Kyle Bradford
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GameSpewLatest Reviews
Warriors Orochi 4 will not turn a non-believer into a believer. If you are already uninterested in the Warriors franchise, or musou games in general, Warriors Orochi 4 isn’t going to change your mind. Yet, I imagine that for most fans, they’re merely looking for more of the same. Despite being formulaic and repetitive, you know what you’re getting with a Warriors game. And if that’s your thing, you’ll no doubt have some fun with Warriors Orochi 4.
What remains, even still, is a sense of contradictory emotions. I do love Valkyria Chronicles 4 for many reasons. Its characters are more endearing than any I had encountered in the series thus far and its systems and mechanics are still as engaging as ever. However, there is still plenty going against even its most positive attributes. Unable, or simply refusing, to acknowledge its own identity as a product of anti-fascist ideals, I can’t help but find its story underwhelming. More concerned with its own past than its future, I also can’t help but find its systems simply more of the same. That even at its best, I’m still reminded of how it could have been better. Though, to be clear, that doesn’t make Valkyria Chronicles 4 bad. All it does is force me to admit that we can all sometimes become prisoners to our own nostalgia.
Yet even still, its central conceit looms over it ominously. Its inability to show you the agency you may or may not possess robs the experience of the satisfaction it so desperately wants to give you on its final scene. As its ending is seemingly one of many – however differing they may or may not be – it all feels inefficacious. Like the cast over your broken leg from the long jump you weren’t able to finish, no matter how good the rest of the experience is, that is what people will remember.
After all, the gap between the original and its imitation is measured in feet, not inches. For many, the difference between the two is so obvious that you can tell from a distance which is which. Like a Mario game playing opposite your average mascot platformer, there’s plenty of nuance and subtlety lost in the translation from one to the other. The same is true for Dragon Quest, perhaps even more so because of its irregularity. Because, at the end of the day, nothing is ever going to match up against the original that inspired it. In an age where countless games are trying to imitate the past, there’s nothing like having Dragon Quest back where it belongs. It is indeed one of the best games in a series of greats, and a JRPG that is without a doubt an instant classic. One I will undoubtedly cherish for many years to come.
This different take on your typical fantasy world is part of the Atelier series’ charm, even 20 years in. Other games as of late may tout their unexpected diversion from norms like these, but Atelier has been doing it for years. In Atelier Lydie & Suelle: The Alchemists and the Mysterious Paintings, there’s a charming story and intricate systems that help make it one of the best entries to date. I can’t think of a better way to help celebrate 20 years of this long-running series.
Perhaps even worse is that Lost Sphear doesn’t have much to say, other than how remembering our past is just as important as enjoying the present. I love Tokyo RPG Factory’s admiration of the past, but Lost Sphear offers little for both longtime fans of the genre and casual passersby. If a taste of the past is all you need, however, then it will surely be your companion on that trip down memory road. Just don’t be looking for anything more than that here.
Overall, Tokyo Xanadu eX+ is incredibly satisfying. With so many Persona-clones these days, Xanadu impressively nails it. Thanks to the game’s strong focus on characters, I fell in love with the cast like I was watching a season of a great anime. With a great soundtrack that had me tapping my foot along for hours and the substantial amount of content included, there’s enough here to justify a purchase for any JRPG fan – whether you’ve played Tokyo Xanadu already or not.
When all is said and done however, any minor shortcomings are easily forgiven. Persona 5 is good. It’s very, very good. It’s the sort of game that only comes around once every few years – a game that is so unique in every aspect that it’d be impossible to mistake a single moment of it for anything else. Also, it’s a game about real life, despite the wacky hijinks you’ll often find yourself in. It’s about the moments you have with your friends, laughing around a hot pot as you make jokes only those there would understand. It’s within those moments that Persona 5 enters a league of its own, untouched by its contemporaries in every respect. While I could go on, I must eventually start new game plus so I’ll finish simply with this: Persona 5 is undoubtedly one of the best RPGs of all time. It is truly a special game.
Not since Mark of the Ninja have I played a stealth game that felt so impactful, lingering in my thoughts long after I put the controller down. It doesn’t wait up for you or make sure you’re comfortable. It forces you into a corner, snarls its teeth and dares you to try again. It can be frustrating, God knows I cursed plenty of times while playing it. Yet at the end of the day, Rain World does what it seeks out to do with such finesse and vision that it feels like a game that was meant to be made.
It’s hard to categorically call The Silver Case a “good game”, in the traditional sense. It’s mechanics are out-dated by more than a decade, its story and plot are hard to understand, and it feels out of place in every moment. At the same time, however, it uses those detractions positively. It’s a testament to Suda51’s unique approach to design, becoming a wholly engrossing tale with a cast of odd characters. It can be crude, vulgar and horrifying in every possible way. The way you interpret these moments will be dependent on your own investment in the game itself. It’s an experience that is exclusive to the medium, a combination of original storytelling and presentation that elevates it above your initial reactions. The Silver Case is a perfect example of why Suda51 is the David Lynch of video games. While it makes itself intentionally difficult to understand and is definitely not a game for everyone, if you’re interested in the weird and surreal, The Silver Case is an absolute must play.