. While the ending of Yakuza 6 was spotty , it at least gave Kiryu a proper out in his role in the world of Like a Dragon. Like a Dragon Gaiden however is a whirlwind of nonsensical story lines of Kiryu saving his new friend, and going along with things anyway.
The game's plot is really distracting once you get down to it, and it's only empathized with the way it's structured. Gaiden takes place between all of Like a Dragon 7's story, yet they can't help, but spoil a lot of the bigger reveals in that game opposed to simply showing what Joryu was up too. On top of that, there really is only one big interlude part of Gaiden that goes into 7 which makes me think their might have been a little more, but they felt the game just didn't have enough momentum to carry it any further. To add to that, all the substories going through one of the new character's request system, opposed to just wandering around like usual, really makes this game feel both unpolished and oddly restrictive. The game continues to feel this way with having only two areas to explore, and some mandatory side quests to progress through the story. All of this wouldn't have been so bad if the games plot just worked, but it constantly feels like a ping pong game of Joryu moving from Sotenbori to the Castle to Sotenbori again once you exhaust all the options there. It's also odd because most Like a Dragon games tend to just have one area to really explore, but with the way the story and mission structure work it just doesn't feel like organic movement.
As much as I don't care for the plot though, I would be reminisced with a number of events or scenes from this game. Especially in it's final chapter, Gaiden really does show that Joryu is an old dog that needs to show some new pups some tricks as well as diving deeper into the man that he has become. There is a nice amount of scenes that recount to Joryu's past and have him reflect on what that has meant to him. Gaiden, of course, can't be a simple trip to memory lane, but I kinda also sort wish it was, at least in terms of showing more of Joryu's character.
Gameplay certainly did show up to play though. I feel that Gaiden really embraced it's inner goofiness with the spy style being added to Joryu's styles. It has a lot of wonderful wackiness to the games combat, while also keeping his Dragon style intact for those more one on one fights that require power. Really if it's one thing they did flawlessly and something I want them to go with more, it's making more wacky movesets like this.
Honestly, I don't think this game should really exist even after playing it. If it had to, I wish they worked on it a bit more to make it more in line with the other Yakuza games. Still, not all of it is bad, and I still think it's a better game than Yakuza 3's mess. Plenty of people will have a fun time with it for sure, but trust that this game will be remembered in bits, and not as a whole.
The game's plot is really distracting once you get down to it, and it's only empathized with the way it's structured. Gaiden takes place between all of Like a Dragon 7's story, yet they can't help, but spoil a lot of the bigger reveals in that game opposed to simply showing what Joryu was up too. On top of that, there really is only one big interlude part of Gaiden that goes into 7 which makes me think their might have been a little more, but they felt the game just didn't have enough momentum to carry it any further. To add to that, all the substories going through one of the new character's request system, opposed to just wandering around like usual, really makes this game feel both unpolished and oddly restrictive. The game continues to feel this way with having only two areas to explore, and some mandatory side quests to progress through the story. All of this wouldn't have been so bad if the games plot just worked, but it constantly feels like a ping pong game of Joryu moving from Sotenbori to the Castle to Sotenbori again once you exhaust all the options there. It's also odd because most Like a Dragon games tend to just have one area to really explore, but with the way the story and mission structure work it just doesn't feel like organic movement.
As much as I don't care for the plot though, I would be reminisced with a number of events or scenes from this game. Especially in it's final chapter, Gaiden really does show that Joryu is an old dog that needs to show some new pups some tricks as well as diving deeper into the man that he has become. There is a nice amount of scenes that recount to Joryu's past and have him reflect on what that has meant to him. Gaiden, of course, can't be a simple trip to memory lane, but I kinda also sort wish it was, at least in terms of showing more of Joryu's character.
Gameplay certainly did show up to play though. I feel that Gaiden really embraced it's inner goofiness with the spy style being added to Joryu's styles. It has a lot of wonderful wackiness to the games combat, while also keeping his Dragon style intact for those more one on one fights that require power. Really if it's one thing they did flawlessly and something I want them to go with more, it's making more wacky movesets like this.
Honestly, I don't think this game should really exist even after playing it. If it had to, I wish they worked on it a bit more to make it more in line with the other Yakuza games. Still, not all of it is bad, and I still think it's a better game than Yakuza 3's mess. Plenty of people will have a fun time with it for sure, but trust that this game will be remembered in bits, and not as a whole.
2010
It's just Pac-man with one board resembling the word Google, and a neat easter egg of Ms. Pac-man joining you if you insert another coin. This could have been a pretty interesting multiplayer Pac-man game, but it's pretty obvious from the start that this was only meant to be a fun joke and nothing more. The game's AI gets harder as you go along, but the board itself just isn't designed well enough for casual players of Pac-man to go very far nor is this particular entertaining enough for older Pac-man lovers. It's neat to look at, and functional, but it's a joke first and foremost.
2023
A realistic look at the hardships of relationships, and how we reflect on the past. The game could really use more options like window scaling, more music, faster text speed, and more freedom of choice. Thankfully, the game is short enough that any of these shortcomings can merely be glanced over. It's a free experience, and totally brings out some sad vibes when you need it. Play it if you're ever in the mood to hurt just a little.
1998
It's hard for me to rightly look at the Shoot'em Up genre with a proper lens as I simply consider myself an outsider to it. That being said, Gunbird 2 has always fantasized me in a way that most other SHMUPs don't. The style of it looks charming, the game is very colorful, there are a multitude of characters to chose from, and it was one of the few arcade machines at this local Burger King joint I used to go to.
Going to play Gunbird 2 for nostalgic reasons; I was really surprised how beginner friendly this game can be. Like don't get me wrong, it has challenging issues, but the initial start of the game wasn't nearly as off putting as some other shmups out there. Gunbird 2 has a tendency to shift between it's first few stages giving players a chance to become more familiar with it's levels. The way that you lose power ups is gradual as it's not all at once, and the enemy attacks do have some predictable patterns once you get use to them. All in all, Gunbird 2 is at least friendly in the beginning, which makes for the last 2 levels spike in difficulty really exasperating.
Honestly, I think that's just the main problem with Gunbird 2 here. No matter how much you pay attention it can always feel like a bomb didn't go off fast enough or an attack came out way too fast. And really this is only noticeable near the end of the game, at Gunbird 2's last two levels that things feel unfair. Why there is suddenly a laser that can instantly come out, or the way certain enemies and attack patterns start attacking from the sides really feels more jarring than challenging. No enemies are introduced before hand that are like this, and the game sort requires you know when a boss is just going to fire a laser with little warning. It just makes getting to the end point, only to game over feel awful, or simply dying in these last few levels a hellish nightmare of survival that feels like there is no way out.
Still, I feel Gunbird 2 offers more to it's audience than the average SHMUP. Not to knock other SHMUPS, but the fact this game has a team attack mode with it's own unique story for each pairing is just super neat. The difficulty levels range through 9 different ones that honestly feel like a proper work up to each level. Boss and enemy designs are fairly neat and stick out on the maps without distracting the player or the bullets that you have to dodge. The backgrounds are all different and unique on each stage, and the music is very poppy. Gunbird 2 is just ascetically pleasing to look at, and deceptively friendly at first that I can't help to not recommend to others simply because it's inviting.
Going to play Gunbird 2 for nostalgic reasons; I was really surprised how beginner friendly this game can be. Like don't get me wrong, it has challenging issues, but the initial start of the game wasn't nearly as off putting as some other shmups out there. Gunbird 2 has a tendency to shift between it's first few stages giving players a chance to become more familiar with it's levels. The way that you lose power ups is gradual as it's not all at once, and the enemy attacks do have some predictable patterns once you get use to them. All in all, Gunbird 2 is at least friendly in the beginning, which makes for the last 2 levels spike in difficulty really exasperating.
Honestly, I think that's just the main problem with Gunbird 2 here. No matter how much you pay attention it can always feel like a bomb didn't go off fast enough or an attack came out way too fast. And really this is only noticeable near the end of the game, at Gunbird 2's last two levels that things feel unfair. Why there is suddenly a laser that can instantly come out, or the way certain enemies and attack patterns start attacking from the sides really feels more jarring than challenging. No enemies are introduced before hand that are like this, and the game sort requires you know when a boss is just going to fire a laser with little warning. It just makes getting to the end point, only to game over feel awful, or simply dying in these last few levels a hellish nightmare of survival that feels like there is no way out.
Still, I feel Gunbird 2 offers more to it's audience than the average SHMUP. Not to knock other SHMUPS, but the fact this game has a team attack mode with it's own unique story for each pairing is just super neat. The difficulty levels range through 9 different ones that honestly feel like a proper work up to each level. Boss and enemy designs are fairly neat and stick out on the maps without distracting the player or the bullets that you have to dodge. The backgrounds are all different and unique on each stage, and the music is very poppy. Gunbird 2 is just ascetically pleasing to look at, and deceptively friendly at first that I can't help to not recommend to others simply because it's inviting.
2017
A pretty faithful remake of the demo made as a NES game. There really isn't much else here as the demo itself only had so much content. I'd be lying if I didn't say the controls and gameplay didn't transition well on to the NES, but they are at least serviceable. Everything else looks pretty good for NES standards.
2019
It's hard to really determine what I actually like about Pokemon Masters EX mainly because the game as changed so much and yet not at all through out the course of it's lifetime. Despite this though, I can't help, but think the way the game actually operates now is by making you not wanting to actually play the game.
Maybe auto battling was always apart of the game or maybe it just wasn't as good or my team wasn't as good, but at a certain point, Pokemon Masters EX stops being a real time strategy type game, and more like a simulator for all your fancy new gacha gains. I really don't say this lightly nor do I say it as a way to diss the game. I think that both the way it uses active turn based battling is one of the best ways it was ever been implemented; while at the same time this game incorporates and demands so much of you that it's hard to not opt-in for usage like skip tickets or simply auto battling at higher speeds to get done with the content you are playing while doing something else. It's not like the gameplay is particularly bad either as a lot of it is simply standard JRPG buffing/debuffing and attacking opponents in a more stressed and time matter. The limited amount of moves makes menu-ing a far easier task compared to Final Fantasy's system, and it works in a regenerative mp like system that makes burst of attacking manage able while optimizing your attacks. In essence, it's a battle system that keeps you engaged while not overwhelming as long as you pay attention.
That being said Pokemon Masters EX is kinda shameless with it constantly needing you to power up your characters before a fight even starts, and even being at the right level can mean nothing if you don't also take advantage of other systems of power it uses like it's sync grinds (these act as skill trees) and move levels (a prestige like system). This all effectively means that either you are in for a long grind to get usable teams, or the option the devs want, buying currency to spend in their game. While I can't say much about my luck as either good or bad compared to others, I will say that getting a gacha character you want here, really isn't that bad. I've gotten plenty that I wanted to get, and some that I just got through it's free pulls. The main problem with the gacha isn't obtaining trainers you want, the problem comes with it's move level system. While the game does a good job to give you plenty ways to power up your characters through some grinding methods, overall most characters don't start becoming good till their 3rd move level, and that makes it rather frustrating when you have nearly hundreds of trainers that are competing for those types of power ups. Add that together with a bunch of new games and designs coming out, multiple different types to take advantage of in battle, and the various geared styled of move sets can make the biggest grind of them all being the gacha system. It really isn't like Fate Grand Order or Fire Emblem where a single character can carry you, you need multi-characters able to do that with various types that can be your ace in their better match ups, then if you are really dedicated, have all their bonuses match up for even greater power boost. Ultimately, what a lot of this game comes out to is how stacked is your whole gallery of characters over actual strategy options.
Pokemon Masters EX does have a lot more to offer than just it's battle system and fancy character designs tho. I can't express enough how this game just kinda gives us some of the most compelling writing for various pokemon characters out there that even some of it's games just don't touch. The main story is surprisingly endearing, and gives insight for the new characters introduced, as well as a spot light for some older characters to boot. It's honestly a bit jarring because you either get a whole lot of development for a character or none at all, and pending on who you like, that coin flip could be a bad result for you. Still there is absolutely one thing that anyone can enjoy from this game, and that's the soundtrack. The sheer amount of remixes, new, and old songs is just amazing. I really can't explain just how good this games soundtrack is, and if there is anything I'm grateful for this game for, it's that.
With all that being said, Pokemon Masters EX is honestly kinda average. The main attraction of having all the pokemon characters together is neat. It has led to a lot of interesting interactions and designs, but it's really hard to justify anyone getting into it that just doesn't have a bunch of time to waste.
Maybe auto battling was always apart of the game or maybe it just wasn't as good or my team wasn't as good, but at a certain point, Pokemon Masters EX stops being a real time strategy type game, and more like a simulator for all your fancy new gacha gains. I really don't say this lightly nor do I say it as a way to diss the game. I think that both the way it uses active turn based battling is one of the best ways it was ever been implemented; while at the same time this game incorporates and demands so much of you that it's hard to not opt-in for usage like skip tickets or simply auto battling at higher speeds to get done with the content you are playing while doing something else. It's not like the gameplay is particularly bad either as a lot of it is simply standard JRPG buffing/debuffing and attacking opponents in a more stressed and time matter. The limited amount of moves makes menu-ing a far easier task compared to Final Fantasy's system, and it works in a regenerative mp like system that makes burst of attacking manage able while optimizing your attacks. In essence, it's a battle system that keeps you engaged while not overwhelming as long as you pay attention.
That being said Pokemon Masters EX is kinda shameless with it constantly needing you to power up your characters before a fight even starts, and even being at the right level can mean nothing if you don't also take advantage of other systems of power it uses like it's sync grinds (these act as skill trees) and move levels (a prestige like system). This all effectively means that either you are in for a long grind to get usable teams, or the option the devs want, buying currency to spend in their game. While I can't say much about my luck as either good or bad compared to others, I will say that getting a gacha character you want here, really isn't that bad. I've gotten plenty that I wanted to get, and some that I just got through it's free pulls. The main problem with the gacha isn't obtaining trainers you want, the problem comes with it's move level system. While the game does a good job to give you plenty ways to power up your characters through some grinding methods, overall most characters don't start becoming good till their 3rd move level, and that makes it rather frustrating when you have nearly hundreds of trainers that are competing for those types of power ups. Add that together with a bunch of new games and designs coming out, multiple different types to take advantage of in battle, and the various geared styled of move sets can make the biggest grind of them all being the gacha system. It really isn't like Fate Grand Order or Fire Emblem where a single character can carry you, you need multi-characters able to do that with various types that can be your ace in their better match ups, then if you are really dedicated, have all their bonuses match up for even greater power boost. Ultimately, what a lot of this game comes out to is how stacked is your whole gallery of characters over actual strategy options.
Pokemon Masters EX does have a lot more to offer than just it's battle system and fancy character designs tho. I can't express enough how this game just kinda gives us some of the most compelling writing for various pokemon characters out there that even some of it's games just don't touch. The main story is surprisingly endearing, and gives insight for the new characters introduced, as well as a spot light for some older characters to boot. It's honestly a bit jarring because you either get a whole lot of development for a character or none at all, and pending on who you like, that coin flip could be a bad result for you. Still there is absolutely one thing that anyone can enjoy from this game, and that's the soundtrack. The sheer amount of remixes, new, and old songs is just amazing. I really can't explain just how good this games soundtrack is, and if there is anything I'm grateful for this game for, it's that.
With all that being said, Pokemon Masters EX is honestly kinda average. The main attraction of having all the pokemon characters together is neat. It has led to a lot of interesting interactions and designs, but it's really hard to justify anyone getting into it that just doesn't have a bunch of time to waste.
It's a puzzle game with no rhyme or reason when it comes to playing it, but you do get fun little themes and pictures that can be displayed on a screen if you do complete the puzzles. Honestly though, the puzzles here are rather tedious and minor over an actual challenge. The biggest offender being the picross portion of this game. While most picross games have some sort of ability to tell you if you are heading into the right direction or messing up, Hello Kitty Puzzle Party just doesn't have anything beyond the basic premise. I don't think younger kids would enjoy picross comparatively due to how little help you get with it, and the jigsaw puzzles are relatively brain dead by comparison making me question who this game is actually for. As a distraction, Hello Kitty Puzzle Party is fine, but if you want an actual Hello Kitty experience, this is not it.
2011
A great tool for practicing faster and easier competitive Pokemon along with a rather passionate community. Great for those that like the battle aspects of Pokemon or simple theory crafting with Pokemon. Not much else, but it's not really advertised as anything, but that.
It was a neat time waster than really shouldn't have needed online to function. Now with online gone, this little fun piece of a screen saver is no longer with us
+ Fast pace levels
+ Music is stellar
+ Game has personality / charm
~ A lot of gimmicky levels
~ Feels like there is more to the story
~ Rayman's world is rather creepy and weird
- Music is very glitchy / wont loop properly
- All bosses feel more like obstacles
- Later levels lack a lot of color / mostly dark
- Collecting all the lums is tedious due to placement.
+ Music is stellar
+ Game has personality / charm
~ A lot of gimmicky levels
~ Feels like there is more to the story
~ Rayman's world is rather creepy and weird
- Music is very glitchy / wont loop properly
- All bosses feel more like obstacles
- Later levels lack a lot of color / mostly dark
- Collecting all the lums is tedious due to placement.
A choose your own adventure game that doesn't take itself seriously at all. If you enjoy absurd humor, skeletons, and adventure games you're going to have a good time. Sadly, there really isn't much else when it comes to this game as it's 90% text based. Still, it's short and good for a nice laugh.
2019
How they thought this was a cash cow is beyond me, but I still wanted to play the darn thing. At least put it on switch or something!