Judi Azmand
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COGConnectedLatest Reviews
Back in 2014, I had the opportunity to review Toukiden on my dusty PS Vita that seemingly brought it back to life for a good while. It was enjoyable, but there were aspects missing that made the excitement slowly disappear due to the constraint in freedom and variety. About a year later, its remaster/expansion/half-sequel, Toukiden: Kiwami, was released that expanded the previously handheld-exclusive-game onto the PS4 and PC with the addition of new story elements as well as other features. We are now here with Toukiden 2 in 2017 that boasts a new story, additional battle mechanics, more customization features and an open-world aspect amongst other things. How does it hold up? Surprisingly well.
The Atelier series recently just began its current “mysterious” ark with Atelier Sophie back in June 2016 – you can check out our review for it here. While it packed some changes, tweaks, and updates to its staple formula, they were changes that would either agitate or entertain returning fans that were largely subjective in nature. With Atelier Firis being the second installment in the mysterious ark, we get to see how Gust has decided to tweak it yet again while keeping the core alchemy, fluffy and overly cute characters, as well as other features the Atelier series is known for.
XCOM is one franchise that has been around nearly forever, but not everyone knows that it existed past 2012. Its history spans all the way back to 1994, but it’s in 2012 where XCOM made its first real step into the current “modern” gaming world. XCOM: Enemy Unknown was the “re-imagined” remake of the first XCOM game, UFO: Enemy Unknown, that originally launched in 1994. It was an impressive game that humbled many and won numerous “Game of the Year” awards. Eventually XCOM: Enemy Within, the expansion to XCOM: Enemy Unknown, was released that added more gameplay elements and content which further impressed its audience. Two years later, we’re given XCOM 2 and I can tell you one thing: it still doesn’t fail to impress. There’s a whole lot of the same, but even more of the new as well as the better.
The Atelier series is one of those under-the-radar JRPGs that is constantly overshadowed by the likes of Final Fantasy, Kingdom Hearts, Megami Tensei, and Tales series here in North America. With its staple formula embodying a unique world full of alchemy, light heartedness, and innocence, it may seem odd and not your cup of tea at first. However, the Atelier series has been gradually making its mark since 2005 with Atelier Sophie being the twelfth main game in the series to hit North American shores. The Atelier series is also constantly evolving and changing with each ark and subsequent installment. As the previous “dusk” ark was completed by Atelier Shallie, Atelier Sophie begins the brand new “mysterious” ark fully jam-packed with new characters, themes, and even artist to keep things fresh and exciting.
Here we are on the third and final installment to the Final Fantasy XIII series. While I’ve played FFXIII myself, I watched my sister play FFXIII-2 instead. With that said, if you’ve played both games, or know the gist of the story, it’s evident that one of the main elements in the game is the bond between the sisters Lightning and Serah. In FFXIII you play mainly as Lightning to save Serah, then in the FFXIII-2 you play as Serah to save Lighting. For my sister and me, we chose to approach the FFXIII universe by playing the respective games we did, one for each, making our experience that much more memorable. I know cheesy right? Coming back around full circle it’s once again my turn to play as Lightning tackling whatever comes my way. With the first two games resulting in quite a bit of loose ends and criticism, I yearned for this final installment to bring the FFXIII series to a commendable close.