While its aesthetics and visuals are absolutely bonkers and I DO love that.

Critters for Sale just kinda stays in a weird space for me.

It's too consistent in terms of world building (while, yes, insane) for me to just embrace the aesthetics, feel and interpret the game in my own way.

While at the same time, i feel its world building isn't as well established or well executed for me to immerse myself in it, be it in a way where it makes sense within this illogical world's boundaries, be it in a way in where it's intentionally fuzzy and dissonant.

The ending feels a bit off, maybe for being anticlimatic, maybe for being inconclusive in any way, shape or form, maybe because i just couldn't really care too much about what it has done in terms of world building.

It's charming, it's visually interesting, but i just really didn't connect a lot with it.

Would still be interested in playing a new game by Sonoshee, I do believe in the potential of their work and of this series (?), as i presume from the final bit of text.

A guilty pleasure of mine. It's super janky but also super fun. The worst part about it is the fact that best girl Kati doesn't have a route. Oh well, Rin is also really great!
Might replay in the future to hunt achievments.

EDIT: HOLY FUCKING SHIT THEY JUST RELEASED A KATI ROUTE DLC FOR A 10 YEAR OLD GAME OUT OF NOWHERE I CAN'T BELIEVE IT TEENAGE ME IS SO FUCKING HAPPY RIGHT NOW I WAITED FOR SO LONG I NEVER TOUGHT IT WOULD HAPPEN INSTANT UPGRADE TO 5 STARS

(Original Rating: 3.5 stars)

"IF YOU SAVE ME, I WILL FIGHT YOU AGAIN, AND I WILL KILL YOU. I'LL KILL THE PEOPLE THAT ARE PRECIOUS TO YOU FIRST, AND THEN YOU. AND YOU WON'T BE THE LAST. I'LL CONTINUE TO KILL EVEN AFTER THAT."

a mysterious game that came from the future.
this was noriaki okamura's big directorial debut, but unfortunately the depth just isn't there.
it feels uncomfortable at parts just how little is given to you plotwise in what is clearly trying to be something grounded in morality. there's a bad end just for deliberately destroying every single building and making sure all survivors end up dead -- something that is not possible unless done on purpose, to which leo says "i was... just playing...", and that's fantastic! but nothing past this extremely interesting detail is really given to the player to latch onto, and the game ends up becoming what i would assume it didn't want to be: an action game instead of a cinematic action game, a la mgs.

atmosphere, sound effects, music, and visuals are all top-notch. this is a konami game being produced by kojima, and all the assets are amazing. i can only imagine how this game felt to play on launch. it truly must've seemed otherworldly -- and im sure the intense care that went into the battle system both feeling and looking great was not by pure coincidence. the game features an awe-inspiring OP, "kiss me sunlights", a beautiful classical piece that only emphasizes the feeling of starting something you've never experienced before. you would think this is where a konami game being produced by kojima and directed by a man that has worked closely with kojima would put in some over the top anime cg cutscenes, at the very least custom visuals to match the epic swell of the music -- but half of the opening is just the regular mecha battles you do in the game. it's why i get so emotional watching the opening to ZONE OF THE ENDERS; i can truly feel how proud they were of the gameplay. how it looked, how it felt, how it immersed you into jehuty, how it immersed you into fighting. i consider this game to have one of the best OP's for any video game ever. in spite of this being an obvious cheese-fest of gundam and general mecha anime, they did not go crazy. there is nothing they could've created for the OP that could beat what they had already made in-game. and that's wonderful to me.

ZoE is a little strange and all over the place, but i think its soul is genuine.

"Boy, will you answer one stupid question?"
"Yes, what is it?"
"Was I strong?"
"...It's hard to believe that I'm still alive."
"Is that so?
Thank you.
...
Beautiful. You knew how beautiful the stars really are."